Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (engine, cooling system, oil leaks, timing chain, exhaust).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2007 Scion tC owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
When I bought this car, there was a couple recalls within 5 years of owning. One was fixed. The second was an oil consumption issue that my car passed by 100 miles and I was told it would not be covered. For the last few years the oil consumption has gotten worse. I have to put oil in the car when the light comes on, which is anywhere between 1k and 2k miles. As I'm driving, it can smell of burning, or start shaking, etc.
Tl* the contact owns a 2007 Toyota Scion tC. While driving at approximately 35 MPH, there was an abnormal noise coming from the vehicle and an unknown warning light illuminated. The contact stated that while the vehicle was being driven to the dealer, an unknown part of the engine fell out causing oil to spill out with fumes of smoke. There was no fire but a fire report was filed with the fire department. The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 84,000.
Vehicle burning oil at increasingly fast rate, large oil consumption. No oil light or dashboard warning. As I was driving down the highway my car shut down... I pulled over to the shoulder got out...my car was smoking... Within minutes my car was in flames.
My Scion tC burns excessive engine oil. Toyota recommend oil change every 5K miles and at about 3-4K miles after an oil change, the oil is burnt so much to the point that when I check engine oil level it's well below the length of the dipstick and red oil low warning light on the dash comes on. This is extremely dangerous, if a car stalls in the middle of the highway due to engine failure with no oil, lives can be lost due to this type of accident. There is already a class action law suite against Toyota on this. Instead of a mandatory recall, Toyota says you have to do a test first before they're willing to repair for free. I went to dealership for the test and my car burns 0.6qt/1000miles. For the 5000mile oil change interval, my car would have burnt 3qts and keep in mind this engine is designed to hold only 4.5qts. The oil level would be too low to be shown on dipstick. …
Takata recall my car's engine recently (two days ago) has been making ticking rattling noises when I start up and begin to accelerate. Took my 2007 Scion tC in to have the oil checked and they said the valve gasket cover was damaged and just needed replacement. They preformed an oil change and fixed the valve cover and hand me over the keys to take off. As I start up the car the engine is still making the ticking rattling noise. I go back into the service department and ask them if the car just needs to circulate the oil around for a bit to lubricate the engine and then the noise will go away. They all hesitated from answering the question and said it May just permanently be there. My car only has 78,000 miles and I have always kept it in good care. This problem came out of nowhere and left me incredibly disappointed driving away with the same problem left unfixed. …
On December 15, 2008 I parked my car outside of a shop in md and within 10 minutes of returning, I saw white, electrical smoke rising from under the hood. During this time the vehicle was off. As I walked to my vehicle several witnesses and the mall security had arrived and were ready with a fire extinguisher. I opened my hood and suddenly the entire engine burned in flames and almost burned several people including myself. This incident did not burn the vehicle but only the engine and it was reported to Toyota/Scion within 30 minutes of the fire. Toyota did very little to investigate the cause of the fire and over 20 days later, while my vehicle is under warranty, sent me a letter saying "the cause of the fire was not from a manufacture defect". They did not give a reason for the cause of the fire and has not done anything else about it. …
I took my car into an auto shop due to a strange scratching/ticking noise coming from my engine compartment. That is when I was informed that my engine was 2 quarts low on oil. I had just had an oil change done 1,000 miles prior, the mechanics told me that my car shouldn't be burning that much oil and that in the current condition my engine isn't going to last much longer. Now because of that I have drive chain problems and really bad blow by coming from my engine due to lack of lubrication. No engine at 115,000 miles should be consuming 2 quarts of oil every 1,000 miles. What is Toyota doing about this issue are they going to recall 2007 Scion tC engines because I know from reading the complaints my engine is not the only one that has extremely bad oil consumption which leads me to believing this is on Toyota's manufacturing not the drivers maintenance.
Car drinking oil, piston ring finally dropped. I was driving and my car started a rough idle then started knocking so I pulled over. They're running tests now but I'm no dummy, this is a piston issue. I brought my car in during the manufacturer suggested window to get this looked at on multiple occasions and they told me my car was asymptomatic despite me explaining that it was drinking excessive oil. If my car engine is ruined because of this Toyota will be paying for my new motor or one of their 2 dealerships that kept insisting I was crazy will be paying for that new motor. I've had the car since it was brand new with all the service records to prove that this should not happen.
My 2007 tC has a very large oil consumption problem to the point of between oil changes I am putting in about 1.5 quarts to 2 quarts. The vehicle never has any onboard warnings either I don't get a oil light or low oil light. It is so bad that I have to check my oil daily just to make sure my engine isnt going to blow and usually end up adding oil once to twice a week. I bought the car when there was a service maintenance on the tC for the oil consumption and the dealer I purchased it from never said anything about it having it and I never heard anything about it until after it was over I feel as Scion or Toyota should have to fix the problem for every Scion.
I bought Toyota Scion tC on April 2016 and the odometer reading was 77593 miles. On May 05, 2017 while driving from walmart to my college campus, I heard loud knocking sound coming from the engine. I immediately pulled over the side and had the car towed to my apartment building. The following Friday on May 12, 2017, I had the car towed from dallas to our mechanic shop in fort worth. The mechanic called and told me that the engine has ceased. The cost to replace the engine including the labor is $3300. I was having the oil changed every 3000 miles and I was also adding oil every 2 weeks. This excessive oil consumption has resulted in a total engine loss.
Engine complaints in other tC years
Frequently asked questions
How common are engine problems on the 2007 Scion tC?
NHTSA has 35 complaints about the engine & cooling of the 2007 Scion tC, 30% of the model year's 117 complaints. The component named most often is engine (2 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2007 Scion tC engine problems?
No. NHTSA lists no engine & cooling recall for the 2007 Scion tC, though it has 2 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2007 Scion tC engine problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 99,000 miles, and 7% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 3 fires and 1 injury to engine & cooling problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.