Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (service brakes, ABS, rotors and pads, parking brake).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2003 Toyota Tundra owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
I was turning down a residential street and when I was getting up to speed. About 30 miles per hour. My truck jumped up a couple times like I hit a pit hole. I got out to inspect and see what I hit but the street was freshly paved 2 years before it was smooth as butter. I look at the truck and find out my passenger tire had fallen off. Upon further inspection I see my ball joints failed and try tire came off. It snapped the cv axle in half ripped and the brake line and abs module off and broke the frame bracket for the rack and pinon. As a result my insurance totaled my vehicle out.
The frame has failed by rusting through and continues to the brake line. It is available for inspection. The truck is no longer safe to drive due to the rust and brake issues. The truck frame could have failed in traffic causing harm to myself and other drivers. The problem has been confirmed by Yingling's in Topeka, KS, Lewis Toyota in Topeka and Crown Toyota in Lawrence, KS. They have all done inspections of the truck frame. The problem first appeared when it was taken to Yinglings in 2018 to replace the muffler.
Well I finally paid off my 2003 Toyota Tundra and I wanted to really just get a really good tune up when I say really go I mean oil change spark plugs plug wires brakes tires everything , So as they go to check my tires and brake They said that the brakes on the front didn't even go to my truck the rotors everything and that is a really big issue so now I can't get my front brakes repaired because they don't understand why those parts are on my vehicle when they shouldnt be and I need to know what to do?
I need to have rear shock replaced. They found that the bracket holder rusted thru . Shock was fine . The Rear frame corrosion and separation, spare tire frame corrosion is really bad. I have had this truck since 2004 . I absolutely love my truck. I am deeply saddened that all the care I took still didn't prevent all this damage .
I just bought a 2003 toyota tundra 4wd v8 in Feb 2022 totally unaware of any recalls or frame rust or anything even closely related! After 6 months of owing this vehicle I had the wheel bearings replaced n mechanic told me my frame has so much damage due to rust n corrosion that it is eating through parts of my frame, he mentioned that toyota did recalls etc on this n I immediately called Toyota and told them along with doing research on this matter, I was told everything expired etc n nothing can be done! Well previous owner had took it in 2012 to have rust proofing done underneath n entire frame, that was just 10 years ago! …
I was in motion and driving on a residential street, while operating vehicle at the time of accident. After the collision, the airbag did not deploy. The Takata airbag was replaced by the auto manufacturer (Toyota dealership) prior to my above mentioned accident. The auto accident occurred for unknown reasons, possibly brake failure or unexpected acceleration of the car engine.
I was recently approaching a red-light about a mile from work when I unexpectedly & suddenly was unable to stop the truck. I nearly collided with traffic in my lane & had to veer into the opposing lanes to avoid a collision. Turns out my brake-lines failed due to excessive rust which I've recently come to learn is a problem on these particular trucks. I've never had this happen before even with vehicles with well over 200K miles on them let alone well-less than 80,000; even from the same manufacturer. My dealer had to retrieve the truck from my job(130-mile round trip) & he even stated he hasn't seen brake lines fail like this one did & speculated it was due to them sitting near the frame where road-salt & "[redacted]" collects which causes them to pre-maturely rot out, potentially(obviously) causing them to burst. …
The whole chassis frame for my truck is significantly and dangerously rusted and it is breaking apart which is a safety issue for me, my family, and other drivers. This also has lead to my breaks lines failing due to rust which almost caused an accident due to me not been able to stop on a red light. There is significant rust damage to the chassis frame and in some parts of the chassis frame that were welded from factory have broken off. In other sections of the chassis frame pieces have started to fall off and there are holes through the chassis frame where there should not be holes. Parts that should be solid steel have holes through it. The rust is so bad on the chassis frame that it has rusted out the fuel lines as well just like it did the brake lines. Sections where the engine mounts go in the chassis are also heavily damage due to rust. …
I bought a brand new 2003 Toyota Tundra and never had any problems with the vehicle until my first cross country retirement trip in September 2013. My planned trip was from tennessee to california. When I reached kingman, arizona (about 1200 miles into the trip), I was traveling uphill on interstate 40 when suddenly the truck accelerated itself to a high RPM and speed. I applied the brakes but they did not respond or slow the truck down. I tried to maintain steering control, but in a split-second, I was thrown off the highway and into the hillside, trees, and bushes. The truck completely rolled over, flipped uphill, and come to a stop facing traffic. The landed driver side down, and was completely totaled. The truck only had 79,000 miles on it. A month later I learned that there was a previous recall done for this type of problem, but did not include the 2003 model. …
Brake system - we purchased our 2003 Tundra new in 2003. It didn't take long to experience a pad and rotor problem, but my wife has mostly freeway driven the truck about 90 miles per day. She seldom speeds and has a perfect track record to show for it. When I would drive the Tundra, I almost always noticed a braking hop (in the pedal). Unfortunately, she has a tendency to defer maintenance. For the most part, we have put the Tundra in the shop for new rotors or new pads(OEM) alternately approx. Every 1500 miles. John elway Toyota says they can check to see if there's anything they can do . . . Nothing yet. Toyota knows they have a problem with the downgraded braking system on these vehicles. I don't know , but suspect, a completely new, upgraded brake system, including, but not limited to rotors, pads, drums, bearings and calipers be installed. Should I just pay the $2 gs?
Brake complaints in other Tundra years
Frequently asked questions
How common are brake problems on the 2003 Toyota Tundra?
NHTSA has 41 complaints about the brakes of the 2003 Toyota Tundra, 10% of the model year's 399 complaints. The component named most often is foundation components › disc › rotor (7 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2003 Toyota Tundra brake problems?
No. NHTSA lists no brakes recall for the 2003 Toyota Tundra, though it has 7 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 2003 Toyota Tundra brake problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 50,000 miles, and 24% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 6 crashes, 0 fires and 0 injuries to brakes 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.