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Toyota · Compact Sedan

2016 Toyota Corolla

Gas

Midsize Cars
6 EPA-rated configurations
Data refreshed 2026-10-26

Safety Signal

92 / 100 from the NHTSA recall record

RecallsNHTSA campaigns 1

Complaints66 crash · 2 fire · 57 injured reported 215

Crash ratingNHTSA overall 5★

Fuel economybest combined, EPA 34 mpg

2027 2026 2025 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016

The 2016 Toyota Corolla is sold in the U.S. as a gas compact sedan with 6 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the Corolla LE Eco, is EPA-rated at 34 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 1 recall campaign for this model year, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of A. Owners have filed 215 complaints, most often about the air bags. NHTSA crash-tested it at 5 stars overall.

Toyota Corolla — photograph via Wikimedia Commons — Toyota Corolla · Photo: オーバードライブ83 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Specs & fuel economy

Source: EPA fueleconomy.gov

Configuration	Powertrain	Drive	Engine / motor	City	Hwy	Comb	Annual fuel*
Corolla LE Eco	Gas	FWD	1.8L 4-cyl	30	40	34	$1,950
Corolla LE Eco	Gas	FWD	1.8L 4-cyl	30	38	33	$2,050
Corolla	Gas	FWD	1.8L 4-cyl	29	37	32	$2,100
Corolla	Gas	FWD	1.8L 4-cyl	28	36	31	$2,150
Corolla	Gas	FWD	1.8L 4-cyl	28	36	31	$2,150
Corolla	Gas	FWD	1.8L 4-cyl	27	35	30	$2,250

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year at EPA reference fuel and electricity prices. fueleconomy.gov record ids: 36803, 36804, 36801, 36800, 36802, 36799.

Emissions & certification

Source: EPA emission certificates

Configuration	Smog rating	Emission standard	Where it can be sold new	SmartWay
Corolla LE Eco	5–7 / 10	Bin 5 / LEV-III ULEV70	All 50 states (federal, all altitudes); California and states following California standards	SmartWay
Corolla	5–6 / 10	Bin 5 / LEV-II ULEV	All 50 states (federal, all altitudes); California and states following California standards	SmartWay

Certified for all fifty states, so it can be registered new anywhere in the U.S.

The smog rating scores tailpipe pollutants other than greenhouse gases, 1 (worst) to 10 (best), and is comparable only within a model year. The standard is the federal bin or California tier the configuration was certified to. Both come from the EPA certificate behind the window sticker.

Specifications filed with NHTSA

Source: NHTSA vPIC

Dimensions Exterior

Body style	Sedan/Saloon
Doors	4
GVWR class	Class 1: 6,000 lb or less (2,722 kg or less)

Engine Basics

Cylinders	4
Displacement	1.8 L
Engine configuration	In-Line

Engine Output

Horsepower

140 hp

Fuel Economy

Fuel	Gasoline

Transmission

Drivetrain

4x2

Driver assistance

Standard: Anti-lock brakes, Automatic emergency braking, Backup camera, Electronic stability control

Filed by the manufacturer with NHTSA under the federal vehicle-identification rule and decoded from the VIN pattern — not a manufacturer press kit, so it describes the configurations we could identify rather than every trim (seen: ECO/ECO PLUS, L/LE). Figures for the trim you are looking at may differ.

Dimensions & weight

Source: Transport Canada

Length	182.7 in
Width (body, without mirrors)	70.1 in
Height	57.5 in
Wheelbase	106.3 in
Track, front	59.8 in
Track, rear	59.8 in
Curb weight	2,789 lb
Weight distribution, front/rear	61/39

Measured by Transport Canada for its Canadian Vehicle Specifications database, which covers the North American versions of each model — here one configuration: 4-door Sedan. Where a range is shown, those versions differ. Width is the body without mirrors, which is why it can read narrower than a brochure figure. Before we used it we checked it against the US manufacturer press kits we hold (27 Sep 2026): wheelbase agreed within 1% on every vehicle we could compare, length on 98%, and the curb weight fell inside the manufacturer's range on 96%. Source dataset. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada. Licence.

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Recalls (1)

Source: NHTSA recall database

▲high

Air Bags

20TB03 / 20TA03

2,891,976 vehicles 70% reported repaired

Problem Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2011-2019 Corolla, 2011-2013 Matrix, 2012-2018 Avalon, and 2013-2018 Avalon Hybrid vehicles. During certain crashes, the air bag electronic control unit (ECU) may malfunction, possibly disabling the deployment of the air bags and/or seat belt pretensioners. Risk In the event of a crash, air bags and/or seat belt pretensioners that do not deploy as intended may increase the risk of injury. Fix Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the ECU and install a noise filter between the air bag control module and its wire harness, as necessary, free of charge. Owners were notified of the safety risk beginning March 2, 2020. A second letter notifying owners of the remedy repair will be mailed between March 16, 2020 and June 27, 2020. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 20TB03, 20TA03 and 20TA05.

Filed with NHTSAOwner letter PDF Remedy instructions PDF

NHTSA campaign 20V024000 reported Jan 17, 2020 Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing the full filing, and every vehicle covered →

These are vehicle campaigns — the ones the automaker filed against this model. NHTSA also records equipment recalls, filed by a parts maker against a component (a tyre, a child seat, an aftermarket part), and those are not listed here or counted above. nhtsa.gov/recalls shows both for a VIN.

NHTSA defect investigations

Air Bags:Frontal:Passenger Side:Inflator Module — Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture open

From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 Blomquist Report at www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf. Consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a subst

Opened Sep 17, 2021 · action EA21002 · the investigation’s page →

Air Bags: Air Bag/Restraint Control Module — Electrical overstress closed

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened this investigation to determine if the failure of airbags to deploy during severe crashes, in certain vehicles, was the result of a safety related defect. During the investigation a complex failure was studied that can result in non-deployment of subject vehicle air bags and other restraint system devices in severe crash events. The subject vehicles may be equipped with an airbag control unit (ACU) for the supplemental restraint system (SRS) Electronic Control Unit (ECU) manufactured by ZF-TRW. The ECU receives signals from crash sensors mounted in the vehicle and deploys the vehicle air bags and seat belt pretensioners in accordance with ma

Opened Apr 19, 2019 · closed Sep 19, 2024 · action EA19001 · the investigation’s page →

Whether any of this applies to one specific Corolla

A campaign covers a build range, not a model year, so two identical-looking cars from 2016 can differ. Both of these check a VIN against the manufacturer’s own list, free, in about ten seconds. Toyota publishes its own lookup because federal rule 49 CFR 573.15 requires it to, and to keep it current to within seven days.

NHTSA VIN check →Toyota’s own VIN lookup →

Hear about a recall before the letter does

The manufacturer’s letter is the last step of a recall: it has up to 60 days after filing to mail owners, at the address on the registration. We email you the day NHTSA posts a recall on the 2016 Toyota Corolla, with what to do next. Nothing else, ever — no newsletter, no marketing, one-click unsubscribe in every message.

Owner complaints

Source: NHTSA complaint database

215complaints filed

66 involved a crash · 2 a fire · 57 injuries · 0 deaths reported

Filed per year: 2015: 1 · 2016: 26 · 2017: 34 · 2018: 27 · 2019: 32 · 2020: 48 · 2021: 12 · 2022: 5 · 2023: 6 · 2024: 10 · 2025: 7 · 2026: 7

Most-cited components

Air Bags → 65

Service Brakes 30

Seat Belts 26

Unspecified 24

Vehicle Speed Control 22

Steering 22

In depth: airbag problems →

In owners' own words

Filed with NHTSA by the people who own these cars, one per problem area. Quoted as written, with anything identifying removed.

When driving this model, which I own, I believe the LED lighting makes these cars unsafe at night. What I will call the LED horizon which fluctuates greatly on hilly or uneven roads, causes loss of needed vision.

Exterior Lighting Dec 16, 2016 NHTSA owner report · ODI 10935848

The contact rented a 2016 Toyota Corolla. While reversing in a parking lot, the contact's vehicle independently accelerated and crashed into another vehicle. When the vehicle was placed in the drive gear, it became inoperable and the vehicle accelerated again. The contact struck several other vehicles. A police report was filed.

Vehicle Speed Control Dec 12, 2016 NHTSA owner report · ODI 10934827

Brake pedal feels spongy or soft all the time. Have had vehicle to dealer 3 times for stuck fuel door (won't open). Every time nothing found wrong. Tech lubed and tried adjusting fuel door to no avail. Stuck fuel door doesn't happen all the time though. This is a safety issue especially for women who are trying to fuel up when on empty.

Service Brakes at 20,000 miles Nov 15, 2016 NHTSA owner report · ODI 10926072

Headrest angle. It is my understanding from my experience that all car headrests now induce neck pain thanks to nhtsa's terrible regulation mandating that headrests be angled or have a minimum distance to the head to reduce whiplash. This mandate, while well intentioned, is horrible for any kind of driving in the vehicle.

Seats Oct 18, 2016 NHTSA owner report · ODI 10916828

Front and rear windshields both distorted/defective. Like looking through funhouse mirror glass. The front makes things closer and larger and very wavy from my visual perspective starting at about halfway down the windshield and continuing to the right (to the passenger side).

Visibility/Wiper at 100 miles Jun 23, 2016 NHTSA owner report · ODI 10876073

Reference: NHTSA id number: 10865853. Additional info - snapshot attached. Unable to upload audio file (available upon request) this is about "squeaking/creaking" noise that emanates from both front seat belts since purchase oct 2015. The event occurs when driver accelerates, decelerates, goes over speed bumps or uneven roads.

Seat Belts May 20, 2016 NHTSA owner report · ODI 10870083

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Reported by Toyota itself: 503 death-or-injury claims on this model year in its quarterly Early Warning reports to NHTSA (49 CFR 579.21): 13 killed, 636 injured, as claimed, not verified. Every Corolla model year, by year and system → Dated and by system, they are exhibit F of the defect dossier.

When owners reported it

Reported at 25k

miles, typically

Half the 130 owner reports with an odometer reading on file fall between 12,000 and 50,000 miles. That is when problems get reported, which is not the same as when they start — and not a failure rate, because nobody knows how many of these cars never had a problem at all.

under 10k 28

10k–20k 20

20k–30k 20

30k–40k 14

40k–50k 13

50k–60k 10

60k–70k 7

70k–80k 6

80k–90k 4

90k–100k 3

100k–150k 4

150k + 1

Median mileage by component

Component	Reports	Median miles	Vs same age
Air Bags	42	35,000	0.83×
Service Brakes	23	22,000	0.55×
Vehicle Speed Control	17	13,000	0.43×
Power Train	15	54,500	1.05×
Seat Belts	14	36,267	0.95×
Steering	13	25,473	0.53×

Vs same age is this model year’s median for the system divided by the median of every 2016-model-year complaint about the same system, all makes: under 1× means owners of this car reported it at lower mileage. Here, owners reported earlier than same-age vehicles: service brakes (0.55×), vehicle speed control (0.43×), steering (0.53×). Which systems go early across the whole fleet: the component study.

Odometer readings as filed by owners with NHTSA. Readings under 100 or over 400,000 miles are dropped as data entry rather than history, and a component needs at least 12 readings before a median is shown for it.

Crash ratings

Source: NHTSA NCAP

Configuration	Overall	Frontal	Side	Rollover	Rollover risk
4 DR FWD	★★★★★	★★★★★	★★★★★	★★★★☆	12%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program.

Service bulletins & campaigns

Source: NHTSA manufacturer communications

Communicationsfiled with NHTSA 268

Most recentmanufacturer date 2026-01-07

Kindsas classified by NHTSA 267 service bulletins, 1 service campaign

Most often about: Equipment, Structure, Electrical System, Power Train, Engine.

T-SB-0055-24 Rev2 Service bulletin
2026-01-07 · Unknown Or Other
Some 2005 – 2026 Toyota vehicles that have undergone water intrusion may exhibit a condition in which a musty odor is present. Follow the procedures in this bulletin to remediate the odor and address this condition. The purpose of this Service Bulletin is to provide general guidelines and procedures for odor remediation. This Service Bulletin provides a guide on how to prepare and treat the interi
T-SB-0058-23 Rev1 Service campaign
2025-06-13 · Electrical System
The air conditioning dye injection tool kit has been developed to aid in identifying the location of air conditioning refrigerant leaks. The procedures outlined in this Service Bulletin aid in locating, inspecting, and repairing refrigerant leaks.
T-SB-0039-24 Rev2 Service bulletin
2024-12-06 · Structure — Body
The condition known as acid rain is caused by airborne chemicals or particles in the atmosphere, which mix with rainwater, nighttime dew, or high humidity to form acidic compounds. If these contaminants settle and remain on a painted vehicle surface, especially the horizonal areas of the hood, roof, and decklid, significant damage can occur. This damage is the result of actual etching of the paint
T-SB-0038-24 Rev2 Service bulletin
2024-12-06 · Structure — Body
To prevent brake rotor rust from forming during transportation and storage, wheel film will be used instead of a cardboard type of anti-rust cover. The purpose of the wheel film is to shield the disc brake rotor from weather elements and initial rust before the vehicle is delivered to the customer. Consequently, the film should remain on the wheel for as long as possible.
T-SB-0035-24 Rev2 Service bulletin
2024-12-06 · Structure — Body
Acid rain results from rainwater or other airborne moisture that become acidic due to industrial chemical impurities in the atmosphere. If these acidic compounds settle on an exposed vehicle, especially the horizontal areas such as the hood, roof, and decklid, significant damage to the painted surfaces can occur. Acid rain damage can typically be identified on vehicles by the presence of stains on
T-SB-0061-23 Rev2 Service bulletin
2024-12-05 · Structure — Body
Toyota vehicles are currently protected with RapgardTM protective film designed to protect the horizontal painted surfaces. This material protects from acid rain, environmental fallout, and rail contamination. Follow the Removal Procedure in this bulletin to remove the RapgardTM protective film within 90 days from initial application.
T-SB-0062-23 Rev2 Service bulletin
2024-12-03 · Structure — Body
Vehicles may occasionally be subjected to contamination by airborne iron particles shed from railroad tracks, train wheels, exposure to heavy machinery facilities, grinding, welding, etc. This type of contamination can be identified by the presence of small, red or brown particles on the paint surface. These particles are often difficult to see on dark color paints but can be easily felt when brus
T-SB-0055-24 Rev1 Service bulletin
2024-07-29 · Structure — Body
Some 2005 – 2024 Toyota vehicles that have undergone water intrusion may exhibit a condition in which a musty odor is present. Follow the procedures in this bulletin to remediate the odor and address this condition. The purpose of this Service Bulletin is to provide general guidelines and procedures for odor remediation. This Service Bulletin provides a guide on how to prepare and treat the interi

A service bulletin is the manufacturer telling its dealers how to diagnose or repair a known condition. It is not a recall, not a finding that the vehicle is defective, and the work is not automatically free — though a bulletin is often what a dealer works from when you describe a symptom, so quoting the document number can save a diagnosis. The count is every communication filed; the list shows the most recent, one entry per campaign, because a single campaign is usually filed as several documents on the same day. The summaries are NHTSA's; the full documents come from the manufacturer.

Diagnostic trouble codes on file

Source: NHTSA manufacturer communications and complaints

Codes documented against this model year in the federal record. A code appearing here does not mean this vehicle will set it — it means the code is part of this nameplate-year's documented history.

Code	What it means	Most often filed under	Where it appears
P2610 P2610 on Toyota →	Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard.	Engine	4 bulletins
B15E6	Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard.	Equipment	3 bulletins
P2757 P2757 on Toyota →	Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard.	Power Train	2 bulletins · 1 owner report
U1110 U1110 on Toyota →	Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard.	Equipment	3 bulletins
P0455	A large leak in the evaporative emissions system — often a fuel cap left off.	Fuel/Propulsion System · Gas cap →	2 bulletins
P0456	A very small leak in the evaporative emissions system.	Fuel/Propulsion System · Gas cap →	2 bulletins
P2420	Manufacturer-defined — the meaning is set by the automaker, not the standard.	Engine	2 bulletins

Generic codes (the second character is 0 or 2) mean the same thing on every vehicle sold in the United States. Manufacturer-specific codes (1 or 3) mean whatever the automaker assigned, and no honest source can define them for you — which is why the ones here carry the evidence instead of a definition. A code is a link when enough separate federal documents name it across the catalogue to be worth a page of its own; the rest are listed here, where the vehicle is the context that makes them mean something.

At the New York inspection station

Source: New York State DMV

New York inspections 1.7%

failed emissions

7,469 initial inspections of 7,315 vehicles.

Measure	The 2016 Corolla	Every 2016 vehicle	Behind it
Failed the emissions check	1.7%	4.2%	7,450
Failed the safety inspection	2.0%	2.2%	7,469
Air-bag warning lamp stayed lit	0.24%	0.27%	7,469
Miles driven a year	9,605	10,028	odometer at inspection
Average odometer	98,667	103,109	odometer at inspection

New York’s emissions test on these model years is an on-board diagnostics check: it fails a car whose check-engine light is on or whose self-tests have not finished. First inspections only, so a car that failed and came back is counted once; private and special plates, not taxis, livery or commercial plates. A rate appears only where at least 200 inspections stand behind it. “Every 2016 vehicle” is every 2016 model-year car, SUV and pickup inspected in the same window, all makes. This is the state’s record of test results, not a reliability score by itself. Source: New York State Department of Motor Vehicles, Vehicle Inspections (data.ny.gov, Open NY terms).

Corolla by model year

all years, side by side →

Year Safety Recalls Complaints

2027 A 0 0 50 mpg 2026 A 1 18 50 mpg 2025 B 2 42 50 mpg 2024 C 4 74 50 mpg 2023 D 6 85 50 mpg 2022 A 0 105 52 mpg 2021 A 1 188 52 mpg 2020 C 6 314 52 mpg 2019 C 6 205 36 mpg 2018 B 3 143 34 mpg 2017 B 3 190 34 mpg 2016 this page A 1 215 34 mpg

Common questions about the 2016 Corolla

Source: EPA, NHTSA and manufacturer press kits

Does the 2016 Toyota Corolla have any recalls?

NHTSA has posted 1 recall campaign for the 2016 Toyota Corolla. The most serious on file is 20V024000, covering Air Bags. Check your own VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls; a recall applies to specific build ranges, not every car.

How safe is the 2016 Toyota Corolla?

NHTSA gave the 2016 Toyota Corolla 5 stars overall in its New Car Assessment Program tests — 5-star frontal crash, 5-star side crash, 4-star rollover. WhichTrim also grades it A (92/100) on its recall record, which is a different question from crash protection.

What is the fuel economy of the 2016 Toyota Corolla?

Across the 6 EPA-rated configurations of the 2016 Toyota Corolla, the best EPA combined figure is 34 mpg. Figures are the EPA's own, per configuration, and every one is listed above.

What are the dimensions of the 2016 Toyota Corolla?

Transport Canada measured it at 182.7 in long, 70.1 in wide (body, without mirrors), 57.5 in tall, on a 106.3 in wheelbase. Curb weight: 2,789 lb. Those are its measurements of the North American versions; every figure is in the table above.

What do owners complain about on the 2016 Toyota Corolla?

Owners have filed 215 complaints with NHTSA about the 2016 Toyota Corolla, most often about air bags, service brakes, seat belts. Of those, 66 involved a crash, 2 a fire, 57 reported injuries. Complaints are unverified owner reports, so treat the pattern as a signal and the individual report as an anecdote.

How clean is the 2016 Toyota Corolla?

The EPA smog rating for the 2016 Toyota Corolla runs 5 to 7 out of 10 across its configurations. That score covers tailpipe pollutants other than greenhouse gases, and it only compares vehicles within the same model year. It is certified for all fifty states, so it can be registered new anywhere in the U.S. Its configurations were certified to different standards — Bin 5, LEV-II ULEV, LEV-III ULEV70 — which the table above lists per configuration.

Are there service bulletins for the 2016 Toyota Corolla?

The manufacturer has filed 268 service bulletins and related communications with NHTSA for the 2016 Toyota Corolla, most often covering equipment, structure, electrical system. The most recent is dated 2026-01-07. A bulletin is not a recall: it is the repair procedure a manufacturer sends its dealers for a condition it knows about, and the work is not automatically paid for. It is still worth knowing — if the symptom matches, quoting the bulletin number at the service desk can save a diagnosis. The document numbers and summaries are listed above.

How does the 2016 Toyota Corolla do at state inspection?

In New York’s inspection lanes over the 12 months to Oct 10, 2026, the 2016 Toyota Corolla failed the emissions check on 1.7% of first inspections — lower than the 4.2% for every 2016 model-year vehicle inspected; and the safety inspection on 2.0% (every 2016 vehicle: 2.2%). The figures are New York State DMV’s own inspection records, first inspections only, and the table above sets each one against every vehicle of the same model year.

What we hold, and what an empty row means

Paid vehicle-history reports will not tell you the difference between “nothing happened to this car” and “we never received that record” — both of the big two say as much in their own help pages. Most of what is on this page comes from complete federal registers, so we can tell you which is which, row by row.

Data	Held	Source	What it covers — or what empty means
Fuel economy & configurations	6 configurations	EPA certification records	Every configuration the EPA certified for sale, with its own test figures.
Emission certificates	6 configurations	EPA emission certificates	Smog rating, standard and the sales area that decides where the car can be sold new.
Recalls	1	NHTSA recall campaigns	A complete federal register: every campaign covering this model year, with severity and advisory flags.
Owner complaints	215	NHTSA complaint database	Also complete, but unverified: these are reports owners filed, not findings. Counts scale with how many were sold.
Crash ratings	1 tested	NHTSA NCAP	Only the configurations NHTSA chose to crash-test, which is never all of them.
Service bulletins	268	NHTSA manufacturer communications	Everything the manufacturer told its dealers about a defect or malfunction, short of a recall.
Investigations	2	NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation	Open and closed defect investigations, with the agency's own narrative.
Driver-assist crash reports	none	NHTSA Standing General Order 2021-01	No report has been filed. Only entities named in the order report, and only crashes they hear of — so this is also what an unequipped car, or a manufacturer without telematics, looks like.
Specifications filed with NHTSA	9 fields	NHTSA vPIC, decoded from VIN patterns	What the manufacturer filed under the federal VIN rule — a configuration, not the full trim ladder.
Measured dimensions	7 fields	Transport Canada, Canadian Vehicle Specifications	Length, width, height, wheelbase, track and curb weight, measured on the North American versions.
Trims, pricing & equipment	none	Manufacturer press kit	We have not transcribed a press kit for this model year yet. This is our gap, not the manufacturer's — the one row here where an empty cell means we are behind.

Rebuilt nightly; this page was generated 2026-10-26. Every figure above is traceable to the source named beside it, and the JSON for this page carries the same values with their identifiers.

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). The most serious recall counts in full and each further one counts 85% of the one before, because a vehicle sold in millions is recalled more often than a rare one without being more dangerous — and because a flat subtraction bottomed the scale out, scoring a vehicle with 22 recalls within a point of one with six. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Read it as what it counts: recall campaigns on the federal record, weighted by severity. The damping reduces the sales bias by roughly 40% but does not remove it: like our complaint counts, this is not normalized by how many were sold, so a best-seller still scores somewhat worse than an obscure model with the same real risk. NHTSA crash ratings, do-not-drive and park-outside advisories, and the crash, fire, injury and death counts in owner complaints are reported separately on every page and never blended into the letter — a vehicle can hold five stars and a poor letter at once, and where that happens we say so rather than leave you to notice. Because the scale subtracts from a clean sheet, a model year too new to have been recalled, complained about or bulletined scores full marks on an empty record; we label those grades provisional rather than present them as earned.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records. Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed nightly.

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