2018 Toyota Camry acceleration problems

Filed Nov 9, 2026 · Acceleration, Transmission · VA

While driving my 2018 Toyota Camry through Bowers Hill interstate interchange, where multiple major highways merge, my vehicle completely lost the ability to accelerate or maintain speed despite pressing the accelerator pedal. The engine continued to rev and RPMs increased, but the vehicle would not respond with forward acceleration. At the time of the failure I was traveling in an area with heavy, fast moving interstate traffic. I was forced to maneuver across four lanes of moving traffic to reach the far right shoulder while my vehicle was rapidly losing speed and unable to accelerate. This created an extremely dangerous situation because I could not maintain the speed of surrounding traffic or accelerate to safely change lanes. I was at significant risk of being struck by another vehicle. The failure occurred very suddenly with very little time to react. There was no check engine light on and otherwise my car seemed to be operating normally prior to this incident with the exception of a few hard shifts between first and second gear. After the incident, the vehicle was taken to a repair facility. The mechanic informed me that the transmission was not functioning and that a replacement transmission may be necessary. I was also informed that Toyota transmissions were on national backorder and that a service bulletin existed concerning the transmission. The exact cause of the failure has not yet been confirmed. I am reporting this incident because the sudden and complete loss of acceleration at interstate speeds presents a serious safety hazard. Had I been unable to reach the shoulder, or had surrounding traffic been less accommodating, this failure could have resulted in a serious or potentially fatal collision. Me vehicle was purchased from a Toyota dealership used with 42,000 miles and has only 114,000 miles currently. It is available for inspection upon request.

Filed Oct 26, 2026 · Acceleration · OH

transmission failure and power loss while driving

Filed Oct 16, 2026 · Acceleration, Engine · VA

Transmission defective.

Filed Sep 21, 2026 · Acceleration, Brakes · AL

The transmission quit moving the car forward in traffic which could have caused a collision. When the transmission started shifting weird and not accelerating normally, the ABS Sensor malfunction light came on. I towed the car to a toyota dealership in [XXX] and they said I needed the transmission replaced for $10000(new), which I could not afford. I was expecting it to be a sensor since that was the light that came on. I had the transmission rebuilt by an independent mechanic and during the first test drive, the car applied brakes and came to a complete stop. We took the car to the toyota dealership for a program update that the information we had said was needed. The dealership stated there was no update available. They also told me I could drive the car home. After going about three miles from the dealership the transmission stopped moving the car again in traffic which again could have caused a collision. There were codes being thrown that would not be there when the transmission was rebuilt and subsequent reevaluations. The car has been unusable since XXX INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Filed May 28, 2026 · Acceleration, Engine · FL

When driving, the car would go into limp mode and wouldn’t get out of 2nd gear. it was super jerky as well. when taken to a mechanic, it was diagnosed with malfunctioning transmission among some other things such as brakes and tires. we take fairly great care of our vehicles and get them seen for regular maintenance. once the car started acting up, the check engine light came on. it is now unsafe to drive and two mechanics have confirmed an issue with the transmission, which is now also in a class action lawsuit for transmission failures. it’s had hiccups before over the past two years (started around 85000 miles) but never to that extreme and every time we took it into a mechanic they never saw the issue before until now. the hiccups we just delayed shifting and simultaneous RPM increase but stoped after a few seconds and letting off the gas, and then would correct itself. mechanics chocked it up to just needing a tune up and never saw the issue themselves, it happened randomly and just every once in a while.

Filed Mar 23, 2026 · Acceleration, Engine · TX

On March 19, 2026, I was driving to work when traffic began to slow, and I reduced my speed accordingly. As traffic started to return to normal speed, I pressed the accelerator; however, although the engine revved, the vehicle did not accelerate beyond approximately 15 mph. I safely moved to the side of the road and turned the car off. After restarting the vehicle, shifting into drive, and pressing the accelerator, the same issue occurred. I subsequently took the car to two separate mechanics, both of whom reported that the transmission needs to be replaced. This is unexpected, as the vehicle has fewer than 100,000 miles and has received regular maintenance.

Filed Feb 9, 2026 · Acceleration, Engine · OH

Poor acceleration and lose of transmission control ….complete safety hazard and the car has a failure to lose power while driving…..a humming noise and the car jerks while shifting gears

Filed Nov 21, 2025 · Acceleration, Driver assistance · NJ

I was leaving a doctor's office and getting on the highway. When I pressed down on the accelerator, I experienced a sudden loss of power, the check engine light came on, as well as warnings about the front collision system being deactivated. It remained dangerous for me to stay on the highway but it was also difficult to exit the highway safely given the loss of power. When I brought it to a Toyota dealership, they did a diagnostic and it said my transmission had an "internal failure" despite the fact that it only has 85k miles on it.

Filed Apr 17, 2025 · Acceleration, Driver assistance · MN

While operating my vehicle, the multi information display between the tachometer and RPM gauges flashed bold red letters BRAKE (even though nothing was in front of us at all) then the screen went 100% black. When that happens, the majority of the safety features are obsolete because you cannot see or read what caused the beep. Also, the Odometer could not be seen as well as feul eveonomy, if cruise control was engaged, what gear your engine is in if Sports mode is activated (in which occurs if accidently hitting the gear switches on your steering wheel just turning it), unable to see maintenance messages, cannot control the sensor settings...nothing. When I finally had enough money to even get the car diagnosed (roughly $187), the Corwin Toyota dealership asked me for the mileage, and I had to tell them to tell me. They did confirm the instrument panel/cluster to be defective, however, I and my extended warranty company had to pay the bill. 53,252 miles when they serviced it. When I paid my portion, I asked Lori how long will this one last and she told me, "They are suppose to last the duration of the car's life." I replied, "Um, but...". On April 17th I called Toyota's Customer Engagement line and spoke with them about the defective part and repair. Dorian told me that with the part replaced carries a 1 year warranty. If Toyota designed essentially all the safety features, eco features, cruise control, gears to only be seen or controlled on that multi-informational display within the instrument panel/cluster, they should be required to fix it at no cost to customers for the lifetime of the car. I took video of it before I dropped it off to be serviced., but even Corwin Toyota in Fargo, ND, has video footage of the mechanic's assessment.

Filed Jul 29, 2024 · Acceleration, Brakes · FL

The vacuum brake pump assembly malfunctioned and I had the vehicle taken to the dealer that did the original recall for the vacuum brake pump assembly and they inspected the vehicle and told me that was the issue along with the nipple inside the pump had broken off and fell down into the engine and had damaged the cam shaft. Exactly what the recall states. Yes the vehicle can and has been inspected its at the dealer still and has been since 06/12/2024 when this occurred. The safety of my wife and daughter and any other people in any vehicle in front of mine due to the brakes got extremely hard to push and the vehicle would not stop properly. Almost plowed into a jeep wrangler that was in front of her when trying to pull into the grocery store. Yes the dealer Butler Toyota the service manager Thomas is the person I have been directly dealing with and he has tryed to contact toyota to get an answer and they wont give an answer. He has even contacted his southwest toyota service contact and they have tryed to get some info for me but no answers. The vehicle has been inspected by the service manager and a technician from Butler toyota and thats where all my service and the recall was done. There was no warning or messages before this but when the pump went out and the brakes would not stop the car there is a message in the info center now that this occurred. My wife and daughter was on there way home from dance and was stopping by the grocery store when she went to stop she couldnt almost rammed the back of a jeep in front of her. She pulled into the parking lot turned the car off and called me. When I arrived about 15 minutes later there was i thought brake fluid all under the car. I then had another person ask if i needed help and i asked him would he help me push the car just about a foot or so backwards to see what was leaking. When i put my finger in it it was motor oil. I immediately told my wife that it was not drivable and took the vehicle to Butler Toyota