Scion FR-S Problems by Model Year
NHTSA recorded 198 consumer complaints across the 3 model years of the Scion FR-S (2013–2015) that have at least 5 complaints. 2013 has the most, with 179. Across all years, the part named most often is engine (150 mentions). Pick a model year below to see its parts, mileage, recalls and service bulletins.
All FR-S model years
Years with fewer than 5 complaints are not listed. The score compares years of the same model, allowing for the era and for how long each year has collected complaints: 50 is a typical year, lower means fewer complaints. It is not adjusted for sales volume.
| Year | Complaints | Median mi | Recalls | TSBs | Score (50 = typical) | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 14 | 32,000 | 3 | 74 | — | Not enough data |
| 2014 | 5 | 59,590 | 2 | 107 | — | Not enough data |
| 2013 | 179 | 68,550 | 4 | 166 | Not compared (fewer than 3 comparable model years) | Falling |
Parts named most often, all years
Counts add up complaint mentions across the listed years. A complaint can name several parts.
- Engine150 70%
- Transmission and drivetrain23 11%
- Other or unknown10 4.7%
- Steering9 4.2%
- Fuel system9 4.2%
- Engine cooling5 2.3%
- Brakes4 1.9%
- Air bags4 1.9%
Example complaints
One per model year, chosen for length and detail. Personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
2013: “I took it in for the valve spring recall. I drove it for 8000 miles/9 months later. Car started knocking and stalled. Engine had a oil galley that got clogged, which cause oil starvation. Car ended up needing a new engine, dealership refused to cover the cost of the replacement. The car was being driven home on a residential street.”
NHTSA complaint #11324612, filed 2020-05, 89,000 miles2015: “Vehicle started to stutter and having a loud knock from engine after sitting for 6 hours on a normal night, normal driving conditions, maintenance kept up including recent oil change... Started to drive the vehicle and it had loud pinging and knocking became louder when I tried to accelerate once getting on the highway and the vehicle started to stutter. I had no check engine lights, no oil lights, nothing. …”
NHTSA complaint #11115259, filed 2018-08, 43,000 miles2014: “My toyota Scion FR-S 2014 suddenly stopped and lost its power while I was driving along a city street in fairfield ca . The car has been serviced by the dealer since purchase . It only had 33,000 miles and I was very surprise what went wrong . My son rolled the vehicle to a side street . We called our insurance for roadside assistance and the car was towed to toyota dealership in fairfield ca. They went on to diagnose and found the car to be of pearl condition , with perfect oil level and quality . They said it was motor malfunction . …”
NHTSA complaint #11413745, filed 2021-04, 33,000 milesOther Scion models
1,044 complaintsScion TC
693 complaintsScion XA
125 complaintsScion XD
107 complaintsScion IA
23 complaintsScion IQ
22 complaintsScion IM
12 complaints
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 27, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate. Methodology