1997 Toyota 4RUNNER Seat belts Problems
- Complaints
- 5about this part
- Share
- 2%of 261 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 65,000miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 5 complaints about the seat belts of the 1997 Toyota 4RUNNER, 2% of the 261 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 65,000 miles. 2 of these say a crash was involved, according to the filers.
Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“The rear seat belts on the 1997 4RUNNER are too short. The alr engages once they are fully retracted. Once the alr is engaged the seat belt will only retract and no longer permit forward travel. The belt must be removed and fully retracted before the alr disengaged. Rear occupants must now belt and unbelt several times during a trip. I feel this is potentially danagerous. I have contacted the dealer and he displayed that the 1998 models also have very short rear belts. The passenger side front seat also has alr, but it has twice as much seatbelt length before the alr engages.”
NHTSA complaint #700445, filed 1998-11“Seat belt did not hold her. Airbag deployed to soon. She went face first into the dash & windshield was knocked unconsious. She has neck & back injuries still today. The seatbelt is still laying on the seat. Lap part held her not the shoulder strape her head hit the windshield & broke windshield. Please feel free to call me if you need more infomation.”
NHTSA complaint #725803, filed 2000-07“Consumers child was playing in vehicle when the seat belt wrapped around his neck, when he tried to remove it, it would not release and just kept retracting, consumer states that her son turned purple and could not catch his breath because the seat belt would not release.”
NHTSA complaint #8004030, filed 2002-02Seat belts: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1 | 2% |
| 2023 | 2 | 6% |
| 2022 | 3 | 8% |
| 2019 | 2 | 3% |
| 2018 | 2 | 3% |
| 2017 | 1 | 3% |
| 2016 | 1 | 1% |
| 2015 | 1 | 1% |
| 2011 | 1 | 1% |
| 2010 | 1 | 1% |
| 2006 | 2 | 1% |
| 2005 | 1 | 0% |
| 2004 | 7 | 1% |
| 2003 | 3 | 0% |
| 2002 | 2 | 1% |
| 2001 | 2 | 1% |
| 2000 | 1 | 0% |
| 1999 | 6 | 2% |
| 1998 | 9 | 4% |
| 1997 | 5 | 2% |
| 1996 | 3 | 2% |
| 1995 | 3 | 2% |
| 1993 | 1 | 2% |
| 1990 | 1 | 1% |
| 1989 | 1 | 17% |
| 1988 | 1 | 11% |
| 1986 | 1 | 13% |
Other parts of the 1997 Toyota 4RUNNER
95 complaintsBody and structure
76 complaintsBrakes
29 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
25 complaintsOther or unknown
21 complaintsTires
18 complaintsEngine cooling
14 complaintsSteering
14 complaintsVehicle speed control
11 complaintsAir bags
9 complaintsEquipment
7 complaintsElectrical system
6 complaints
← All problems reported for the 1997 Toyota 4RUNNER
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology