Skip to main content
VinCanary

Reliability report · 2017 Toyota Tundra · Updated July 2026 · ~$4,150/yr fuel · what it costs to keep →

One of the quietest 5.7L V8 years — a durable truck whose only homework is a cam-tower leak, a seat-bracket recall, and the frame up north.

The 2017 Tundra is a mid-cycle XK50 truck with the 5.7-liter V8 and a very small complaint file (78). Mechanically it is the same durable package as the rest of the generation: the 3UR-FE engine and its ancient, trouble-free automatic routinely go 200,000-plus miles. Nothing in the data rises to an expensive, avoidable pattern.

The homework is short. Inspect the front-of-engine cam-tower oil leak (a $1,200–$1,500 reseal, mechanic estimate). Confirm the 2017-only rear split-bench seat-bracket recall (18V-123) was completed. And if the truck lived in a salt state, put the frame and brakes ahead of everything else. Verify the power-steering-gear recall (21V-920) by VIN. A clean southern 2017 is one of the easiest trucks in this whole range to own.

Evidence: 78 NHTSA complaints · 6 recall campaigns · 6 mechanic & forum sources

Canary status

Calm

What that means: 78 federal complaints — one of the smallest files in the range — with no powertrain pattern. The 5.7-liter V8 is the same bulletproof 3UR-FE. Recalls are labels, a rear-seat leg-bracket item unique to 2017, the resin bumper, and the shared power-steering gear. No expensive avoidable failure exists here.

CalmChirpingSquawkingFainted

78

Federal complaints

6

Recalls

$1,200–$1,500

Cam-tower reseal (mechanic estimate)

Known issues

Ranked by the cost of ignoring them. Every claim carries its source.

Cam-tower oil leak (5.7L V8)

moderate
  • 5.7L V8 (3UR-FE)

As on every XK50 V8, the sealer between the two-piece cylinder head and the cam tower weeps oil over time. Because the engine sits at an angle, the oil burns off on the exhaust manifold — the tell is light smoke and a burning-oil smell, driver's side worse, often with no puddle underneath. It is 'commonly missed on inspection, sometimes purposefully.' The reseal is $1,200–$1,500 (mechanic estimate, mostly labor). Check the front of the engine and the driver's-side wheel well before buying.

This is a 5.7L V8 (3UR-FE) problem. The 3.4L twin-turbo V6 (V35A) and i-FORCE MAX hybrid (V35A + electric) don’t share it.

Which engine is in the one you found? →

Cam-tower reseal (mechanic estimate)

$1,200–$1,500

Sources: NHTSA complaint + recall database, 2017 Tundra · Independent mechanic channel transcripts (Car Care Nut XK50 buying guide; 5.7L 3UR-FE breakdown)

Rear split-bench seat bracket — recall 18V-123 (2017 only)moderate

Recall 18V-123 (Toyota J0I) is specific to the 2017 Tundra: one of the rear split-bench seat leg brackets may not have been properly tightened to the floor pan, so the seat could move in a crash — a non-compliance with FMVSS 207/210/225. Dealers tighten the five bolts as necessary, free. This is the one 2017-unique safety recall; verify it shows completed by VIN.

Sources: NHTSA complaint + recall database, 2017 Tundra · NHTSA recalls and manufacturer communications (recall documents, Toyota internal codes)

$0

Recall bracket re-torque

Power-steering gear can leak — recall 21V-920moderate

Recall 21V-920 (Toyota 21TB10/21TA10) covers 2007–2021 Tundra: the power-steering gear may leak and cause a sudden loss of assist; dealers inspect and replace it free. Companion campaign 21E-103 (21TH01) covers the JTEKT service parts. This assembly is a several-thousand-dollar job out of scope (a later-truck owner was quoted over $6,000), so confirming the free repair by VIN is worth the minute it takes.

Sources: NHTSA complaint + recall database, 2017 Tundra · NHTSA recalls and manufacturer communications (recall documents, Toyota internal codes)

$0

Recall power-steering gear replacement

Frame, calipers, and wheel bearings — the rust-belt taxmoderate

The XK50 rust-belt caution applies unchanged: the strong frame rusts if neglected (a rotten frame is a walk-away), salt-belt trucks seize front calipers and rot rear wheel-bearing backing plates, and secondary-air exhaust-manifold runners crack. A southern 2017 avoids the whole set; a northern one gets inspected from underneath before you look at anything on top.

Sources: NHTSA complaint + recall database, 2017 Tundra · Independent mechanic channel transcripts (Car Care Nut XK50 buying guide; 5.7L 3UR-FE breakdown)

more than the truck is worth

Frame replacement

Label and accessory recallsminor

Housekeeping-grade free recalls: 17V-831 (Toyota H0Z) and the earlier label items correct load-carrying-capacity labels (FMVSS 110); 17V-051 (H0C) replaces the resin rear-bumper bracket with steel; 17V-311 (SET17A) covers accessory 20-inch Rockstar wheel lugnuts on trucks so equipped. Confirm by VIN.

Sources: NHTSA complaint + recall database, 2017 Tundra · NHTSA recalls and manufacturer communications (recall documents, Toyota internal codes)

$0

Recall remedies

They hardly have any problems with transmissions that I've seen — this drivetrain has been around a long time.
6 mechanic & owner sources

Open recalls

Free fixes at any Toyota dealer. Run the VIN — “completed” isn’t always completed.

  1. 18V-1232017 Tundra: a rear split-bench seat leg bracket may not be properly tightened to the floor pan; seat could move in a crash (FMVSS 207/210/225). Free re-torque (Toyota J0I).open
  2. 21V-9202007–2021 Tundra / 2008–2022 Sequoia: power-steering gear may leak, causing loss of assist. Free inspect/replace (Toyota 21TB10/21TA10).open
  3. 21E-103JTEKT power-steering-gear service parts, same defect as 21V-920. Free (Toyota 21TH01).open
  4. 17V-8312017–2018 Tundra (among models): incorrect load-carrying-capacity label (FMVSS 110). Free corrected label (Toyota H0Z).open
  5. 17V-0512016–2017 Tundra with resin rear step bumper: bracket may break away. Free steel-bracket replacement (Toyota H0C).open
  6. 17V-3112013–2017 Tundra/Sequoia with Southeast Toyota 20-inch Rockstar wheels: lugnuts may crack and detach. Free replacement (SET17A).open

What it costs to keep

The purchase price is what you negotiate. These are the numbers you live with afterward — each one sourced, none of them blended into a fake total.

The ownership picture — 2017 Tundra

Three sourced numbers. No fake total.

Fuel

15 MPG combined (13 city / 18 highway) for the RWD, 5.7L on the EPA federal fuel-economy test.

Source: FuelEconomy.gov (EPA) — EPA’s federal fuel-economy test, recomputed with current gas prices. EPA record 38123 (Tundra 2WD).
Other builds EPA lists: 4WD, 5.7L 15 MPG · RWD, 4.6L 16 MPG · 4WD, 4.6L 16 MPG.

$4,150/yr

at $4.15/gal · 15,000 mi/yr · 55/45 city/hwy · pulled Jul 12, 2026

Theft

Stolen about 24% more often than the average vehicle. Worth pricing comprehensive coverage before you buy, not after.

Source: HLDI — the insurance industry’s loss-data institute — HLDI whole vehicle theft losses, 2016–18 models, published May 2019 (report WT-18). 100 = the all-vehicle average. Series read: Toyota Tundra CrewMax 4WD.
Other series: Toyota Tundra double cab 4WD 93 · Toyota Tundra CrewMax 125 · Toyota Tundra double cab 128, where 100 = average.

124 vs 100

24% above average

Repair risk

What this specific year is known to need. Pulled from the issues above — the repairs owners actually report, at the costs they report them. Averages from other sites blend every year together; these are this year’s own numbers.

Source: this report — 01 Known issues.

Cam-tower reseal (mechanic estimate)$1,200–$1,500
Recall bracket re-torque$0
Recall power-steering gear replacement$0
Frame replacementmore than the truck is worth
Recall remedies$0
Why there’s no single “cost to own” number: sites that promise one are guessing at your insurance quote, your annual miles, and your luck. These are the numbers we can actually source — and each one carries its receipt.

Shopping this year?

Get the printable pre-purchase checklist and an alert if this year’s recall sheet changes.

Form not loading? Open it directly →

Have a specific one in your sights?

The VIN is on the listing. We’ll check this exact car — build, open recalls, and whether the “completed” repairs stayed fixed.

Form not loading? Open it directly →

Before you buy

Print this
  1. 01Inspect the front of the engine / driver's-side wheel well for a cam-tower oil leak (smoke or burning smell without a puddle is the early tell).
  2. 02Confirm the 2017-only rear seat-bracket recall (18V-123) shows completed by VIN.
  3. 03Verify the power-steering-gear recall (21V-920 / 21E-103) by VIN.
  4. 04If it lived in a salt state, inspect the frame from underneath plus front calipers and rear wheel-bearing backing plates first.
  5. 05Confirm label and accessory-wheel recalls (17V-831, 17V-051, 17V-311) by VIN.
  6. 06Exercise the four-wheel-drive modes; a clean-shifting automatic on this drivetrain is the norm, so treat any oddity seriously.

Own one already?

The canary watches your VIN — new recalls and the mileage where known issues start.

Watch my VIN — free

vincanary.com/toyota/tundra/2017