Buyer Research

2013 Toyota Yaris — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $6,500–$10,000. This is one of the more reliable vehicles in its class — here's what to watch for anyway.

Deciding between model years? Compare the 11 Toyota Yaris years we've written up →

Kestrel Take

Nine complaints. That is the whole public record for the 2013 Yaris, the second year of the third-generation hatchback, and nine filings cannot rate a car either way — it says few owners felt moved to write, not that nothing fails. What is there: three airbag non-deployment reports from crashes, a rear door seal that let rain into the back seat, and one recall that only applies to cars sold in Puerto Rico. The 1.5L four-cylinder and four-speed automatic are simple, old-design parts with a long history in other Toyotas, which is the real reason people buy this car. Have it inspected the way you would any ten-year-old economy car — brakes, tyres, fluids, rust under the rear — and pay a price that reflects a cheap car, not a rare one.

What we checked

Checked against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 9 owner complaints for the 2013 Toyota Yaris, and 1 recall campaign.

That is too small a record to read a pattern from, so we are not going to pretend otherwise — with numbers this low one owner moves the percentage by a lot. What has been filed is grouped under airbags (3), the body and structure (2), the brakes (2). Treat those as things to look at, not as the vehicle's known weaknesses. A thin file usually means few of these were sold or few owners filed. It is not evidence the vehicle is trouble-free, and the issues below are our own research rather than a reading of this record.

One recall campaign covers this model year. Recalls are repaired free, for any owner, with no time limit on most safety campaigns — but only if someone books it in. Ask the seller to show it was done, or have any dealer check the VIN; it takes them a couple of minutes and costs nothing.

Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.

Known Issues for the 2013 Toyota Yaris

Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.

Rear door seal lets rainwater onto the back seatLow

One owner at 11,000 miles found the rear seats wet after rain and traced it to a defective rear door seal. A single report is not a pattern, but a water leak on a small hatchback is cheap to check and expensive to ignore: wet foam under the seat grows mould and rusts the floor. Lift the rear seat cushion and press the carpet under it, run a finger along the rear door weatherstrips looking for a split or a section that has come away from the pinch weld, and open the hatch to check the spare-wheel well for water.

Repair cost (estimate): $50–$250 for a door seal; more if the floor has rusted

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the body and structure (2).

Headliner may not meet head-impact standards (Puerto Rico cars only, recall)Low

Recall 15V134 covers 2012–2015 Yaris built August 2011 to February 2015 and sold or registered in Puerto Rico: the roof headliner fitted to those cars may not provide the required head-impact protection in a crash, and dealers replace it free. A mainland car is outside the campaign. If the title history shows Puerto Rico, run the VIN on the NHTSA lookup; otherwise this recall does not apply to the car in front of you.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: 1 NHTSA recall campaign on this model year.

High-mileage wear on the 1.5L: water pump weep and front wheel bearingsMedium

Nothing in the nine complaints, and we say so — this is what the 1NZ-FE engine and the Yaris front end typically need as they pass 100,000 miles, not a defect. The water pump seal weeps pink coolant onto the block behind the belt before it fails, and the front wheel bearings hum at speed and get louder on a sweeping curve. Both are ordinary jobs at an independent shop. Look for a pink crust below the pump and drive it at 45 mph on a road with gentle bends, listening for a drone that changes pitch as you turn.

Repair cost (estimate): $300–$500 for a water pump; $250–$450 per wheel bearing

Source: not yet checked against public records.

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Damp carpet or a musty smell under the rear seat cushion
✗Pink coolant crust on the engine block below the water pump
✗A hum at highway speed that changes pitch on a gentle curve
✗Puerto Rico in the title history with recall 15V134 still open

Good Signs

✓Water pump replaced with a dated invoice on a car past 100,000 miles
✓Dry spare-wheel well and rear floor after a rainy week
✓Toyota dealer or independent-shop service records at each 5,000-mile interval
✓Wheel bearings quiet at 60 mph with the radio off