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What 14 owners told NHTSA about the 2015 Scion Fr-s

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (14)Crash / fire / injury (2)Engine (5)Brakes (2)Steering (2)Transmission & drivetrain (2)Airbags (1)Body & structure (1)Electrical system (1)Seat belts (1)Suspension (1)

2 of 14 complaints match · Transmission & drivetrain · clear filters

Nov 14, 2018Transmission & drivetrain

REVERSE LOCKOUT ON THE STICK SHIFT DOES NOT FUNCTION. DURING SHIFTING THE DRIVER CAN ACCIDENTLY PUT THE VEHICLE IN REVERSE WHILE MOVING FORWARD OR PUT THE VEHICLE IN REVERSE WHILE TRYING TO PUT IT INTO FIRST GEAR. THIS CAN HAPPEN AT ANY TIME DURING THE SHIFTING PROCESS.

NHTSA ODI 11151574

Oct 30, 2018Transmission & drivetrain

I OWN A 2015 AUTOMATIC SCION FR-S. THE CAR HAS A CHECK ENGINE LIGHT AND DOWNSHIFTS ARE VERY JERKY AND HARD. UPSHIFTS ARE FINE, BUT IN BOTH MANUAL MODE (PADDLE SHIFTS) AND IN AUTOMATIC MODE, COMING TO A STOP AND DOWNSHIFTING THROUGH THE GEARS RESULTS IN HARD, JERKY VIOLENT MOVEMENTS AND THE CAR FAILS TO REV MATCH. I'VE LOOKED THE ISSUE UP AND MANY PEOPLE ARE SUFFERING FROM THE SAME PROBLEM. IT IS MOST LIKELY A SOFTWARE ISSUE, EITHER WITH THE ECU BUT MOST LIKELY WITH THE TCM, THE TRANSMISSION COMPUTER. MY DEALERSHIP DENIES THE PROBLEM AND REFLASHES THE ECU ONLY TO HAVE THE PROBLEM RESURFACE A WEEK LATER. THEY HAVE DONE AN OIL CHANGE AND IVE DONE A COOLANT FLUSH BUT NONE OF THESE THINGS HAVE SOLVED THE ISSUE. THE ISSUE IS BIGGER THAN JUST MAINTENANCE AND WILL MOST LIKELY REQUIRE A NEW TCM. ITS A SOFTWARE BUG, AND TOYTA DEALERSHIPS, AT LEAST WHERE I AM, REFUSE TO AWKNOWLEDGE IT.

NHTSA ODI 11143977

Working with the data? Download all 14 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 28, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2015 Scion Fr-s verdict →