Tacoma 2018 - Issues with the head unit (Stereo)

Hello all,

I've had a ton of issues with my head unit ever since I bought my truck 4 months ago. I am not sure if any of y'all had this same problem, something similar, or if y'all have any advice. Since day one my head unit will reboot when i place a phone call. I have the entune head unit with GPS (not the JBL one) and the more I used it, the more frequent the reboots happened.

i took it to the dealership and they said it might be an issue with the software but it was updated since i had just purchased the truck so they only did a hard reset.

Kept complaining about the issue until my original dealer basically said to wait for an update or take it to a different dealership (fuck them).

Took it to a different dealership and made them replace the head unit. The head unit kept rebooting itself after 2 or 3 days.

Took it back to the dealership and they said that i have to wait for an update or that it might be my phone. I have an iPhone X so i took it to the apple store and they said the phone's bluetooth is fine. So i called Toyota's customer care and was basically told to wait for an update.

At this point, I am extremely frustrated with their response, it just seems that they don't give a shit and I am making a monthly payment on a partially functioning truck. I told them that if i get distracted because of this issue and I crash I will sue the shit out of them and only after that their response changed and they moved me up to Corporate.

Corporate said that they will follow up and a few days later i got a phone call from corporate but they were just as unhelpful. Their response was, it must be your phone. They said that if i have certain characters on my contacts or certain apps i might be creating some kind of issue. I told her i only have alphanumerical characters in my contacts and i asked her to tell me what app(s) might be creating the issue. She said "i don't know, there are way too many apps for me to know".

About two weeks later a guy calls and tells me it is definitely not my phone, the stereo reboots because of some issue that they will fix with the next update but he doesn't know when this new update will become available.

I told the guy that this is absolute bullshit. That i cannot wait for an update and i cannot operate a head unit that will reboot after I place or receive a phone call. If i update my phone's iOS it might also create that problem again and toyota cannot guarantee that the head unit will work on my phone or anyone's phone for that matter. I've read that some people had the same issue with Tundras and other Tacomas. So i brought this up, cause it seems to be an issue that started in 2015 and their response was basically tough luck.

I don't know what to do, what pisses me off is that i've been a loyal Toyota customer for years, never had an issue and their customer service was outstanding. Now, it seems that they don't give a crap. I was wondering if any of y'all had the same issue or any advise on this matter? I am thinking about filing a lemon law claim or ask them for a partial refund for every month my head unit won't work?

 

I have a 2018 Taco with the entune premium and an iPhone X also. I have had no issues with the head unit rebooting making/taking calls or any other time. The only issue I have had is sometimes it takes a bit ( a few seconds to a couple of minutes) for the Bluetooth to hook up when I start the truck. Is the software on your phone up to date? That’s the only thing I can think of.

 

Same here, my JBL head unit hasn't given me any issues except it likes to load my daughters iphone X sometimes before my Iphone 8+ when we get in the truck at the same time.

 

Have you tried hooking your phone to another truck and testing? Go to the dealership and get one off the lot and try it.

 

No problems here, but I also do not have an iphone

 

My 18 is going on 2 months old now and no issues either. Since it only seems to happen when you are using bluetooth, I wonder if it's drawing more power and not getting it so it reboots? Seems odd that two different radios have the same issue. And since other people have the X with no issue, I wouldn't think it's the phone either. I'd borrow someone's phone and drive around to see if it happens with another phone (so you can prove to the techs that it's not your phone). They tend to blame our stuff to get out of work. I wasted 4 hours with an evap sensor CEL because "that GPS module I had plugged in the ODB port was triggering the fault"... 2 more trips back with the same error and 2 weeks of shop time later, nope. Not the GPS unit. Then they tried blaming the LED puddle lights and LED bed lights... nope, that's not it either. Then they finally took the time to actually troubleshoot the issue and found a bad seal on the fuel neck. Gee, that seems more logical for a fuel EVAP warning than some LED puddle lights... SMH

Don't be afraid of calling them out on their BS but play along to keep the process moving.

 

Most of the time, not all, the problem is with the phone and the settings. If 100 people are not having a problem and you are, chances are it has something to do unique to your situation. They replaced your HU and you still have problems? You need to do one of two things:
1. Go pair your phone to a new Tacoma on the lot, see what happens or
2. Have a buddy with a different phone, pair his (hers) to your HU and see what happens.

Don't get mad at Toyota until you know it's Toyota's fault. My thoughts.

 

had my 18 3 months and no issues. I do not have JBL either.

 

It’s been an issue since the release of iOS 11. There was an entune update that came out a while back that has made the issue less frequent for me but I’ve still had it happen a couple times. I’m hoping iOS 12 takes care of it or I might end up putting in an aftermarket system.

 

Havent looked it up but anyone know if these units have firmware upgrades issued by toyota? Most stereos mobile and consumer act much better when fw is up to date.

 

i have the same system in my 18, and have had no issues, other than the Sat Radio "skipping" every 15-20 minutes of listening... but, since i wont have sat radio after the free trial, i just dont seem to be bothered by it.

 

Every once in a while your system will auto push updates and ask you to download them.

 

@mgtz14 I have the same head unit.. also an iPhoneX ... mine has rebooted a few times since I had the truck (about 2 months) but not as often as your experiencing... also occasionally disconnecting my phone from Bluetooth...

 

I have the same unit but can't connect my phone to it via Entune. The GPS sometimes hang.

 

One rotten Apple...........





Sorry. Couldn't help myself. Apple may make big money, but none of it came from me. Too proprietary for my simple tastes.

 

2017 here non-JBL for ~20 months old and no issues with head unit, my Android, or Wifey's I-phone.

I tend to lean to your phone or user error as you have already had the head unit replaced the still have the same problem? Must be a common denominator here

 

Until you figure it out can't you just pair your phone so the Bluetooth functions for media only and not calls?

 

I have an 18, but I rarely get to drive it. Only put 4K km’s On it since I bought it in July. BUT, I have definitely experienced a little bit about what you speak of. I noticed using Siri through the head unit will crash the head unit. And it’s definitely happened more than once. But like I said I rarely use the truck and only have that issue when I’m in town which. I’ll play around over the holiday weekend and see if it happens some more. Maybe see what the local Toyota guys say.

 

I have the exact same issue. Head unit reboots about half the time. Dealership replaced my head unit and updated firmware and same restarting issue. I have an iPhone 8plus.

At this point I’ve given up and I am waiting for a firmware update. The problem is Toyota is slow with the updates.

 

2018 here. I’ve already had the head unit replaced two times for the same exact reason. Tonight coming home on a 7:48 minute drive the unit shut down and rebooted 10 times. It’s driving me insane. I recorded it on my iPhone so I can show Toyota