Toyota RAV4 Complaints (2021)

510 consumer complaints on file.

#11452197February 16, 2022
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Very loud TRAIN HORN sound. TSB issued in other countries like Finland, but not USA. Finland TSB BE-00612T-TME
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11452204February 16, 2022
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:ADAS:AUTONOMOUS/SELF DRIVING
Lane keeping assistance over corrected and caused an accident that resulted in total loss of my vehicle. My tire crossed white line , I was trying to gradually adjust to keep from over correcting. The lane keeping assistance caused the steering to pull in the opposite direction and would not allow me to correct. The more I tried to get back in the lane the harder the lane assistance pulled in the oppposite direction. It ultimatley jerked the steeing wheel in the opposite direction a caused me to hit a tree head on.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
1
Deaths:
0
#11451668February 12, 2022
SEAT BELTS, SEAT BELTS:STATUS INDICATOR SWITCH
The car had a front passenger and two rear seat passengers, one right and one left. In the middle rear seat there was a tray of cupcakes weighing ~2lbs. As we were driving at night in a complex area of freeway onramps and offramps an alarm started to deploy, beaping steadily. I glanced down at the multi-info-display (MID) and couldn't tell what the alarm was, and I was driving at around 55-60mph, at night. Over the next 45 seconds or so the alarm increased in frequency to the point of starting to sound outright urgent. I finally saw noticed three tiny icons in the lower right part of the MID, amidst an array of other lit icons and indicators, representing the 3 rear seats, and the center one was not illuminated. The car's sensing system apparently determined the seat was occupied but the occupant not belted in. I told everyone to check seatbelts. By now everyone in the car was in a state of near panic as all belts were secured. At the last few seconds, distracted by the urgency of this alarm and trying ascertain what the heck it was, I nearly struck traffic cones and had to swerve to miss them. Thank fate as I swerved to get back into my lane (cones were cordening off a whole lane which I was heading into) and didn't run into another vehicle--it easily could have resulted in a crash. I visited a car owner forum and here is a comment from another owner, "...Toyota doesn't need to have such an obnoxious seatbelt warning system -- even just for the front-seat occupants -- in which the sound gets louder and louder and louder; it's about the worst I've seen in any brand...." Other seatbelt alarms in my experience sound, then stop, then restart, but never escalate like this one. The combination of an atypical satbelt alarm that escalates to the point of urgency, combined w/ a hypersensitive seat occupant sensor confirmed by others, difficult to focus on while driving alarm icons , makes this design potentially disastrous as my story suggests.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11451126February 9, 2022
STRUCTURE:BODY, ENGINE, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Hello Nhtsa, It is a brand new car, while we were driving on the freeway, all off a sudden, we hard noisy drive, eventually smelled plastic. When we saw under the "Underbody plastic shield with clips loosen up" and it is handing half on the road. we were scared and it could even fire up the whole car as we smelled a burning smell. I called Toyota Custer service a couple of times and reported the issue. again called towing company took to the dealer. dealer "Town county Toyota Charlotte" Dealer manager was very rude and says it cannot be fixed, it is back-ordered, left us on the road to take out the car. It is such cheap material for Such an EXPENSIVE car. It has an 18KW battery and gas we would have been caught up in a fire in the car. We were so disappointed and shocked for a few days. # Again it is first in segment plugin EV. It makes weird noise occasionally while reversing or staring going in 10-15miles per hour. Riased 2 service tickets with toyota customer care, no response so far. First ticket: 220119002484 second ticket: 220108001683
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11449666February 1, 2022
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE
Toyota RAV4 2021 fuel tank capacity should be 14.5 Gallons as per manufacturer but never managed to pump close to 12 Gallons. Called Dealer but refuse to acknowledge the defect
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11449652January 31, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES
When the vehicle goes over a pothole (or bad road condition) while you are braking, the brakes don’t work for a second, the car feels like it is surging. I almost hit the car in front. This happens a lot. It’s the exact same problem problem with the 2010 prius.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11448976January 26, 2022
STRUCTURE:BODY
Vehicle's hood has adhesive separation. The defect is located at the bottom of the hood closest to the windshield. Air infiltration is causing the inside of the hood to flex at speeds higher than 40mph. This flexing will cause adhesive in other parts of the hood to separate and fail as well, which will in turn will increase the air infiltration and drag on the hood itself which will more than likely affect the hood latching system. This is a major safety concern that the company tells me is a "characteristic" of the vehicle.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11448513January 23, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES
While braking there is a brief release, which I believe happens when car switches from regenerative to friction braking. It feels like I have taken my foot off the brake for a moment, but I have not. Result is car briefly stops braking, which can cause loss of control. Has happened consistently for months, less pronounced with hard vs soft braking
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11448547January 23, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES, VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
I had 2 sudden acceleration incidents. The first occurred 10/6/21.My car lurched forward & hit a pole. I was with my mom who saw me press the brake, which did not engage. My car has an auto-braking system which did not function as designed. I took it to Toyota.They determined there were no issues w/the vehicle. I insisted there was something wrong & warned this will happen again & could be much worse. I felt defeated but hoped it was an isolated glitch & hoped for the best. Fast forward 2 months to 12/13/21 I was in a drive-thru using the hold button, which is a feature that holds the brake in place, so my foot was not on any pedal. All of a sudden, my car began to accelerate & the brakes would not engage. An error message on the dash said “BRAKE MALFUNCTION”. I could not stop the car. I put in park, but it did not stop the car. The car jumped the curb & drove into oncoming traffic & hit two cars. They were traveling north, I was traveling west. It’s a miracle another car did not hit & kill me. The most frightening experience of my life. I had the car towed to Toyota as the front wheel blew out & could not be driven. Another inspection was done & once again Toyota came back with “they could not find anything wrong with the vehicle.” And added that the brakes were never engaged, which is an outright lie & utterly insane. I spoke to an attorney & what he told me was quite eye opening. He has been practicing product liability law for 30 years. He told me the letter received from Toyota was a standard letter that all car companies respond with. They never admit a problem unless forced to, usually by the govt, to do a recall after enough people file a complaint. I really believed Toyota would tell the truth. I never imagined they would lie & participate in a cover-up. They would rather fight you in court. As mentioned earlier, my car has an auto braking system, so why didn't it work? Clearly it malfunctioned. My hope is that this deceit by car manufacturers ends.
Crash:
Yes
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11448186January 20, 2022
VISIBILITY:SUN/MOON ROOF ASSEMBLY
The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Rav4 Hybrid. The contact stated while driving approximately 50 MPH, the sunroof exploded, and fragments of glass fell inside the cabin of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer and was diagnosed with needing the sunroof replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure but offered no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 20,000.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11448018January 19, 2022
STEERING
Purchase vehicle 2 weeks ago and the tire pressure light has come on 2 times, along with the truck sliding at turns, it also is very bumpy and unstable on expressway, very scary. Would like to get another vehicle.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11446964January 10, 2022
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I was driving on a two lane highway going approximately 55mph. It was around 8pm and it was already dark out. There was nothing near me on the road. While driving, I heard a loud explosion/pop. I swerved into the opposite lane due to the sound. Luckily there were no cars oncoming. I was able to get back to the right side of the road and find a spot to stop/park. I then looked at my sunroof and it was shattered in a circular pattern. It was not from an external force.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11446024January 3, 2022
SERVICE BRAKES
During inclement weather (snow) this morning, I went to brake and it felt like my car sped up instead of slowing down. I tried pressing my brakes again and it did the same thing again.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11445937January 3, 2022
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM
Toyota of Portland sold me a used 2021 RAV4 hybrid XSE with a defective gas tank. The gas tank does not carry the 14.5 gallons as advertised, the gas gauge cluster is inaccurate, and the mileage remaining on the dash cluster is inaccurate. These defects were not disclosed to me prior to the sale. Immediately after seeing the problem, I brought the vehicle in for service at Vancouver (WA) Toyota. They botched the repair job and the vehicle is emitting gas vapors non stop. Over the weekend, my house was inundated with gas vapors and my household and I experienced dizziness, irritability, poor eyesight, and nausea.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11444257December 18, 2021
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I was driving down an open road when I suddenly heard a loud rattling noise and a huge explosion. Luckily, there wasn’t any cars around us and we weren’t going very fast. As you can imagine this was very shocking and distracting and I was eventually able to pull over to the side of the road to investigate what had happened. I had my 9 month pregnant sister as well as my 4 month infant in the car. What we found was the sunroof of my car had exploding upwards and there were shards of glass everywhere. We had been experiencing extreme weather conditions the past few days and had to assume this to be the cause. There was no one around us nor anything above us and my car is kept under a carport. An external force would not cause the sunroof glass to explode upwards, it would be the exact opposite and smashed downwards.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11444083December 17, 2021
SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
To whom this may concern, I have had many problems with the Toyota Rav-4. I had so many problems with my 2017 Rav 4, that I under pressure upgraded to the 2021 LE version. I have had many problems with the breaks. I have brought it in (3) times to be serviced since I purchased it in March of 2021. The breaks are still squeaking. I have also had problems with the electrical system. The dash panel comes on, and abruptly shuts down when it feels like it. My wipers also come on intermittently. Every time I try and talk to Toyota about this they tell me there is nothing wrong. This same thing happens with the 2017, until my breaking mechanism stopped. I am looking for someone to look into this matter because these are dangerous conditions and unacceptable especially for new cars.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11443618December 13, 2021
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
This car makes a loud noise (train horn?) when I first begin to drive it on cold days. It makes the noise for a couple of seconds and then stops. If I leave it parked until it cools off and try to drive it again, it makes the noise again. It's very loud and disturbing. I first noticed it when the temperature dropped to about 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11443668December 13, 2021
VISIBILITY/WIPER, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
I found the moonroof of my 15-day old 2021 Toyota RAV4 spontaneously exploded while sitting parked in my driveway. As the shade that covers the moonroof was open, I incurred minor abrasions from not realizing that the "s**t on my console" was not dust or fuzz, but tiny shards of broken glass that I had already swiped with my hand. There is a large, jagged hole near center on the rear section of glass and the entire moonroof is shattered. Strangely, the glass around the hole is bowed outward as if something was shot through from the inside of the vehicle. Thankfully I was not driving & did not have my kids in the car with me when it happened because there would have been definite safety issues for me, my passengers, and any others out on the road with me. The car was last used about 6:30pm on Saturday, 12/11/21 and not used again until about 11:15am on Monday, 12/13/21. It spent the time not being used parked towards the rear of my driveway, shaded by my house. There are no trees or other possible falling hazards near my driveway and nothing found in or around my car to suggest a projectile/object was involved.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11443520December 12, 2021
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Navigation systems are key safety systems that are optional in most cars. The navigation system with its turn by turn instruction allows the driver to focus on driving , while also listening to music or talking on the phones. There have been many times that I or anyone would get lost, miss turns without the use of such systems. While integrated satellite navigation systems are available, they are far inferior to google maps, waze and Apple Maps. I personally have been using google maps on my phone tied to Bluetooth for many years. Technology has improved where phones can be projected onto car screens using android auto and CarPlay. I have just purchased a new car to have this feature in addition to the phone based system where a could listen to radio or talk on the phone while receiving voice navigation prompts. My new car is able to provide turn by turn instructions while listening to the radio, but while on a brief call the instructions are no longer available when using android auto and google maps, the most popular navigation software. I have discussed this with Toyota, who blames it on google. Toyota is the manufacturer and should be able to make it happen. The problem is not just a Toyota problem, but it seems that it is across manufacturers. The turn by turn feature should be mandatory for projection systems like android auto and CarPlay. A switch can determine whether it is active, but it should be there. If nhtsa can require it then manufacturers can demand google and apple to fix their software. I have researched this on the internet and it is a common but important problem. Can you please look into it Regards
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0
#11443354December 10, 2021
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM, UNKNOWN OR OTHER
The 2021 RAV4 Prime has a known defect with the heat pump causing an alarming sound to be heard within about a 1 minute of startup. The grinding noise causes distraction as it is extremely loud and occurs generally while backing out/maneuvering in tight areas. Toyota released a Service Bulletin in their European Market in October (numbered BE-00612T-TME - "Train Horn noise" from A/C compressor when the vehicle is started), but has not made available the same fixes in the US even months later.
Crash:
No
Fire:
No
Injuries:
0
Deaths:
0

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