This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
While driving 55-60 on a highway, my anti-skid warning light came on, the 4wheel drive light a half hour later, followed by the engine light aprx 1 hr later. The following morning, while driving, the cruise control went out on me, the car unexpectedly slowed and I noticed the cruise light flashing on and off. The remote start did not work on day #3, as I traveled to have the car repaired at serra Toyota, traverse city, mi. The service tech told me that "the mechanic literally poured water out of the evap canister, we have seen other rav's w this problem and we have a bulletin on it, so Toyota is aware. The canister is faulty, which allowed road water, (very wet, slushy roads at time), to get in and damage the wiring." The service tech also told me that the new canister/hose replacement system addresses this issue. I emailed Toyota Japan, they had "henry kerry of Toyota executive headquarters, torrence, calif call me. Mr. Kerry stated that the problem was related to overfilling the gas tank. I told him that the tech said "(they) literally poured water out and they had seen this problem previously." Mr. Kerry advised that "I should have talked to the service manager to get the factual info." Bottom line: I feel that I should have been notified that electrical failure could occur, due to canister/hose failure and that a new part had been developed which, once installed, would prevent (road) water from shorting out the wiring. (the work order receipt states: ("water intrusion into evap system") thanks much, [xxx] 'information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).'
When braking, sudden acceleration occurred- seems to reset by letting up on brake and reapplying. Has happened on various locations and types of roads. While out of state dealership replace purge valve- seemed ok, but then on 1/25/16 was backing out of driveway had foot on brake and felt engine racing, put into park with racing engine, turned key off restarted and seemed ok had garage check could not find anything no codes showing currently back at dealership to put on their computer. This is an on-going issue for several months, but does not happen on any regular basis so it has not been identified by any garage yet. Please help
Four unintended acceleration incidents has occurred with my Toyota Rav4. Recent incidents on 9/1415 (college park, md when brake applied at a red light with vehicle ahead; passenger/witness in car). High RPM and engine rev occurred; both feet on brake in attempt to keep car from advancing; put car in neutral and then park and engine stopped revving. And on 10/5/15 (damascus, md when brake applied at stop sign with vehicle ahead). Both feet on brake, car to neutral then to park. Actions did not stop engine rps. Turned key to turn off vehicle. Rubber mat (on top of Toyota carpet mats) was removed before leaving the Toyota service center on 9/15/15. Proving on 10-5-15 that the unintended acceleration problem is not a result of floor mats which Toyota would like everyone to believe. Vehicle will be taken to darcar frederick md to filed second incident report on Monday, 10/12/15 (delay because I left on travel 10/5/15). Intent will be to determine trade-in value of car and most likely purchase another vehicle. It's time that Toyota recognize unintended accceleration problems with their Rav4S.
The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Rav4. At a stop light with the brake pedal depressed, the engine suddenly began to rev very high and the RPM's increased. The contact quickly shut the engine off. After restarting the engine, the vehicle operated as normal. The contact indicated that the failure had recurred on multiple occasions. The vehicle was taken to the dealer but the failure was not able to be duplicated. The manufacturer was not notified. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 23,000.
The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Rav4. When attempting to stop the vehicle, it lunged forward and crashed into another vehicle. A police report was filed and no injuries were sustained. The vehicle was able to be driven away and was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 25,000. The VIN was unavailable. Updated 5/19/15
- Bell Flower, CA, USA
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I had 3 incidents of unintended acceleration (ua) with my 2011 Rav4 within 3 weeks of each other in Mar/Apr 2014, 1 resulting in a minor accident. A complaint was made with NHTSA at that time. I went thru Toyota's complaint procedure, including inspection by their field technician. They found nothing wrong with the vehicle. On Dec 4 & 12th, 2014, I experienced 2 more ua incidents. Each time I was coming to a stop at an intersection & I stepped on the brake, but my vehicle kept moving forward, and I could hear the motor revving up very loudly. I had learned from the previous 3 experiences last spring to keep a distance behind vehicles whenever possible when coming to a stop, so as to avoid ramming into the vehicles in front of me by veering to either side of the vehicle if possible. I should not have to be afraid every time I drive my Rav4, but I am. My Rav4 has only 20500 miles on it and is like new. It makes me livid that Toyota can just ignore/deny that there is a problem, especially after seeing all of the other similar complaints regarding ua on the NHTSA site...kind of like General Motors covering up their little ignition problem for 10 years, while so many people were injured or died.
The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Rav4. While driving downhill at an unknown speed, the vehicle independently accelerated. The contact shifted into neutral in order to slow down the vehicle. The gear was shifted back into drive and the vehicle resumed normal operation. The failure occurred twice. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000.
Car failed to decelerate while brakes were being applied. Car continued to push forward while I was braking. Car had to be turned off to come to a complete stop. This is the second time this phenomena occurred. Both times the vehicle was taken immediately to the local Toyota dealership. They claimed they found no issues with the car or its computer systems. Since Toyota inspected the car and claimed they found no ABS event in the car's systems and claimed they could detect no computer system malfunction, I elected to trade in the car. I am reporting this because I want any potential future owner of this vehicle to be aware of these events.
The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Rav4. While driving approximately 5 mph, the brakes failed to respond when the brake pedal was depressed. The vehicle accelerated independently and crashed into a building. The air bags failed to deploy. A police report was filed and there were no injuries reported. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic for repair. The front bumper, the passenger side headlight, and the front grill were replaced. The technician was unable to diagnose the cause of the failure. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 37,000.
While approaching an intersection on a busy thoroughfare, the light turned yellow and at the last minute I decided against running the yellow light and applied my brakes very hard. The vehicle started to slow down but as I approached the stop line my vehicle continued to slowly move forward no matter how hard I pressed on the brake pedal. At first I thought my brakes had failed, but then I heard the whine of the engine and I realized that I was fighting against an accelerating engine. I put the vehicle in neutral which I thought would kick the accelerator back to normal but the engine was still revving quite high, but I was no longer moving forward. I then shifted to reverse and the vehicle started to back up even though my foot was still on the brake. At that point I placed the vehicle back into neutral and turned the engine off. After about 10 seconds, I restarted the engine and it performed normally. I drove 6 blocks to my destination, parked the car, called the dealership and had the vehicle towed there. I did not feel safe driving the vehicle, as I thought Toyota had solved the problem of unattended acceleration. Obviously not. The car is currently at the dealership and I am waiting to hear from them as to what they find. From the reports I have read, I'm not holding my breath. They mentioned that they might have to call for an independent engineer to assess the vehicle, and that might take up to a week. I have no grudge against Toyota, as I also own a 2002 Camry which has been a fantastic car with no problems. I just don't believe that all the reports out there are because of loose floor mats, sticky accelerators or con artist trying to get money out of a big corporation. Please look into the electronics of these cars as something is not communicating right. Thank you.
2011 Toyota rav 4. consumer writes in regards to vehicle unintended acceleration. The consumer stated she experienced sudden acceleration on August 15, 2013. She stated there was a car in front of her at a light, and she attempted to brake, but due to the unintended acceleration, she hit the vehicle in front of her. She suffered a fractured pelvis. Repairs to the vehicle exceeded $8,000 and thousands more in medical care. On Feb 2, 2014, her husband attempted to park the vehicle, but when he applied the brake, the vehicle instead accelerated, and he crashed into a building. There were no injuries, but costly damage to the building and $2,000 damage to the vehicle. The consumer went to the dealer for help, and the service manager replicated the acceleration problem four separate times in the parking lot. He stated there was a software program called "smart stop" available for the 2006-2010 models and the same software was on the 2012-2014 models. An inspector was sent to examine the vehicle, and he stated there was nothing wrong with the vehicle, and the accidents, were simply their fault.
The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while the vehicle was stationary with the brake pedal being depressed, the engine rpms suddenly increased as the vehicle accelerated forward. The vehicle crashed into the rear of another vehicle. No injuries were reported and a police report was not filed. The contact also indicated that the failure was recurring. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified and no solution was offered. The failure mileage was 15,785.
On 2/17/14 I had an "unintended acceleration" event and hit a car. No one was hurt. I took my car to Toyota and filed a report. On 2/22/14 Toyota retrieved data from the vehicle chip and emailed me a copy. Data shows that I was braking during the entire 4.7 sec prior to collision. Upon braking, the motor RPM dropped to 800, then suddenly increased to 2000 while I continued braking, and stayed at 2000 until collision. A Toyota case manager said that Toyota had 30 days to respond. That has passed and I have received no response. My car may be unsafe. I cannot drive it for fear of harm to myself or others since nothing has been to correct the problem. My car is idle, causing me significant financial difficulty.
I was traveling down city street behind several cars & we were approaching a traffic light at intersection, my foot off the gas pedal letting car slow naturally. I heard the motor start revving up quickly, suddenly accelerating by itself. I pushed on the brakes, but car continued to rev up & lurched forward hitting the car in front of me. I pushed harder on the brakes, even trying to pump them but my car hit the car in front of me again & then my car finally stopped & I turned off the motor. What a scary situation!! thank god no one was injured only damage to both vehicles! we filed a police report & I had the rav towed to the Toyota dealer where it remains parked. I will not drive it again because I am scared to death of what could of or what might happen. A claim was filed with Toyota headquarters, claim # [xxx]. a third party, engineer, came out to dealer's to inspect, check black box, etc. Of course, with an 18 page report & extensive checking he could not recreate problem, found nothing on black box, etc. & claims he feels safe to drive it. I am waiting to hear from Toyota headquarters for their official word, which I doubt will be any different than the inspector's. besides I could not get a copy of the report because he was hired by Toyota! not sure where to turn now. This was not the first time, the unintended sudden acceleration had occurred. On 3 or 4 other occasions, my rav did the same thing & luckily did not cause an accident. One time I threw the car into park as to stop it. The gas pedal & the brake were working fine, no sticking or no me putting my foot on the wrong pedal! the floor mats were original to vehicle & firmly attached to hooks. I had reported it to concord Toyota on one occasion when I had an oil change, but they could not simulate the problem, so they stated there was no problem!! obviously, there is a problem!! information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Came to stop sign and put my foot on the brakes - the engine began to accelerate and move the car forward. Had to put my foot hard on the brakes and put the car into neutral - and the engine stopped accelerating. This is the second time in a two week period that this has happened. Afterwards, the vehicle operated as expected with no problems. However, it is a very scary situation. I checked the floor mat and it was anchored correctly and away from the accelerator. And "no" my foot did not slip from the brake to the gas peddle. I had both feet hard on the brake to avoid jolting forward and hitting the vehicle in front of me.
The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while traveling various speeds, the vehicle erroneously accelerated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the failure could not be replicated. The manufacturer was not contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 30,000.
I lease a 2011 Toyota rav 4 and my car accelerated uncontrollably into another car. I was inching out of a parking spot very slowly in reverse, when I noticed a man to my right, two spots away from me, pulling out head first. I depressed my brake pedal in order to let him go and the moment I did that, I literally flew back into this man's car with such a force that I would have most definitely run somebody over if they were walking behind my car. Thank god there was not a huge amount of space (maybe 6 feet) between me and the car I hit because I surged back with such a force that given the time and/or space, I cannot even think about what could have happened to me or someone else if the car was able to gain more momentum. Not to mention how thankful I am my 3 year old daughter and 6 month old son were not in the car with me! I most definitely had an accelerator problem. I had no additional mats on my floor. There was no pedal misplacement.' I am telling you that I was slamming on the break and it didn't work- I just propelled behind me into this man's car. I am in the process of contacting everyone and everyone to try to get out of my lease. I am not driving this car ever again and wouldn't risk my life or the life of my two children. I am very skeptical of accurate findings in an investigation after reading many reports from people swearing the car accelerated and the brakes did not work and being told everything looks fine with their car by the investigator. There must be a recall for this car. I could have killed somebody. I will never drive another Toyota!
While backing into a parking spot after applying the brake the vehicle jerked back several times no mater how hard I applied the brake I could not stop it. I was going about 5 miles or less per hr. The same thing happened later the same day in my driveway. Twice in one day also on another day my wife was heading down the driveway and applied the brakes and the vehicle would not stop no matter how hard she applied the brakes it finally stopped about 40 feet later in the middle of the road. She was very scared, thankfully no car was coming when this happened. We took it to Toyota and of course they found nothing they told us we hit the wrong peddle (three different times) which we did not. And so did the thousands of other people that have complained and then hurried us on our way. How many times does this have to happen to people before Toyota is forced to do something? from what I have read it seems to have started when car company's went from accelerator cables to computer sensors and electric motors. So all I can do is file a complaint and hope the everybody else that has encounters this problem will do the same so maybe if enough people do something will be done. We were going to trade it in but doing research we can't seem to find a newer vehicle that hasn't had this complaint. So I guess we are stuck with it and all my wife and I can do is say a little prayer each time I get behind the wheel.
When approaching a red light at an intersection and almost stopped, the engine started to race, sounding like a jet engine taking off. In spite of putting my full force on the brake, the car kept jerking forward into the intersection. Finally, at my wife's screamed instruction, I slammed the car into park. This finally stopped the engine. We were frightened to death. I do not believe my wife could have stopped the car without an accident. We were lucky that there was no car in front of us or someone would have been seriously hurt. I had the car towed to the dealer and explained to them what had happened and that we were afraid to drive the car. At their question, I told them that the floor mats were Toyota's and came with the car. Three hours later, they called to tell me that the computer and a test drive found nothing wrong; pick up the car. I then called the Toyota complaint office to make an official complaint. However, their process is to merely send the dealer's data to the regional office, who, of course, found nothing wrong. In the meantime, I continued to get several calls from various dealer personnel to pick up the car. No sympathy was ever expressed. Since neither my wife nor I could ever feel safe in the car, I sold it back to the dealer for a big loss. We don't want to feel responsible for endangering other people's lives. This problem with Toyota cars is not resolved. It must be further investigated. In fact, this car had another incident previously where the motor roared at an intersection, however without lasting long enough to start moving the car.
2011 Toyota rav 4. consumer writes in regards to vehicle sudden acceleration and disabled throttle. The consumer stated he began having problems with the vehicle in Jan 2013, which resulted in two accidents. One of the accidents resulted in $2200 worth of damage, when the vehicle accelerated and lurched forward. The vehicle would disable the throttle over 5 mph when the brake was applied. However, the sudden acceleration also occurred under 5 mph.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Boyne City, MI, USA