During normal driving, my wife and father-in-law have experienced multiple incidents of unintended acceleration or surging on our 2008 Rav4 (AWD, 6-cylinder). This is typically occurring at highway speeds or light acceleration above ~25mph. This has been occurring since right after we purchased the vehicle in October 2008. Dealer could not verify problem and no error codes were found. The anti-skid control comes on randomly and applied the brakes also, usually while vehicle is stopped. When foot is removed from brake, vehicle stays stopped until accelerator is push and then system releases the brakes and anti-skid light goes out. Dealer could not find any error codes for this either. This is a vehicle with a VIN number beginning with J, which has been excluded from recent recalls.

- Placerville, CA, USA

2008 Toyota Rav4 taken in for normal service schedule. Dealer found rodent nests and chewed wiring/insulation under the engine cover. Had to replace wiring harness. Dealer said Toyota uses soy based covering/insulation instead of plastic which he has seen many instances of rodent chewing. This poses a fire/safety hazard as well as a performance issue if the wires are damaged, cut or shorted. There are websites dedicated to this issue for all the money people have spent in repairs.

- Greenfield Center, NY, USA

2008 Toyota Rav4 self-combustion in driveway in the early a.M. of Monday, Sept 21, 2009. Car had not been driven since Saturday night at 11 P.M. and arson has been ruled out by fire and police departments. Car was less than 2 years old and had been recently serviced and inspected on Sept 5, 2009 by an authorized Toyota dealer. All other warranty service requirements were fulfilled by an authorized Toyota dealer at the appropriate intervals. There were no problems noted by owner during the past two years. The fire department report mentions that the most extensive fire damage occurred at or near the vehicle battery. Updated 03/08/10

- Houston, TX, USA

On several occasions, my new 2008 Rav4 would not start. The battery is brand new. When I turned the ignition, there was no sound / signal at all. Sometimes, when I put down the hand brake, and try to start the car again, it works. Other times, it doesn't. there are different things that can trigger it to start. How can a brand new car be so unreliable!? we've gotten it towed to the Toyota dealership and they can't seem to find the problem. It's been at the dealership for 2 days and nothing has been done to fix the problem.

- Mississauga, 00, USA