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.
Toyota oil consumption test conducted. Usage of ~3/4 qt per 1,200 miles. First noted excessive usage at ~ 95,000 mi. Tested at 138,739 mi. 2.4L 4-cyl DOHC engine.
While stopped at a light waiting to turn left the Rav4 engine began to rev and lurched forward with driver's foot still on the brake. Driver put car into neutral while holding down the brake pedal to prevent the car hurtling into the intersection. Driver then turned off the car and put gear shift to park. After 30 seconds restarted the car with foot on brake and the engine began to rev again with car in park. The engine noise was very loud. Car was again turned off. Car was restarted after about 2-3 minutes and engine behaved normally. Owners took car to Toyota dealer within an hour of the incident. Toyota dealership ran diagnostic and manager said driver had foot on the accelerator when it happened which is certainly not true. Dealer would not release a copy of the diagnostic report. Owners have had all recall work done on the vehicle and have done regular maintenance as required in the owner manual.
I first heard knocking noise upon cold start-up. This has now become a chronic noise. When getting truck serviced for another matter the mechanic informed me that the vvt-I bolts were defective and needed to be replaced for a charge of $3500-$5600. He also noted this was expensive because it is a Lexus engine. Upon researching this more I discovered this is the same engine 2gr-fe V6 installed in the Lexus rx350S with same problem. However, this has been a major recall by Toyota for Lexus vehicles but not Toyota. I contacted Toyota but they refuse to address this issue even though this is exact same defect which is a recall for Lexus models. See article //parts.olatheoyota.com/gr-series-engine.html. The recall is listed on NHTSA. Once bolts loosen the vvt-I gear housing and sprocket to separate and result in the engine stopping while the vehicle is being driven, increasing the risk of a crash. See article: Toyota recalls various Lexus vehicles with engine bolt problems the bolts could become loose due to abnormal impacts 09/10/2013 | consumeraffairs by [xxx] I cannot understand how these defective bolts under a Toyota body style, but on the same engine are excluded from this major recall. The serious consequences remain the same regardless of body style should bolts loosen during high speeds. I have escalated this complaint to the highest level at Toyota with no results so I am compelled to file an official complaint with your department. We have a toddler on board each day driving this vehicle without funds to repair this problem and are now unable to sell the car. Your attention to this matter is appreciated. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
Received a warranty enhancement notification (extended warranty) for the excessive oil consumption. Free fix. What a joke. They tell you to come in for the test, fill your oil to full and tell you to come back in 1200 miles. Twelve hundred miles later you go back your car is at low/add level, they add 1 qt oil and state and I quote "found that vehicle burned 1qt of oil in 1,241 miles. That is ok to Toyota standards". that last line tells it all. If you do the math, at 5000 miles, which they tell you to come in for an oil change, there would be no oil left to change with a 4.8qt engine oil limit. I couldn't believe Toyota has such low standards. We have all Toyota in my household. With the we don't care attitude by Toyota, we will become a Honda household. I expected better, Toyota standards have really deteriorated. Dontbytoyota.com is available. Just may buy it to warn potential customers.
My VIN number is on their tsb list and they knew their problems and still trying to play games. Toyota is trying everything they can to screw up with consumer. They want you to test the oil consumption even you already tested three times before. They are not answering your phones. Audi already lost their case. Toyota will be the same. This is the first Toyota and also be the last one.
There was no accident, however, this inquiry is about the engine oil. My wife bought this vehicle new, the engine is a 4 cylinder (2az-fe). This has been happening for the past two years and it continues. Every 1400 to 2000 miles the check engine light comes on, and when I the engine oil, its always two (2) quarts low. I never see any evidence of oil burning in the exhaust; no oil leaks on the driveway, nothing. It's as if the oil disappears. The dealer won't do anything, they say that it's not a safety issue so they won't investigate. My wife has been taking this vehicle to an independent auto shop and they say that they see this all the time with this particular engine. This shop suggests that we add in ames oil every other oil change (every 3500 to 5000 miles), and that should make the oil changes go from 1400 miles to approximately 3500 miles. This is very frustrating!!! this vehicle shouldn't need oil changes until 7500 miles!! could you please look into this?
Just learned today that I need a new transmission for a 2008 Rav4 with only 74,000 miles on it. Had the car in for service at 72,000 miles where they did the 70K mi service to include multipoint/floor mat, replaced the water pump, brake fluid flush and "engine minor". I think something is wrong here. My 5 year or 100K prepaid warranty ended in June so no coverage available. Shouldn't a transmission last longer than 70K miles?
A little after its regular scheduled maintenance my 2008 Rav4 started to make an odd noise (rattling) when reaching 40 mph at 1500 RPM. Checked fluids and noticed that engine oil was dry (burnt oil on stick) and black atf. Immediately replaced fluids (engine and ws atf). Took car to dealer and they said they didn't noticed anything unusual. Drove with tech and showed him the noise at specified conditions. He said more tests needed to be done. Up until today they are not sure what the issue may be and suggested a bunch of different "fix" that I will have to pay for myself. Found a tsb online for a similar issue (T-sb-0094-11). Toyota should be held responsible and fix this issue at no cost to users.
Our 2008 Rav4 oil light came on and we had just had our oil changed so we thought the business didn't add enough oil when they did the oil change. We took it back and was told it was an oil consumption problem that this model year has. First we heard about it. We took it to Toyota dealer in omaha and they immediately said we had no warranty for this without even looking at it. Red flag. They then did a test where they did another oil change and we drove it for 1000 miles then took it back. They said we did not have an oil consumption problem. Fast forward to August 2014 and the oil light again came on. The dip stick was dry. We took it again to dealer and was told we did have an oil consumption. He didn't even look at it. My husband was furious since we had been told we didn't have that problem 13 months earlier. We have been told it would take $5000 to $6000 to fix it since it would require a new engine. Since then we have found out a lot of people have had this problem and Toyota refuses to do anything about it even though they put the faulty engines in these vehicles. The are trying to shirk their responsibility because this recall cost a little more. Where does this leave the consumer? if we trade it we just lost $5000 to $6000 in value. If we don't we are stuck with a faulty vehicle. There should be a recall for this oil consumption problem. Obviously this is a problem that came right out of the manufacturing of this vehicle. My husband called Toyota and they just argued with him. No help.
The 2008 Rav4's seem to have a serious defect with the engines burning a lot of oil due to bad piston rings. This defect is costing Rav4 owners quite a bit of money and Toyota isn't recalling the engines for repair. Toyota should be held reasonable for the design flaws and get these cars fixed right away before something happens to someone.
Excessive oil consumption I went for an oil change as I do every 3000 miles and was told there was little oil. They looked for leaks etc. None found. Thought it was a fluke. About 1500 miles in my engine light comes on my brother in law who is a certified mechanic for 30 years and takes care of my car tells me my car is consuming oil and your talking a big job advised me to take it to the dealer to run a consumption test which I did and yes that is what I am told. There is nothing I can do unless I pay to have it fixes which is very costly I was advised to check oil every 1000 miles and fill. Upon research this has been reported by numerous Toyota owners not only on rava4's but other models as well around the 2006/2008 time frame. Toyota admits to problem and fixes in later models but does not do anything to fix a known defect!!!! I have joined every law suit, complaint board, etc. And for this reason will never buy another Toyota.
Water pump starting making incredible diesel / mechanical grinding sounds. Coolant leaking from water pump. Water pump bearing overheating - odor clearly discernible from inside vehicle. Checked internet - this is a very common complaint among Rav4 V6 owners - many owners having replaced water pump on this year vehicle at 25,000K miles! dealers charging anywhere from us $325 - $900.
The car is burning oil. I was told that it was burning 1/2 quart every 1200 miles & to keep adding oil. That this usage was wnl. After an online search I find this is a common problem that Toyota has not been dealing with. I have an extended warranty that will be running out soon. I feel the car should be recalled and they should do the right thing. I have filled a complaint with the usa cooperate office.
I began to notice a burnt oil smell when I would return home from school in the evening, I checked my oil, the dip stick showed not a trace of oil! the vehicle was half way between oil changes at the time, my husband added 4 quarts of oil (so we know for certain it was empty) and brought it to Toyota. They "checked it", changed the oil, and sent us on our way telling us to monitor the oil level. This was at 68K miles. It was next due for an oil change at 73,000miles I checked the oil level yesterday at 71,000 miles and it was nearly empty. Called the dealer again, was told they couldn't get me in for 10 days!! I called another Toyota dealer who told me to bring it in. The service mgr acknowledged there was a problem with "certain rav 4 engines" and that a service bulletin had been issued to repair the issue (not a recall-he made that clear). He explained that I would have to follow their procedure before it can be repaired though by doing two oil consumption tests (that I have to pay $24.95 for, and drive 1200 miles each) then I would have to authorize them to do an engine removal and disassembly for $575 to determine it is not something I had done to the car. I have babied this vehicle from day one! I never go beyond 4000 miles for an oil change, ever. Now I have to drive my family around in a potentially hazardous vehicle while they decide whether or not to repair the engine that they have known there was a problem with for years!! unacceptable! this is terrifying knowing that my engine could seize at any moment while I am on the highway driving with my child. It is equally as frightening to realize that I may end up having to pay $6000+ for a new engine for this piece of defective merchandise I am still paying for because Toyota believes they are above the law. Please hold them accountable.
The contact owns a 2008 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that the vehicle was consuming an abnormal amount of engine oil and would smell of burning oil. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where the failure was unable to be diagnosed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 94,000 and the current mileage was 95,000.
At around 80K miles my mechanic noticed the engine was burning up oil too quickly and advised I bring it in more often for him to check the oil and to add if needed. He did this for me until one day all the dashboard lights came on and he told me my engine was shot. I purchased a 100K warranty and when I took it into Toyota they said they would run a test and to come back in 1200 miles. The parts manager even admitted that this was a very common problem with the 2008 fleet of 4 cylinder engines! as soon as I left the engine cut out while I was on the freeway. Towed the car back to Toyota, they kept it there a month waiting for the warranty tech to come inspect the engine. He claimed I did not maintain my engine and that the warranty would not cover any costs. I ended up selling the car to a mechanic at the shop for 800$ this covered the bill Toyota sent me for having the vehicles engine taken apart, they were going to charge me to put it back together but was offered the money from an employee to take it off my hands. I bought this car brand new in 2008 with the 100K warranty, I hate Toyota and will never purchase a vehicle from them ever again and I tell everyone I know to stay clear from these jerks.
Engine is consuming oil. I bought the Rav4 2.4 engine 2008 brand new. Very well maintained by the dealer's records. At the beginning of 2010, I start noticing that the oil level is getting lower every time before the oil change. I thought it was due to some leak. The dealer said there are no leaks in the engine oil and the oil consumption rate is acceptable. I don't understand how it would be, but they argued that it is stated in the owner manual. It got worse by time, now I have to add a full quart or more between oil changes just to avoid engine damage. I owned many cars before, older models, none of them required adding oil before the next oil change. After researching the matter, I found that it is not only my car. Toyota knows about the issue but does not want to fix it. I even found a document with VIN's of the cars affected by the issue tsb-0094-11 (piston ring?) consuming that much oil is not normal, and I believe will shorten the engine's life and is really bad for the environment. I bought the car because of it's reputation of being dependable and it has a big name behind it. I hope someone ask Toyota to step up and fix this problem.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Greenvilles, SC, USA