general problems of the 2008 Toyota 4Runner

The actuator in the transfer case went bad in such a way as to not allow the vehicle either move (under its own power) or to be in a parked state; though the shifter and indicator lights indicated park and although you could turn off the vehicle and also remove the key, the vehicle was actually in a nuetral state that allowed the vehicle to freely roll. I put something behind the tire thank goodness I noticed! anyway, Toyota wants more than the vehicle is worth to fix it so my mechanic replaced the transfer case with a used one. I've heard of others having this problem and it seems like it could be a safety-related concern. And an expensive concern, as well.

Vehicle displayed a check engine light due to a non sealing gas cap. This condition also disables the stability control system. Vehicle lost control on wet conditions and was unable to recover due to all traction and stabilization systems being turned off due to a check engine light (faulty gas cap). I have owned the vehicle for 6 years and have put over 80,000 miles on it without incident. Vehicle was in motion traveling the speed limit on a rainy road.

When braking, any bump or pothole will cause the system to lose brake power for about one (1) second, causing the vehicle to continue at the same speed for tens of feet further than expected. Hidden potholes by standing water can cause the vehicle to travel into an intersection or other vehicle. This is the third 4-runner that I have experienced with the same problem. Previous vehicles were from 1994 and 1998, and I had three rear-end accidents, which caused major damage to the other vehicles.

During a maintenance visit to east coast Toyota of carlstadt, NJ an "update" to the ecu computer system was performed. After this "update" I noticed the engine stalling, then recovering and auto then surging forward. This was explained by Toyota as "Smart technology" to modify eng/ect system. In my opinion this is a dangerous "fix": example --when trying to enter a traffic lane from a dead stop, with foot on break if you attempt to accelerate the engine cuts out- sending you into traffic with a lag instead of a power boost. I attempted to have this modification undone by Toyota but they explained their position as below: we apologize for your concerns with the Smart stop technology installed in your 2008 Toyota 4runner. As we previously indicated, in response to customer¿s concerns with their vehicles, Toyota worked with the national highway traffic safety administration (NHTSA) to come up with this remedy, which is the installation of the Smart stop technology. Because this remedy was mandated by the government (NHTSA), we are unable to remove the Smart stop technology. Your email has been documented at our national headquarters. In my opinion this change doesn't fix anything - it is dangerous- you can't accelerate from a "holding" break position (foot on break and gas) as recommended by some defensive driving instructors. . I am requesting that the ntsb looked into this Toyota modification (before update code 33562000,after update 3356200) , determine it's efficacy (or lack of ) and devise a better fix than their so called "Smart technology".

Sudden acceleration of engine which did not respond to braking. High speed, turned off engine in an attempt to stop, but car did not stop until it collided with a tree. Airbags did not deploy.

There is corrosion in the frame and drive-train components. There is pitting, rusting throughout the frame undercarriage and the suspension and differential components. This barely 4yr old vehicle is a southern vehicle. Regardless, this corrosion is a safety issue in any vehicle let alone in a 4runner with a service inception date of 11/30/2008 with 19k miles. This is totally irresponsible of the manufacturer and they claim it is not covered by warranty. Yes, it (should be) covered by warranty and more importantly it is manufacturer's liability to correct safety/quality issue.

Approx 1 week prior to 6/15 I started hearing an intermittent squeak when driving my car. I took my 4 runner in to have Toyota look at it, 2 days later they determined it "must be" the brake pump. My car is 4,000 miles past warranty. No one can tell me if it is safe to keep driving until I get it fixed and what might happen if it goes out.

2008 Toyota rav4 began racing badly, took the car in for service, the Toyota dealer cannot find anything wrong with the car. We were driving into our garage, waited for the door to open when the car started racing very badly. I am afraid to use the car, what can we do?.

I have a 2008 Toyota 4-runner, sr5, 4wd. It has approximately 31,000 miles on the odometer. I purchased the vehicle new. I have experienced several incidents where the vehicle automatically applies what feels like the front left brake. This occurs while the vehicle is traveling at 30-50 mph on downhill grades. I am applying mild braking when the incident occurs to control the downhill speed. The automatic braking is intermittent and each time a loud beep is heard from the dash area. The effect tends to pull the vehicle strongly to the left. It creates a very hazardous condition that is difficult to react to and compensate for. It is not possible to predict or anticipate that the incident will occur. I took the vehicle to the dealer in late January 2009 for inspection. The dealer was unable to replicate an incident or locate anything abnormal. I remain very concerned about driving the vehicle in downhill conditions. This is a significant hazard.