general problems of the 2001 Toyota RAV4

The car started to have shifting problems.

When I change gear or press accelerator to give gas, my car doesn't pick up race and doesn't shift the gear. It will do on its own. The engine light keeps coming turned on, even though thisngs have been replaced.

I purchased my 2001 Toyota Rav4 in July 2012,. Now 2 years later and still owe a good amount on my car I am having the same issues with the ecm as the others. I called Toyota and there is nothing they can do to assist people that are purchasing these cars that have not been taken care of. This issues I am dealing with include the transmission slipping and revving higher, or the loss of power when going from a complete stop. Toyota helped the owners, with an " extended warranty" 10 years / 150000 miles. That is all good but the warranty was from the first date. Basically from day 1. That is not fair to the people who purchase these cars second hand with no knowledge of the issues. This is a huge safety issue and could case an accident cause you don't know when it is going to happen.

While in cruise control on an incline my Rav4 accelerates out of control so I have to apply the brake to get it out of cruise control. I had this on 2 Rav4s, both 2001, one was 4wd and the other 2wd. Toyota tried to repeat the problem in the first vehicle by sending it home with a tech who drove to modesto. They could not repeat it. . . On my current car it does the same and Toyotas best answer was not to use cruise control after he asked why I was using it anyways. I was worried about the ecus in these cars and before buying it, sent the private dealer to Toyota to remedy this. Now I find out they only flashed the ecu under the recall which they new didnt fix anything. Now 2 years later I face the harsh shifting condition. . . . All on me. Im lucky not to hsve been hurt by either of these issues not addressed properly by Toyota, and thank god my 9 year old wasnt with me when the car stopped shifting properly.

Ecm/transmission failure. . . Called Toyota. . Refused help. . Owned vehicle over 10 years. . . Known defect that Toyota has not addressed properly. . . Need to replace ecm and transmission out of pocket because of their defective production.

October 11, 2012. On or about October 8 2012 I began having hesitation and jumping into gear as I am driving my 2001 Rav4. This happens mainly when accelerating from a stop sign/light. I am aware there has been a recall on many 2001 Rav4 vehicles. I bought my Rav4 from carmax in north attleboro mass on April 19 2012. So, I have not even had my vehicle for 5 months yet. On Thursday October 11 2012 I took my Rav4 back to carmax in attleboro with my complaint--I will be leaving the vehicle with them on Friday October 12 2012 so they can diagnose the transmission and the tcm (the transmission module which has had the recall). If it is found that my Rav4 is one of many under this recall, I will hope that Toyota will honor its' commitment and fix my rav. I do hope that lodging this complaint with you will help me in this plight, as I do not have the money to fix this problem and nor should I have to as to the above, and due to the fact that is was a recall with Toyota. Thank you.

The contact owns a 2001 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that he heard noises coming from the tires when driving through curves. The contact inspected the vehicle and noticed that the front end of the vehicle, near the engine and wheels, started to rust. The vehicle had not been taken to the dealer. The failure and current mileages were 150,000. Updated 6/4/12 the consumer stated the engine cradle rusted, which caused the steering to fail.

When accelerating and decelerating, the engine jumps and fails to change gears. This is extremely dangerous in situations where one must get out of the way of other cars (generally every time driving). When taken to the dealer, I was told there was a malfunction in the internal engine control module.

My vehicle has begun experiencing harsh shifting. It will not accelerate immediately and it will jump forward at times. This is a reported problem with the 2001 rav 4. I received a letter stating there was the possibility of compensation after one has this fixed. As one a person who cannot afford to fix this out of pocket that is not a lot of help. This is a known issue and should be recalled!.

The contact owns a 2001 Toyota Rav4. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for inspection. The technician detected that the front engine cross member completely rusted. The vehicle was also taken to an authorized dealer where a diagnostic test was performed at the owner's expense. In addition, pictures were taken of the defective component and forwarded to the manufacturer for further investigation. The vehicle was not repaired. The technician recommended that the vehicle not be driven due to safety risks. The contact was waiting for a response from the manufacturer. The failure mileage was 150,000. The VIN was unavailable.

My 2001 Rav4 Toyota jerks forward after a complete stop. Had it checked at Toyota dealership, they didn't see what was the problem but they told me it may be the transmission or the engine control. If I decide to do the job, they cannot guarantee that will fix the problems but it will cost about $6,000. Took it a local mechanics they could not help me as well.

Somewhere around the later part of June, 2009 my car began hesitating. I took it to the dealer and they could not find what was wrong with it. I took it back and then was informed the it was my ecm. I contacted Toyota to have this problem fixed since it was a manufacturing problem during production. They informed me that it was my responsibility to get it fixed. My vehicle has around 97,000 miles on it. This is happening on a regular basis. Several times my family and I were endangered because someone almost hit my vehicle from the back because of the hesitation. As of today, I have not been successful at getting Toyota to offer any assistance in getting this repairs. The consumer stated the vehicle would loose acceleration and the rpm spiked. Whenever the consumer stopped at a light, the vehicle failed to move immediately. The technician informed the consumer the transmission was slipping, due to a problem stemming from the ecm, which was not reading properly which was affecting the transmission. Updated ivoq. 08/07/09.