Cruise Control problems of the 2003 Toyota RAV4

10/28/11 while driving approx 25-30 mph without applying the gas, the car began to accelerate unexpectedly I was able to get the car off the road braking was very difficult when the car was placed in park rpm revved to 4. My husband looked under the hood and the throttle was out a little and when he touched the area it snapped back. 10/29/11 driving at a low speed, approx 35-40 mph car began to accelerate unintentionally. I was able to get the car off the road with much difficulty and the car was again revving when placed in park. I lifted the hood and touched the area of the throttle. After waiting a few minutes the car started normally and I drove home cautiously. Car taken to certified Toyota garage for repairs. The check engine light was lit when taken and service was unable to find a problem and lubricated car and returned to us. 11/1/11 occurrence #3, I drove the car on the expressway without any problems then driving at approx 35 mph while driving around a curve, I could feel car accelerating unintentionally again. Car was towed to dealership and service personal experienced car when started was revving without applying the gas. Service found scratches in the cover for the cruise control and felt this caused the throttle to stick. Hole was cut in the cover and car returned. 11/5/11 occurrence # 4, I was driving around a city circle at approx 25 mph the car again began to accelerate. I got off the road, car revved to a 5 when placed in park. Car towed to dealership on flat bed. Unintentional acceleration was experienced by the service department at the dealership again. Car left for repairs.

Driving on highway and had a runaway gas pedal acceleration of Toyota Rav4. The failure happened once and after braking and working with the cruise control lever, I was able to get it slowed down. I went from 70 mph to 87 mph in a split second as a result of the acceleration problem. I have called the local dealer and the dealer that we bought the Toyota from and they are not offering concern or a solution. One dealer suggested we call the national headquarters of Toyota, but after doing so, I had no way to leave a message. It was all preprogrammed to deal only with Toyota's that were on the recall list. We don't feel real safe with our family car and felt the need to let someone know. We also want to let others beware of the problem with the 2003 model of Toyota Rav4. We now have a car that we do not trust is safe and nobody will do anything about it.

Consumer stated the vehicle that he purchased did not come equipped with cruise control, so the dealer offered to add it, it was soon discovered that the cruise control was faulty, when the cruise control is actuated to maintain a certain speed , in order to stay with the flow of traffic the vehicle accelerates 3-4 mph above the desired speed then drops back 3-4 mph below the desired speed, then slowly moves up to the desired speed, the second cruise control was installed and acted exactly as the first, in the end the consumer was informed that the universal cruise control was not compatible with the consumer's vehicle and if a unit became available the dealer would install the new unit.