general problems of the 2003 Toyota RAV4

The vehicle is very delayed shifting and will slow down without pushing the breaks.

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Rav4. While driving approximately 30 mph, the vehicle suddenly decelerated when the accelerator pedal was depressed. The check engine warning indicator illuminated. The contact attempted to accelerate again and the vehicle responded very slowly to approximately 15 mph. The vehicle was driven to the contact's residence. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the engine control unit failed or there was possible transmission failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 74,650.

While driving engine light started blinking, the vehicle lost power and smelled bad odor. My first complaint was filed with NHTSA in 2012, and I took my vehicle to maplewood toyoa, mn 55109, in 2012 and they did not fix it. It is serious issue of safety with the engine / transmission.

While driving engine light started blinking, the vehicle lost power. And smelled bad odor. My first complaint was filed with NHTSA in 2012, and I took my vehicle to maplewood Toyota, mn 55109, in 2012 and they did not fix it. It is serious issue of safety with the engine / transmission.

I purchased a 2003 Toyota Rav4 from the Toyota dealership that only had 13 miles on it in August 2003. In August of 2014, I started having trouble with the automatic transmission shifting harsh when changing. The car would strain to change gears, then all of a sudden it would jerk into gear. No lights came on at all. I took it to the Toyota dealership to have the problem inspected and they told me about an extended warranty of 10 years or 150,000 miles. This was the first that I had heard about this warranty. Toyota never contacted me to let me know about the warranty. After inspecting my Rav4, they told me that I needed to replace the ecm and if that didn't solve the problem, I would need a transmission. I feel like Toyota should have informed me of the problem sooner. (before all that time had gone by. ) I was very disappointed with the outcome. I see from this website that I am not the only one with this same problem and feel that Toyota should be held responsible for the repair.

Vehicle driven by elderly widowed mother (josephine beasley, age 70) no more than 6,200 miles per year and began experiencing harsh shift in transmission in March 2014. Aamco informed us that a malfunctioning electronic computer module (ecm) caused the damage to transmission. . Read more...

Experience a hard shift jerking motion when driving my car and almost got hit twice due to the car jerking and immediately slowing down. I took it in to kendall Toyota of anchorage right away and then read online that there was a class action lawsuit and enhanced warranty of 2001-2003 Toyotas because of the malfunction of the ecm and transmission. This car is not safe to drive! Toyota kendall said it would be $6,000 to replace both the ecm and transmission and that Toyota would only pay half because the car was 10 years old. This car only has 60,000 miles on it and the enhanced warranty has been extended twice due to complaints with the court. I did not get my car fixed because I could not afford it and I think Toyota should pay the full 6k to fix it. I'm amazed at how many other people have had this issue and Toyota first issued a recall and was sued in court because they refused to acknowledge the serious malfunction of their vehicles.

2003 Rav4 with automatic transmission started having trouble accelerating from a stop. There seemed to be hardly any power when the gas pedal was pressed, and then about 5-8 seconds later the car would jolt into gear. This problem would happen also when increasing speed, or any time the gas pedal was pressed down. The car was taken to an auto shop where they said the transmission was broken and needed to be replaced. I am a very conservative driver (I never try to accelerate too quickly), and this trusty Toyota hasn't ever had any engine problems. . . Ever! there are less than 77,000 miles on the vehicle.

I purchased the Rav4 in late July, 2013. The Rav4 had 78,000 miles on the odometer. I paid $9,000+ for the Rav4. At 80,000 miles the automatic transmission began having shifting problems such as jerking between gears, very sluggish response during acceleration and horrendous gas mileage. I get about 8 miles per gallon. Took it to the dealer, they ran diagnostics on my car and discovered that the problems fall "within the parameters" of the service bulletin no. : tc-10-034 except the "in service" date of my vehicle was March 8, 2003 thereby making me ineligible for the 10 year warranty by 4 months. This is ridiculous!!! this is a Toyota screwup and has nothing to do with road conditions or owner neglect. I bought this car so my daughter can continue her daycare. She shuttles pre-school age children to various recreation facilities and my wife, who has terminal cancer, often accompanies her so she can spend as much quality time with her before the eventuality. Now I'm reading that this particular Rav4 problem can be extremely dangerous. If Toyota "cares for it's customers", how can this be a service bulletin and not a recall. This defect should be addressed regardless of mileage or date of service. I just spent over $9,000 for a 10 year old car because it was a Toyota. "it'll last forever". I called the Toyota customer complaint phone number and all I got was contempt. Her name was elise (800 331-4331)and her argument was "Toyota was very kind in extending the warranty for you", it's your fault for not reading it". Yeah right, it's my fault for not following your screwups for the past ten years. I want my car fixed!! I can't afford $5,000 for a transmission, ecm and computer reboot. This is a Toyota problem and I, the customer, demand to be heard. If Toyota truly "cares for its customers", they have an obligation to do the right thing.

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while traveling approximately 60 mph, the vehicle lost acceleration power. The vehicle was taken to a private mechanic where it was determined that the ecm needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure mileage was 55,000. The VIN was not available.

On or about may 5, 2013 I noticed my car started to hard shift, though I was driving as usual. The problem happens off and on and is most noticeable when waiting at a stop sign, red light or drive thru at a restaurant. The shift jolt is most noticeable when needing to accelerate or shifting into drive--it doesn't happen when I go into reverse. The shift jolt sometimes is accompanied by a thud noise. On may 7, 2013 I contacted Toyota headquarters and discuss this with a customer service representative at 1-800-331-4331. She transferred me to a rude and cantankerous woman who seemed to have heard the story before. She stated I need to go to a dealership and get a diagnostic, which costs $100 in my area. She then stated that if any of the following codes appear: codes:  p0750, p0753, p0755, p0758 or p0760 that I would need to replace ecm module first, if still problem the faulty module could've messed up the transmission. She conceded that Toyota issued a bulletin to the dealerships and apparently it is a widespread problem. At some point I received a Toyota internal case number. She said there was nothing she could do for me as I am not under warranty. I have 188,000+ miles on my car and apparently if it is not under 150,000 mile warranty. I take very good care of my car and it is not my fault the problem did not appear within a randomly selected mileage they chose. Toyota admitted they knew of the problem and they are liable for any manufacturer's defect of the ecm/transmission. I request your assistance in getting my car repaired for free as it is Toyota's faulty/defective part that is now causing my car problems. The consumer stated after getting the repairs done, Toyota refused to reimburse her for the repairs. They wouldn't even consider partial payment. Even though, a customer service representative initially told her she would need to get the repairs done and ten Toyota would reimburse her. Updated 12/16/13.

I own a 2003 Toyota Rav4. My car was running in good working order, with just over 99000 miles on it. On may 2nd 2012, I experienced issues with the car's transmission and ecm. The car would rev when I pressed on the gas, but it would not move. Also, when shifting gears, the car would slow to a brake and then there was be a bump or grinding in the gears before the car would proceed to move. This would put me in danger of a rear end collision because my car would suddenly brake without me pressing on the brakes to signal the driver behind me that I was going to slow down. I have learned that Toyota is aware of this issue with many of its Rav4's (2001-2003). Is there any help on Toyota's part to correct this issue that they know of without passing along the cost to the innocent customer? thank you for your time. Updated 06/22/2012.

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that the vehicle did not shift properly. The contact also stated that there was an increams in the engine rpms and the vehicle would hesitate before accelerating. The contact spoke with a dealer and was informed that the engine control unit was failing and would cause the transmission to fail. The failure mileage was 210,000 and the current mileage was 215,000.

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota rav 4. While entering a highway between 25-30 mph the transmission down-shifted and would not accelerate. The vehicle was taken to a local repair facility. A mechanic was in the process of repairing the ecm. The current and failure mileages were 80,000.

In 2009, without notice my 2003 Toyota rav 4 was "jerking and going". Then it would barely move once stopped. Then when it would move, it would drag. In August of 2009, the transmission was replaced by palmer's Toyota superstore. This cost $1,721. 93.

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated the accelerator pedal became stuck intermittently while driving. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer and was told that all Toyota vehicles accelerator pedals were sticking. The contact was also advised that accelerator pedal, engine control module and throttle body were defective. The failure mileage was unknown, but the current mileage was 165,000.

Car does not proceed into drive after being at a stop. Slow to turn corners - slow to move forward -nearly causing accidents.

Sludge in Toyota engine.