Two problems related to battery cable have been reported for the 2007 Toyota RAV4. The most recently reported issues are listed below. Please also check out the statistics and reliability analysis of the 2007 Toyota RAV4 based on all problems reported for the 2007 RAV4.
Electrical fire starting inside master window control switch. I was cleaning my car with the ignition on battery power (in order to listen to the radio). After approximately 30 minutes I noticed a burnt plastic smell, considerable smoke pouring out of the driver’s door and a small tongue of flame from the same place. The source of the fire was (later found to be) the white electrical connector, for the front passenger window master control, where the physical window switch meets the circuit board. I was not touching any window or other controls at the time or within 15 minutes before the fire. The fire stopped rapidly after I took the keys out of the ignition, disconnected the battery cables, popped off the master switch assembly with a screwdriver and then smothered the controls with a wet towel. All the vehicle’s windows were inoperable after that. I brought the vehicle to my local Toyota dealership. They performed an inspection and reported that they were “mystified� as to the cause. The service manager’s words were: “i’ve never seen anything like that in my 25 years working on cars. €� the property damage was confined to the master switch assembly and cost $422 to replace. Toyota refused to pay for this.
Leads to battery were colored wrong. The positive lead was painted black and the negative lead was painted red. When I jump-started the car I put the battery cables to the associated colors. It was connected for about 1 minute when I noticed something smoking. After I found out what the problem was I corrected the connection and started the car. The car would only idle due to a blown fuse, which the car dealership had to find.