Owners/service Manual Problems of Toyota RAV4

I am unable to lock the driver side front door. Internal controls, remote controls, and the manual key fail. It will open and close (latch), but can be opened from the inside or outside, whether parked or running. I have not tried to open it from the outside when in motion. When attempting to lock, the mechanical indicator by the door handle moves from unlocked to locked to unlocked to locked rapidly and with a harsh rattle noise.

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I just bought a Toyota Rav4 2020 hybrid limited last August 8, 2020. I bought it at beaver Toyota located in st. Augustine, florida. 2. Problem: I found out that there is no hook or hole attached to the solid frame of the car that the towing cable can be attached to in case I get stuck in a mud, sand, or snow bank. I would not be able to tow or pull something out because there is no hook or hole to attach the cable to. 3. Expectation: this is the first car that this feature is absent. All of them had the convenient hole attached to the frame that the cable can be hooked into. I expect Toyota to correct this deficiency. I believe it is a defect that is easily corrected. I contacted Toyota customer service twice and ask the person to take a picture (in case I missed it) underneath the Rav4 2020 hybrid as to where the cable hook should go into. I was given a number - Toyota motor sales, USA, inc. Case file #2010151369. They said that they can not take a picture, they referred me to the manual. The manual does not show clearly where to place it. I talked with manager of beaver Toyota and he said that he could show me where to put the cable when I go there. I already inspected the underneath and there is no convenient/safe/sturdy place to attach it. 4. Recommendation: Toyota should add the hook or hole attachment for the towing cable. It should be where the hitch would be attached to. Did Toyota miss attaching this feature at the factory ? 5. This is beyond what the dealership could correct. It is more in the manufacturing process. 6. I am sending this complaint to the NHTSA because there is the possibility that similar 2020 rav 4 hybrid limited are affected with this problem. This is what I would consider a product deficiency as mentioned in one of the criteria. Stationary.

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Pcs does not work. Dealer tested it with an instrument that claims it is ok. I rechecked it 4 times. It is dysfunctional. Since it is a blind system I suspect others may have non operational systems without realizing it. Owner manual instructs users not to try testing�which is actually very simple at reasonably slow speed of about 25 mph. I experienced no sound or visual warnings and no braking during several trials.

Two doors (front driver and passenger side doors) no long lock and unlock using the key fob or the automatic buttons on the driver side door. According to our mechanic, this is a known issue (the lock actuator) with Toyotas, especially suvs around 2015 like Rav4s and highlanders. On a couple of occasions, the door lock itself got stuck and I had to fiddle with it simple to open the door manually. Surprised this hasn't been recalled since it has the potential for a safety hazard. Cost to repair each door's actuator (by mechanic) is over $500.

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Moonroof drain clogged and caused water to run down a frame and seep under carpet. Vehicle is now full of mold due to the leak. At this time the leak is fixed but the mold issue persists. This been confirmed by dealer and Toyota national office. There is no mention of the drain or drain maintenance in the manual. The mold is a serious health hazard. My curtain air bag is also probably damaged due to water running down the frame. The water must have been leaking for a while but I did not become aware of the problem under the mold started to smell when the weather got warm. The water also has the potential to damage crucial electrical equipment. National Toyota office and the dealer are dismissive about the issue. Toyota's solution to this problem is "call your insurance" instead of taking responsibility for not informing the consumer about the drains. I would not have this issue if I was informed to periodically check the drains for debris. My Rav4 for 41k miles on it. Use is normal.

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Auto light feature does not work properly: on many occasions (about 2-3 times per week), while car is in motion early in the morning and at night, with the headlights in the "auto" mode and the automatic high beam feature enabled. When starting the car, the auto light function seems to be delayed. It does not work initially but starts working after the car is in motion for several minutes. The auto light feature is not staying on after car is in motion at night, lights turn off by themselves for a few seconds causing me to drive without lights before they turn themselves back on. Luckily I was driving slowly, otherwise it could have caused a serious accident. I took the car to the dealer a few times to fix the issue but they couldn't figure out the cause of the problem. No solution. They sugguested that I manually operate the lights. I do not think that I or any other car owners should pay money for a brand new car that offers convenience features that do not work. I was told that there is a mechanic at this particular dealership that owns the same car model and is having the same issue with his car. This issue is new and to my knowledge, there is not a technical service bulletin. Also, there are times that I smell gas in the car while the car is in motion. The dealer couldn't find any gas leaks when checked.

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Lane deviation warning is not audible when veering either right or left at speeds over 32 miles per hour as stated in the owners manual. Our 2015 Toyota rav 4 lane deviation warning was loud and clear.

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At first reading this may not seem to be much of a safety issue, but giving it thought it really is. My Rav4 has a jbl greenedge radio installed with xm capability. The radio display screen is divided into 2 sections, the right shows what song is playing while the left side displays my preset channel listings. I have my preset channels batched together with all am, fm and xm stations grouped together. When changing from am to fm or back again the left side of the display changes accordingly, displaying the preset channel list and highlighting the channel being listened to. However if I go from either am or fm to xm the preset display does not change, the highlight bar disappears but the display stays on either the am or fm preset list. I am forced to either manually scroll by repeatedly touching the screen scroll icons or reach over and turn the radio off then back on again. When the car starts up a warning screen appears on the radio warning that being distracted by the screen may cause a serious accident, yet the radio they installed forces you to do just that. I have contacted both Toyota and jbl. Only Toyota has responded by saying that's just how this radio works. I am hopeful you will see this to be a safety issue and urge Toyota and jbl to amend the software for this radio to correct this issue. I have attached a photo showing that an xm station is playing but the preset display is still on fm.

The roof rack that came with the Rav4 states that each strut can hold 100lbs, but in the manual it states that it is 100 lbs total. I purchased some lumber and my roof rack failed on the return trip home. I believe it happened when I was driving on the highway. One side of each strut broke and dented the roof of my car. If the other side of the struts failed there would have been some devastation behind me as lumber and roof rack parts would have flown off behind me. I do not know the exact weight of the lumber, but based on the quantity I purchased I can assume it weighed around 110-120 lbs. If I knew that it couldn't handle 200lbs like I was led to believe, I would have easily put one board or all of them in the car instead of the roof rack. I would also assume that Toyota would have some sort of factor of safety on the struts. Also the side of the struts that didn't fail I assume had an increased load applied to them. This would make me think that there could be a problem in their molding process as well. The picture shows that each one says that it can take 100lbs evenly distributed. My point if my tire says 40psi max then I don't fill it to 10psi because there are 4 of them. The struts are also separate pieces, what if I mixed and matched or only had one on the car. Also these struts are sold with the Rav4 model I got and not purchased as aftermarket or as an add on item.

Power door lock actuators in all doors have failed. The drivers door actuator failed first. The actuators in each remaining door including the tailgate door have subsequently failed as well. (the date used in this report to indicate when the problem happened is approximate and refers to the initial problem with the driver's door. ) two different Toyota service centers have determined the actuators need to be replaced. One dealer noted that they had seen this issue in many other Toyota vehicles. A quick internet search turns up several pages discussing this issue. A search of this site also revealed similar complaints with other model year Rav4's. Each Toyota service center estimated a cost of approximately $400 for each actuator plus labor costs to replace the part. It is important to note that while the front and rear drivers-side and passenger-side doors have manual latches inside the vehicle, the tailgate door does not. The lack of a manual latch and keyed lock in the tailgate door means that the tailgate door cannot be opened at all. This is very problematic for both convenience and safety, particularly in those Rav4's with the third row seat. In the event of an accident or vehicle fire, passengers in the third-row seat would be forced to either exit through one of the other doors or break a window to exit the vehicle. When I contacted Toyota regarding this issue, I was told initially to have my local Toyota service center evaluate the problem and call back to Toyota to discuss and see if Toyota would be able to help at all. When I called back to Toyota, I was put on hold for an inconvenient amount of time, then simply told that Toyota would not help, presumably because my vehicle's warranty has expired. I hope that Toyota will work with the NHTSA to take a proactive approach to rectify this problem for all affected Toyota vehicles and owners.

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The driver side visor has begun to droop when placed in the up (touching the roof) position or in the down (blocking the sun). I noticed this in June 2015 and has significantly gotten worse. There was no one incident that caused the visor to fall and this seems to be more than just a normal wear and tear issue. There is no way to manually tighten the visor and it now falls down whenever I brake, turn or stop the vehicle. I have been hit in the head when leaning forward to look in my blind spot when merging and high speeds and the visor falling scared me. Toyota knows that this is an design flaw with 2006-12 Rav4s, as per the dealerships I spoke with and with customer care. Because the vehicle is out of warranty, they will not replace the part. I have contacted Toyota and they stated the only way they will do a recall is if enough customers complain to nhsta about the problem. This is a safety issue and defective visors should be replaced by Toyota.

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Before my 2013 Rav4 limited was even 2 years old, I discovered an indoor swimming pool on my passenger floor. My dealership claims that my Rav4 had a clogged sunroof drainage tube, but when I took it to another dealership we found all evidence to the contrary. The service manager removed two pieces of trim: one that sits directly beneath the a-pillar (where the dealership claims the water travelled) and another that sits back underneath my dash and glove box. Both trim pieces had padding (just like the carpet padding) on the back side. The padding beneath the a-pillar was bone dry. The padding underneath the dash was damp. Please explain to me how water traveling down the a-pillar managed to make a 90º turn??? the dealership did nothing but clear the "supposed" clog and ask if I wanted to have the carpets air-dried for 24 hours. They made it sound like they did me such a great favor on the invoice and also like I was leaving the hospital against doctors orders. What they fail to mention is that a) I had already had the carpet padding air-dried the day before and b) I requested that they replace my carpet padding and reapply the black rubber soundproofing material attached to my floorboard (they declined). In hindsight, neither would have fixed the damage already inflicted upon my vehicle. Both Toyota of north America and ncds declined my case claiming that my "vehicle is operating as designed. " I have a new car that is dry rotting, molding, an electrical fire risk (page 409 of the 2013 Rav4 owner's manual) and if it the water actually did run down the a-pillar my takata side curtain airbags are now primed to throw shrapnel -- but my vehicle is operating as designed!!! if you own a 2013 or 2014 Rav4, please check under your carpets for signs of a water leak. If you find a water leak in your Rav4, please post it here.

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Driver's side sun visor failure to work properly causing a safety issue and possible bodily injury or death. The sun visor is not staying in the stowed position which is flat against the interior roof of the car due to a known failed mechanism within the sun visor such as the spring loaded mechanism which is failing. Instead, the sun visor is dropping down at a 45 degree angle. This has caused my head to hit it several times while entering the vehicle. And, if involved in a head on collision, this could cause the sun visor to slice through my neck because it is at a 45 degree angle going across my neck since it will not stay up due to the failed spring mechanism within the sun visor. After research of my own, I have found and been told by reliable sources in the Toyota industry that this is a known problem and that I am not the only one having this problem with the failure of the driver's side sun visor and possibly the passenger side as well over time. I have been told by a Toyota representative at Toyota headquarters that this part is only covered by a 3 1/2 year warranty instead of the same warranty as the car. This tells me that Toyota may know that this part will fail over time. All other vehicles I have owned with manual sun visors have never failed for the life of the car since they do not have internal parts like the Toyota model has. I have been told by my local Toyota dealership that I have to pay about $85 to have it replaced when this is a safety issue and it should not fail. It's not a moving part within the engine.

My 8 month old baby was auto- locked in the car on an 80 degree sunny day! I double clicked the unlock button on my car's key fob on approach, opened the rear passenger side door and put my child in the car seat and put my purse (keys on top) in the floor with the diaper bag. Entire car still unlocked, I closed the rear passenger door and walked around to the driver's side to get in. The car beeped aloud before I could grab the door handle to get in, locking all doors of the vehicle. Luckily there was a mechanic on the same street I was on, but it still took 15 minutes start to finish to finally get my child out. Upon reading the owner's manual, it stated that there is a 30 second timer for the autolock feature that automatically locks the entire vehicle if a door is not opened in that time after being unlocked. I had, however, opened the rear door to place the child in his seat. There is no way this could have been an error on my part as I was not only outside the vehicle when it locked itself, but there are no lock/unlock buttons in the car except on the driver's side which I had yet to enter. So I could not have even hit one by accident.

First tire indicator light came on. Checked pressure in all tires. Tires were at correct amount. Went to reset light which did not work. SUV was on an incline (driveway). Let car sit for an hour on flat surface. Started Rav4. The tire indicator light came on plus abs and vsc trac lights. Consulted owners manual which stated to take to Toyota. No other brake warning lights came on. Was 1/2 mile from dealer when smoke started coming into passenger cabin. Smoke/fire was coming from the engine and under Rav4. Smoke was a bluish grey. Pulled off the major road into an abandoned business driveway. Turned rav off and ran. Passerby called 911. Fire trucks/police arrived. Rav was a total loss. Called Toyota USA to report fire. They are saying that it was not mechanical or electrical. But that the fire originated in the engine compartment. Cause of fire was undetermined and there was no evidence of any sort of defect or malfunction with any of the electrical or mechanical systems found. Rav went to dealer for all required service and never had and major problems. If it was not electrical then what caused my lights to come on. Thee vsc trac light had never come on since I owned the car. I have owned Toyotas since 1973 and never had anything like this happen. The Rav4 was my 5th Toyota.

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Engine is consuming oil. I bought the Rav4 2. 4 engine 2008 brand new. Very well maintained by the dealer's records. At the beginning of 2010, I start noticing that the oil level is getting lower every time before the oil change. I thought it was due to some leak. The dealer said there are no leaks in the engine oil and the oil consumption rate is acceptable. I don't understand how it would be, but they argued that it is stated in the owner manual. It got worse by time, now I have to add a full quart or more between oil changes just to avoid engine damage. I owned many cars before, older models, none of them required adding oil before the next oil change. After researching the matter, I found that it is not only my car. Toyota knows about the issue but does not want to fix it. I even found a document with VIN's of the cars affected by the issue TSB-0094-11 (piston ring?) consuming that much oil is not normal, and I believe will shorten the engine's life and is really bad for the environment. I bought the car because of it's reputation of being dependable and it has a big name behind it. I hope someone ask Toyota to step up and fix this problem.

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