Vehicle Speed Control Problems of Toyota RAV4 - part 1

I was heading south on I-495 (massachusetts) in right lane at just under 65 mph. I had just passed an entrance ramp and overpass. A car was entering i495 on my right and coming up to speed. The car entered my lane from his entrance ramp to the right most lane in front of me. The car was about 20 feet in front of me. The entering car's speed was was greater than mine. When the second the car left the entrance ramp and pulled into my lane about 20-30 feet in front of me, my brakes slammed on, causing me and my passenger to lurch forward. My seat belts protected me and my passenger from harm, but it scared the **** out of us. This kind of nonsense of so-called "safety features" has to stop. Its bad enough that I have to put up with a car that stalls out when the car stops, even for a second, but what happened above is unacceptable as a "safety feature. " I could have easily reacted by jerking the steering wheel to the right and gone off the road at full speed, fast enough to roll the car causing considerable harm to life.

See all problems of the 2024 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

On July 27, 2025 I was pulling into a parking space at a local pharmacy. I had removed my foot from the accelerator pedal and it was resting on the brake pedal. My 2024 hybrid rav 4 lurched suddenly and then accelerated at a fast rate of speed. It was as if the vehicle was possessed. Although I braked, I was not able to stop the vehicle before damage was done to the front end. I have reported this incident to Toyota and they sent someone to download the analytics from the black box. I have a copy of that report. I believe Toyota is responsible for the repair of this vehicle which had less than 5. 000 miles on it at the time of the incident. My vehicle had been serviced at a Toyota dealership on 7/23 for it's 5,000 mile service. I am now scared of my own vehicle and fear this will happen again.

The vehicle was a 2023 Toyota Rav4 hybrid. When the driver attempted to park the vehicle in a parking lot, it suddenly began moving forward without use of the accelerator. The driver applied the brakes but the pedal went to the floor without braking. The vehicle seemed to be moving faster than expected without use of the gas pedal and went through the parking lot. The driver stopped the vehicle by running up over a curb, through a traffic island with soft dirt and mulch and finally crashing into a metal storage unit. Two air bags deployed. Toyota was notified of the crash and a Toyota representative made the 911 call. A new york state trooper and two fire trucks arrived. The vehicle was towed and eventually collected by our insurance company. The tow truck driver said the brake pedal went to the floor when he tried it. The car was declared a total loss. 1. The notable failure was in the braking system. The car also seemed to be traveling faster than it should and didn't slow down. The insurance company has the vehicle now. 2. The safety issue was loss of speed and braking control of the vehicle. Steering was normal. Fortunately the parking lot had few cars or people in it. 3. No investigation of the problem aside from assessment of damage that I know of. 4. Liberty mutual assessed the damage. The NY state trooper made a collision information form and gave us a copy. 5. No warning lights or related symptoms were noted prior to the car traveling on its own. After the crash, a local Toyota dealer called and said that they were notified that the check engine light was on and there was a problem with the hybrid system, along with other warnings.

See all problems of the 2023 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated while reversing to park the vehicle, the vehicle unintendedly accelerated. The contact depressed the brake pedal, and the vehicle stopped. The contact stated that after turning off the vehicle and entering the residence, the vehicle independently restarted. There were no warning lights illuminated. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

See all problems of the 2011 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

The contact owns a 2020 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while driving at 8 mph to an appointment and making several turns in the parking lot, the vehicle suddenly accelerated and crashed into the building. There were no warning lights illuminated. The top of the vehicle had to be cut off. The driver had a concussion, soft tissue injuries to the neck and back. The passenger sustained a fractured sternum, soft tissue damage, and dementia injuries, the two occupants were provided medical attention. Both of the occupants were wearing seatbelts. The airbags deployed. There was smoke inside the vehicle due to the airbag deployment. There were no reported fire. A police report was filed. The contact mentioned an engine throttle error. The black data was downloaded by her lawyer, which indicated she was not depressing the brakes. The anti-collision feature did not engage. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard. The local dealer was contacted, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 37,000.

See all problems of the 2020 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

On 2 occasions while driving on a flat straight interstate highway using the adaptive cruise control, with no vehicle in front of me, the vehicle has suddenly tried to stop. Pressing the cancel button for the adaptive cruise control would not shut the system off. When the accelerator was depressed to attempt to get the car moving forward, it continued to try to stop the vehicle even harder. Pressing the brake pedal also did not disengage the adaptive cruise control. I had to allow the vehicle to creep off the highway, then shutdown the vehicle and then restart to resume driving.

I have owned this new vehicle for only approximately 2 months and have had at least 4 instances where the vehicle does not respond immediately to my foot on the accelerator when attempting to restart from a stop. Three times I was at a stop light and when I attempted to go as the light turned green there was no acceleration response from the gas pedal for a couple of seconds, and in two of the instances because I had my foot pressed far on the gas attempting to get power, there was a sudden acceleration and lurch forward. Most recently, on the fourth occasion I was turning out into traffic from a parking lot after being at a standstill and got no response and instead rolled slowly out in front of an oncoming car until after a few seconds the accelerator finally responded and I could go. I believe this is a safety risk as it could happen when I was attempting a left turn in traffic, which would subject me and my passengers/children to an extreme risk of being hit. I took the car into the dealership after the first two instances and they were not able to reproduce the incidents and offered no help. There are no warning lamps or indicators that appear when this occurs. The first incident occurred about three weeks into my ownership of the vehicle.

Over the last several years, I have experienced a minimum of four, possibly one or two more, incidents of this vehicle accelerating at a high rate while I have had my foot on the brake. In all of these cases, I was braking to come to a stop - braking quickly and hard in a couple cases. While braking and slowing, my engine revved/accelerated at a very high rate. In all of these incidents, I changed gears to neutral, and the acceleration stopped. These incidents were random and very far apart from one another in terms of time. In all cases, my foot was firmly (and only) on the brake pedal, and my floor mat was in the proper position and secure. There was nothing in contact with the acceleration pedal. On Monday, March 10, 2025, I got into my car in our garage to go to work. The car started normally. When I put my car into reverse, the engine started revving/accelerating at a very high rate and it was lurching, like it was trying to move. Luckily, my foot was firmly on the brake, and the brake held. I quickly put the car back into park, and the engine began revving/accelerating at an even higher rate. I then turned the car off. Again, I checked my floor mat, and it was in place and secured, my foot was only on the brake pedal, and there was nothing touching the acceleration pedal. This was a frightening experience, and at that point I decided that I would never drive this car again. If I did not have my brake firmly engaged, my car would have shot out of my garage when I put it in reverse. Upon researching the problem, my husband and I read about the unintended acceleration that many people have experienced with Toyotas, causing numerous deaths and injuries, and about the class action law suit with Toyota. Although the investigation seemed to chalk the incidents up to "user error" - foot being on the wrong pedal, floor mats affecting the acceleration pedal, etc. - I know with 100% confidence that none of these were the case. I will be notifying Toyota, as well.

See all problems of the 2012 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

I was pulling into a parking spot and my vehicle suddenly accelerated. I slammed on the brakes and the car did stop, but not before hitting a railing in front of me. There were also trees close to the railing, so the camera should have detected those as a barrier and I believe the veauto-braked, even if I had not hit the brakes. This is a safety concern because the vehicle would have plowed over any person in front of the vehicle.

Gas pedal won’t work.

See all problems of the 2017 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

Wire harness failure according to the Toyota dealership representative I spoke with after inspection on 12/18/24. Rep said this is a known issue with certain years and they will cover cost of replacement. Previously, I had received a message stating, "hybrid system malfunction, visit your dealer" but could not get an appointment until 12/18. The dealer rep said they needed to order parts to fix the wire harness issue and that I would be okay taking the car and bringing it back when parts were in. The day after the inspection (12/19) I was in a walmart parking lot and my car started but I could not get it to drive or reverse. A message stated "vehicle not ready to drive" and "no power to rear brakes". If I put the car into drive or reverse and stepped on the gas, the car interior lit up and the dinging sound (usually associated with unbuckled safety belt) was heard. I had my safety belt fastened. My car could be put into neutral and had to be towed to the dealership. After looking into the issue, I found out that the car could had died while I was driving it resulting in loss of power brakes, etc. I live in a more rural area and could have been stuck with out cell reception, etc. This should be a recall and they never should have let me leave the dealership in my car. Note: as of today (12/20) the dealer rep stated they will cover all towing costs and cover a loaner vehicle for me. My dealership is very helpful but this could be a serious issue for someone else. Google "rav 4 cablegate" for more information.

Two week old 2024 Rav4 hybrid with less than 300 miles. In my driveway I put car in drive and it suddenly and aggressively accelerated. It would not stop or slow despite my attempts to brake, trying to avoid collision all I could do was steer to avoid impact. Finally grazed a tree trunk, car then rolled onto passenger side and came to rest against the bush by my front door. Spouse and I required extrication by fire dept requiring jaws of life and removing windshield. Unsure of long-term injuries been driving many years and never had an accident with vehicle damage car was totaled.

Two week old 2024 Rav4 hybrid with less than 300 miles. In my driveway I put car in drive and it suddenly and aggressively accelerated. It would not stop or slow despite my attempts to brake, trying to avoid collision all I could do was steer to avoid impact. Finally grazed a tree trunk, car then rolled onto passenger side and came to rest against the bush by my front door. Spouse and I required education by fire dept requiringjaws of life and removing windshield. Unsure of long-term injuries been driving many years and never had an accident with vehicle damage car was totaled.

The contact owns a 2024 Toyota Rav4 hybrid. The contact stated that while driving into a parking speed at a low rate of speed, the contact pressed the brake pedal to stop but the vehicle suddenly experienced unintended acceleration. The contacted indicated that the vehicle accelerated forward and crashed into the parked vehicle ahead. During the incident no injuries were reported and a police report was taken at the scene. The vehicle was later driven to the local dealer. The cause of the failure was not determined and the vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 500.

I was driving my car through the mountains on a very hot day. The speed limits are 65-70mph. After driving for a couple of hours, a warning light/message appeared: hybrid system overheated reduced output power the car began to have trouble maintaining speed. At one point I had to pull over and wait a while because the car became unresponsive to the accelerator. After waiting a bit, I was able to continue, but only at speeds around 40mph. I put my blinkers on because I was afraid of being hit by the other vehicles/trucks going 70. I took the car to a dealer outside of pittsburgh and they could find nothing wrong, and no indication in the car's computer that anything had happened. I took the car to my local dealer when I got back home to maryland, and they could find nothing. If they can't find what's wrong, they can't fix it. I have been in contact with Toyota customer service and they have no answers other than "see if it happens again". I am concerned that the car is no longer safe to drive if the temperature outside is high, and I need to go up steep hills.

See all problems of the 2018 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

Unintended sudden aggressive acceleration when I made a right as I was slowly pulling into a spot in the parking lot. Breast’s did not work fast enough and car ended up going up the hill and front colliding with it.

My car engine light goes on and off due to transmission fault. It continuously has a hard time shifting gears in between 2500-3000 rpm and gives a jerky stop before continuing to speed up/accelerate despite when I have not let go of my foot from the pedal. After taking it to the auto shop, I was told this is the same problem other Toyota rav 4 between 2001-2003 experiences and the mechanics told me that there was a lot of recall for the same code my car is giving (2 codes that the computer diagnosed were p0775 and p0161). While Toyota extended the warranty to 10years/150,000k and my car is 1-2 years past the warranty, it's only been barely 80,000mi and it should not be causing this problem. This transmission/ecm problem puts me and the passengers to risks because both the speed and rpm don't go past certain numbers which is low at most times, limiting myself as the driver to go even within the speed limits. All the more, with this happening more frequently these days than it had in the past, I am highly concerned for my safety and not feel safe to have someone in my car. I have been to 4 different mechanics and they have told me the same problem and that it's the same case as they saw from different Rav4's recall problem. This car was handled very carefully and this is the only occurring problem. With engine light being on and off, it is my concern that I need to have this car inspected, related to Toyota Rav4 recalls.

See all problems of the 2002 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

The contact owns a 2015 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that the mother was driving at a slow rate of speed while in a parking lot and when the brake pedal was pressed the vehicle suddenly experienced unintended acceleration causing the driver to loose control of the vehicle and crash into a tree. During the incident the driver sustained a right leg and right arm injury and was transported to the hospital and treated for multiple fractures. A police report was taken at the scene and the vehicle was towed away. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the manufacturer. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 100,000.

See all problems of the 2015 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

Vehicle was taken in for a oil change. At check-in I was told that I would be given a rental vehicle due to the overhead rails recall, leaking inside the vehicles at that time I advised of a gas smell which I have been smelling for several years and it was getting stronger. I was told that there was something wrong with the fuel pump and it would need to be replaced and they would also be replacing rails from the top of my vehicle because there was water leaks inside my car, I advised that water has been leaking in my car for several years and clips were already placedbout two years ago. Several days later I received a phone call that my vehicle was ready to pick up when I got there I was informed that the fuel pump assembly was replaced and intake. Manifest gasket , throttle gasket , fuel pump gasket replaced egr valve replaced egr inlet gasket replaced egr valve. Ad gasket replaced egr cooler gasket replaced. I was also told that my air filters would need to be changed and I did consent to my air filters, the air element and a brake system flush as recommended after picking up my vehicle which had 34033 miles on it on 1/24/24. On 2/10 I was driving and a warning flashed on my car and spoke to me it said that there was a malfunction detected in the engine, transmission or throttle of the vehicle and I need to contact Toyota. I was two miles away and drove directly to them. They took the vehicle for several hours. I was told it was the alternator because my lights have been going dim and very bright. I advised that I have issues with the windows closing since the most recent repair as well and the vehicle is losing power. After almost 4 hours I was informed it a thermostat. Everyone had gone home and they could not give me a give me a rental so I had to drive this vehicle until Monday afternoon. The thermostat and gasket were replaced and I was charged because they used insurance without telling me. I believe this is a malfunction in their system related to origina.

The contact owns a 2019 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that upon accelerating from a stop, the vehicle lunged forward. The vehicle was uncontrollable. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, who informed the contact that there were no open recalls on the VIN. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the local dealer for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 36,000.

See all problems of the 2019 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

My friend was leaving church and cranked my vehicle engine. My friend proceeded to exit the church parking lot onto a main road. Prior to exiting the parking lot, she heard the engine "rev", where my vehicle began moving forward without her control. She was consistently pressing the brake pedal; to no avail. Where my vehicle was only stopped by careening into a nearby yard. She could hear my vehicle's engine continue rev until she turned it off.

I was pulling into a handicaped parking space and the car just jumped over the curb and hit the handicaped sign plowed into the landscapping. It went from 5miles an hour to 20miles an hour in 5 seconds by itself . Computer took over . No air bags were deployed .

Approximately mid may 2023, 5:15 pm +/_, while stopped at a red light while leaving the work parking structure, the engine revved up and wanted to move forward. Forcing the driver to apply heavy pressure on the brakes to avoid being forced into the intersection. An opening presented itself, the brakes were released and the car entered the intersection. Once moving forward the "unintended acceleration" stopped and the car performed as normal. There were no check engine, need service lights or indicators on the dash. With none of the above present we didn't expect a dealership to take our word of the incident. Then, on oct 19th, app 5:30 pm the unintended acceleration happened again. While in town driving and stopped at a red light the engine revved up and the unintended acceleration was trying to force the car forward. Excessive pressure was needed on the brakes to hold the car in place and the transmission was put into park. Once in park the revving stopped. With a foot on the brake the car was put into drive and it performed normally. The driver was upset with a high level of anxiety of not knowing if or when it could happen again. The potential of hitting a pedestrian, another vehicle or being t-boned was very high in both incidents. An appointment was made at the dealership t next day and couldn't get it in until 10-31-23, 7:20 pm. Before taking it to the dealership we tried to replicate the unintended acceleration. After 8 miles and 30 minutes we were not successful. The dealership could not reproduce the event but acknowledged with documentation that this is a known problem. I am in possession of a Toyota dealer ua process flow chart specific to these events. After the dealer went into the vehicle history they are saying there is nothing wrong with the car and the cause is driver error. The dealer can not give me a specific date of the event they claim was driver error. We have driven the car for almost 4 years, majority driven by one person with no incident.

The vehicle is a 2019 hertz rental Rav4 hertz. On October 12, 2023, when I moved the gearstick to reverse the vehicle accelerated uncontrollable at extremely high speed and crashed into a wall. Braking did not stop the vehicle.

Unintended acceleration.

I was parking the car in a gravel parking lot. When I pressed the brakes and shifted into park it instead accelerated and went over the side of an enbankment. I could not stop it even though my foot was pressing hard on the brake. Luckily there was no other person or property affected by the error and my car did not suffer external damage. It damaged a sensor on the bottom side of the car which had to be replaced. There was no indication of any problems beforehand. My mechanic did an extensive review of the car and could not find anything that would have explained the unintended acceleration.

See all problems of the 2016 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

Four incidents of unintended acceleration , in all instances foot was on break petal not on gas petal, 3 instances vehicle was stopped at traffic light, last incident was pulling into a parking space foot on brake, in all instances braked hard and shifted vehicle into neutral and turned vehicle off to avoid collisions, personal injury and property damage.

See all problems of the 2009 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

This Rav4 is having acceleration issues. While driving it randomly has issues at the time of acceleration. It has happened from a stop to a go, and gaining speed. This issue has put me into an incredibly vulnerable situation as I was very close to being hit by a semi while trying to merge onto the high way twice. When I pressed down on the accelerator, the engine hesitated to start gaining speed slowing down the speed needed to safely merge on to the highway. I have taken it in and all I am told is that there are no codes found and the issue can't be duplicated.

See all problems of the 2022 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

The contact owns a 2011 Toyota rav 4. The contact stated that while driving approximately 25 mph, the vehicle in front of her abruptly stopped, the driver stopped, and the vehicle accelerated and crashed into the rear of a Toyota prius. The brake pedal was continuously depressed. The "low tire" message was displayed. The driver sustained injuries to her knee, neck, and chest, and medical attention was provided. There was not a report of any fire, air bag deployment, or police report being filed. The vehicle was taken to her residence. The vehicle was towed to the collision center. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 143,000.

I was slowing at a stop sign and the car suddenly accelerated. My foot was not on the gas pedal but it continued to accelerate causing and accident at an intersection.

The contact owns a 2017 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that the vehicle was parked. The contact stated that upon shifting to drive (d) and depressing the accelerator pedal, the vehicle lurched, accelerated unintendedly, and crashed into the base of a lamp pole; however, the engine continued to rev loudly. The air bags did not deploy. The contact depressed the brake pedal and while attempting to reverse away from the lamp pole, the vehicle unintendedly accelerated and impacted a curb. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle, and the vehicle operated as needed. The contact then pulled into a parking space. The contact did not sustain any injury. A police report was not filed. The vehicle was taken to an autobody repair shop, where the contact was informed that the vehicle was significantly damaged. The contact was referred to an auto collision center. The vehicle was towed to the auto collision center where repairs were made. The vehicle was the taken to the dealer, where the edr crash data report was read. The manufacturer sent a letter to the contact, informing her that the cause of the failure could not be determined. The contact followed up with the manufacturer, but no further assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 24, 971.

Sudden acceleration when braking caused crash of 2011 Toyota Rav4 and driver injury. Making a right turn into a parking space that faces a concrete wall, I had my foot on the brake to slow the car down to park, going about five miles an hour. Still riding the brake, never having moved my foot off it, when I was about two feet from the wall I pressed on the brake to ease into a stop. Instead, the car suddenly accelerated with a loud rev and crashed into the wall. The car was going so fast the airbag deployed and thrust me against my seatbelt. Airbag caused fracture of 5th metacarpal in my right hand. Was unable to drive for 12 weeks. When I got the car back from the Toyota body shop ($9000+ in repairs), I took it over to the dealer and began filing a case with the Toyota customer experience center to have Toyota inspect the car. I am especially concerned about the brake sensor system. Case is pending.

I was at stop position. I pressed the hold button and then took my foot off the break. When traffic started moving I pressed the hold button again with my foot still on floor the car started jumping and pressing the the two other car on my front. The two other cars got totaled.

Starting in June 2018, I have had seven episodes of unintended acceleration. (I have owned the car, purchased in private sale, since June of 2013. ) there were common elements to each incident:1. Gradually slowing; 2. Foot on brake; 3. Engine accelerates sharply, a moment before complete stop in first six, a moment after in seventh and last. In each incident able to maintain control as foot already was on brake; yet in three of the incidents, including the last two, the car bucked forward a few inches despite the pressure on the brake. Situation resolved when I turned off the ignition, a reflex developed after the first incident. This last incident was particularly upsetting as I was in a long line of slow moving cars on a relatively narrow road with pedestrians on each side of my car. Each incident has been reported to the local dealer with which I have been trading for many years. They did a thorough inspection when I reported the incidents to them in January of 2020 and again just today after the last incident that occurred on may 19, 2023. They could find nothing wrong and include on their report "tas states suspected driver error, pedal miss [sic] application. " I do not accept this conclusion. I note in the last incident I had come to complete stop momentarily before the engine accelerated and despite my heavy pressure on the brake bucked forward, with control established only when I shut the engine down. During the entire period of these incidents I also have been driving two other vehicles, a 2008 camry and a 2023 camry. I have had no such incidents while driving these two cars. I do not drive with two feet, always the first question asked when such an incident is reported. Finally, I believe my car dates from a period when Toyota was vehemently denying such a problem in their cars when they knew full well that such was the case, a deception for which they were found criminally liable. Such history does not instill confidence in corporate Toyota.

See all problems of the 2008 Toyota RAV4 🔎.

When applying the brakes to stop at a stoplight, I noticed the brake pedal was very hard and was not stopping the vehicle as it normally did. The stop at the light was not a sudden stop. At the time this incident occurred, the brakes were being gradually applied as the vehicle was coasting to a slow stop. As the vehicle came to rest, the engine started to race with tachometer showing 4500 rpm. I placed the transmission into neutral fearing the car would accelerate through the stoplight. As I placed the car into neutral, the engine raced up to 6500 rpm. When the light turned green, I made a right turn into a parking lot, and the engine stopped racing and the brakes and engine began performing properly. Today was the first time this happened. The stop was being made on level ground at time of incident. The car's speed before the incident had been 35 mph and was at less than 5 mph when issue began happening. Prior to traveling in the 35 mph zone, the car had recently been on the highway traveling between 55-70 mph for 20 minutes. Mileage on vehicle is currently 141,295. The vehicle is available for inspection. Slow response braking and unintended acceleration place vehicle occupants as well as other vehicles at risk for collision and possible injury. Problem has not been reproduced nor inspected by a dealer or independent service station yet. No parties have inspected the vehicle yet. No warning lights or messages were generated at the time of the incident. There have been no prior symptoms or similar problems which would have indicated this brake/acceleration issue may occur.