2002 Toyota RAV4
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Power train is the leading concern among 555 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 6th highest complaint count among 26 RAV4 model years with reports.
Of the 2002 reports, 39 involved a crash and 15 involved a fire. 50 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
No safety recalls on file.
Representative owner complaints
555 reports, newest first.
Power train, Jan 5, 2010
ABOUT A MONTH AFTER HAVING MY 90,000 TUNE UP AT MY LOCAL TOYOTA DEALER, I NOTICED MY TRANSMISSION WAS SLIPPING; FROM FIRST TO SECOND AND SECOND TO THIRD. IT STARTED INTERMITTENTLY AND THEN BECAME MORE FREQUENT TO THE POINT THAT I NEEDED IT TO BE INSPECTED. ON MY WAY TO THE DEALER MY CAR STALLED IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERSECTION; CARS WERE HONKING AND I WAS THANKFUL NO ONE REAR-ENDED ME SINCE I WAS EXITING OFF A RAMP. AT THE DEALER THEY SAID THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE MY PROBLEM (DON'T KNOW HOW THEY COULDN'T ;EVERYONE DRIVING IN MY CAR NOTICED!) AND I DROVE IT AWAY WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS FOR ALMOST 2 WEEKS; THE SLIPPING STARTED AGAIN. THIS TIME MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. AFTER TAKING IT BACK FOR A SECOND INSPECTION THEY DETERMINED THAT MY ECM NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AT A COST OF $1,200. IT HAS BEEN ALMOST 2 WEEKS AND MY CAR IS WORKING GREAT AFTER THEY REPLACED THE ECM. WHAT UPSETS ME IS THE FACT THAT TOYOTA KNEW THERE WAS AN ISSUE WITH THE ECMS. BACK IN 2006 I WAS NOTIFIED BY MY DEALERSHIP THAT MY ECM NEEDED TO BE REPROGRAMMED. I HAD MINE REPROGRAMMED BUT IT DIDN'T HELP. I JUST HOPE THAT NO ONE IS INJURED AS A RESULT OF THESE DEFECTIVE ECMS. *TR
Power train, Jan 4, 2010
I HAVE A 2002 RAV4. ABOUT 2 MONTHS AGO, I NOTICED THAT WHEN I ACCELERATED, MY CAR HESITATED AND THEN JUMPED INTO GEAR. THE PROBLEM WORSENED, AND WHEN I TOOK IT TO BE LOOKED AT, THE MECHANIC INFORMED ME THAT THE REPAIRS TO THE DAMAGED TRANSMISSION WOULD COST CLOSE TO $4,000. AFTER RESEARCHING TOYOTA RAV 4 + TRANSMISSIONS, I QUICKLY FOUND MANY SITES STATING THAT MANY PEOPLE ARE HAVING THIS EXACT SAME PROBLEM WITH THEIR TOYOTA 2001 - 2004 RAV 4 TRANSMISSIONS, AND THAT THE PROBLEMS ARE DUE TO A FAULTY COMPUTER THAT TOYOTA HAS KNOW ABOUT FOR YEARS. *TR
Power train, Dec 30, 2009
TRANSMISSION HAS FAILED ON MY 2002 RAV4. 2 MECHANICS AND 1 TRANSMISSION SPECIALIST STATE THAT IT NEEDS TO BE COMPLETELY OVERHAULED AND ECM IS BAD ALSO. CAR WILL NOT SHIFT OUT OF 2ND GEAR AND HESITATES. *TR
Power train, Dec 28, 2009
ON THE EVENING OF DECEMBER 21, 2009, I WAS DRIVING OUR 2002 TOYOTA RAV4, EXITING A MAJOR SHOPPING CENTER, IN A LONG LINE OF VEHICLES AT A SLOW SPEED. SUDDENLY THE ENGINE STALLED (SOMETHING THAT NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE). I RESTARTED THE ENGINE AND MOVED A FEW CAR LENGTHS, STILL IN A LONG LINE OF SLOW MOVING VEHICLES AND THE ENGINE STALLED AGAIN. I RESTARTED THE ENGINE AND WAS ABLE TO PROCEED HOME (ABOUT 10 MILES) WITHOUT FURTHER DIFFICULTY. THE NEXT DAY, DECEMBER 22, 2009, MY WIFE USED THE VEHICLE TO DO SOME SHOPPING. DURING HER TRIP SHE MADE 4 UNEVENTFUL STOPS AND RESTARTS. AT HER 5TH STOP, AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT AT AN INTERSECTION (ON A VERY BUSY HIGHWAY) SHE STOPPED FOR A RED LIGHT. SHE THEN PROCEEDED FROM THE RED LIGHT - BUT THE ENGINE STALLED AGAIN. MY WIFE WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE ENGINE, BUT AS SOON AS THE GEAR SHIFT WAS PUT INTO DRIVE, THE ENGINE STALLED AGAIN. REPEATED ATTEMPTS TO RESTART THE ENGINE AND MOVE THE CAR WERE UNSUCCESSFUL. MY WIFE WAS STUCK IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERSECTION WITH TRUCKS AND CARS PASSING AROUND HER WITH HORNS BLOWING. A PASSING MOTORIST ULTIMATELY CAME TO HER ASSISTANCE AND PUSHED THE VEHICLE OUT OF THE INTERSECTION TO THE SHOULDER OF THE HIGHWAY OUT OF POTENTIAL DANGER. WHEN I ARRIVED AT THE LOCATION, I ALSO COULD NOT DRIVE THE VEHICLE. THE ENGINE WOULD START, BUT ENGAGING ANY DRIVE POSITION (D, 2, 1, R) WOULD CAUSE THE ENGINE TO SHUT DOWN. THE VEHICLE(WITH 88,000 MILES) WAS TOWED TO MY REPAIR SHOP. THE SHOP DIAGNOSED AN ECM/TRANSMISSION PROBLEM - AND THEN TRANSFERRED THE VEHICLE TO A TRANSMISSION SHOP FOR FURTHER DIAGNOSIS AND REPAIR ON DECEMBER 23, 2009. *TR
Engine and engine cooling, Electronic stability control (ESC), Dec 27, 2009
I HAVE A 2002 TOYOTA RAV 4 WITH 82K MILES ON IT. AT THE BEGINNING OF NOVEMBER, 2009, I WAS DRIVING MY VEHICLE AND IT BEGAN TO JERK VIOLENTLY WHEN I ACCELERATED BETWEEN 1ST AND 2ND GEARS. I HAD DIFFICULTY MAINTAINING CONTROL AND AVOIDED AN ACCIDENT. SUBSEQUENTLY, I TOOK THE CAR TO THE DEALER AND LEARNED THAT I HAD A COMMON PROBLEM FOR 2002 RAV 4'S -- A FAULTY ENGINE CONTROL MODULE. I RESEARCHED THE PROBLEM AND LEARNED THAT MANY PEOPLE HAVE ALSO HAD THIS PROBLEM IN 2001 AND 2002 RAV 4'S. TOYOTA IS NOT TAKING RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS PROBLEM. THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL ITEM. *TR
Power train, Dec 27, 2009
DETECTED TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS WITH A 2002 RAV 4. WAS TOLD BY MECHANIC THAT THE VEHICLE NEEDS A NEW TRANSMISSION. I UNDERSTAND THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH THE ECM SYSTEM BUT TOYOTA SO FAR REFUSES TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEM. *TR
Power train, Dec 23, 2009
ONE DAY, OUT OF THE BLUE, MY 2002 TOYOTA RAV4 STARTED HAVING TROUBLE GETTING FULL POWER IN 1ST GEAR, AND OFTEN SLIPPED WHEN GOING FROM 1ST TO 2ND, AND 2ND TO 3RD. SINCE THIS WAS SO SUDDEN, I OFTEN HAD TROUBLE GETTING UP TO SPEED WHEN PULLING INTO TRAFFIC. THERE WERE NO ACCIDENTS, BUT A FEW CLOSE CALLS. I HAD THE ECM (ENGINE CONTROL MODULE) REPLACED THE NEXT DAY BECAUSE MY MECHANIC SAID THAT THIS WAS A FAIRLY COMMON FAILURE FOR THE RAV4, AND TOYOTA HAD PUT OUT A TSB FOR THIS PROBLEM. UNFORTUNATELY, I WAS WELL PAST THE MILEAGE NEEDED TO GET THIS DONE UNDER WARRANTY. *TR
Vehicle speed control, Dec 21, 2009
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 TOYOTA RAV4. WHILE SHIFTING THE VEHICLE IN DRIVE THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT ACCELERATE PAST 4 MPH. THEN WITHOUT WARNING THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO RAPIDLY ACCELERATE. EVENTUALLY HE WAS ABLE TO GAIN CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS THEN TAKEN TO THE TOYOTA DEALER AND THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE COMPUTER WAS OVERRIDING THE TRANSMISSION. A NEW COMPUTER WAS INSTALLED IN THE VEHICLE. ALL THE REPAIRS HAVE BEEN DONE UNDER THE OWNERS EXPENSE. THE FAILURE HAS BEEN REPORTED TO THE OFFICE OF CONSUMERS AFFAIRS AND TO TOYOTA. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 111000. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 111400. UPDATED 02/18/10. *LJ UPDATED 03/04/10. *LJ
Power train, Electrical system, Dec 18, 2009
NO PROBLEMS WERE APPARENT UNTIL OVERNIGHT THE TRANSMISSION APPEARED TO BE SLIPPING. INDEPENDENT MECHANIC CITED FAILING TRANSMISSION AS PROBABLE ISSUE. TOYOTA DEALERSHIP STATED THE ECM/ECU WAS FAILING. TURNS OUT ECM WAS DEFECTIVE IN THE MODEL YEAR OF THIS VEHICLE. TOYOTA' RESPONSE WAS TO "REPROGRAM/REFLASH" DEFECTIVE ECM. THIS ONLY POSTPONEDTHE FAILURE OF THE ECM. THE DEFECTIVE ECM WOULD SEND INCORRECT CODES TO THE TRANSMISSION STUTTERING OR HALTING SHIFTS THUS LEAVING THE VEHICLE EFFECTIVELY IN NEUTRAL. THIS STUTTERING/SLIPPING QUICKLY DESTROYS THE TRANSMISSION. THE FAILURE OF THE ECM WOULD NOT ALLOW THE TRANSMISSION TO SHIFT WHICH PUT US IN DANGER OF BEING IN A REAR END COLLISION WHILE TRYING TO GET ONTO BUSY HIGHWAYS OR STALLING IN AN INTERSECTION. THIS OCCURRED MULTIPLE TIMES IN THE TRIP TO THE DEALERSHIP ALONE (THE VEHICLE WENT IN THE NEXT OPEN BUSINESS DAY AFTER THE FIRST OCCURRENCE). THE FAILURE OCCURRED IN THE FIRST THREE GEARS. THIS IS A VERY SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE WHICH WAS GIVEN AN INEFFECTIVE SOLUTION. THE DEALERSHIP REPLACED THE ECM AT A SIGNIFICANT COST TO THE CONSUMER. WHEN ASKED ABOUT THE DEFECTIVE ECM, THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT STATED THE REPLACEMENT OF THE ECM, ALTHOUGH AGREED TO BE DEFECTIVE, WAS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE CONSUMER AND NOT TOYOTA. *TR
Power train, Dec 11, 2009
TRANSMISSION FAILURE. *TR
Power train, Dec 9, 2009
CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ALL OF SUDDEN WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE REGULAR TO WORK, WHEN CHECKED, THE TRANSMISSION SENSOR BAD ERROR CAME UP, THEN DROVE VEHICLE BACK HOME.WHILE DRIVING BACK GEAR STARTED SLIPPING, COULD NOT ABLE TO PICK UP SPEED. LATER CHECK ENGINE LIGHT GONE AND VEHICLE STARTED WORKING FINE. NEXT DAY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS AGAIN ON. WHEN TOOK THE VEHICLE TO MECHANIC, TRANSMISSION BAD DIAGNOSTIC CAME. COSTING MORE THAN 3500. IT WAS HAZARDOUS DRIVE WHILE COMING BACK HOME AT A SUCH LOW MILES. *TR
Power train, Dec 8, 2009
I HAVE A 2002 TOYOTA RAV4 WITH 110,000 MILES ON IT. THE TRANSMISSION HAS JUST FAILED. WHAT A DANGEROUS SITUATION, DOESN'T WANT TO GO, SO YOU TAKE OFF FROM A STOP SIGN & YOU'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF TRAFFIC & THERE YOU SIT TRYING TO GET THE CAR TO MOVE. TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM THE TRANSMISSION NEEDS TO BE REPLACED & I DON'T HAVE $5000 TO REPAIR THIS. IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT TOYOTA WAS AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM AND HAS DONE NOTHING ABOUT IT. NICE *TR
Power train, Dec 7, 2009
IN MARCH 2006, TOYOTA SENT DEALERS A TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN 002-06WARNING THEM THAT SOME CONSUMERS MIGHT COMPLAIN ABOUT HARSH SHIFTING. IT SAID IMPROVEMENTS WERE MADE TO THE COMPUTER ?MANUFACTURING PROCESS TO REDUCE THE POSSIBILITY OF THIS CONDITION OCCURRING.? IT THEN TOLD THE DEALERS TO REPLACE THE MODULE AND IF THAT DID NOT WORK TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION. BUT CONSUMERS OWNING THE VEHICLES WERE NEVER NOTIFIED ABOUT THE PROBLEM. THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT MY CAR IS DOING, I WAS NEVER INFORMED OF THIS DEFECT WHEN I BOUGHT MY 2002 TOYOTA RAV4 USED IN NOV 2007 FROM TOYOTA OF BUTTE MT. AND OF COURSE IT ISN'T COVERED UNDER ANY WARRANTY OR RECALL NOW - ONLY UP TO 80,000 MILES BEFORE THE ECM STARTS TO MALFUNCTION. I WAS QUOTED THE FIX TO BE AROUND $900.00 AND THAT'S IF IT HASN'T CAUSED DAMAGE TO MY TRANSMISSION BY NOW. I'M A SINGLE WORKING MOM OF 3 KIDS ON A VERY LIMITED INCOME - I CAN'T AFFORD TO HAVE THIS FIXED AND NOW I'M WITHOUT THE ONLY CAR MY FAMILY HAS BECAUSE DRIVING IT IS AN EXTREME SAFETY HAZARD WITH IT'S CURRENT PROBLEMS. AS I PULL OUT INTO TRAFFIC THE CAR DECIDES TO NOT SHIFT (AS IF IT WERE IN NEUTRAL) RIGHT IN THE PATH OF ONCOMING TRAFFIC - NICE JOB TOYOTA. I THINK THAT THIS SHOULD BE A COVERED RECALL ON THESE VEHICLES BEFORE SOMEONE IS KILLED!!!!!!!! *TR
Electrical system, Dec 3, 2009
2002 TOYOTA, RAV4, MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON, THE CAR ONLY HAS 50,000MILES ON IT, I HAVE JUST RECENTLY HEARING ABOUT THIS SAME PROBLEM WITH MANY OTHER TOYOTA RAV 4 OWNERS. *TR
Power train, Dec 2, 2009
CAR JERKS; HESITATES; DOES NOT GO INTO GEAR PROPERLY; REVS LOUDLY BUT STARTS LIKE IT'S BEING MOVED OFF IN THIRD GEAR. TOLD IT'S THE COMPUTER THAT IS BAD BUT IF IT DOES NOT GET FIXED AFTER REPLACEMENT OF THE COMPUTER, IT COULD BE THE TRANSMISSION. I AM ORDERING A REPLACEMENT COMPUTER BUT CANNOT AFFORD TO DO IT VIA THE DEALER BECAUSE THE INITIAL COST IS $1300. PROBLEM IS SIMILAR TO MANY LISTED ON VARIOUS WEBSITES - SPOKE TO TOYOTA 800-NUMBER: THEY CAN ONLY TAKE THE COMPLAINT AND GIVE A REFERENCE NUMBER BUT NOBODY WILL CONTACT ME. NO SUGGESTION OF A RECALL DESPITE HUNDREDS OF COMPLAINTS ABOUT CARS WITH EXACT PROBLEMS. I'M FRUSTRATED BECAUSE THERE IS NO CONSIDERATION OF A DISCOUNT BEING OFFERED, KNOWING THAT SO MANY CARS HAVE HAD THIS EXACT PROBLEM. I FEEL THE CARS SHOULD BE RECALLED AND TOYOTA SHOULD OFFER A GOOD-FAITH DISCOUNT, EVEN IF IT'S NOT THE FULL AMOUNT BEING REFUNDED BECAUSE CARS ARE OVER THE 80,000 MILE THRESHOLD, FOR SUCH SAFETY CONCERNS AS THIS. *TR
Power train, Dec 1, 2009
TOYOTA 2002 RAV4 PROBLEM WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION HESITATING AND JERKING IN LOW GEARS. PROBLEM STARTED IN JULY 2009 AND WITHIN ONE WEEK WAS OCCURRING ALL THE TIME. RAV4 WAS WELL PAST ITS WARRANTY OF 50K OR 5 YEARS. OURISMAN CHANTILLY VIRGINIA TOYOTA DEALER SAID IT NEEDED NEW TRANSAXLE FOR $5,500. MILLER TOYOTA OF MANASSAS VIRGINIA REPLACED ECM MODULE WHICH WAS STILL UNDER EMISSIONS WARRANTY OF 80K OR 8 YEARS. THIS HAS CORRECTED THE PROBLEMS SO FAR. *TR
Power train, Nov 30, 2009
THIS COMPLAINT IS REGARDING THE 2002 TOYOTA RAV4 ABOUT A YEAR AGO I NOTICED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS STOPPING AND HAVING PROBLEMS CHANGING SHIFTS. I RESEARCHED AND FOUND A LOT OF PEOPLE SAYING THAT IT WAS THE COMPUTER OF THE ENGINE WHICH WAS MESSING UP MY TRANSMISSION. I WENT AHEAD AND PAID AROUND $2000.00 TO HAVE THE COMPUTER CHANGED. THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THAT THE OLD COMPUTER WHICH WAS PUT AT THE FACTORY HAD DAMAGED MY TRANSMISSION. IT RAN WELL FOR A WHILE BUT A COUPLE OF WEEKS BACK I WAS TURNING LEFT AND THE VEHICLE UNEXPECTEDLY STOPPED I WAS SCARED OUT OF MY MIND BECAUSE THERE WERE CARS COMING AT A HIGH SPEED I PUSHED THE GAS ABOUT 3 TIMES FOR IT TO JERK INTO GEAR. A LOT OF OTHER INCIDENTS LIKE THAT HAVE HAPPENED WITH THIS VEHICLE WHERE THE ENGINE JUST WONT REACT AND PLACE ME IN DANGEROUS SITUATION. NOW ITS EVEN WORST WHERE IT IS REALLY STAINING ITSELF TO AT LEAST GET TO 40MPH I'M GOING TO ONCE AGAIN HAVE TO TAKE IT TO A SHOP TO GET FIXED OR MAYBE TRADE IT IN ALL TOGETHER, BECAUSE IT'S A DANGER TO ME AND MY FAMILY. *TR
Power train, Nov 23, 2009
WHILE STARTING UP FROM A RED LIGHT, I FELT THE TRANS SLIP, THEN BANG INTO 2ND GEAR. IT WOULD CONTINUE TO BUCK AND SLIP, THAN WOULD CATCH AND RUN SMOOTH. I THOUGHT SOMETHING HAD HAPPENED TO THE TRANS, ALTHOUGH I ONLY HAVE APPROX 48,000 MILES ON THE CAR. TURNED OUT TO BE A FAULTY ECM WHICH TOYOTA IS APPARENTLY AWARE OF AND WAS REPLACED UNDER WARRANTY. I FELL THIS COULD HAVE POTENTIALLY BEEN DANGEROUS AND I VERY EASILY COULD HAVE BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT, BUT DID NOT REALLY DRIVE THE CAR AFTER THE INITIAL INCIDENT. *TR
Power train, Nov 21, 2009
AFTER HAVING PROBLEMS WITH MY TRANSMISSION I FOUND OUT THAT THERE WAS AN ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE THAT WAS DEFECTIVE AND CAUSED DAMAGE TO MY TRANSMISSION. TOYOTA DEALERS IN MY AREA WOULD NOT OFFER ANY HELP OTHER THAN TO SAY THAT IT WILL COST ME ~$5,000 FOR NEW EMC AND NEW TRANSMISSION. FROM ALL OF THE COMPLAINTS SO FAR I WOULD GUESS THAT TOYOTA IS MAKING MORE MONEY ON REPLACING TRANSMISSIONS THEN THEY MAKE ON ACTUALLY SELLING THE CAR. THE EMC IS A WELL KNOW PROBLEM. NOW MY WIFE AND I ARE TAKING THE BUS TO WORK BECAUSE I DO NOT HAVE THE MONEY TO FIX THIS CAR AS IT IS ABOVE THE 80,000 MILE WARRANTY. IT?S BAD ENOUGH THAT WE ALL HAVE THIS PROBLEM, BUT IT MAKES THINGS WORSE TO KNOW THAT TOYOTA INTENTIONALLY LEFT CONSUMERS IN THE DARK ABOUT THIS UNDERLINING PROBLEM. THEY CONVENIENTLY LET PEOPLE GO ON DRIVING THESE CARS WITH THIS POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS CONDITION AND HOPE THAT STATISTICALLY MOST OF US WILL DRIVE PAST THE 80,000 MILE WARRANTY LIMIT?.WHICH MANY OF US HAD. I GUESS THEIR STATISTICS DEPARTMENT MADE THEM SOME EXTRA BONUS MONEY. WELL, I?M TICKED OFF AND NO MORE TOYOTA FOR ME. I?M TAKING MY BUSINESS ELSE WARE AND I AM GOING TO TELL EVERYONE THAT I CAN WHAT I THINK OF TOYOTA. IT?S TOO BAD BECAUSE I USED TO THINK THAT IT WAS A GOOD CAR MANUFACTURE. NOW I KNOW THAT THEY DO NOT CARE AT ALL ABOUT US. THEY ARE TOO HAPPY TO TAKE YOUR MONEY AND LET YOU DRIVE A CAR THAT WILL EVENTUALLY NEED HUGE REPAIR COSTS, HOPEFULLY BY THEM. *TR
Power train, Nov 20, 2009
PROBLEM APPEARED WITHOUT WARNING. THE TRANSMISSION BECAME SLUGGISH AT LOW SPEEDS AND FROM A STOP AT STOP SIGNS AND STOP LIGHTS, CREATING A HAZARD OF BEING HIT BY OTHER VEHICLES IN INTERSECTIONS. ALSO A ROUGH SHIFT (AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION) BETWEEN FIRST AND SECOND GEARS, RESULTING IN SAME HAZARD AS ABOVE. THESE PROBLEMS MATCH TOYOTA'S TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN TC0002-06, 3/3/2006. IMMEDIATELY TOOK IT TO DEALER SHOP, THEY REPLACED TRANSMISSION. PROBLEM PERSISTED!. SHOP REPLACED ECM, AND PROBLEM FIXED. TOYOTA HAD IMPLIED A PROBLEM EXISTED W/ ECM IN THE TSB BACK IN 2006. THEY FURTHER ADMITTED FAULT NOW BY PROVIDING VIA THE LOCAL DEALER A "ONE TIME GOOD WILL WARRANTY" ON THE ECM. I BELIEVE THAT IF TOYOTA HAD RECALLED THE ECMS OR EXTENDED THE WARRANTY BACK IN 2006 AND REPLACED MINE AT THAT TIME, I WOULD NOT HAVE HAD MY TRANSMISSION REPLACED FOR $4126 PARTS AND LABOR. I ASSUME DEALER DISPOSED OF OLD ECM. *TR
Power train, Nov 20, 2009
2002 TOYOTA RAV4 SHIFTING ERRATICALLY AND SLIPPING WHILE DRIVING. BEGAN LAST MONTH WITH ONLY 39K MILES ON CAR. BROUGHT TO DEALER AND THEY REPLACED ECM UNDER WARRANTY BUT REFUSED TO ALSO REPLACE TRANSMISSION WHICH HAD BEEN DAMAGED DUE TO FAULTY ECM. (SEE TSB NUMBER:00206 NHTSA NUMBER:10019667). DEALER RETURNED VEHICLE. BUT TRANSMISSION BEGAN TO SLIP WORSE AND WORSE EACH DAY RIGHT AFTER. IT WAS NOW EXTREMELY UNSAFE TO DRIVE. WITHIN 1 WEEK THE CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE OVER 20MPH. MULTIPLE TIMES WE ALMOST HAD ACCIDENTS WHILE PULLING INTO TRAFFIC. CAR RETURNED TO DEALER FOR $300K+ REPAIR OF TRANSMISSION. THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM SINCE AT LEAST 2006 AND TOYOTA HAS FAILED TO NOTIFY ANY CUSTOMERS. HUNDREDS HAVE COMPLAINED OF THE PROBLEM BUT MANY UNSAFE CARS REMAIN ON THE ROAD TODAY AS A RESULT. SEE: HTTP://WWW.CARCOMPLAINTS.COM/TOYOTA/RAV4/2002/TRANSMISSION/JERKING_AND_HESITATING.SHTML. *TR
Power train, Nov 19, 2009
RE: 2002 TOYOTA RAV4 - AT APPROXIMATELY 56,000 MILES, THIS VEHICLE'S TRANSMISSION BEGAN ERRATIC BEHAVIOR, I.E, STALLING IN TRAFFIC, HESITATING AND UNPREDICTABLE SHIFTING. SAFETY WAS A MAIN CONCERN AS THE VEHICLE WAS STALLING DURING MERGING WITH FAST-MOVING TRAFFIC. TRANSMISSION FAILURE WAS DIAGNOSED BY A TECHNICIAN AND A FACTORY REBUILT TRANSMISSION WAS INSTALLED TO CORRECT THE FAILURE. THE ECM WAS REPLACED AS WELL. *TR
Power train, Nov 16, 2009
NO WARNING WHATSOEVER BEFORE FAILURE AS WE TRIED TO PULL ONTO A 4 LANE HIGHWAY AND CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE, MADE LOUD NOISES, JERKED AND SEEMED LIKE IT WOULD JUST STOP DEAD IN ITS TRACKS. HAPPENED EVERY TIME IT HAD TO SHIFT FROM 1ST TO 2ND GEAR - AT STOP LIGHTS, DRIVING THRU TOWN, ETC. TOYOTA IS NOW AT DEALER TRYING TO SEE WHAT PROBLEM COULD BE. *TR
Power train, Nov 11, 2009
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
Power train, Nov 11, 2009
MY 2002 TOYOTA RAV4 HAS 100,102 MILES ON IT AND STARTED TO HAVE TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS, I.E. SLOWING DOWN WHILE DRIVING POSTED SPEED, NOT MOVING AFTER RED LIGHT TURNS GREEN AND THE VEHICLE SEEMS TO JUMP WHILE JUST DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD. WE CALLED A RELIABLE TRANSMISSION REPAIR PLACE WHO INFORMED US THAT "TOYOTA RAV4S ARE NOTORIOUS FOR THIS DANGEROUS SITUATION AND IT'S NOT THE TRANSMISSION IT'S THE COMPUTER. TAKE IT TO THE DEALERSHIP." WE TOOK IT TO OUR LOCAL TOYOTA DEALER WHO REPLACED PART NUMBER 89661-42822 COMPUTER, ENGINE ON SEPTEMBER 28, 2009. THIS REPAIR COST US$1,504.00. MY VEHICLE SEEMED FINE FOR A WEEK AND THEN INTERMITTENTLY STARTED DOING THE SAME THING. I BROUGHT IT BACK TO THE DEALER (A-1 TOYOTA IN AMITY CONNECTICUT) ON OCTOBER 19, 2009 AND LEFT IT OVERNIGHT BECAUSE IT SEEMS TO HAPPEN FIRST THING, ON A COOL ENGINE AND IT DIDN'T DO IT FOR THEM. THEY TOLD US TO KEEP A RECORD OF IT, AND WHEN IT STARTS TO HAPPEN ON A MORE FREQUENT BASIS - WHEN THEY CAN EXPERIENCE THE PROBLEM, BRING IT BACK. I FEEL I'M DRIVING AN UNSAFE VEHICLE AND THAT TOYOTA NEEDS TO RECOGNIZE THIS DANGEROUS, COMMON PROBLEM WITH THEIR VEHICLES. *TR