2001 Toyota RAV4

MY 2001 RAV4 TOYOTA JERKS FORWARD AFTER A COMPLETE STOP. HAD IT CHECKED AT TOYOTA DEALERSHIP, THEY DIDN'T SEE WHAT WAS THE PROBLEM BUT THEY TOLD ME IT MAY BE THE TRANSMISSION OR THE ENGINE CONTROL. IF I DECIDE TO DO THE JOB, THEY CANNOT GUARANTEE THAT WILL FIX THE PROBLEMS BUT IT WILL COST ABOUT $6,000. TOOK IT A LOCAL MECHANICS THEY COULD NOT HELP ME AS WELL. *TR

MY 2001 TOYOTA RAV4 THREW A ROD, RESULTING IN A TOTAL ENGINE FAILURE. THE CONNECTING ROD ENDCAP BOLT BROKE. THIS IS NOT A MAINTENANCE ITEM AND IT SHOULD NEVER BRAKE. THE ROD PUNCHED A HOLE IN THE ENGINE BLOCK. THE WHOLE ENGINE HAS TO BE REPLACED. THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP SAYS THERE'S NOTHING THEY CAN DO ABOUT IT SINCE IT'S NOT UNDER WARRANTY. *TR

CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON 2001 TOYOTA RAV4 VEHICLE. VEHICLE STOPS RUNNING AT ANY POINT DURING DRIVING OPERATIONS. THIS ISSUE AFFECTS THE ENGINE/EMISSION/TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS AND ARE A SEVERE HAZARD TO OWNERS OF THIS VEHICLE. TOYOTA IS IGNORING THE GROWING NUMBER OF OWNERS OF THIS VEHICLE UNTIL ENOUGH DEATHS/SERIOUS INJURIES OCCUR. *TR

SOMEWHERE AROUND THE LATER PART OF JUNE, 2009 MY CAR BEGAN HESITATING. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER AND THEY COULD NOT FIND WHAT WAS WRONG WITH IT. I TOOK IT BACK AND THEN WAS INFORMED THE IT WAS MY ECM. I CONTACTED TOYOTA TO HAVE THIS PROBLEM FIXED SINCE IT WAS A MANUFACTURING PROBLEM DURING PRODUCTION. THEY INFORMED ME THAT IT WAS MY RESPONSIBILITY TO GET IT FIXED. MY VEHICLE HAS AROUND 97,000 MILES ON IT. THIS IS HAPPENING ON A REGULAR BASIS. SEVERAL TIMES MY FAMILY AND I WERE ENDANGERED BECAUSE SOMEONE ALMOST HIT MY VEHICLE FROM THE BACK BECAUSE OF THE HESITATION. AS OF TODAY, I HAVE NOT BEEN SUCCESSFUL AT GETTING TOYOTA TO OFFER ANY ASSISTANCE IN GETTING THIS REPAIRS. THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE WOULD LOOSE ACCELERATION AND THE RPM SPIKED. WHENEVER THE CONSUMER STOPPED AT A LIGHT, THE VEHICLE FAILED TO MOVE IMMEDIATELY. THE TECHNICIAN INFORMED THE CONSUMER THE TRANSMISSION WAS SLIPPING, DUE TO A PROBLEM STEMMING FROM THE ECM, WHICH WAS NOT READING PROPERLY WHICH WAS AFFECTING THE TRANSMISSION. UPDATED IVOQ. 08/07/09.*JB

I HAVE A 2001 TOYOTA RAV4 [XXX] THE ENGINE TYPE IS A 1AZFE. I RECENTLY LEARNED ABOUT A TOYOTA OIL GEL PROBLEM WITH ENGINE TYPE 5S-FE. THE MOTOR MAY BE DIFFERENT, BUT MY STORY IS THE SAME. THIS IS A WORK VEHICLE THAT WAS MAINTAINED. IN SEPT 2006 I CALLED TOYOTA TO COMPLAIN ABOUT THE $2800 REPAIR DUE TO WHAT THEY HAD CALLED "OIL GEL". THE REFERENCE NUMBER FOR THIS CALL IS [XXX]. AT THE TIME I WAS UNAWARE OF THE LAW SUIT IN PROCESS FOR SOME TOYOTA ENGINES DUE TO THIS EXACT THING! JAN 19TH 2007, WHILE DRIVING, MY CAR'S ENGINE LIGHT WENT ON AND 30 SECONDS LATER THERE WAS A PLUME OF BLUE SMOKE ( THE BARTOW FIRE DEPARTMENT WAS CALLED AS I WAS ON I-75 IN GEORGIA AND SOMEONE THOUGHT THE CAR WAS ON FIRE). THERE WAS NO FIRE, JUST SMOKE. I PULLED OVER IMMEDIATELY. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO THE SERVICE DEALERSHIP WHERE THEY TOLD ME I HAD THROWN A ROD. THEY CLAIM THE TWO ARE UNRELATED OCCURRENCES. FROM WHAT I HAVE READ ON WEB SITES, THEY SEEM VERY RELATED TO ME. THE REPAIR IN SEPT WAS COSTLY, TO HAVE THE ROD THROWN 4 MONTHS LATER MAKES ME THINK THE 1AZFE ENGINE MAY HAVE SOME DEFECT AS WELL. THE CAR COULD NOT BE REPAIRED WITHOUT A TOTALLY NEW ENGINE. WE CHOSE NOT TO REPAIR IT. I BELIEVE TOYOTA SHOULD PAY FOR THE REPAIRS IN SEPT 06 AND THE TOW IN JAN 07, AS I AM CONVINCED THIS IS A DEFECT. I CAN PROVIDE ALL THE OIL CHANGES AND MAINTENANCE RECORDS AS THIS HAS BEEN A WORK VEHICLE FOR ME. I WONDER IF OTHER TOYOTA ENGINES SHOULD BE EXAMINED AND REPORTED. THE DEALERSHIP AND TOYOTA HAVE BOTH CLAIMED THIS ENGINE IS NOT INVOLVED. I DISAGREE. HAD I NOT PULLED OVER I AM CERTAIN A FIRE WOULD HAVE BEGUN WITH ALL THE ENGINE OIL ON THE MOTOR. *NM UPDATED 07/11/2012 *JS INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

5 MONTHS AFTER PURCHASE THE SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. A DEALER RESET IT AND SAID IT WAS THE GAS WE USED. EVERY YEAR WE GO THROUGH THE SAME THING WHEN WE PURCHASE CHEAP (NO-NAME BRAND) GAS AND HAD TO BE RESET BY A GARAGE OR DEALER. NOW WE RUN A TANK OR TWO OF BETTER (NAME BRAND) GAS AND THE LIGHT MAY GO OFF. I KNOW THAT THIS HAPPENS TO OTHER TOYOTAS. *NM

DT*: THE CONTACT STATED WHILE DRIVING 30 MPH THE ENGINE STALLED AND THE VEHICLE LOST ALL POWER. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER FOR INSPECTION. UPON INSPECTION IT WAS DETERMINED THE BAFFLE UNDER THE OIL CAP BROKE OFF. AS A RESULT METAL PIECES WENT INTO THE TIMING CHAIN, CAUSING THE ENGINE TO SEIZE. THE ENGINE WAS REPLACED. UPDATED 3/20/2006 - THE CONSUMER WAS ABLE TO LOCATE A TSB WHICH REFERENCED THIS PROBLEM. *NM

DT: THE CONSUMER STATED THAT THE ENGINE LIGHT KEPT ILLUMINATING IN THE 2001 TOYOTA RAV 4. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALERSHIP THREE TIMES. THE FIRST TIME THEY REPROGRAMMED THE COMPUTER, THE SECOND TIME THEY REPLACED THE OXYGEN SENSORS AND THE THIRD TIME THEY DETERMINED THAT THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE CONSUMER PLANNED TO REPLACE THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER IN THE FUTURE. CURRENTLY THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING THE VEHICLE WITH THE ENGINE LIGHT ON. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DRIVING DIFFERENTLY. THE CONSUMER CONTACTED TOYOTA AND THEY URGED THE CONSUMER TO WORK WITH THE DEALER, AND MAYBE THEY WOULD HELP HER WITH THE COST. *AK (11/21/05) THE CONSUMER WAS AWARE OF OTHER SAME MAKE MODEL AND YEARS THAT HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS SAME PROBLEM. *SC

I BOUGHT A BRAND NEW 2001 TOYOTA RAV4 FROM COX TOYOTA IN BURLINGTON, NC IN NOVEMBER OF 2000. THE VEHICLE HAD 28 MILES ON IT WHEN I BOUGHT IT. IN MAY OF 2001 I HAD MY 15,000 MILE SERVICE DONE AT COX TOYOTA AND EVERYTHING WAS FINE. IN JULY OF 2001, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND THAT DAY,7/16/01, I WENT TO COX TOYOTA TO HAVE IT CHECKED OUT. THEY TOLD ME IT WAS JUST THE O2 SENSORS AND I DIDN'T NEED TO WORRY ABOUT IT. BEING THAT I HAVE A DEGREE IN ENGLISH AND NOT AUTO MECHANICS, AND I WAS DEALING WITH THE DEALERSHIP, I TOOK THEIR WORD AND LEFT IT ALONE. THEY WERE ABLE TO TURN THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT OFF, EVEN THOUGH THEY DIDN'T FIX ANYTHING. LATER IN 2001, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME BACK ON AND I WENT TO TOYOTA OF DURHAM TO HAVE IT CHECKED OUT. I WENT TO THEM TWICE ABOUT IT AND THEY TOLD ME THAT NOTHING WAS WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE AND IT WAS JUST THE LIGHT ITSELF. SO THE LIGHT JUST STAYED ON, AND SINCE I WAS TOLD TO BASICALLY IGNORE THE LIGHT BY TWO TOYOTA DEALERSHIPS, THAT'S WHAT I DID. NOW I AM HAVING A PROBLEM PASSING THE NC VEHICLE INSPECTION, BECAUSE OF THIS PROBLEM. FRED ANDERSON TOYOTA IN RALEIGH, NC TOLD ME IN MAY OF 2004 THAT IT'LL COST 1,945.00 TO FIX MY CAR IN ORDER TO PASS INSPECTION, AND THE O2 SENSORS ARE THE ROOT OF THE PROBLEM. MY CAR ISN'T PERFORMING AS IT SHOULD AND IT MAY HAVE PERMANENT ENGINE DAMAGE. I AM WORKING WITH A MECHANIC IN ELON, NC TO GET THE PROBLEM FIXED. HE HAS TAKEN THE TIME TO LEARN WHAT WILL SOLVE THE PROBLEM WITH THE SENSORS, SO IT CAN PASS INSPECTION. IF COX TOYOTA HAD FIXED MY CAR WHEN I BROUGHT IT TO THEM IN JULY 2001, I WOULDN'T BE HAVING THESE PROBLEMS NOW. *AK