2001 Toyota RAV4

MY TOYOTA RAV 4 (2001) SUDDENLY STARTED SLIDING, JERKING, MOTOR RACING IN MAY OF 2009. IT HAD JUST PASSED THE 80,000 MI MARK, AND THE SHIFTING OF THE TRANSMISSION NEARLY STOPPED. I HAD BOUGHT IT USED, AND WHEN WE CHECKED WITH THE LOCAL DEALERSHIP, FOUND THAT THE 2006 BULLETIN ON THE PROBLEMS WITH THE ECU WHICH CONTROLS THE TRANSMISSION HAD RESULTED IN THE ECU BEING 'FLASHED'. SO IT HAD THE WORK DONE WHICH WOULD SUPPOSEDLY FIX THE PROBLEM. IT IS LUCKY THAT IT HAPPENED ON A STREET AND NOT ON A FREEWAY, WHICH WOULD MOST LIKELY HAVE RESULTED IN A TERRIBLE ACCIDENT. TOYOTA WAS PHONED, A COMPLAINT WAS MADE. NOTHING HAS HAPPENED. AT MY OWN EXPENSE, I HAD THE ECU REBUILT; THE DAMAGE TO THE TRANSMISSION WAS THERE, BUT THE REBUILDING OF THE ECU ENABLED ME TO DRIVE THE CAR. I DON'T KNOW HOW LONG IT WILL LAST. *TR

COST OF REPAIR: 2684.47 & CAR WAS AT DEALERSHIP FOR APP. 1 MONTH TOTAL. MY RAV4 STARTED OCCASIONALLY SHIFTING HARD AND WOULD NOT GO INTO THE NEXT GEAR. WHEN IT FINALLY WENT INTO THE NEXT GEAR IT FELT LIKE A SUDDEN JUMP. THE ENGINE WOULD REV AND THE RPMS WOULD INCREASE WHILE THE CAR WAS IN NEUTRAL. IT REACHED A POINT WHERE IT WOULD NOT GO INTO THE NEXT GEAR AT ALL. I TOOK IT TO TOYOTA DEALERSHIP. I SPOKE WITH SERVICE ADVISOR ,HE SAID THAT THE PROBLEM WAS DUE TO THE ENGINE CONTROL MODULE. A SERVICE BULLETIN (TC002-06 89661-42650) INSTRUCTED IN CASES SUCH AS MINE THE ECM WAS TO BE REPLACED. AND HE ALSO STRONGLY ADVISED THAT THE TRANSMISSION FLUID NEEDED TO BE FLUSHED, ALTHOUGH IT DID NOT SHOW ANY NEED TO BE, BUT HE AND THE MASTER MECHANIC FELT IT WOULD BE NEEDED. THE ORIGINAL QUOTE FOR THE ABOVE WAS OVER $1500. WHEN I COMPLAINED THAT I DIDN?T FEEL IT WAS RIGHT THAT I SHOULD PAY WHEN IT WAS A KNOWN BAD ECM THE PRICE DROPPED FOR ?CUSTOMER LOYALTY, BLAH, BLAH?. THEY FELT THEY DID ME A FAVOR AND ONLY CHARGED ME $740.47 . TWO DAYS AFTER I GOT IT OUT OF THE SHOP IT DID THE SAME EXACT THING. I HAD BEEN VERY DISGUSTED WITH THE SERVICE I RECEIVED, THE NOT RETURNING OF PHONE CALLS, ETC. THE LAST PLACE I WANTED TO GO WAS BACK TO THE DEALER. ON OR ABOUT MAY 2, 2008 I TOOK IT BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP. THE ENGINE OIL LIGHT HAD BEGUN TO FLICKER. THE ORIGINAL PROBLEM STILL EXISTED. THEY WERE UNABLE TO DUPLICATE THE PROBLEM. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS ON. THEY SAID THE ENGINE OIL LIGHT AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS ON DUE TO OIL GELATION AND THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER. I WENT FOR A RIDE WITH SERVICE ADVISOR TOM DRUZYNSKI AND WE QUICKLY WERE ABLE TO DUPLICATE ORIGINAL PROBLEM. I WAS THEN TOLD THE TRANSAXLE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AND THE ENGINE REBUILT. SERVICE ADV TOLD ME REPAIRS WOULD COST $7000. I UNSUCCESSFULLY COMPLAINED TO CORPORATE TOYOTA 2 TIMES. REPAIR COST WENT FROM 7000 TO 1800.THE A/C HASN'T WORKED SINCE. *TR

MY 2001 TOYOTA RAV 4 STARTED EXPERIENCING HARD SHIFTING LATE LAST YEAR. THE SHIFTS BECAME HARDER EARLY THIS YEAR PARTICULARLY BETWEEN 2ND AND 3RD GEAR. I'VE NEVER HAD ANY SERIOUS PROBLEMS WITH MY VEHICLE AND AT THAT TIME I HAD PROBABLY 78000 MILES. WHEN THE HARD SHIFTING OCCURRED, MY VEHICLE WOULD ALMOST STALL COMPLETELY WHILE DRIVING. I STARTED DOING SOME RESEARCH AND DISCOVERED A KNOWN TRANSMISSION TROUBLE "SUPPOSEDLY" SOLVED BY REPROGRAMMING MY ECM CARD(WHICH I HAD DONE). THIS HOWEVER DID NOT SOLVE MY PROBLEM. ACCORDING TO OTHER'S WHO HAD THE SAME THING DONE, THE TRANSMISSION WILL HAVE TO BE REPLACED BECAUSE THE FAULTY PROGRAMMING HAS ALREADY DAMAGED MY EXISTING TRANSMISSION. I AM STILL DRIVING MY RAV4 WAITING FOR IT TO COMPLETELY FAIL. TOYOTA SHOULD BE RESPONSIBLE FOR REPLACING THE TRANSMISSION. I BOUGHT A TOYOTA AT A HIGHER PRICE POINT, FOR IT'S RELIABILITY! THE 1ST MAJOR REPAIR MADE ON MY VEHICLE SHOULD NOT BE THE TRANSMISSION. *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

ALL OF A SUDDEN OUT OF THE BLUE MY TRANSMISSION STARTED SLIPPING AND HARD SHIFTING. WE DROVE IT HOME TO PARK IT UNTIL WE COULD FIGURE OUT THE PROBLEM. $1000 LATER AND NO THANKS TO TOYOTA IT IS FIXED. IT WAS THE COMPUTER THAT NEEDED REPROGRAMMED. THANKFULLY THE TRANSMISSION WASN'T SHOT B/C WE DIDN'T DRIVE IT AFTER IT STARTED TO HARD SHIFT AND SLIP. TOOK IT TO TOYOTA AND THEY WERE GOING TO CHARGE US $5000 FOR A NEW TRANSMISSION. BUT WE FOUND SOMEONE TO HELP US WITH THE COMPUTER PROBLEM. *TR

OUR TOYOTA RAV 4 IS HAVING ELECTRONIC CONTROL MODULE IS A BUST. IT CONTROLS AMONG OTHER THINGS OUR TRANSMISSION, AND THE SHIFTING OF GEARS. THE ECM HAS PRETTY MUCH RUINED OUR TRANSMISSION. THERE HAS BEEN MANY RAV 4 OWNERS WITH THIS SAME PROBLEM. AND TOYOTA IS (WAS) A REPUTABLE COMPANY. ONE WOULD THINK THEY WOULD MAKE THIS RIGHT. OUR WARRANTY WAS UP LAST YEAR. AND THERE WAS RECALLS ON DIFFERENT COMPUTER THINGS FROM THEM BUT, THEY WILL NOT HELP US. AND WE DO NOT HAVE THE MONEY TO FIX THIS. AND THIS IS OUR ONLY FAMILY CAR. ONE WE NEED TO HELP US GET TO WORK. ANY SUGGESTIONS? *TR