IllustrationTHIS SUN VISOR DRIVERS SIDE WILL NOT STAY UP IN THE CLOSED POSITION, THERE IS NO ADJUSTMENT WHICH CAN BE MADE TO FIX IT. ACCORDING TO TOYOTA DEALER IN NEWARK DE A NEW VISOR IS NEEDED. I UNDERSTAND FROM THE DEALER THIS IS A VERY FREQUENT AND COMMON PROBLEM, WITH MANY MODEL YEARS.' *TR
2003 Toyota RAV4
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2003 Toyota RAV4 do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 258.5.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all RAV4 years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
110–25K
1325–50K
3750–75K
9175–100K
97100–150K
26150K+
275 reports with mileage · 39 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Power Train. Review the 209 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 42 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Vehicle Speed Control. Review the 29 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
18 crash reports4 fire reports8 injury reports
Visibility complaints
3 reportsTHE SUN VISOR DROPS SUDDENLY CAUSING MOMENTARY LOSS OF VISUAL CONTACT WITH THE ROAD AHEAD. *TR
I HAVE A 2003 TOY RAV 4 AND THE DRIVERS SIDE SUN VISOR LOST ALL OF ITS ELASTICITY AND NO LONGER STAYS IN THE UP POSITION. I WAS DRIVING WEST ON A BUSY HIGHWAY AROUND SUN SET WHEN TRAFFIC CAME TO AN ABRUPT STOP. MY VISOR SLAMMED DOWN AND I NEARLY HIT THE VEH IN FRONT OF ME AS I COULD NOT SEE. I HAVE TRIED VELCRO OF ALL KIND…
Read full complaint
I HAVE A 2003 TOY RAV 4 AND THE DRIVERS SIDE SUN VISOR LOST ALL OF ITS ELASTICITY AND NO LONGER STAYS IN THE UP POSITION. I WAS DRIVING WEST ON A BUSY HIGHWAY AROUND SUN SET WHEN TRAFFIC CAME TO AN ABRUPT STOP. MY VISOR SLAMMED DOWN AND I NEARLY HIT THE VEH IN FRONT OF ME AS I COULD NOT SEE. I HAVE TRIED VELCRO OF ALL KINDS AND GLUE. I HAVE A FRIEND WITH A 2003 RAV 4 AND THE EXACT SAME THING HAS HAPPENED TO HER CAR. (WILL PROVIDE HER INFO UPON REQUEST). I TRIED COMPLAINING TO TOYOTA AND THEY WANT TO CHARGE ME 125.00 FOR A NEW VISOR WHEN IT IS CLEARLY DEFECTIVE. 2 RAV 4'S THAT I KNOW OF HAVE FAULTY VISORS. I WILL KEEP TAPING IT BUT I AM AFRAID IT IS GOING TO KEEP COMING DOWN AT THE MOST INAPPROPRIATE TIMES. CAN YOU PLEASE HELP ME, AS A CONSUMER, FIND OUT IF THIS SHOULD BE RECALLED. THANK YOU *TR
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
1DP22005 · Pedestrian Alert Sounds
Opened Jan 27, 2023 · Closed Aug 7, 2023
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Electrical System:propulsion System
NHTSA received a petition on or about July 18, 2022, requesting that Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 141 be applied to all electric and hybrid vehicles operating in the United States. The petition can be reviewed at NHTSA.gov under ODI Number 11486072. FMVSS 141 establishes performance requirements for pedestrian alert sounds for motor vehicles. The standard applies to hybrid and electric vehicles that have a gross vehicle weight rating of 4,536 KG or less or are defined as low-speed vehicles. The standard became fully applicable to all such vehicles manufactured on or after March 1, 2021.On January 27, 2023, NHTSA opened Defect Petition (DP) 22-005 to evaluate the subject matter described in the petition. On June 24, 2023 and as supplemented on June 25, 2023, the petitioner notified NHTSA he was withdrawing his petition. The petitioner indicated that, based on his review of data, there is no justification for asserting potential benefits that could be derived from actions sought by my petition. Based on the petitioner's withdrawal, DP22-005 is closed. Closure of this DP does not represent a determination by NHTSA regarding the subject matter of the petition.