2003 Toyota RAV4

MY PROBLEM IS WITH MY 2003 TOYOTA RAV 4. RECENTLY I WAS DRIVING AND THE VEHICLE STARTED TO HAVE SOME PROBLEMS. FIRST, THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT ACCELERATE AS I WOULD BE ENTERING TRAFFIC, FOR EXAMPLE, ON HIGHWAYS. A NUMBER OF TIMES IT WOULD START ACCELERATING AND THEN SLOW DOWN OR LOSE ACCELERATION, THIS CAUSED MANY ANXIOUS MOMENTS AS OFTEN A CAR/TRUCK WOULD BE COMING UP BEHIND ME. I WOULD TRY TO ACCELERATE AND STEP ON THE GAS AND THE CAR WOULD NOT REALLY MOVE UNTIL ALL OF A SUDDEN THE GEARS WOULD SHIFT AND THE CAR WOULD JUMP FORWARD AND SUDDENLY START MOVING. THIS WAS SCARY ON A NUMBER OF OCCASIONS, ESPECIALLY WHEN I HAD MY SON IN THE CAR. ALSO, THE CAR WOULD AUTOMATICALLY SHIFT GEARS, OR DROP GEARS WHILE DRIVING. I WOULD BE IN TRAFFIC AND WE WOULD BE MOVING ALONG WHEN SUDDENLY THE CAR WOULD JUMP INTO GEAR AND LITERALLY JUMP FORWARD SOMETIMES PROPELLING THE CAR FORWARD A LITTLE. ALSO WHILE DRIVING, BOTH LOCAL ROADS AND ON HIGHWAYS THE CAR WOULD DROP GEARS AND SUDDENLY SLOW DOWN AND THEN SHIFT BACK INTO GEAR. THE CAR HAS 95000 MILES ON IT. WE WERE TOLD BY A MECHANIC (WHO IS NOT FIXING THE CAR) THAT TOYOTA HAD ADVISED THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH A COMPUTER-THE ECM- IN THE RAV 4, THAT WILL CAUSE THE CAR TO JUMP AND SHIFT GEARS AND POSSIBLY RUIN THE TRANSMISSION. WE HAVE RECENTLY BEEN INFORMED BY TOYOTA THAT THE ECM NEEDS TO BE REPLACED AND THAT THE TRANSMISSION IN DAMAGED AND ALSO NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. *DT

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA RAV 4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE STALLS WHILE IN PARK. ALSO WHILE DRIVING 25MPH THE VEHICLE DOES NOT PICK UP SPEED. HE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND THE DEALER INFORMED HIM THAT THE TRANSMISSION NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. THE CONTACT NOTICE NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS REGARDING THE TRANSMISSION FOR THIS YEAR MAKE AND MODEL AND MAKE AND FEELS THE MANUFACTURER SHOULD ISSUE A RECALL. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 126,000.

S10 APPROPRIATE HANDLING RE SUDDEN UNINTENDED ACCELERATION INCIDENT FM OWNER OF A 2003 TOYOTA RAV4. *KB THE CONSUMER STATED ON 3 SEPARATE OCCASIONS, WHEN SHE TRIED TO CHANGE LANES TO GET IN FRONT OF ANOTHER VEHICLE, IT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE. THE CONSUMER TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND THEY STATED NOTHING WAS WRONG. AFTER THE THIRD OCCURRENCE, THE CONSUMER WENT BACK TO THE DEALER AND THEY KEPT THE VEHICLE. UPON INSPECTION, THE DEALER DISCOVERED THE SENSOR IN THE GAS TANK WAS NOT FUNCTIONING PROPERLY AND HAD TO BE REPLACED. *JB

I WAS DRIVING MY 2003 RAV4 ABOUT 2 WEEKS AGO WHEN IT REFUSED TO ACCELERATE FROM A STOP AT A RED LIGHT, I WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE INTERSECTION(COASTING BASICALLY) WITH A LINE OF UNHAPPY TRAFFIC BEHIND ME BEFORE IT SLAMMED VIOLENTLY INTO HIGH GEAR AND ALMOST CAUSED ME TO CRASH INTO THE OVERPASS WALLS. IT HAS SINCE THEN BEEN INTERMITTENT, BEING FINE FOR A DAY OR SO THEN DOING THE SAME THING, IN VARYING DEGREES OF SEVERITY. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WENT ON, AND I MADE AN APPOINTMENT TO BRING IT IN TO TOYOTA FOR DIAGNOSTICS. THEY QUOTED ME $6800 TO REPLACE THE ECM COMPUTER AND THE TRANSMISSION. THIS VEHICLE HAS BEEN REGULARLY MAINTAINED AND ONLY HAS 119,000 MILES. I HAVE SINCE FOUND OUT THAT THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS AND COMMON PROBLEM WITH THIS YEAR OF TOYOTA THAT THEY HAVE KNOWN ABOUT FOR A WHILE NOW. I CAN'T DRIVE THE CAR AT ALL UNTIL THE COMPUTER IS REPLACED, AND THEN IT WILL NEED A TRANSMISSION SHORTLY AFTERWARD ACCORDING TO BOTH TOYOTA AND THE OTHER RAV4 OWNERS IN THIS SITUATION. IF THE COMPUTER HAD BEEN REPLACED PRIOR TO THE PROBLEM DEMONSTRATING ITSELF IN THE SHIFTING DIFFICULTIES, THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN NO DAMAGE TO THE TRANSMISSION AT ALL. I THINK THAT TOYOTA IS TO BLAME FOR NOT ADVISING RAV4 DRIVERS OF THIS DANGEROUS DEFECT AND THE RELATIVELY CHEAP REPAIR THAT COULD HAVE SAVED ME MUCH TIME AND MONEY. I NEED A CAR TO WORK, SO I EITHER PAY TOYOTA $6800 OR BUY A NEW CAR, AND IN THIS ECONOMY I DON'T KNOW IF I'LL BE ABLE TO GET THE FINANCING TO DO EITHER. *TR

PULLED UP TO AN INTERSECTION ON A HIGHWAY WHERE SPEED LIMIT IS 80 KM/H. STOPPED. LIGHT GOES GREEN AND I STEP ON THE GAS ONLY TO HAVE MY VEHICLE LURCH FORWARD SLOWLY AND THE CAR WOULD JUMP IN SHORT SPURTS. I MANAGED TO PULL OFF TO THE SIDE AS TRAFFIC CAME FLYING FROM BEHIND. AFTER A FEW MINUTES OF SITTING, I HIT THE GAS AGAIN AND GOT GOING LIKE NORMAL. PARKED THE CAR FOR FOUR HOURS AND THEN HEADED BACK HOME. WAS MAKING A TURN AT AN INTERSECTION ON THE WAY HOME AND PROBLEM HAPPENS AGAIN. CAN'T GET GOING AND THE CAR JUMPS LIKE IT'S STUCK BETWEEN NEUTRAL AND DRIVE. I SHIFT IT INTO SECOND GEAR AND THE PROBLEM GOES AWAY. I SHIFT IT BACK TO DRIVE WITH NO PROBLEMS. JUST AS I DRIVE UP A HILL CLOSE TO MY APARTMENT, THE PROBLEM HAPPENS AGAIN. THIS TIME I TRY SHIFTING TO BOTH SECOND AND FIRST GEAR BUT IT MAKES NO DIFFERENCE. I PULL OFF TO THE SIDE, SHUT OFF THE CAR AND WAIT FIVE MINUTES. I START THE CAR AND IT RUNS LIKE NORMAL. I MAKE IT BACK HOME AND PARK THE CAR ON THE STREET. IT HAS BEEN THERE EVER SINCE AND I OCCASIONALLY MOVE IT BACK AND FORTH. WITH THE RESEARCH I HAVE DONE, I HAVE LEARNED IT IS PROBABLY THE ECM AND IT IS A COMMON PROBLEM AMONG RAV4'S BETWEEN 2001 AND 2003. I REFUSE TO DRIVE IT UNTIL IT IS FIXED SO AS NOT TO DAMAGE THE TRANSMISSION FURTHER. WHEN THE PROBLEM HAPPENED INITIALLY, IT WAS DANGEROUS BECAUSE I WAS SITTING IN THE MIDDLE OF A SPEEDY HIGHWAY, UNABLE TO MOVE. *TR