Toyota RAV4 transmission problems

2006 RAV4 UNSAFE TO DRIVE!!! LE BRUN TOYOTA, CANADAIGUA, NY, MADE ME PAY TO EXCHANGE LEMON WITH ONLY 150-200 MILES 2 DAYS AFTER PURCHASE, THEY MADE ME PAY AN ADDITIONAL 7K TO TRADE FOR THE V-6 I HAVE NOW, BECAUSE OF THE TRANSMISSION ACCELERATED DOWNHILL, ON BOTH 4CYL AND V-6, IT STILL DOES IT THOUGH NOT AS SEVERE, STILL SCARY AT TIMES. RECENTLY,MY STEERING WENT OUT ON THE EXIT RAMP LUCKILY AND LOCKED A FEW TIMES, IT NOW MAKES A THUMP AND CAUSED A MINOR ACCIDENT, NEXT TIME I WON'T BE SO LUCKY. REALLY LOUD NOISE FROM REAR ALSO. ANTIFREEZE SMELL INSIDE CAR TOO.H.E.L.P. *TR

THE COMPUTER IN MY RAV4 FAILED. IT WAS GIVING MY TRANSMISSION INTERMITTENT COMMANDS TO DRIVE IN THE WRONG GEAR. FOR EXAMPLE, MY MECHANIC SAID THERE WERE TIMES THE CAR WAS ESSENTIALLY IN 2 GEARS AT THE SAME TIME. I WAS NEARLY IN AN ACCIDENT BECAUSE THE CAR BUCKED AND ALMOST STALLED AS I TRIED TO MOVE FORWARD FROM A STOP. ONCE IT STARTED HAPPENING I DROVE TO THE NEAREST MECHANIC I COULD FIND AND ONLY MADE RIGHT TURNS BECAUSE I WAS AFRAID AND DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THE CAR WOULD DO. IT BURNED UP THE TRANSMISSION AND I HAD TO HAVE IT REPLACED. WHEN THE COMPUTER WAS RESET (AS WHEN THE BATTERY IS DISCONNECTED) THE CAR WOULD DRIVE NORMALLY FOR A FEW MILES AND THEN THE ECM WOULD BEGIN GIVING THE WRONG COMMANDS AGAIN. THE MECHANIC HAD TO DRIVE THE CAR TO THE NEARBY TOYOTA DEALER TO GET THE ECM REPAIRED AND HE GOT TO EXPERIENCE THE PROBLEM. HE SAID IT WAS A SCARY RIDE, WHICH IT WAS. WHEN I SPOKE WITH TOYOTA'S CUSTOMER SERVICE THE REP DENIED THAT THE RAV4 HAS A HISTORY OF THIS PROBLEM. WHEN I TOLD HIM THAT I HAD RESEARCHED ON THE INTERNET AND HAD FOUND MANY PEOPLE WITH MY PROBLEM HE STATED THAT ANYONE COULD CREATE FAKE INTERNET POSTINGS, INCLUDING MYSELF. PLEASE, PLEASE RESEARCH THIS. TOYOTA TAKES NO RESPONSIBILITY AND I WORRY WHAT WILL HAPPEN. MY CAR HAS BEEN FIXED BUT I DON'T WANT OTHER PEOPLE TO GO THROUGH WHAT I DID. I DON'T WANT SOMEONE TO BE INJURED OR KILLED BECAUSE THEIR CAR HAS THE SAME ISSUE MINE DID. IT COMES ON VERY SUDDENLY, IT IS NOT THE CASE OF A SMALL PROBLEM GRADUALLY BECOMING WORSE. IF I HAD KNOWN THAT I COULD MAKE A REPORT LIKE THIS I WOULD HAVE DONE SO SOONER. *TR

NOT EASY TO EXPLAIN, I HAVE BEEN HAVING THIS PROBLEM ON GOING MILDLY FOR THE PAST FOUR YEARS BUT EVERY TIME I WOULD BRING IT IN NOBODY COULD SEE THE PROBLEM. I HAVE BEEN HAVING A PROBLEM MOSTLY STARTING THE CAR AND THEN AFTER BRAKING IT ALMOST FEELS LIKE A CLOG. I WAS TOLD ABOUT TWO YEARS AGO IT WAS THE CAT CONVERTER, HAD IT REPAIRED FOR $1000 AND IT DID NOT CURE THE PROBLEM. I JUST BROUGHT IT IN BECAUSE IT IS GETTING SO MUCH WORSE, I WAS TOLD IT WAS MY SPARK PLUGS AND CYLINDERS SO I HAD THAT REPAIRED AND AFTER DRIVING FOR 5 MINUTES EXPERIENCED THE SAME PROBLEM WAS TOLD IT WAS THE COMPUTER AND IT HAD TO BE REPLACED FOR $1300 DOLLARS. (WAS TOLD THAT THIS PROBLEM DID NOT SHOW BEFORE I HAD THE CYLINDERS REPAIRED.) I LIVE IN THE NORTHEAST AND AM TERRIFIED WHEN THE SNOW AND ICE BEGIN BECAUSE WHEN IN CLOGS OR BUCKS I AM OPEN TO LOSING CONTROL OF THE CAR. *TR

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

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

2007 RAV4 W/4CYL ENGINE AND AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION. WHILE ACCELERATING INTO TRAFFIC, THROTTLE BECAME STUCK. THE PEDAL DID NOT RESPOND TO MY FOOT. IT WAS STUCK IN "DOWN" POSITION. I MANAGED TO SHIFT THE TRANSMISSION INTO NEUTRAL AND WITH ENGINE REVVING WIDELY SHUT THE MOTOR OFF. I AM VERY LUCKY THERE WAS LIGHT TRAFFIC AT THE TIME. NOTE THAT I IMMEDIATELY CHECKED FOR FLOOR MAT INTERFERENCE WITH PEDAL AND THE MAT WAS NOT NEAR THE PEDAL. THIS THROTTLE STUCK AS IF MECHANICAL LINKAGE OR THROTTLE-RELATED DEVICE HAD HELD IT IN PLACE. *TR