2002 Toyota RAV4

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 TOYOTA RAV4. WHILE AT A STOP SIGN, UPON ACCELERATING THE RPM'S INCREASED RAPIDLY; YET, THE VEHICLE DID NOT MOVE. THE CONTACT NOTICED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS NOT ACCELERATING UP TO ITS NORMAL SPEED WHICH FORCED THE CONTACT TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE TO HIS RESIDENCE BETWEEN 15 AND 20 MPH. THE CONTACT WANTED A LOCAL MECHANIC TO DRAIN THE TRANSMISSION FLUID TO CONFIRM IF THE FLUID WAS THE CAUSE OF THE TRANSMISSION NOT SHIFTING GEARS. REMOVING THE TRANSMISSION FLUID DID NOT REMEDY THE FAILURE. THE MECHANIC INFORMED THE CONTACT THAT THE TRANSMISSION WAS DEFECTIVE. THE CONTACT HAS NOT HAD THE VEHICLE REPAIRED AT THIS TIME; THEREFORE, SHE WAS UNABLE TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 90,000.

ONE DAY OUT OF THE BLUE MY TRUCK HAD TROUBLE ACCELERATING EACH TIME I CAME TO A STOP, IT THEN ALTERNATE BETWEEN JERKING FORWARD AND HESITATING BEFORE IT ACTUALLY GOT GOING. I HAD TO TRY NOT TO HIT ANYTHING IN FRONT OF ME AND NOT GET HIT BY THE CAR BEHIND ME THINKING I'M TAKING OFF. I WAS TERRIFIED MERGING ONTO THE HIGHWAY BECAUSE IT WOULDN'T ACCELERATE AND THEN DID THE HESITATING AND JERKING THING. WENT STRAIGHT TO MECHANIC, DIAGNOSTICS SHOWED POSSIBLE TRANSMISSION ISSUE. WHICH WOULD COST $4,200 NEW AND ABOUT $3K USED. DID ONLINE RESEARCH AND FOUND HUNDREDS OF SAME COMPLAINTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS TO REPLACE ECM BEFORE IT DID RUIN THE TRANSMISSION. I TOOK THE CHANCE AND REPLACED THE ECM AND TRUCK IS RUNNING FINE NOW. I HAD CALLED MY TOYOTA DEALERSHIP WHO TOLD ME MY WARRANTY WAS UP (5YRS/50K MILES - AND I AM AT 70K MILES). COULD NOT GET THRU TO TOYOTA HEADQUARTERS BECAUSE OF GAS PEDAL RECALL. THIS IS DANGEROUS AND RESEARCH SHOWS TOYOTA KNEW OF THIS PROBLEM SINCE 2006 AND HAS NOT DONE A RECALL. TOTAL COST: $1,300 FOR NEW ECM AND $300 FOR CAR RENTAL. *TR

MY TOYOTA 2002 RAV4 WITH ONLY 55,000 STARTED HAVING PROBLEMS WITH TRANSMISSION AND I TOOK IT IN AS SOON AS PROBLEM STARTED AND WAS TOLD AT DEALERSHIP I NEEDED TO REPLACE THE WHOLE TRANSMISSION AND INSTALL A REBUILT. THE REPAIR COST $3400 AND AFTER A DAY OF DRIVING I HAD TO TAKE CAR BACK TO DEALER AS IT WAS STILL NOT RUNNING RIGHT AND THEN I WAS TOLD THAT THE ECM NEEDED REPLACING WHICH THEY SAID THEY DID AT NO COST TO ME WHICH IS VERY HARD TO BELIEVE. I AM TOTALLY DISGUSTED THAT AFTER TAKING CARE OF MY CAR AND AT ONLY 55,000 MILES THE TRANSMISSION HAD TO BE REPLACED. ANOTHER DISTURBING ISSUE IS THAT TOYOTA ISSUED A BULLETIN REGARDING THIS PROBLEM BUT THE CONSUMER IS STILL STUCK WITH THE REPAIR WHICH IS VERY COSTLY. I ALSO ASKED THEM TO PLEASE RETURN MY OLD TRANSMISSION AND WAS TOLD THAT I COULD NOT HAVE IT. IF IT WAS REPLACED AND IT IS MY PROPERTY WHY COULD THEY NOT RETURN THE TRANSMISSION TO ME SO THAT I COULD BE SURE THAT IT WAS REPLACED. WHEN I TOOK MY CAR BACK AS IT WAS STILL NOT RUNNING RIGHT I WAS TOLD THAT THEY COULD NOT FIGURE OUT WHAT THE CODES MEANT AND WHY THE CAR WAS NOT RUNNING AND WAS TOLD THE HARNESS NEEDED TO ALSO BE REPLACED AND THEN THEY CHANGED THEIR STORY SAYING THAT THE PAINT FROM THE REBUILT TRANSMISSION WAS TOO THICK AND THAT IS WHY THE CABLES WERE NOT MAKING THE CONNECTION. I TOOK MY CAR TO A TOYOTA DEALER FOR SERVICE AND THESE PEOPLE CLEARLY WERE GIVING ME THE RUN AROUND. I CALLED TOYOTA CORPORATION TO FILE A COMPLAINT AND THEY ONLY GAVE ME A 20% DISCOUNT OF $640 TOWARDS THE !@#$% TRANSMISSION WHICH I STILL HAD TO PAY THE DEALER THE FULL AMOUNT AND I HAVE TO SUBMIT A WHOLE BUNCH OF PAPERWORK SO THAT I CAN GET MY DISCOUNT. IT SEEMS TOYOTA CARS ARE NOT ARE GOOD AS THEY CLAIM TO BE. *TR

TRANSMISSION FAILURE/ECM FAILURE ON 2002 TOYOTA RAV 4, ALMOST CAUSING ME TO BE IN AN ACCIDENT. I HAD TO SPEND OVER $4700 TO HAVE THE TRANSMISSION REBUILT AND A NEW CONTROLLER INSTALLED. TOYOTA DEALER TOLD ME THEY WERE NOT AWARE OF ANY PROBLEMS WITH THE ECM CAUSING TRANSMISSION DAMAGE. THEN I RESEARCH IT ON THE INTERNET TO FIND MULTIPLE COMPLAINTS. TOYOTA SHOULD HAVE WARNED OWNERS OF THE PROBLEM AND ALLOW OWNERS TO CHANGE THE ECM BEFORE RUINING THE TRANSMISSION AND ALMOST HAVING AN ACCIDENT. *TR

MY TOYOTA RAV4 (2002) WITH LESS THAN 90,000 MILES HAS BEEN SLIPPING AND IT HAS CAUSED ME TO BE IN SOME PRETTY RISKY SITUATIONS, SUCH AS NEARLY GETTING INTO A FATAL CAR ACCIDENT WHEN STOPPING AND TRYING TO PROCEED AGAIN AT STOP LIGHTS AND STOP SIGNS. APPARENTLY THE ECM IS CAUSING DAMAGE TO THE TRANSMISSION AND INSTEAD OF THEM TRYING TO FIX THE PROBLEM AS A COMPANY, THEY ARE RECOMMENDING ME TO SPEND OVER 4,000 TO FIX A PROBLEM THAT THEY HAVE FELL TO RESOLVE. IT HAS BECOME A FINANCIAL NIGHTMARE AND I DON'T WANT TO HAVE TO CHOOSE BETWEEN MY HOUSE AND MY CAR BECAUSE I NEED BOTH! *TR

ABOUT A MONTH AFTER HAVING MY 90,000 TUNE UP AT MY LOCAL TOYOTA DEALER, I NOTICED MY TRANSMISSION WAS SLIPPING; FROM FIRST TO SECOND AND SECOND TO THIRD. IT STARTED INTERMITTENTLY AND THEN BECAME MORE FREQUENT TO THE POINT THAT I NEEDED IT TO BE INSPECTED. ON MY WAY TO THE DEALER MY CAR STALLED IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERSECTION; CARS WERE HONKING AND I WAS THANKFUL NO ONE REAR-ENDED ME SINCE I WAS EXITING OFF A RAMP. AT THE DEALER THEY SAID THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE MY PROBLEM (DON'T KNOW HOW THEY COULDN'T ;EVERYONE DRIVING IN MY CAR NOTICED!) AND I DROVE IT AWAY WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS FOR ALMOST 2 WEEKS; THE SLIPPING STARTED AGAIN. THIS TIME MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. AFTER TAKING IT BACK FOR A SECOND INSPECTION THEY DETERMINED THAT MY ECM NEEDED TO BE REPLACED AT A COST OF $1,200. IT HAS BEEN ALMOST 2 WEEKS AND MY CAR IS WORKING GREAT AFTER THEY REPLACED THE ECM. WHAT UPSETS ME IS THE FACT THAT TOYOTA KNEW THERE WAS AN ISSUE WITH THE ECMS. BACK IN 2006 I WAS NOTIFIED BY MY DEALERSHIP THAT MY ECM NEEDED TO BE REPROGRAMMED. I HAD MINE REPROGRAMMED BUT IT DIDN'T HELP. I JUST HOPE THAT NO ONE IS INJURED AS A RESULT OF THESE DEFECTIVE ECMS. *TR

I HAVE A 2002 RAV4. ABOUT 2 MONTHS AGO, I NOTICED THAT WHEN I ACCELERATED, MY CAR HESITATED AND THEN JUMPED INTO GEAR. THE PROBLEM WORSENED, AND WHEN I TOOK IT TO BE LOOKED AT, THE MECHANIC INFORMED ME THAT THE REPAIRS TO THE DAMAGED TRANSMISSION WOULD COST CLOSE TO $4,000. AFTER RESEARCHING TOYOTA RAV 4 + TRANSMISSIONS, I QUICKLY FOUND MANY SITES STATING THAT MANY PEOPLE ARE HAVING THIS EXACT SAME PROBLEM WITH THEIR TOYOTA 2001 - 2004 RAV 4 TRANSMISSIONS, AND THAT THE PROBLEMS ARE DUE TO A FAULTY COMPUTER THAT TOYOTA HAS KNOW ABOUT FOR YEARS. *TR