2002 Toyota RAV4

ON THE EVENING OF DECEMBER 21, 2009, I WAS DRIVING OUR 2002 TOYOTA RAV4, EXITING A MAJOR SHOPPING CENTER, IN A LONG LINE OF VEHICLES AT A SLOW SPEED. SUDDENLY THE ENGINE STALLED (SOMETHING THAT NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE). I RESTARTED THE ENGINE AND MOVED A FEW CAR LENGTHS, STILL IN A LONG LINE OF SLOW MOVING VEHICLES AND THE ENGINE STALLED AGAIN. I RESTARTED THE ENGINE AND WAS ABLE TO PROCEED HOME (ABOUT 10 MILES) WITHOUT FURTHER DIFFICULTY. THE NEXT DAY, DECEMBER 22, 2009, MY WIFE USED THE VEHICLE TO DO SOME SHOPPING. DURING HER TRIP SHE MADE 4 UNEVENTFUL STOPS AND RESTARTS. AT HER 5TH STOP, AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT AT AN INTERSECTION (ON A VERY BUSY HIGHWAY) SHE STOPPED FOR A RED LIGHT. SHE THEN PROCEEDED FROM THE RED LIGHT - BUT THE ENGINE STALLED AGAIN. MY WIFE WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE ENGINE, BUT AS SOON AS THE GEAR SHIFT WAS PUT INTO DRIVE, THE ENGINE STALLED AGAIN. REPEATED ATTEMPTS TO RESTART THE ENGINE AND MOVE THE CAR WERE UNSUCCESSFUL. MY WIFE WAS STUCK IN THE MIDDLE OF AN INTERSECTION WITH TRUCKS AND CARS PASSING AROUND HER WITH HORNS BLOWING. A PASSING MOTORIST ULTIMATELY CAME TO HER ASSISTANCE AND PUSHED THE VEHICLE OUT OF THE INTERSECTION TO THE SHOULDER OF THE HIGHWAY OUT OF POTENTIAL DANGER. WHEN I ARRIVED AT THE LOCATION, I ALSO COULD NOT DRIVE THE VEHICLE. THE ENGINE WOULD START, BUT ENGAGING ANY DRIVE POSITION (D, 2, 1, R) WOULD CAUSE THE ENGINE TO SHUT DOWN. THE VEHICLE(WITH 88,000 MILES) WAS TOWED TO MY REPAIR SHOP. THE SHOP DIAGNOSED AN ECM/TRANSMISSION PROBLEM - AND THEN TRANSFERRED THE VEHICLE TO A TRANSMISSION SHOP FOR FURTHER DIAGNOSIS AND REPAIR ON DECEMBER 23, 2009. *TR

ONE DAY, OUT OF THE BLUE, MY 2002 TOYOTA RAV4 STARTED HAVING TROUBLE GETTING FULL POWER IN 1ST GEAR, AND OFTEN SLIPPED WHEN GOING FROM 1ST TO 2ND, AND 2ND TO 3RD. SINCE THIS WAS SO SUDDEN, I OFTEN HAD TROUBLE GETTING UP TO SPEED WHEN PULLING INTO TRAFFIC. THERE WERE NO ACCIDENTS, BUT A FEW CLOSE CALLS. I HAD THE ECM (ENGINE CONTROL MODULE) REPLACED THE NEXT DAY BECAUSE MY MECHANIC SAID THAT THIS WAS A FAIRLY COMMON FAILURE FOR THE RAV4, AND TOYOTA HAD PUT OUT A TSB FOR THIS PROBLEM. UNFORTUNATELY, I WAS WELL PAST THE MILEAGE NEEDED TO GET THIS DONE UNDER WARRANTY. *TR

NO PROBLEMS WERE APPARENT UNTIL OVERNIGHT THE TRANSMISSION APPEARED TO BE SLIPPING. INDEPENDENT MECHANIC CITED FAILING TRANSMISSION AS PROBABLE ISSUE. TOYOTA DEALERSHIP STATED THE ECM/ECU WAS FAILING. TURNS OUT ECM WAS DEFECTIVE IN THE MODEL YEAR OF THIS VEHICLE. TOYOTA' RESPONSE WAS TO "REPROGRAM/REFLASH" DEFECTIVE ECM. THIS ONLY POSTPONEDTHE FAILURE OF THE ECM. THE DEFECTIVE ECM WOULD SEND INCORRECT CODES TO THE TRANSMISSION STUTTERING OR HALTING SHIFTS THUS LEAVING THE VEHICLE EFFECTIVELY IN NEUTRAL. THIS STUTTERING/SLIPPING QUICKLY DESTROYS THE TRANSMISSION. THE FAILURE OF THE ECM WOULD NOT ALLOW THE TRANSMISSION TO SHIFT WHICH PUT US IN DANGER OF BEING IN A REAR END COLLISION WHILE TRYING TO GET ONTO BUSY HIGHWAYS OR STALLING IN AN INTERSECTION. THIS OCCURRED MULTIPLE TIMES IN THE TRIP TO THE DEALERSHIP ALONE (THE VEHICLE WENT IN THE NEXT OPEN BUSINESS DAY AFTER THE FIRST OCCURRENCE). THE FAILURE OCCURRED IN THE FIRST THREE GEARS. THIS IS A VERY SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE WHICH WAS GIVEN AN INEFFECTIVE SOLUTION. THE DEALERSHIP REPLACED THE ECM AT A SIGNIFICANT COST TO THE CONSUMER. WHEN ASKED ABOUT THE DEFECTIVE ECM, THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT STATED THE REPLACEMENT OF THE ECM, ALTHOUGH AGREED TO BE DEFECTIVE, WAS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE CONSUMER AND NOT TOYOTA. *TR

CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ALL OF SUDDEN WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE REGULAR TO WORK, WHEN CHECKED, THE TRANSMISSION SENSOR BAD ERROR CAME UP, THEN DROVE VEHICLE BACK HOME.WHILE DRIVING BACK GEAR STARTED SLIPPING, COULD NOT ABLE TO PICK UP SPEED. LATER CHECK ENGINE LIGHT GONE AND VEHICLE STARTED WORKING FINE. NEXT DAY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS AGAIN ON. WHEN TOOK THE VEHICLE TO MECHANIC, TRANSMISSION BAD DIAGNOSTIC CAME. COSTING MORE THAN 3500. IT WAS HAZARDOUS DRIVE WHILE COMING BACK HOME AT A SUCH LOW MILES. *TR

I HAVE A 2002 TOYOTA RAV4 WITH 110,000 MILES ON IT. THE TRANSMISSION HAS JUST FAILED. WHAT A DANGEROUS SITUATION, DOESN'T WANT TO GO, SO YOU TAKE OFF FROM A STOP SIGN & YOU'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF TRAFFIC & THERE YOU SIT TRYING TO GET THE CAR TO MOVE. TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM THE TRANSMISSION NEEDS TO BE REPLACED & I DON'T HAVE $5000 TO REPAIR THIS. IT IS MY UNDERSTANDING THAT TOYOTA WAS AWARE OF THIS PROBLEM AND HAS DONE NOTHING ABOUT IT. NICE *TR

IN MARCH 2006, TOYOTA SENT DEALERS A TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN 002-06WARNING THEM THAT SOME CONSUMERS MIGHT COMPLAIN ABOUT HARSH SHIFTING. IT SAID IMPROVEMENTS WERE MADE TO THE COMPUTER ?MANUFACTURING PROCESS TO REDUCE THE POSSIBILITY OF THIS CONDITION OCCURRING.? IT THEN TOLD THE DEALERS TO REPLACE THE MODULE AND IF THAT DID NOT WORK TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION. BUT CONSUMERS OWNING THE VEHICLES WERE NEVER NOTIFIED ABOUT THE PROBLEM. THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT MY CAR IS DOING, I WAS NEVER INFORMED OF THIS DEFECT WHEN I BOUGHT MY 2002 TOYOTA RAV4 USED IN NOV 2007 FROM TOYOTA OF BUTTE MT. AND OF COURSE IT ISN'T COVERED UNDER ANY WARRANTY OR RECALL NOW - ONLY UP TO 80,000 MILES BEFORE THE ECM STARTS TO MALFUNCTION. I WAS QUOTED THE FIX TO BE AROUND $900.00 AND THAT'S IF IT HASN'T CAUSED DAMAGE TO MY TRANSMISSION BY NOW. I'M A SINGLE WORKING MOM OF 3 KIDS ON A VERY LIMITED INCOME - I CAN'T AFFORD TO HAVE THIS FIXED AND NOW I'M WITHOUT THE ONLY CAR MY FAMILY HAS BECAUSE DRIVING IT IS AN EXTREME SAFETY HAZARD WITH IT'S CURRENT PROBLEMS. AS I PULL OUT INTO TRAFFIC THE CAR DECIDES TO NOT SHIFT (AS IF IT WERE IN NEUTRAL) RIGHT IN THE PATH OF ONCOMING TRAFFIC - NICE JOB TOYOTA. I THINK THAT THIS SHOULD BE A COVERED RECALL ON THESE VEHICLES BEFORE SOMEONE IS KILLED!!!!!!!! *TR

CAR JERKS; HESITATES; DOES NOT GO INTO GEAR PROPERLY; REVS LOUDLY BUT STARTS LIKE IT'S BEING MOVED OFF IN THIRD GEAR. TOLD IT'S THE COMPUTER THAT IS BAD BUT IF IT DOES NOT GET FIXED AFTER REPLACEMENT OF THE COMPUTER, IT COULD BE THE TRANSMISSION. I AM ORDERING A REPLACEMENT COMPUTER BUT CANNOT AFFORD TO DO IT VIA THE DEALER BECAUSE THE INITIAL COST IS $1300. PROBLEM IS SIMILAR TO MANY LISTED ON VARIOUS WEBSITES - SPOKE TO TOYOTA 800-NUMBER: THEY CAN ONLY TAKE THE COMPLAINT AND GIVE A REFERENCE NUMBER BUT NOBODY WILL CONTACT ME. NO SUGGESTION OF A RECALL DESPITE HUNDREDS OF COMPLAINTS ABOUT CARS WITH EXACT PROBLEMS. I'M FRUSTRATED BECAUSE THERE IS NO CONSIDERATION OF A DISCOUNT BEING OFFERED, KNOWING THAT SO MANY CARS HAVE HAD THIS EXACT PROBLEM. I FEEL THE CARS SHOULD BE RECALLED AND TOYOTA SHOULD OFFER A GOOD-FAITH DISCOUNT, EVEN IF IT'S NOT THE FULL AMOUNT BEING REFUNDED BECAUSE CARS ARE OVER THE 80,000 MILE THRESHOLD, FOR SUCH SAFETY CONCERNS AS THIS. *TR

TOYOTA 2002 RAV4 PROBLEM WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION HESITATING AND JERKING IN LOW GEARS. PROBLEM STARTED IN JULY 2009 AND WITHIN ONE WEEK WAS OCCURRING ALL THE TIME. RAV4 WAS WELL PAST ITS WARRANTY OF 50K OR 5 YEARS. OURISMAN CHANTILLY VIRGINIA TOYOTA DEALER SAID IT NEEDED NEW TRANSAXLE FOR $5,500. MILLER TOYOTA OF MANASSAS VIRGINIA REPLACED ECM MODULE WHICH WAS STILL UNDER EMISSIONS WARRANTY OF 80K OR 8 YEARS. THIS HAS CORRECTED THE PROBLEMS SO FAR. *TR