2002 Toyota RAV4

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2002 TOYOTA RAV4. WHILE SHIFTING THE VEHICLE IN DRIVE THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT ACCELERATE PAST 4 MPH. THEN WITHOUT WARNING THE VEHICLE BEGAN TO RAPIDLY ACCELERATE. EVENTUALLY HE WAS ABLE TO GAIN CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS THEN TAKEN TO THE TOYOTA DEALER AND THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE COMPUTER WAS OVERRIDING THE TRANSMISSION. A NEW COMPUTER WAS INSTALLED IN THE VEHICLE. ALL THE REPAIRS HAVE BEEN DONE UNDER THE OWNERS EXPENSE. THE FAILURE HAS BEEN REPORTED TO THE OFFICE OF CONSUMERS AFFAIRS AND TO TOYOTA. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 111000. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 111400. UPDATED 02/18/10. *LJ UPDATED 03/04/10. *LJ

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

THIS COMPLAINT IS REGARDING THE 2002 TOYOTA RAV4 ABOUT A YEAR AGO I NOTICED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS STOPPING AND HAVING PROBLEMS CHANGING SHIFTS. I RESEARCHED AND FOUND A LOT OF PEOPLE SAYING THAT IT WAS THE COMPUTER OF THE ENGINE WHICH WAS MESSING UP MY TRANSMISSION. I WENT AHEAD AND PAID AROUND $2000.00 TO HAVE THE COMPUTER CHANGED. THE DEALERSHIP TOLD ME THAT THE OLD COMPUTER WHICH WAS PUT AT THE FACTORY HAD DAMAGED MY TRANSMISSION. IT RAN WELL FOR A WHILE BUT A COUPLE OF WEEKS BACK I WAS TURNING LEFT AND THE VEHICLE UNEXPECTEDLY STOPPED I WAS SCARED OUT OF MY MIND BECAUSE THERE WERE CARS COMING AT A HIGH SPEED I PUSHED THE GAS ABOUT 3 TIMES FOR IT TO JERK INTO GEAR. A LOT OF OTHER INCIDENTS LIKE THAT HAVE HAPPENED WITH THIS VEHICLE WHERE THE ENGINE JUST WONT REACT AND PLACE ME IN DANGEROUS SITUATION. NOW ITS EVEN WORST WHERE IT IS REALLY STAINING ITSELF TO AT LEAST GET TO 40MPH I'M GOING TO ONCE AGAIN HAVE TO TAKE IT TO A SHOP TO GET FIXED OR MAYBE TRADE IT IN ALL TOGETHER, BECAUSE IT'S A DANGER TO ME AND MY FAMILY. *TR