-Rear passenger door lock actuator fails -Safety risk of door not automatically locking when driving -Problem has been reproduced because it has occurred more than once -No inspection has taken place -No warning lamps or messages
2021 Toyota RAV4
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2021 Toyota RAV4 do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 258.5.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all RAV4 years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
Limited mileage data: 72 of 385 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Air Bags. Review the 125 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 47 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Engine. Review the 41 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
What owners actually said
385 reportsThe glass of the sunroof exploded and shattered when I was driving on the highway from Chicago to South Bend at normal speed on January 13, 2023, around 4 pm. I heard a loud explosion sound and found the sunroof glass shattered and falling. There was no vehicle around me, no impact with any objects, and the vehicle was not passi…
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The glass of the sunroof exploded and shattered when I was driving on the highway from Chicago to South Bend at normal speed on January 13, 2023, around 4 pm. I heard a loud explosion sound and found the sunroof glass shattered and falling. There was no vehicle around me, no impact with any objects, and the vehicle was not passing under any structures at the time of explosion. I was not injured by the incident but was really scared and had to pullover to the side. After recovering from shock, I managed to drive home with the shattered sunroof and could feel glass pieces falling on my right shoulder when I was driving. This was the first time for the issue to appear and there was no sign or symptom prior to the problem. I purchased this brand new vehicle one year ago. I found other similar complaints online on spontaneous sunroof explosion of Toyota RAV4 and they looked similar to what I experienced. I contacted my dealer and they told me to go to a Body Shop on Monday (closed on weekends) for an inspection.
No safety devices worked during accident that cause by another vehicle driver who ran red light. Neither air bags deployed, nor safety belt worked properly during an accident. Due to these mal functions of safety devices, my wife on the passenger seat hit the dashboard badly. She was wearing the seat belt properly which was rele…
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No safety devices worked during accident that cause by another vehicle driver who ran red light. Neither air bags deployed, nor safety belt worked properly during an accident. Due to these mal functions of safety devices, my wife on the passenger seat hit the dashboard badly. She was wearing the seat belt properly which was released later by the ER personal at the accident location to transfer to an ambulance.
While pulling into what I thought was a parking spot, the left front wheel hit an 8" drop off. Almost immediately after the wheel was back up and level with the other wheels. The vehicle then began surging forward. I hit the brakes but they did not go down. Tried again and the same result. I then hit a hard plastic container…
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While pulling into what I thought was a parking spot, the left front wheel hit an 8" drop off. Almost immediately after the wheel was back up and level with the other wheels. The vehicle then began surging forward. I hit the brakes but they did not go down. Tried again and the same result. I then hit a hard plastic container and a brick wall. This stopped the vehicle and I was able to put it in park and turn off the engine. Truthfully, once the wheel fell went into the drop off, I had no control of the car. The brick wall has a crack in it and the container is ruined. Toyota Product Liability was called but they have not contacted me. Thankfully the wall did not collapse and no one else was injured. I have pain in left arm and shoulder but hopefully only bruising. The issue has not been confirmed by anyone and I do not know if there were any warnings because I was focused on trying to get the car stopped. There might have been some alarms, I am not sure.
The contact owns a 2021 Toyota RAV4. The contact stated while approaching a traffic light, she depressed the brake pedal but failed to stop the vehicle and rear-ended another vehicle. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. No air bags deployed. The contact stated no one was injured nor sought medical attention. The…
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The contact owns a 2021 Toyota RAV4. The contact stated while approaching a traffic light, she depressed the brake pedal but failed to stop the vehicle and rear-ended another vehicle. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. No air bags deployed. The contact stated no one was injured nor sought medical attention. The contact stated a police officer was at the site but no police report was filed. The contact called the local dealer and made them aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 33,047.
Since I bought my brand-new car 1. the engine has stopped 5 times. 2. My windshield cracked. 3. There is low tire air pressure indicator that appears once in a while. A new battery was replaced, and it now cannot start. The message on the screen indicates: "IGNITION ON, Voltage abnormality steering power Low. Visit your Deale…
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Since I bought my brand-new car 1. the engine has stopped 5 times. 2. My windshield cracked. 3. There is low tire air pressure indicator that appears once in a while. A new battery was replaced, and it now cannot start. The message on the screen indicates: "IGNITION ON, Voltage abnormality steering power Low. Visit your Dealer." I took it the Dealer and now they are not able to find out what the problem is because I had to jam started the car for it to be towed.
2021 Toyota REV4 with just over 5,000 miles. I got off from a parking lot and drove 1/2 miles, The screen shown "Vehicle Alert" and asked to check engine with message "A malfunction in the electronic control of the engine, throttle, or automatic transmission has been detected". I smell very strong gasoline, then stop the vehicle…
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2021 Toyota REV4 with just over 5,000 miles. I got off from a parking lot and drove 1/2 miles, The screen shown "Vehicle Alert" and asked to check engine with message "A malfunction in the electronic control of the engine, throttle, or automatic transmission has been detected". I smell very strong gasoline, then stop the vehicle. I check the gas tank, it's normal. I opened the hood and saw a puddle of gasoline on engine part, between the battery and the engine but lower than the battery. It's so dangerous to drive with leaking gasoline so I park my car on a street
Vehicle stumbles on moderate acceleration from slow speed, hesitates shifting also. Problem has persisted since new. Dealers rep "they're all like that. can't find any problem. No warning lamps. I think there is a TSB but it seems well hidden. I feel it is a safety issue - acceleration from low speed compromised. We have 2 more …
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Vehicle stumbles on moderate acceleration from slow speed, hesitates shifting also. Problem has persisted since new. Dealers rep "they're all like that. can't find any problem. No warning lamps. I think there is a TSB but it seems well hidden. I feel it is a safety issue - acceleration from low speed compromised. We have 2 more 2021 rav4s in the family that do not do that. I believe Toyota knows about this problem. Also had a problem with vehicle slamming violently into lower gear when coming to a stop. Dealer could not find problem. I checked vehicle and found air filter housing not properly secured. I latched it properly and that seemed to solve slamming into lower gear problem. Dealers mechanic (?) must have not latched it properly after 12 month service. No telling how much dirt was sucked into engine while that was happening. The stumbling/ drivability hesitant shifting problem persists. Several people have reported this problem. One was fixed by a dealer attending to a software problem. This is a known problem that is being ignored. This has happened since new Jan 29, 2021.
I was parked at a store, engine off. Was in there 3 minutes and another customer ran inside and said a car was on fire, the employee asked if it was mine. I ran outside and it was indeed mine. The rear tail light was all melted and on fire, billowing smoke was coming out the sides of the hatch so I opened it quickly to get the …
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I was parked at a store, engine off. Was in there 3 minutes and another customer ran inside and said a car was on fire, the employee asked if it was mine. I ran outside and it was indeed mine. The rear tail light was all melted and on fire, billowing smoke was coming out the sides of the hatch so I opened it quickly to get the fire out. The store employee put the fire out with his fire extinguisher. No prior warning lights were present when driving it before this occurred. The car is at Toyota dealer presently while they determine the cause.
The rear-facing snuglock lever does not hold the car seat belt or the tether belt securely in place. The car seat tips over when the car turns. It appears that some plastic is missing on the bottom of the lever. I have a video of me securing the seat belt and the belt loosening when the car seat is rocked but, am unable to uploa…
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The rear-facing snuglock lever does not hold the car seat belt or the tether belt securely in place. The car seat tips over when the car turns. It appears that some plastic is missing on the bottom of the lever. I have a video of me securing the seat belt and the belt loosening when the car seat is rocked but, am unable to upload.
Official recalls
123V865000 · Air Bags:sensor:occupant Classification
Dec 20, 2023
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Avalon, Avalon Hybrid, Corolla, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, RAV4, RAV4 Hybrid, Lexus ES350, Lexus RX350, Lexus RX450H, 2021 Sienna Hybrid, Lexus ES250, 2020-2022 Camry, Camry Hybrid, and ES300H vehicles. A short circuit may develop in the Occupant Classification System (OCS) sensor, preventing the front passenger air bag from deploying.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: An air bag that does not deploy during a crash increases the risk of injury.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and replace the sensor as necessary, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed in February 2024. Some final remedy owner letters were mailed October 31, 2024. Letters will continue to be mailed in phases through January 2026. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is 23TB15/23TA15 Lexus 23LB03/23LA03.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.
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