Toyota RAV4 transmission problems

SERIOUS HESITATION PROBLEM IN MY 2006 TOYOTA RAV4. I'VE REPORTED TO TOYOTA, BUT THEY INDICATE IT'S NORMAL. PROBLEM HAS HAPPENED SERIOUSLY 3-4 TIMES. WHEN SLOWING TO A NEAR STOP OR FROM A STOP, ACCELERATING, I GET NOTHING WHEN I PUSH ON ACCELERATOR. THIS IS BEYOND HESITATION. THE FIRST 2 TIMES I PANICKED SINCE I WAS MERGING IN TRAFFIC, FLOORED THE PEDAL AND AFTER PERHAPS 1/2 TO 1 SECOND (MIGHT NOT SOUND LONG, BUT IMAGINE NO RESPONSE TO PUSHING YOU PEDAL WITH ONCOMING TRAFFIC DOING 60-70)....IT KICKED IN/DOWNSHIFTED OR WHATEVER. REALLY SCARY. AGAIN, I NOTED THIS TO TOYOTA. I NOTED A POST ON EDMUNDS SITE TODAY WITH A 2005 ARTICLE ON PAST HESITATION PROBLEMS WITH TOYOTA/LEXUS. AND OTHER COMPLAINTS AS WELL ON THIS SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE. I'VE POSTED A DATE OF JUNE 30 FOR INCIDENT, BUT ACTUALLY 3-4 SEPARATE TIMES IN PAST 4 MONTHS. *JB

VEHICLE WAS PLUGGED IN TO A CHARGER, CHARGING NORMALLY. DRIVER RETURNED TO THE CAR, AND NEGLECTED TO REMOVE THE CHARGING CABLE. DRIVER TURNED THE KEY, AND SHIFTED FROM PARK TO REVERSE. VEHICLE ROLLED AWAY FROM THE CHARGING STATION AND DAMAGED THE CABLE AND THE CHARGING STATION, DISABLING THE CHARGING STATION UNTIL IT COULD BE REPAIRED (AT A COST OF $1200 TO $1500). VEHICLE SHOULD NOT BE ABLE TO SHIFT OUT OF PARK WHEN CONNECTED TO A CHARGING STATION. (DATE IS APPROXIMATE.) *NM

A 2006 TOYOTA RAV4 V6 LIMITED 4X2. PROBLEM: AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION DEFECT? SOMETIMES WHEN I STEP ON ACCELERATOR THERE'S LAG TIME BEFORE CAR SHIFTS AND GETS GOING. ALSO THERE'S AN ONGOING (MONTH OR SO) DRONING NOISE. I TOOK CAR TO TOYOTA DEALER 6/15/06. SERVICE WRITER AND 2 TECHS HEARD DRONING NOISE WHILE I WAS THERE. WITH THE CAR. I ASKED TO BRING THE CAR IN THE FOLLOWING SATURDAY AS I WORK DURING THE WEEK, BUT THEY SAID SATURDAYS NOT GOOD SO I MADE APPOINTMENT FOR 6/26/06. THEY TOLD ME IT WASN'T DANGEROUS TO DRIVE THE CAR. I TOOK CAR IN 6/26/06 & RODE WITH MASTER TECH WHO WAS ABLE TO HEAR THE DRONING NOISE. HE DROVE CAR, ALSO SAT IN PARKING LOT WITH ENGINE RUNNING AND SHIFTED INTO PARK AND INTO REVERSE ETC. WITH HIS FOOT ON THE BRAKE AND NOISE CHANGED IN INTENSITY IN DIFFERENT GEARS. HE TOOK CAR BACK TO SERVICE CENTER AND CHECKED IT OUT. THE SERVICE WRITER SAID THE TECH NOT ABLE TO PINPOINT PROBLEM, BUT TECH WOULD CALL TOYOTA ENGINEERING THE NEXT MORNING BECAUSE HE DIDN'T WANT TO TRY A FIX WHEN HE DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THE PROBLEM WAS. THEY GAVE ME MY CAR BACK, SAID THEY'D CALL ME AFTER TALKING TO TOYOTA ENGINEERING. THEY CALLED ME 6/27/06, SAID MASTER TECH HAD TALKED TO TOYOTA ENGINEERING AND THEY'VE HAD OTHER COMPLAINTS RE SAME DRONING NOISE, ARE WORKING TO FIND CAUSE SO THEY CAN CREATE A TSB AND EITHER REDUCE OR ELIMINATE THE NOISE. SERVICE WRITER TOLD ME T THERE IS NO TIMELINE FOR A FIX AND TO JUST "SIT TIGHT" AND WAIT UNTIL THEY CALL. THEY AGREE THE NOISE SHOULD NOT BE THERE. I'M WORRIED THAT ONGOING NOISE INDICATES THAT SOME PART IS OVERWORKING AND MAY WEAR OUT AND SINCE THE NOISE CHANGES IN INTENSITY SOMETIMES DEPENDING WHAT GEAR THE CAR IS IN I WORRY THAT IT IS THE TRANSMISSION AND THAT A FAILURE MAY RESULT. I DON'T UNDERSTAND HOW THEY CAN TELL ME THE VEHICLE IS SAFE TO DRIVE WHEN THEY CLAIM THEY DON'T KNOW WHAT THE PROBLEM IS. IT IS VERY UNSETTLING TO HAVE TO JUST WAIT FOR WHO KNOWS HOW LONG FOR THEM TO FIX THE PROBLEM. *NM

I HAVE A NEW 2006 TOYOTA RAV4 WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION AND, IN THE FIRST 2000 MILES, IT HAS FAILED TO SHIFT CORRECTLY ON 3 SEPARATE OCCASIONS. THIS HAS CREATED DANGEROUS SITUATIONS WHEN MERGING IN TRAFFIC. SPECIFICALLY, WHEN I STEP ON THE GAS PEDAL, THE RPMS SHOOT ABOVE 4-5K BUT THERE IS NO ACCOMPANIED INCREASE IN SPEED. GIVEN THE REPEATED POSTINGS ON EDMUNDS.COM ABOUT THESE PROBLEMS, IT DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE AN ISOLATED CASE WITH MY VEHICLE. *JB