NHTSA Complaint #10325770 — 2003 TOYOTA RAV4

IN SEPTEMBER 2008, MY RAV4 SUDDENLY BEGAN HAVING SHIFTING PROBLEMS. I PULLED OUT OF A SHOPPING CENTER AND IN THE MIDDLE OF STREET THE CAR WOULD NOT ACCELERATE. IT WAS A VERY FRIGHTENING EXPERIENCE AS OTHER VEHICLES WARE APPROACHING AND AS I PRESSED ON THE GAS PEDDLE NOTHING HAPPENED. THE CAR JUST IDLED HIGH THEN IT JOLTED INTO GEAR. I TOOK IT TO AAMCO THE NEXT DAY. AFTER FURTHER INVESTIGATION BY AAMCO, THEY PROVIDED ME WITH THE TSB TC002-06 ISSUED BY TOYOTA. AAMCO ADVISED ME THAT THE TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED BEFORE THEY COULD DETERMINE IF IT WAS IN FACT THE COMPUTER SYSTEM THAT CAUSED THE TRANSMISSION FAILURE, WHICH IT DID NEED A NEW ECM COMPUTER AS PER TC002-06. ALSO IN FEB 2009 I NEEDED TO REPLACE THE ECM COOLANT TEMP SENSOR. MY RAV4 AT THE TIME HAD 80,300 MILES ON IT AND THE SLONE TOYOTA THAT I PURCHASED IT FROM WOULD NOT HONOR THE 80/8 WARRANTY. THEY DID HOWEVER GIVE ME 50/50 GOODWILL ASSISTANCE (IF YOU CAN EVEN CALL IT THAT SINCE IT STILL COST OVER $900 FOR THE COMPUTERS.) THE NEW TRANSMISSION COST $3,750 DUE TO THE MALFUNCTIONED COMPUTER. NOW IN APRIL 2010, 18 MONTHS AND 16,000 MILES LATER, I AM GOING THROUGH THIS ALL OVER AGAIN. I WAS DRIVING ON THE PA TURNPIKE AND ALL OF A SUDDEN MY VEHICLE WOULD NOT GO OVER 60 MPH AND THEN IT WENT TO 40 MPH. I COULD NOT GET IT ACCELERATE. I HAD 3 CHILDREN IN THE CAR AND WAS VERY SCARY FOR US AS OTHER VEHICLES WERE QUICKLY APPROACHING BEHIND US AND I COULD NOT GET THE VEHICLE TO DRIVE. THE LOCATION WERE I WAS DRIVING DID NOT HAVE ANYWHERE FOR ME TO PULL OVER. AGAIN THE CAR JOLTED INTO GEAR AND THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. ONCE AGAIN MY CAR IS AT THE AAMCO. AT THIS TIME WE ARE UNSURE IF THE COMPUTER FAILED AGAIN OR IF THERE IS AN ISSUE WITH THE NEW TRANSMISSION I HAD INSTALLED. REGARDLESS I NEED ANOTHER TRANSMISSION. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW HOW TOYOTA CLAIMED IN 2006 STEPS WERE TAKEN TO PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING AGAIN. ONCE I RECEIVE A DIAGNOSIS FOR THIS LATEST INCIDENT I WILL POST A COMPLAINT. *TR