NHTSA Complaint #11395988 — 2017 TOYOTA RAV4

THE 2017 RAV4 THAT I OWN BEGAN HAVING FUEL SYSTEM PROBLEMS IN JULY OF 2017. THE CAR WOULD STALL WHEN IT CAME TO A STOP OR IT WOULD STALL SOMETIMES WHILE DRIVING AND THE INTERIOR OF THE CAR WOULD THEN SMELL OF GASOLINE. I'VE TAKEN THE CAR TO THE LOCAL TOYOTA DEALER 3 TIMES TO TRY AND RESOLVE THE ISSUE. FIRST THE DEALER CLEANED THE FUEL INJECTORS AND THROTTLE BODY AND A FEW WEEKS LATER THE PROBLEM RETURNED. ON THE SECOND VISIT TO THE DEALER I WAS INFORMED THAT THERE WAS FUEL IN THE CHARCOAL CANISTER. THE CANISTER WAS REPLACE AND LESS THAN A MONTH LATER THE PROBLEM RETURNED. I RETURNED TO THE DEALER IN OCTOBER OF 2020 AGAIN AND THEY SAID THE CHARCOAL CANISTER AGAIN HAS GASOLINE IN IT. THIS TIME THE DEALER REPLACED THE FUEL TANK AND CHARCOAL CANISTER. SINCE OCTOBER OF 2020 THE CAR HAS BEEN DRIVEN ABOUT 1600 MILES AND THE PROBLEM OCCURRED AGAIN ON FEBRUARY 7, 2021. AGAIN THE DEALER FOUND GASOLINE IN THE CHARCOAL CANISTER. ON FEBRUARY 9, 2021 TOYOTA CORPORATE INSTRUCTED THEM TO AGAIN REPLACE THE FUEL TANK, CHARCOAL CANISTER ALONG WITH THE FUEL GAGE AND OTHER RELATED PARTS. I WAS ASKED BY THE DEALER IF WE WERE OVERFILLING THE FUEL TANK, I ASSURED THEM THAT WE WERE NOT AS WE DISCONTINUE ADDING FUEL WHEN THE PUMP SHUTS OFF AUTOMATICALLY. I WAS ALSO ASKED IF WE PARK THE CAR ON A SLOPE TO THIS I SAID YES BECAUSE WE LIVE IN A HILLY AREA. WE PURCHASED THE CAR IN JANUARY 2017 AND PARKING THE CAR ON A HILLY STREET WAS NEVER A PROBLEM. AT PRESENT WE ARE WAITING ON PARTS FROM TOYOTA.