2003 TOYOTA RAV4 Engine Problems

The vehicle is very delayed shifting and will slow down without pushing the breaks

THIS CAR HAS BEEN MAINTAINED AND PRESERVED AND ONLY 84000 MILES ON IT. AND THE CAR WONT SHIFT. IT JOLTS ME OR REVS EXTREMELY HIGH AND ALSO ALMOST CAUSED ME AN ACCIDENT AS IT ALMOST SHUT DOWN ON POWER WHILE MAKING A LEFT TURN IN INTERSECTION. THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT COMES ON AND OFF. IT'S ONLY WHILE GOING FROM 2ND TO 3RD OR SHIFTING DOWN FROM 2 TO 1ST. I HAD MY MECHANIC LOOK AT IT AND HE SAID IT'S A COMMON ISSUE WITH THE ECU TO TAKE IT TO DEALERSHIP TO REPLACE FOR FREE AND THEY WANT TO CHARGE ME 150 JUST TO EXAMINE IT.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA RAV4. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 30 MPH, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY DECELERATED WHEN THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED. THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT ATTEMPTED TO ACCELERATE AGAIN AND THE VEHICLE RESPONDED VERY SLOWLY TO APPROXIMATELY 15 MPH. THE VEHICLE WAS DRIVEN TO THE CONTACT'S RESIDENCE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE ENGINE CONTROL UNIT FAILED OR THERE WAS POSSIBLE TRANSMISSION FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 74,650.

WHILE DRIVING ENGINE LIGHT STARTED BLINKING, THE VEHICLE LOST POWER. AND SMELLED BAD ODOR. MY FIRST COMPLAINT WAS FILED WITH NHTSA IN 2012, AND I TOOK MY VEHICLE TO MAPLEWOOD TOYOTA, MN 55109, IN 2012 AND THEY DID NOT FIX IT. IT IS SERIOUS ISSUE OF SAFETY WITH THE ENGINE / TRANSMISSION

WHILE DRIVING ENGINE LIGHT STARTED BLINKING, THE VEHICLE LOST POWER AND SMELLED BAD ODOR. MY FIRST COMPLAINT WAS FILED WITH NHTSA IN 2012, AND I TOOK MY VEHICLE TO MAPLEWOOD TOYOA, MN 55109, IN 2012 AND THEY DID NOT FIX IT. IT IS SERIOUS ISSUE OF SAFETY WITH THE ENGINE / TRANSMISSION

MY VEHICLE BEGAN TO "BUCK" AND THEN SHORTLY THEREAFTER THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. I INITIALLY TOOK IT TO THE CLOSEST MECHANIC AND WAS TOLD I NEEDED A NEW TRANSMISSION AND THAT THEY COULDN'T REPLACE IT. TOLD THEM TO TAKE IT TO KRAUSE TOYOTA. WAS THEN TOLD BY KRAUSE IT NEEDED A NEW ECM BUT THEY WERE TOO BUSY AND COULDN'T LOOK AT THE VEHICLE FOR 2 WEEKS SINCE I WASN'T A "REGULAR" CUSTOMER. I THEN TOOK THE CAR TO BENNETT TOYOTA - CLASS OUTFIT. THEY REPLACED THE ECM IMMEDIATELY - WHICH WASN'T CHEAP. COST ME $1200. I HAVE SINCE HEARD THAT THERE WAS A RECALL ON THE ECM ON MY YEAR RAV4 WHICH I WASN'T EVER NOTIFIED OF. I FEEL TOYOTA SHOULD PICK UP THIS TAB. I HAVE LOW MILEAGE FOR A 2003 CAR, AND HAVE ALWAYS MAINTAINED IT PROPERLY.

I PURCHASED A 2003 TOYOTA RAV4 FROM THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP THAT ONLY HAD 13 MILES ON IT IN AUGUST 2003. IN AUGUST OF 2014, I STARTED HAVING TROUBLE WITH THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SHIFTING HARSH WHEN CHANGING. THE CAR WOULD STRAIN TO CHANGE GEARS, THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN IT WOULD JERK INTO GEAR. NO LIGHTS CAME ON AT ALL. I TOOK IT TO THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP TO HAVE THE PROBLEM INSPECTED AND THEY TOLD ME ABOUT AN EXTENDED WARRANTY OF 10 YEARS OR 150,000 MILES. THIS WAS THE FIRST THAT I HAD HEARD ABOUT THIS WARRANTY. TOYOTA NEVER CONTACTED ME TO LET ME KNOW ABOUT THE WARRANTY. AFTER INSPECTING MY RAV4, THEY TOLD ME THAT I NEEDED TO REPLACE THE ECM AND IF THAT DIDN'T SOLVE THE PROBLEM, I WOULD NEED A TRANSMISSION. I FEEL LIKE TOYOTA SHOULD HAVE INFORMED ME OF THE PROBLEM SOONER. (BEFORE ALL THAT TIME HAD...

I'M THE OWNER OF A 2003 RAV4, PURCHASED FROM A TOYOTA DEALER IN 2011. LAST WEEK, I EXPERIENCED A TIME LAPSE OF MY CAR SHIFTING INTO FIRST GEAR, IN MY OPINION, A SAFETY HAZARD. THIS MORNING I TOOK THE CAR TO A MECHANIC AND BEGAN SEARCHING THE WEB FOR ANY RECALLS FOR A 2003 RAV4, THERE ARE NONE. HOWEVER, ON THIS SITE, I DISCOVERED THAT I AM ONE OF MANY WHO HAVE THIS COMPLAINT, AND THAT WE ,THE CONSUMER, ALL SHARE THE SAME RESULTS FROM TOYOTA. YOU MISSED THE DEADLINE. IT WAS ON THIS NHTSA.GOV WEBSITE THAT I LEARNED OF A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT ABOUT THE ECM DEFECT WITH MY RAV4 (SEE WWW.RV4ECMSETTLEMENT.COM), THE LETTER WAS SUPPOSEDLY SENT TO ALL WHO OWN A 2003 RAV4. I NEVER RECEIVED THIS LETTER. NOR DID I RECEIVE ANY TYPE OF NOTIFICATION FROM TOYOTA RE: AN EXTENDED WARRANTY,OR FOR THAT MATTER ANY TYPE OF...

VEHICLE DRIVEN BY ELDERLY WIDOWED MOTHER (JOSEPHINE BEASLEY, AGE 70) NO MORE THAN 6,200 MILES PER YEAR AND BEGAN EXPERIENCING HARSH SHIFT IN TRANSMISSION IN MARCH 2014. AAMCO INFORMED US THAT A MALFUNCTIONING ELECTRONIC COMPUTER MODULE (ECM) CAUSED THE DAMAGE TO TRANSMISSION. AAMCO TECHNICIAN NOTIFIED US THAT THE ECM REPAIR CLAIMS ARE COVERED UNDER A TOYOTA SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT (WWW.RAV4ECMSETTLEMENT.COM). REPAIR COST FOR TRANSMISSION $2,890 AND ECM PART $1,227.91 PAID FOR OUT OF POCKET. THE RAV4 WAS PURCHASED FROM CARMAX ON APRIL 18, 2009; ELDERLY MOTHER DOES NOT HAVE ACCESS OR UNDERSTANDING OF INTERNET. SHE DID NOT REALIZE THAT SHE HAD TO REGISTER THE VEHICLE WITH TOYOTA IN ORDER TO RECEIVE RECALL NOTICES OR ANY OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION PERTAINING TO HER VEHICLE FROM THE MANUFACTURER. CONTACTED TOYOTA CUSTOMER SERVICE AND THEY REFUSED TO REIMBURSE THE COST OF REPAIR AS THE VEHICLE EXCEEDED THE 10 YEAR IN SERVICE WARRANTY PERIOD EVEN THOUGH...

THE VEHICLE WITH 71,000 MILES AND PERFECT SERVICE RECORD HAD A ENGINE FAILURE, WITHOUT WARNING, WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY. THE OIL PRESSURE LIGHT CAME ON AND BEFORE I HAD TIME TO PULL OVER TO THE SHOULDER TO INSPECT THE ENGINE STARTED KNOCKING BADLY. I BARELY MADE IT TO THE SHOULDER BEFORE THE VEHICLE STALLED. AFTER HAVING IT TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP, THEY CAME OUT WITH THE DIAGNOSE THAT THE "ENGINE THREW A ROD" FOR NO APPARENT REASON. THERE WAS SUFFICIENT ENGINE OIL AND LAST OIL CHANGE WAS DONE 4500 MILES BEFORE. BASICALLY, ENGINE AT THIS POINT IS BEYOND REPAIR AND HAS TO BE REPLACED. BESIDE THE FINANCIAL LOSE, NOW I EXTREMELY CONCERN ABOUT THE SAFETY AND RELIABILITY OF THE VEHICLE AND MORE IMPORTANTLY THE ENGINE OR ANY OTHER PART THAT CAUSED THE ENGINE TO FAIL. THE FACT THAT I HAD 10 YEARS OLD BOY IN THE CAR WITH ME...

EXPERIENCE A HARD SHIFT JERKING MOTION WHEN DRIVING MY CAR AND ALMOST GOT HIT TWICE DUE TO THE CAR JERKING AND IMMEDIATELY SLOWING DOWN. I TOOK IT IN TO KENDALL TOYOTA OF ANCHORAGE RIGHT AWAY AND THEN READ ONLINE THAT THERE WAS A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT AND ENHANCED WARRANTY OF 2001-2003 TOYOTAS BECAUSE OF THE MALFUNCTION OF THE ECM AND TRANSMISSION. THIS CAR IS NOT SAFE TO DRIVE! TOYOTA KENDALL SAID IT WOULD BE $6,000 TO REPLACE BOTH THE ECM AND TRANSMISSION AND THAT TOYOTA WOULD ONLY PAY HALF BECAUSE THE CAR WAS 10 YEARS OLD. THIS CAR ONLY HAS 60,000 MILES ON IT AND THE ENHANCED WARRANTY HAS BEEN EXTENDED TWICE DUE TO COMPLAINTS WITH THE COURT. I DID NOT GET MY CAR FIXED BECAUSE I COULD NOT AFFORD IT AND I THINK TOYOTA SHOULD PAY THE FULL 6K TO FIX IT. I'M AMAZED AT HOW MANY OTHER PEOPLE...

2003 RAV4 WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION STARTED HAVING TROUBLE ACCELERATING FROM A STOP. THERE SEEMED TO BE HARDLY ANY POWER WHEN THE GAS PEDAL WAS PRESSED, AND THEN ABOUT 5-8 SECONDS LATER THE CAR WOULD JOLT INTO GEAR. THIS PROBLEM WOULD HAPPEN ALSO WHEN INCREASING SPEED, OR ANY TIME THE GAS PEDAL WAS PRESSED DOWN. THE CAR WAS TAKEN TO AN AUTO SHOP WHERE THEY SAID THE TRANSMISSION WAS BROKEN AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. I AM A VERY CONSERVATIVE DRIVER (I NEVER TRY TO ACCELERATE TOO QUICKLY), AND THIS TRUSTY TOYOTA HASN'T EVER HAD ANY ENGINE PROBLEMS... EVER! THERE ARE LESS THAN 77,000 MILES ON THE VEHICLE. *TR

I PURCHASED THE RAV4 IN LATE JULY, 2013. THE RAV4 HAD 78,000 MILES ON THE ODOMETER. I PAID $9,000+ FOR THE RAV4. AT 80,000 MILES THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION BEGAN HAVING SHIFTING PROBLEMS SUCH AS JERKING BETWEEN GEARS, VERY SLUGGISH RESPONSE DURING ACCELERATION AND HORRENDOUS GAS MILEAGE. I GET ABOUT 8 MILES PER GALLON. TOOK IT TO THE DEALER, THEY RAN DIAGNOSTICS ON MY CAR AND DISCOVERED THAT THE PROBLEMS FALL "WITHIN THE PARAMETERS" OF THE SERVICE BULLETIN NO.: TC-10-034 EXCEPT THE "IN SERVICE" DATE OF MY VEHICLE WAS MARCH 8, 2003 THEREBY MAKING ME INELIGIBLE FOR THE 10 YEAR WARRANTY BY 4 MONTHS. THIS IS RIDICULOUS!!! THIS IS A TOYOTA SCREWUP AND HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH ROAD CONDITIONS OR OWNER NEGLECT. I BOUGHT THIS CAR SO MY DAUGHTER CAN CONTINUE HER DAYCARE. SHE SHUTTLES PRE-SCHOOL AGE CHILDREN TO VARIOUS RECREATION FACILITIES AND MY WIFE, WHO HAS TERMINAL CANCER, OFTEN...

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA RAV4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE TRAVELING APPROXIMATELY 60 MPH, THE VEHICLE LOST ACCELERATION POWER. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A PRIVATE MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THE ECM NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED ABOUT THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 55,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA RAV4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 5 MPH, THE VEHICLE WAS JERKING VIOLENTLY AS THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE CHECK ENGINE WARNING LIGHT WOULD ILLUMINATE INTERMITTENTLY. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE COMPUTER AND THE POWER TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 93,900.

OFTEN (AND UNPREDICTABLY), VEHICLE DOES NOT ACCELERATE FROM STOP. IT CREEPS FORWARD AS TACK JUMPS, THEN WITH A LOUD "CLUNK" IT JERKS INTO 2ND (OR 3RD) GEAR AND SUDDENLY LEAPS FORWARD. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT GOES ON AND OFF. TOOK VEHICLE TO TOYOTA DEALER MORE THAN ONCE AND TOLD "NO PROBLEM FOUND." WHEN THIS ISSUE WAS FINALLY DEMONSTRATED, THE TOYOTA DEALERSHIP REPORTED THAT SOLENOID B IS FAULTY AND ENTIRE TRANSMISSION NEEDS TO BE REPLACED STARTING AT $4600. NOW I READ THAT MANY OWNERS OF 2001-3 RAV4S HAVE EXACT PROBLEM CAUSED BY A FAULTY EMC THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN REPLACED WHEN TOYOTA ORIGINALLY ADMITTED THE PROBLEM IN 2006. INSTEAD THE DAMAGE TO MY VEHICLE HAS PROGRESSED TO A REPAIR 4 TIMES THAT AMOUNT. I HAVE FOUND NO REASONABLE REPAIR RATE SO FAR. *TR

ON OR ABOUT MAY 5, 2013 I NOTICED MY CAR STARTED TO HARD SHIFT, THOUGH I WAS DRIVING AS USUAL. THE PROBLEM HAPPENS OFF AND ON AND IS MOST NOTICEABLE WHEN WAITING AT A STOP SIGN, RED LIGHT OR DRIVE THRU AT A RESTAURANT. THE SHIFT JOLT IS MOST NOTICEABLE WHEN NEEDING TO ACCELERATE OR SHIFTING INTO DRIVE--IT DOESN'T HAPPEN WHEN I GO INTO REVERSE. THE SHIFT JOLT SOMETIMES IS ACCOMPANIED BY A THUD NOISE. ON MAY 7, 2013 I CONTACTED TOYOTA HEADQUARTERS AND DISCUSS THIS WITH A CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVE AT 1-800-331-4331. SHE TRANSFERRED ME TO A RUDE AND CANTANKEROUS WOMAN WHO SEEMED TO HAVE HEARD THE STORY BEFORE. SHE STATED I NEED TO GO TO A DEALERSHIP AND GET A DIAGNOSTIC, WHICH COSTS $100 IN MY AREA. SHE THEN STATED THAT IF ANY OF THE FOLLOWING CODES APPEAR: CODES: P0750, P0753, P0755, P0758 OR P0760 THAT I WOULD...

TL* THE OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA RAV 4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER WHO DIAGNOSED THAT THE AIR FILTER NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE WHO DID NOT OFFER ANY ASSISTANCE SINCE THE VEHICLE HAD SURPASSED THE STATUE OF LIMITATIONS. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 112,700.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA RAV4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE DID NOT SHIFT PROPERLY. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THAT THERE WAS AN INCREAMS IN THE ENGINE RPMS AND THE VEHICLE WOULD HESITATE BEFORE ACCELERATING. THE CONTACT SPOKE WITH A DEALER AND WAS INFORMED THAT THE ENGINE CONTROL UNIT WAS FAILING AND WOULD CAUSE THE TRANSMISSION TO FAIL. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 210,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 215,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 TOYOTA RAV4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH, SHE NOTICED THAT THE ENGINE WAS OVERHEATING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSIS. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE HEAD BOLTS WOULD NEED REPLACING. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED AND THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED WHO STATED THAT THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO TO ASSIST WITH THE DEFECT. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 89,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 89,500. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.

I OWN A 2003 TOYOTA RAV4. MY CAR WAS RUNNING IN GOOD WORKING ORDER, WITH JUST OVER 99,000 MILES ON IT. ON MAY 2ND 2012, I EXPERIENCED ISSUES WITH THE CAR'S TRANSMISSION AND ECM. THE CAR WOULD REV WHEN I PRESSED ON THE GAS, BUT IT WOULD NOT MOVE. ALSO, WHEN SHIFTING GEARS, THE CAR WOULD SLOW TO A BRAKE AND THEN THERE WAS BE A BUMP OR GRINDING IN THE GEARS BEFORE THE CAR WOULD PROCEED TO MOVE. THIS WOULD PUT ME IN DANGER OF A REAR END COLLISION BECAUSE MY CAR WOULD SUDDENLY BRAKE WITHOUT ME PRESSING ON THE BRAKES TO SIGNAL THE DRIVER BEHIND ME THAT I WAS GOING TO SLOW DOWN. I HAVE LEARNED THAT TOYOTA IS AWARE OF THIS ISSUE WITH MANY OF ITS RAV4'S (2001-2003). IS THERE ANY HELP ON TOYOTA'S PART TO CORRECT THIS ISSUE THAT THEY KNOW OF WITHOUT PASSING ALONG THE...