2013 Toyota RAV4 EV

Routine

Owners filed 5 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the fuel/propulsion system. It has been recalled 3 times.

What fails
ComponentReportsCrashesFiresInjuries
Visibility/Wiper1
000
Seat Belts1
000
Power Train1
000
Fuel/Propulsion System1
000
Electrical System1
000

3 safety recalls

Part 573 reports
Seat Belts › Rear/Other16V096000
Filed Feb 19, 20161,123,752 vehiclesToyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing

Defect. Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2006-2012 RAV4 vehicles manufactured July 28, 2005, to December 19, 2012, and 2012-2014 RAV4 EV vehicles manufactured July 24, 2012, to August 29, 2014. In the event of a frontal collision, the rear seat belts for the outboard seats may be cut by the seat cushion frame.

Risk. A cut seat belt may not properly restrain the seat occupant, increasing their risk of injury in a crash.

Remedy. Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will install a protector over both rear seat cushion frames, free of charge. The recall began on June 24, 2016. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's number for this recall is G0F.

Visibility/Wiper15V577000
Filed Sep 18, 2015423,456 vehiclesToyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing

Defect. Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2009-2012 RAV4 vehicles manufactured October 27, 2008, to December 19, 2012 and 2012-2014 RAV4 EV vehicles manufactured July 24, 2012, to August 29, 2014. In the affected vehicles, water may drip onto the joint that connects the wiper linkage to the wiper motor.

Risk. Over time, the dripping water may cause corrosion and wear at the joint, potentially resulting in the separation of the wiper linkage. Once this occurs, the wipers would not function, reducing driver visibility and increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy. Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the water diverter channel. In addition, a new wiper linkage with a wiper motor crank arm will be installed. The wiper linkage will have a protective cover over the wiper linkage joint to minimize water splash and a retainer ring to prevent the wiper arm from separating from the wiper motor. The recall began on November 7, 2016. Owners may contact Toyota's customer service number at 1-800-331-4331.

Hybrid Propulsion System15V143000
Filed Mar 13, 20152,497 vehiclesToyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing

Defect. Toyota Motor Engineering & manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2012-2014 Rav4 EV vehicles manufactured July 24, 2012, to August 29, 2014. Due to a software issue within a component of the Electric Vehicle Traction Motor Assembly, the electric propulsion motor may shift to "neutral" resulting in a possible loss of drive power.

Risk. A loss of drive power may increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy. Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will update the Electric Vehicle Traction Motor Assembly software, free of charge. The recall began on September 10, 2015. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331.

What owners reported

Newest filings
Electrical System
Filed Sep 20, 201828,564 milesWI

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2013 TOYOTA RAV4 ELECTRIC VEHICLE. WHILE DRIVING 55 MPH, THE ELECTRIC WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED AND THE VEHICLE DECELERATED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO DECELERATE WHILE THE ACCELERATOR PEDAL WAS ENGAGED. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE TO ANDREW TOYOTA (1620 W SILVER SPRING DRIVE, MILWAUKEE, WI 53209, (877) 308-0883), BUT THE DEALER WAS NOT ABLE TO DIAGNOSE THE VEHICLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND STATED THAT A TOYOTA ENGINEER WOULD BE SENT TO THE DEALER TO INSPECT THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 28,564.

Visibility/Wiper
Filed Dec 28, 2016WA

TOYOTA OF LAKE CITY (SEATTLE, WA) REFUSED TO DO, OR EVEN HELP WITH, THE NHTSA RECALL NO. 15V-577 FOR MY TOYOTA VEHICLE. BOTH THE SERVICE ADVISER AND THE SERVICE MANAGER TOLD ME THAT THEY CAN'T AND WON'T DO THE WORK FOR THIS NATIONAL SAFETY RECALL THEY DID NOT CALL TOYOTA CORPORATE, THEY DID NOT LIFT A FINGER TO HELP GET THIS RECALL DONE FOR MY VEHICLE.

Fuel/Propulsion System
Filed Jul 7, 201534,500 milesCA

FOR THE SECOND TIME IN A MONTH, MY CAR LOST DRIVE WHILE I WAS CRUISING ON THE HIGHWAY. THE CAR JUST POPPED INTO NETURAL WITH WARNING MESSAGES COMING ON THE DASH. IT APPEARS TO BE THE SAME PROBLEM THE RECALL ADDRESSED YET AFTER 3 MONTHS, THERE IS STILL NO KNOWN FIXES FOR IT. COULD YOU PLEASE HELP TOYOTA INTO PUSHING A FIX FOR IT ASAP AS THE CAR ISN'T REALLY SAFE. 3 MONTHS WAIT TO MAKE A SOFTWARE PATCH IS PATHETIC.

Seat Belts
Filed May 19, 201515,000 milesNJ

SEAT BELT RETRIEVAL SPRING (WEAK). I HAVE BOTH MODELS 2013 AND 2014. NEITHER MODEL HAS A STRONG RETRIEVAL SPRING, LEAVES THE MEDAL BUCKLE LOOSE AND HANGING IN DOOR JAM, IT GETS SLAMMED IN THE DOOR. WILL DEFORM AT SOME FURTHER POINT AND NOT ENGAGE. DOOR LOCKS. NOT SURE IF MANDATORY BY REGULATION, DOOR LOCKS DON'T AUTO LOCK AFTER CAR STARTS TO ROLL FORWARD. BACKUP SCREEN, JUST AS YOU START TO BACK UP AND, ON THE ROLL. THE SCREEN BLOCKS OUT THE TOP 1/3. IT CONNECTS AND TELLS YOU, YOUR BLUE TOOTH ITEMS ARE CONNECTED OR NOT. THAT MESSAGE SHOULD BE DELAYED UNTIL AFTER BEING IN REVERSE. THE TOP 1/3 OF THE SCREEN IS PRETTY IMPORTANT. ENGINE NOISE, A WINDING NOISE, ON ACCELERATION. I'LL BE IN TOUCH WITH TOYOTA ON THIS ISSUE, (TELSA MOTOR). THEY ARE AWARE OF THE ISSUE, FRIEND HAD A DRIVE UNIT REPLACED BY TOYOTA ALREADY IN NORTH NJ

Power Train
Filed Mar 5, 20145,490 milesCA

WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 70 MPH IN THE HOV LANE OF THE 405 FWY, AN ERROR MESSAGE APPEARED STATING THAT THE CAR WAS IN "NEUTRAL". I TRIED TO SHIFT IT INTO "DRIVE" BUT IT WOULD NOT RESPOND. SINCE THERE WAS NO ROOM IN THE CENTER DIVIDER TO PULL OVER, I COASTED AS SAFELY AS POSSIBLE TO THE RIGHT THROUGH 5 LANES OF TRAFFIC AND STOPPED ON THE RIGHT SHOULDER. I RESTARTED THE CAR AND IT RAN FINE AFTER THAT. THERE WAS A MESSAGE INDICATING AN EV SYSTEM ERROR AND INDICATED I SHOULD IMMEDIATELY TAKE THE CAR TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER, WHICH I DID. THE DEALER REPLACED THE MOTOR AND THE PROBLEM HAS NOT RETURNED. *TR

5 of 5 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 2014
YearComplaintsRecallsFiresDeathsAssessment
201410300Routine
2013 — this page5300Routine
20126300Routine

Compare every RAV4 EV year →

Reading this record

No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Recall repairs are free for as long as the recall stands. Check whether a specific car still has open work at NHTSA's VIN lookup.

Most recent recall on file: Feb 19, 2016. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.