Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN | |||||
| 00805 | 08/01/2005 | 10016636 | U140f transmission solenoid identification. *tt | 09/26/2005 | |
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | |||||
| SB-0156-10 REV 2 | 06/22/2010 | 10037585 | Toyota: there may be a harsh shift condition or a malfunction light on with five possible trouble codes stored. 2001-2003 rav4. *rm | 05/26/2011 | |
| SB-0156-10 REV 2 | 06/22/2010 | 10037585 | Ready | 05/26/2011 | |
| POL-10-03 | 07/09/2010 | 10034508 | Toyota: customer support program (csp ztl) warranty enhancement for specific malfunction indicator light (mil) on diagnostic code and/or harsh shift of automatic transaxles on certain model year vehicles. *pe | 11/22/2010 | |
| TSB-0156-10 | 06/22/2010 | 10034126 | Toyota: harsh shift and/or mil on dtc p0750, p0753, p0755, p0758 and/or p1760. some vehicles equipped with an automatic transaxle may exhibit a harsh shift condition and/or mil on with dtc stored. (drive type(s)-2wd, 4wd; transmission(s) | 10/18/2010 | |
| TC-10-034 | 07/08/2010 | 10034070 | Toyota: specific malfunction indicator light on and/or harsh shift of automatic transaxle on certain rav4 vehicles. had received reports that certain vehicles equipped with an automatic transaxle may exhibit a harsh shift condition and/or | 10/15/2010 | |
| 00504 | 08/26/2004 | 10009397 | Proper identification of the 5 solenoids used in the u240e/u241e automatic transaxles. *tt | 09/29/2004 | |
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - CONTROL MODULE (TCM, PCM) | |||||
| 00206 | 03/03/2006 | 00206 | 10019667 | Harsh shift and/or m.i.l. on dtc p0750, p0755, p0758, and/or p1760. *tt | 04/17/2006 |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN | |||
| 02/20/2013 | 82045 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. the contact stated that the vehicle shifted very hard and jerked. the contact also stated that the vehicle accelerated very slowly. in addition, the contact mentioned that the failure also occurred when accelerating from a complete stop. the contact took the vehicle to the dealer and it was confirmed that there was an internal failure and that the transmission and transmission control module needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and current mileages were 82,045. mah | |||
| 02/20/2013 | 82045 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. the contact stated that the vehicle started to shift very hard and jerk. the failure caused the vehicle to accelerate very slowly. the contact took the vehicle to the dealer and it was confirmed that the gears on the transmission shift slowly and caused the vehicle to jerk violently when the vehicle bang into gear. the failure was at it worse when the contact needed to accelerate from a stand still. the dealer stated that there was an internal failure and that the transmission and transmission control module needed to be replaced. the contact was told that there was an extended warranty for 10 years and 150,000 miles, but the vehicle had gone past the ten years. the failure mileage and current mileages were 82,045.rl | |||
| 12/06/2012 | 119000 | 1 | |
| Harsh vehicle jerking with bad automatic shifting/acceleration. used emergency lights and narrowly avoided accident with badly performing vehicle. problem is diagnosed as failed ecm. *tr manufacturer is aware of this issue (toyota document t-sb-0156-10) but did not inform owners. ecm failure in my car caused a very dangerous driving situation. this could have been easily avoided by pro-actively replacing the factory installed ecm if i had been given the t-sb-0156-10 information. i was driving with my 2 and 4 year old daughters at the time. this part failure is a recurring problem for this car. please have toyota notify owners before this happens to them. thanks. | |||
| 10/08/2012 | 114800 | 1 | |
| October 11, 2012. on or about october 8 2012 i began having hesitation and jumping into gear as i am driving my 2001 rav4. this happens mainly when accelerating from a stop sign/light. i am aware there has been a recall on many 2001 rav4 vehicles. i bought my rav4 from carmax in north attleboro mass on april 19 2012. so, i have not even had my vehicle for 5 months yet. on thursday october 11 2012 i took my rav4 back to carmax in attleboro with my complaint--i will be leaving the vehicle with them on friday october 12 2012 so they can diagnose the transmission and the tcm (the transmission module which has had the recall). if it is found that my rav4 is one of many under this recall, i will hope that toyota will honor its' commitment and fix my rav. i do hope that lodging this complaint with you will help me in this plight, as i do not have the money to fix this problem and nor should i have to as to the above, and due to the fact that is was a recall with toyota. thank you. *tr | |||
| 10/08/2012 | 114800 | ||
| October 11, 2012. on or about october 8 2012 i began having hesitation and jumping into gear as i am driving my 2001 rav4. this happens mainly when accelerating from a stop sign/light. i am aware there has been a recall on many 2001 rav4 vehicles. i bought my rav4 from carmax in north attleboro mass on april 19 2012. so, i have not even had my vehicle for 5 months yet. on thursday october 11 2012 i took my rav4 back to carmax in attleboro with my complaint--i will be leaving the vehicle with them on friday october 12 2012 so they can diagnose the transmission and the tcm (the transmission module which has had the recall). if it is found that my rav4 is one of many under this recall, i will hope that toyota will honor its' commitment and fix my rav. i do hope that lodging this complaint with you will help me in this plight, as i do not have the money to fix this problem and nor should i have to as to the above, and due to the fact that is was a recall with toyota. thank you. | |||
| 08/13/2012 | 200000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. the contact stated that the transmission was exhibiting behaviors of a manual transmission when it was an automatic. the engine rpms would increase excessively before shifting and then the transmission would fail. the contact took the vehicle to a mechanic and was told that the engine control module needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and the current mileage was 200,000. kmj | |||
| 08/13/2012 | 200000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. the contact stated that the vehicle shifted as if it was a manual transmission when it is an automatic. the contact stated when this happened the vehicle revved up very high before it shifted and then the transmission quit. the contact took the vehicle to a mechanic and was told the engine control module needed to be replaced. the failure mileage and current mileages were 200,000.rl | |||
| 06/01/2012 | 137000 | ||
| Apparently there was a tsb issued on this and a customer care ticket issued and a recall but being as my car is 11 years old and 137,000 it falls outside of the parameters toyota set of 10 years or 150,000 miles toyota will not fix this problem that will cost upwards of $4000!! i cannot understand how a problem that they acknowledge will happen has happened and they dont want to fix it. i dont know what else to do | |||
| 12/09/2011 | 115807 | ||
| The transmission suddenly began slipping and jerking when accelerating from a stop or while in low gear and shifting from a low speed. i became aware of the ecm problem known to occur in my make and model of toyota upon calling the dealership; however, i am being told that the warranty only covers ten years from the date of purchase (i purchased my car 11 years ago) despite the fact it is known that the ecm, the computer that controls the transmission, is defective and causes transmission problems. this is a dangerous problem as the car will not accelerate and the transmission slips. it is difficult to understand how toyota cannot ethically cover this knowing it is defective and is probable to cause owners problems in the future, regardless if it's 8, 10, or 12 years down the line. | |||
| 10/21/2011 | |||
| Failed to speed up when i was merging into traffic. | |||
| 09/28/2011 | 130000 | ||
| Automatic transmission sometimes hesitates when shifting and sometimes starts in 3rd gear instead of 1st. check engine light came on a week ago, similar to when shifting problems began. | |||
| 02/26/2011 | 158000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav 4. the contact stated that the vehicle would not shift gears while driving. once she was able to get the vehicle to shift, the vehicle began jerking abnormally. the vehicle was taken to a local repair shop where the failure was diagnosed as an electrical failure within the computer. the manufacturer was contacted but offered no assistance. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and current mileage was 158,000. | |||
| 11/05/2007 | 1 | ||
| I have toyota rav4 2001 . i bought it in 2007 from toyota dealer and 5 month after the transmission started acting up.the car is about 80,000 miles right now. i don't know what i coud do . *tr | |||
| 08/30/2001 | 2000 | 1 | |
| Event 1: 1. shortly after buying car, noted engine revs would soar by 700 to 800 rpms between gears while shifting manual transmission. found this happened by just disengaging the clutch without shifting even with foot not on the accelerator pedal. 2. the rev soaring happened consistently. no consequences except for an unpleasant driving experience. 3. computer was reprogrammed by the dealer from whom i bought the car. rev jumps reduced to about 400 rpm. a second reprogramming reduced it to about 200 rpm. this behavior still exists. event #2. 1. about six months after purchasing the car, noted that when cruising with rpms above 2800 rpm in 5th gear with cruise control engaged and foot not on accelerator pedal, on disengaging the clutch, the engine revs would soar to 3,200 rpm to 3,500 rpmand remain there for periods ranging between 5 seconds to over a minute. this occurred while the car was coasting and slowing while not under power. 2. this behavior frequently occurred under the above conditions. no consequences except as a profession engineer and former sports car racing driver, i knew this behavior was not normal. 3. behavior examined by my local toyota dealer. mechanic hooked up recording box to car, but i was unable to replicate the behavior on this occasion. data examined by a toyota engineer who pronounced there was not a problem. later, i was again able to replicate the behavior. after yet another computer reprogramming, this behavior of remaining at a high rpm seems to have stopped. however, the engine revs still will surge to about 3,400 rpm before dropping off. *tr | |||
| 08/16/2009 | 84795 | 1 | |
| My transmission started slipping and bucking in aug. 2009. the car would loose power and almost stall out. while driving on the highway i came close to being rear ended due to loss of power. i had taken my car in to have it looked at and was told that i didn't have codes so they could not tell me what the problem was and would have to wait for it to happen again or bring it back what the check engine light came on. before i left the lot the light came on and the code p0755 was the code used to repair the car. this however did not fix the problem, and i began to do some research and it seems that this has been an issue for many others with a 2001-2003 rav4. i called the toyota company and was told that this is a known issue, but because my car was out of warranty they would not help fix the issue. due to the fact that this is the only car i have and needed to go to work i had no choice but to pay to get the car repaired. i feel that this is an issue that toyota needs to address along with the current issues they are having with the recall models now. just because no one has died from this issue does not mean no one will, if the owner does not know about the problem and are driving on the highway with their families in the car with them. *tr | |||
| 12/23/2009 | 78100 | 1 | |
| 1. transmission failed despite toyota dealer having replaced the ecm on the 2001 rav4. 2. car not shifting correctly between 1st and 2nd gears with new transmission and replaced (in 2007) ecm. could be dangerous in certain situations. 3. toyota replaced the part in 2007, but the problem was not fixed. have since discovered that they retooled this part 3 times since 2007, which tells me that the new part was just as faulty as the original. toyota will not replace the part for free because it was replaced once already and the new part only had a 12 month warranty. *tr | |||
| 11/16/2009 | 109000 | 1 | |
| 1 & 2. recently i had to have the transmission rebuilt on my 2001 toyota rav4. the engine control module (e.c.m.), which tells the transmission what to do, apparently is faulty (a problem that toyota has acknowledged but failed to do anything about) which causes the transmission to essentially self destruct. i was driving through an intersection when my engine started revving and my car dramatically slowed down. after pulling over and putting it into park, i shifted to drive and my car lurched forward, almost crashing into another car. i feared for my life in both situations and feel that this product is extremely faulty. 3. my transmission will need to be rebuilt for approximately $3,500, but if toyota had notified customers about this problem earlier then we would have been able to rectify the ecm before it caused a transmission problem and endangered my life. *tr | |||
| 08/15/2009 | 120000 | 1 | |
| Had to replace transmission on 2001 rav4 (aug 09) and then it was repaired once again after the transmission started doing the same thing (nov 09). i was told it was due to a faulty ecm. which i have never been notified that there was even a problem from the manufacture. have paid for rebuilt transmission & ecm unit. *tr | |||
| 10/01/2009 | 60700 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. the vehicle would not shift from first to second gear. also when the engine warning light illuminated on the instrument control panel, the vehicle would lurch forward. the vehicle was taken to the dealer, but they could not duplicate the failure. however a mechanic discovered that the electronic control module was sending the wrong message to the transmission. the computer monitor was repaired .however because of collateral damage the transmission needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure mileage was 60,500 and the current mileage was 60,700. | |||
| 08/20/2009 | 98000 | 1 | |
| 2001 toyota rav4 has a defective transmission control module which causes the car to slow down rapidly in traffic causing serious health risks to all persons nearby. toyota issued a bulletin to all service instructing them to replace the tcm to prevent this problem from taking place. toyota does not warn their customers about this problem and simply waits for the problem to happen and by then the tcm causes damage to the transmission and the vehicle is out of warranty. there are hundreds of consumers experiencing this problems and toyota will not repair the vehicles under warranty. i cannot believe that a company like toyota would operate this way after building a reputation of being a quality auto maker. i have been quoted a discounted rate of $ 3500.00 to repair my car by the dealership. this is robbery. *tr | |||
| 01/01/1901 | 1 | ||
| Letter to the secretary from consumer requesting assistance with an alleged life threatening issue re 2001 toyota rav 4. *nj the consumer stated she was almost rear ended due to the vehicle stalling. the consumer stated toyota rav 4's have a transmission glitch. *jb | |||
| 09/15/2009 | 114250 | 1 | |
| 2001 toyota rav4 - manufacturer-programmed ecm failure leading to hard shifting, problems accelerating, and misfiring. unfortunately, toyota is only covering the repair cost if under 80,000 miles. appears this is happening to many people no matter what the mileage is and since this is a safety issue, a recall should be made to repair this free of charge to the owner. i had to pay over $1300 to get this fixed. *tr | |||
| 04/22/2009 | 86000 | 1 | |
| Fault ecm causes transmission shifting problems. no service bulletin issued to owners. *tr | |||
| 05/23/2009 | 83150 | 1 | |
| My car is toyota rav4 2001 2wd automatic. recently, the car on acceleration started doing hard shift. many people have complained about it. http://www.carcomplaints.com/toyota/rav4/2001/transmission/problems_shifting.shtml. when i purchased the car from private party, i had asked toyota of kirkland (wa) to check for ecu module. i was told it is the right module and not the recalled one. so, i purchased this car from the private party. after 9 months of using this car, i get the same problem which so many people have experienced. the car jerks when accelerating. sometimes it refuses to accelerate. toyota extended the warranty on the car but when i purchased it was not under warranty. i think it is a faulty part in the car. if replacing ecu does not fixes the problem then we have to fix the transmission which will cost me additional $4000. to replace new ecu or ecm, it costs $1100+. please ask toyota to recall the rav4s. this is a big blow to us in this economy. *tr | |||
| 12/10/2008 | 99820 | 1 | |
| My 2001 toyota rav4 is a victim of the ecm failure that causes transmission issues. this is a well known issue with 2001 and 2002 rav4's that toyota refuses to acknowledge. the ecm unit fails, and destroys the transmission in the process. *tr | |||
| 09/06/2008 | 104500 | 1 | |
| 2001 toyota rav 4 started with check engine light coming on and off then toyota sent ssc-601 in march of 08 that i needed to have ecm reprogrammed which i did{took tech 2 times to get it right} now my transmission started slipping so i took it in to toyota and they did a diagnostic and sure as pie they said ecm has failed and they want 940.00 to replace it. this is a widespread problem that has been seen by toyota and is a manufactures defect that they expect us the consumer to eat i've had nothing but runaround from both local dealer and their corporate office. no one seems to care and is unwilling to do anything about this. *tr | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | |||
| 08/13/2011 | 151000 | ||
| I have a 2011 rav 4 with 151,000 miles on it. i had my tranmission fluid flushed when i got my oil changed in early june of 2011. my transmission starting jumping in early august of 2011 when in almost any gear. the problem came on very suddenly with no warning signs. the day it happened, i called my local toyota dealership who has done all of my servicing and asked if it could have possibly had to do with the flusing of the system two months prior and if there had been any recalls on my vehicle for this sort of problem. they said that it was unlikely to have anything to do with the flusing and no, there had been no recalls that they were aware of. i was referred over to a transmission shop that rebuilds transmissions and got it into the shop that very next morning. the shop rebuilt my transmisson and charged me over $3000 to do so. when i picked my vehicle up and drove it, it jumped when only driven half of a block. the tranmission shop owner suggested i drive it a little bit more and take it from zero to 60 mph on the interstate. i did so but two days later, my transmission failed to accelerate when i pulled out into traffic, which was extremely frightening seeing that i am five months pregnant, and it also began to jump again, in almost any gear after it finally accelerated. i took it back to the transmission shop and after three days, they determined that it must be the ecm. they replaced this for me and charged me another $600 to do so. once again, when i picked my vehicle up and drove it, it jumped when only driven half a block. i am beyond broke and frustrated that a) toyota sent out no notifications to owners of this year and model warning owners of the potential dangers associated with a failed ecm and b) that even with a new ecm and rebuilt transmission, that my transmission is still not operating as it should. | |||
| 08/08/2011 | |||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. the contact stated that the electronic control module malfunctioned, causing the vehicle to stall in the middle of the road. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer, where a diagnostic test was performed and the dealer stated that the transmission was faulty and needed to be replaced. the contact also stated that the faulty transmission was a known issue with this year, make and model. the failure mileage was unknown. sm. | |||
| 08/08/2011 | |||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav-4. the contact stated the electronic control module malfunctioned causing the vehicle to stall in the middle of the road. the contact was able to drive the vehicle to a dealer. the dealer performed a diagnostic test and the results shown a faulty transmission and the transmission needs to be replaced. the contact stated the faulty transmission is a known issue with this year make a model. the contact stated the vehicle was unsafe to drive. the failure mileage was unknown. jo | |||
| 07/03/2011 | 169000 | ||
| I noticed vehicle was not accelerating or going into proper gear. i was alarmed when i couldn't pick up speed turning left. engine light lit when i got home. i spoke to toyota today about the known ecu issue with 2001-2003 rav4s. my car was served in 2007 when there was a recall but they will not address the issue now since the warranty expired. i am very disappointed with toyota not addressing the ecu/ecm issue to a satisfactory manner. this is a safety issue that toyota should show more concern over. | |||
| 05/20/2011 | |||
| My 18 year old has a 2001 rave 4 the mechanic says that the ecu has trashed the transmission so now she needs both to be replaced. i have found many complaints on line about this problem and most likely not many people know to contact this agency or this would have been addressed by now. please refer to the toyota service bulletin march 3, 2006. toyota is aware of the issue! this problem has the potential to cause an accident due to lose of power or stalling of the vehicle. my daughter has been very fortunate not to be in an accident due to this ecu /transmission problem. | |||
| 05/29/2011 | 136000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. while the contact was driving 35 mph, the engine warning light illuminated, and the transmission began to exhibit severe hesitation in a jerking motion. the vehicle was to an authorized dealer for diagnosis who stated the transmission and ecm module would need to be replaced. in addition, the faulty trans axle required replacement. the contact discovered there was a prior voluntary recall issued by the manufacturer pertaining to the ecm module; however the contact did not receive notification of the recall. the manufacturer was notified whom informed the recall expired in january 2011 and was unable to provide further assistance. the vehicle had not been repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 136,000. js | |||
| 05/20/2011 | |||
| My 18 year old has a 2001 rave 4 the mechanic says that the ecu has trashed the transmission so now she needs both to be replaced. i have found many complaints on line about this problem and most likely not many people know to contact this agency or this would have been addressed by now. please refer to the toyota service bulletin march 3, 2006. toyota is aware of the issue! this problem has the potential to cause an accident due to lose of power or stalling of the vehicle. my daughter has been very fortunate not to be in an accident due to this ecu /transmission problem. | |||
| 05/29/2011 | 136000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. while the contact was driving 35 mph, the engine warning light illuminated, and the transmission began to exhibit severe hesitation in a jerking motion. the vehicle was to an authorized dealer for diagnosis who stated the transmission and ecm module would need to be replaced. in addition, the faulty trans axle required replacement. the contact discovered there was a prior voluntary recall issued by the manufacturer pertaining to the ecm module; however the contact did not receive notification of the recall. the manufacturer was notified whom informed the recall expired in january 2011 and was unable to provide further assistance. the vehicle had not been repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 136,000. js | |||
| 05/20/2011 | |||
| My 18 year old has a 2001 rave 4 the mechanic says that the ecu has trashed the transmission so now she needs both to be replaced. i have found many complaints on line about this problem and most likely not many people know to contact this agency or this would have been addressed by now. please refer to the toyota service bulletin march 3, 2006. toyota is aware of the issue! this problem has the potential to cause an accident due to lose of power or stalling of the vehicle. my daughter has been very fortunate not to be in an accident due to this ecu /transmission problem. | |||
| 05/29/2011 | 136000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. while the contact was driving 35 mph, the engine warning light illuminated, and the transmission began to exhibit severe hesitation in a jerking motion. the vehicle was to an authorized dealer for diagnosis who stated the transmission and ecm module would need to be replaced. in addition, the faulty trans axle required replacement. the contact discovered there was a prior voluntary recall issued by the manufacturer pertaining to the ecm module; however the contact did not receive notification of the recall. the manufacturer was notified whom informed the recall expired in january 2011 and was unable to provide further assistance. the vehicle had not been repaired. the approximate failure mileage was 136,000. js | |||
| 04/25/2011 | 85000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. the contact stated while driving 35 mph his automatic transmission failed. the transmission had also previously malfunctioned. the vehicle will be taken to the dealer. the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure mileage was 85,000. | |||
| 04/25/2011 | 85000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. the contact stated while driving 35 mph his automatic transmission failed. the transmission previously malfunctioned. the vehicle will be taken to the dealer. the manufacturer was not contacted. the failure mileage was 85,000....mw | |||
| 03/01/2011 | 108000 | ||
| I own a regularly serviced and well maintained 108.000 mile 2001 toyota rav4 with a transmission concern. car upon acceleration will not respond, revs, slips and lunges into gear. this occurs intermittently. two independent transmission specialists have inspected this vehicle and stated that the problem they diagnose is a computer problem which is malfunctioning communication to the transmission. they have recommended not repairing the transmission but focus on the car's computer. toyota dealership finds no computer codes on the diagnostic check to indicate any problem whatsoever with this vehicle. toyota case manager and dealership service manager states to drive this vehicle with all the safety concerns mentioned until a check engine light indicates a computer problem. toyota serviceman rode in vehicle with this owner and felt the above mentioned safety transmission problems and reported it back to the manager. no repair work was recommended because the computer codes did not communicate a problem. other than the service tech who drove in this vehicle and felt first hand the transmission slipping and not responding, toyota refuses to acknowledges there is a problem. the computer communicating information to the transmission on many 2001 rav4 vehicles have proven to malfunction according to toyota's own service bulletin. according to my research a malfunctioning computer has led to many transmissions being damaged in toyota vehicles. i am at a loss as to what to do. i am also very disappointed in toyota's run around and their dismissive attitude when bringing a safety concern to their attention. | |||
| 02/01/2011 | 183000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. the contact stated that the vehicle was unable to shift between gears properly. the vehicle was no longer under warranty and was not repaired. the manufacturer did not offer the contact any assistance. the current mileage was 193,000 and the failure mileage was 183,000. | |||
| 02/01/2011 | 183000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. the contact stated that the vehicle was unable to shift between gears properly. the dealer advised the contact that his vehicle was had exceeded the mileage limitation and that if they performed any repairs that they would have to charge a fee. the manufacturer did not offer the contact any assistance. no repairs were performed due to cost. the current mileages were 193,000 and the failure mileages were 183,000. bw | |||
| 02/05/2011 | 129493 | ||
| Faulty shifting in 2001 toyota rav4 related to the ecm causes the vehicle to slow down and almost come to a stop when trying to accelerate or pull out into traffic. ecm was replaced but the faulty shifting still occurs. according to the dealership this means that the vehicle now needs a new transmission. while the vehicle is 10 years old, it has less than 130,000 miles on it. this should not be occurring. toyota customer service refuses to acknowledge that this issue is due to the ecm and its poor design despite extending the warranty for exactly this issue. there are multiple reports on the internet from rav4 owners who have experienced the same problem. | |||
| 01/01/2010 | 187000 | ||
| Beginning in jan. 2010 the transmission in my 2001 toyota rav4 suddenly began shifting erratically. just after entering i-35 it downshifted from overdrive to i'm guessing second gear. this sudden deceleration nearly got me rear ended by a semi truck. it also destroyed the transmission. i am advised that the transmission and the ecm that caused it must now be replaced, @ a cost of $4200. the car is currently inoperable as the transmission shifting is so erratic you don't know if it will go into gear and if it does, what gear and it shifts so erratically it's like riding a bucking horse. just getting it the three miles to the shop was taking my life in my hands. this problem is going to get someone killed, if it hasn't already. being of limited means, i have not repaired the car yet. | |||
| 02/10/2011 | 112000 | ||
| 2001 toyota rav4 transmission is shifting hard and into inappropriate gears. while accelerating, the transmission is not shifting into a higher gear as it normally did. now it hesitates between gears (neutral) and then randomly shifts into a lower or higher gear often jumping from gear to gear until settling into the proper gear. this behavior just began with 112k miles. | |||
| 01/11/2010 | 58000 | ||
| The ecm is toyotas 2001-2003 rav4 causes rough shifting in the transmission and it eventually causes the transmission to stop functioning. this means the car can and will come to an abrupt halt. this has happened to my family several times and now the tranny is no good at all. this is all after receiving a few letters from toyota regarding this problem and bringing it in for service on the ecm after i'd already paid $1400 to toyota for the same service. they never changed anything , just reprogrammed it. now , even with toyota saying publicly that they will stand by the vehicle ,after catching so much heat from the public , they still deny me coverage as well as reimbursement and they even charged me a storage and diagnostic fee! this ecm problem has been a well known defect since 2006 and toyota was and fully aware of the issue. your car suddenly stopping on the highway is one of the greatest dangers one can face while operating a motor vehicle.just to be clear , the first time the car stopped on me was in 2006. i contacted toyota and they acted as if i was out of my mind. i paid , the $1400 to the dealer for a new ecm. 2 weeks later the car stopped again. the said it was my fault. 6 weeks after that , ( still in 2006) toyota sent a service letter describing the exact problem i'd paid for but i got no refund. a month later , yup you guessed it.i paid again and everything was ok at best until january 2009 when it stopped yet again. i can't afford to keep spending money like this for a problem that is entirely toyotas fault and of which they are aware. please protect the american people. | |||
| 12/28/2010 | 130000 | ||
| Toyota rav4 2001 sudden acceleration, and throttle surge... no way to stop car with brake pedal. | |||
| 07/02/2009 | 170000 | ||
| Entering highway and the vehicle would not shift. the vehicle would not go over 30 mph and had to pull over to avoid being hit. | |||
| 10/16/2010 | 87900 | ||
| 2001 rav4- automatic transmission the car started shifting gears and having problems taking off from a stop position a week ago. there was no check engine light blinking to let me know what the issue was. i took it to the toyota dealership where they couldn't find any problems and think it might be the computer. when it first happened i almost got into a accident with another vehicle in front of me. after i left the dealership, sure enough the car starts jerking back and forth. i called toyota customer service where they told me they recognize the problem as the ecm (seems to be the problem with other complaints i have looked into), but nothing can be done about it as it is not on the recall list and the car came from japan to canada then to the united states (seriously?). i guess toyota will not do anything until someone is killed in an accident. | |||
| 07/02/2009 | 170000 | ||
| Entering highway and the vehicle would not shift. the vehicle would not go over 30 mph and had to pull over to avoid being hit. | |||
| 10/16/2010 | 87900 | ||
| 2001 rav4- automatic transmission the car started shifting gears and having problems taking off from a stop position a week ago. there was no check engine light blinking to let me know what the issue was. i took it to the toyota dealership where they couldn't find any problems and think it might be the computer. when it first happened i almost got into a accident with another vehicle in front of me. after i left the dealership, sure enough the car starts jerking back and forth. i called toyota customer service where they told me they recognize the problem as the ecm (seems to be the problem with other complaints i have looked into), but nothing can be done about it as it is not on the recall list and the car came from japan to canada then to the united states (seriously?). i guess toyota will not do anything until someone is killed in an accident. | |||
| 07/02/2009 | 170000 | ||
| Entering highway and the vehicle would not shift. the vehicle would not go over 30 mph and had to pull over to avoid being hit. | |||
| 10/16/2010 | 87900 | ||
| 2001 rav4- automatic transmission the car started shifting gears and having problems taking off from a stop position a week ago. there was no check engine light blinking to let me know what the issue was. i took it to the toyota dealership where they couldn't find any problems and think it might be the computer. when it first happened i almost got into a accident with another vehicle in front of me. after i left the dealership, sure enough the car starts jerking back and forth. i called toyota customer service where they told me they recognize the problem as the ecm (seems to be the problem with other complaints i have looked into), but nothing can be done about it as it is not on the recall list and the car came from japan to canada then to the united states (seriously?). i guess toyota will not do anything until someone is killed in an accident. | |||
| 05/29/2009 | 127000 | ||
| 2001 toyota rav4 ecm and transmission replaced in may of 2009. paid out of pocket. replacement was a rebuilt transmission installed by dealer (victory toyota in canton, mi) second transmission failed after 17,000 miles. paid out of pocket again. no help from dealer or toyota corporate. found out that dealer just swapped trans, did not actually rebuild trans. took it to an independant trans shop. independant discovered a washer missing that caused third gear to strip (defect in second trans). trans repaired, but then got a hard downshift into first gear when stopping, check engine light and p0420 p0430 codes. independant trans shop cleared codes, and told me that if it happened again to have dealer re-flash ecm. worked ok for about five days, then got the hard downshift into 1st gear again. took it to dealer. now they say the the charcoal cannister needs to be replaced. i will submit for re-imbursement under extended warranty, but am seeking reimbursement for second transmission which was a direct result of the first ecm and trans failing. | |||
| 04/15/2010 | 180000 | ||
| Tl. the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav 4. the contact stated while driver 10 mph the transimission will shift in to gear. the contact took the vehicle to a local mechanic and they suggested to replace the computer the controls the transmission. replacing the computer did not remedy the issue but the contact continued driving the vehicle. the contact called the dealer regarding the transmission and the dealer stated the transmission needs to be replaced. the dealer reprogrammed the ecm in 2007 but that did not remedy the issue. the contact stated the manufacturer should repair the vehicle with no cost since they knew about the issue with the vehicle. the failure mileage was 180,000. jo | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 89476 | ||
| I bought a used toyota rav4 in 2007. last week my ecm (transmission) computer malfunctioned. i got the car fixed by my toyota dealer, but found out that this is the 3rd ecm computer replaced.my car did not accelerate.it would not move.and if the shift is bumped the shifter will move to another rgear. i am scared to drive it now. what if it completely stalls. i could see one computer but 3!!! i will not buy toyota again. after finding articles on this on the internet-seems like toyota still has not figured out how to fix it. and now thje question remains-how good is my transmission at this point? | |||
| 06/05/2010 | 154000 | ||
| On 06/05/10, my personal vehicle (2001 toyota rav4) began to experience transmission slippage which developed into harsh shifting; this problem worsened over the next several weeks but, due to the car's electronics failure (from a known malfunction which toyota was aware of but failed to ever notify me about) this was not immediately identified as a transmission-related issue. upon finally reaching dangerous levels of jerking and decelerating on major highways, etc., i finally took the rav4 to a toyota dealership, where they informed me of an ecm recall related to the transmission -- of which i had never received notification. the reprogramming did not work and the harsh shifting worsened. i had to take the vehicle back about a week later, at which point the dealership told me i would have to pay to replace the computer. i did so, only to receive a notice 3 weeks later from toyota headquarters stating that they knew about a harsh shift malfunction related to the ecm in 2001-2003 rav4 models. however, all toyota did was extend the warranty to 150,000 (my repair was done at 154,000) rather than issue a safety recall. this is utterly ludicrous, as my car had the potential to just suddenly stop moving in the middle of heavy highway traffic, which could have resulted in my severe injury or even death. the issue apparently developed around 06/05/10 and led to the vehicle needing transmission replacement as of 08/21/10. the harsh shifting took place over several weeks between those dates. | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 89476 | ||
| I bought a used toyota rav4 in 2007. last week my ecm (transmission) computer malfunctioned. i got the car fixed by my toyota dealer, but found out that this is the 3rd ecm computer replaced.my car did not accelerate.it would not move.and if the shift is bumped the shifter will move to another rgear. i am scared to drive it now. what if it completely stalls. i could see one computer but 3!!! i will not buy toyota again. after finding articles on this on the internet-seems like toyota still has not figured out how to fix it. and now thje question remains-how good is my transmission at this point? | |||
| 06/05/2010 | 154000 | ||
| On 06/05/10, my personal vehicle (2001 toyota rav4) began to experience transmission slippage which developed into harsh shifting; this problem worsened over the next several weeks but, due to the car's electronics failure (from a known malfunction which toyota was aware of but failed to ever notify me about) this was not immediately identified as a transmission-related issue. upon finally reaching dangerous levels of jerking and decelerating on major highways, etc., i finally took the rav4 to a toyota dealership, where they informed me of an ecm recall related to the transmission -- of which i had never received notification. the reprogramming did not work and the harsh shifting worsened. i had to take the vehicle back about a week later, at which point the dealership told me i would have to pay to replace the computer. i did so, only to receive a notice 3 weeks later from toyota headquarters stating that they knew about a harsh shift malfunction related to the ecm in 2001-2003 rav4 models. however, all toyota did was extend the warranty to 150,000 (my repair was done at 154,000) rather than issue a safety recall. this is utterly ludicrous, as my car had the potential to just suddenly stop moving in the middle of heavy highway traffic, which could have resulted in my severe injury or even death. the issue apparently developed around 06/05/10 and led to the vehicle needing transmission replacement as of 08/21/10. the harsh shifting took place over several weeks between those dates. | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 89476 | ||
| I bought a used toyota rav4 in 2007. last week my ecm (transmission) computer malfunctioned. i got the car fixed by my toyota dealer, but found out that this is the 3rd ecm computer replaced.my car did not accelerate.it would not move.and if the shift is bumped the shifter will move to another rgear. i am scared to drive it now. what if it completely stalls. i could see one computer but 3!!! i will not buy toyota again. after finding articles on this on the internet-seems like toyota still has not figured out how to fix it. and now thje question remains-how good is my transmission at this point? | |||
| 06/05/2010 | 154000 | ||
| On 06/05/10, my personal vehicle (2001 toyota rav4) began to experience transmission slippage which developed into harsh shifting; this problem worsened over the next several weeks but, due to the car's electronics failure (from a known malfunction which toyota was aware of but failed to ever notify me about) this was not immediately identified as a transmission-related issue. upon finally reaching dangerous levels of jerking and decelerating on major highways, etc., i finally took the rav4 to a toyota dealership, where they informed me of an ecm recall related to the transmission -- of which i had never received notification. the reprogramming did not work and the harsh shifting worsened. i had to take the vehicle back about a week later, at which point the dealership told me i would have to pay to replace the computer. i did so, only to receive a notice 3 weeks later from toyota headquarters stating that they knew about a harsh shift malfunction related to the ecm in 2001-2003 rav4 models. however, all toyota did was extend the warranty to 150,000 (my repair was done at 154,000) rather than issue a safety recall. this is utterly ludicrous, as my car had the potential to just suddenly stop moving in the middle of heavy highway traffic, which could have resulted in my severe injury or even death. the issue apparently developed around 06/05/10 and led to the vehicle needing transmission replacement as of 08/21/10. the harsh shifting took place over several weeks between those dates. | |||
| 08/20/2010 | 89476 | ||
| I bought a used toyota rav4 in 2007. last week my ecm (transmission) computer malfunctioned. i got the car fixed by my toyota dealer, but found out that this is the 3rd ecm computer replaced.my car did not accelerate.it would not move.and if the shift is bumped the shifter will move to another rgear. i am scared to drive it now. what if it completely stalls. i could see one computer but 3!!! i will not buy toyota again. after finding articles on this on the internet-seems like toyota still has not figured out how to fix it. and now thje question remains-how good is my transmission at this point? | |||
| 06/05/2010 | 154000 | ||
| On 06/05/10, my personal vehicle (2001 toyota rav4) began to experience transmission slippage which developed into harsh shifting; this problem worsened over the next several weeks but, due to the car's electronics failure (from a known malfunction which toyota was aware of but failed to ever notify me about) this was not immediately identified as a transmission-related issue. upon finally reaching dangerous levels of jerking and decelerating on major highways, etc., i finally took the rav4 to a toyota dealership, where they informed me of an ecm recall related to the transmission -- of which i had never received notification. the reprogramming did not work and the harsh shifting worsened. i had to take the vehicle back about a week later, at which point the dealership told me i would have to pay to replace the computer. i did so, only to receive a notice 3 weeks later from toyota headquarters stating that they knew about a harsh shift malfunction related to the ecm in 2001-2003 rav4 models. however, all toyota did was extend the warranty to 150,000 (my repair was done at 154,000) rather than issue a safety recall. this is utterly ludicrous, as my car had the potential to just suddenly stop moving in the middle of heavy highway traffic, which could have resulted in my severe injury or even death. the issue apparently developed around 06/05/10 and led to the vehicle needing transmission replacement as of 08/21/10. the harsh shifting took place over several weeks between those dates. | |||
| 08/18/2010 | 96000 | ||
| Driving my toyota 2001 rav4 and it decides not to shift in to gear, leaving me to pull over barely on the side of the road with 2 small children. | |||
| 05/15/2010 | 128000 | ||
| Toyota rav4 2001 - computer problems & total transmission problem my rav4, 2001 model initially started giving check engine light and having hard time accelerating from stop signal. the bbb approved service center checked it and found out the error code as p0750 and adviced the replacement/rebuilding the transmission to fix the problem. they charged me approx $3000 for this transmission rebuild work/fixing the error code issue. two days after, i got the same problem again and when i took it to the same service center, i was told that the computer system is the culprit for causing the problem. now, based on the details available on the internet (http://www.carcomplaints.com/toyota/rav4/2002/transmission/main_computer_and_transmission_failure.shtml), i understood that this is the common problem of toyota rav4 cars. when i spoke to toyota customer service on 800-331-4331 (case # 1006150572), they said they are helpless. i am interested to file a complaint with carsafety to take this up with toyota as to why this common problem of rav4 is not being addressed/recalled, though there are customers facing serious safety problems with the car. the problem can even lead to accidents resulting in the loss of the lifes. as an example, on freeway, while going at 60mph, the speed suddenly falls down to 30 or even 20mph and continues like that for few minutes before it goes automatically to higher speed. this failure occurs every 10-15 minutes if not earlier.. the whole transmission was rebuild (including the solenoids, geartrain components, torque converter etc), the computer was replaced with a total of approx $4500, though there were no deaths/injuries yet. this problem needs to be taken up seriously with toyota and needs a quicker resolution. thanks in advance | |||
| 04/05/2010 | 100000 | ||
| Toyota rav 4 transmission shifting problems after several thousand miles, shifting from 1-2 will hesitate and cause engine rev, will also jerk while shfting hesitation could be hazardous and cause accidents. and sometimes the vehicle will not accelerate properly due to this problem | |||
| 05/23/2010 | 83001 | ||
| Erratic shifting of gears in toyota rav4. shifts hard or slowly, causing safety issue while driving. had to replace the transmission and computer. | |||
| 05/14/2010 | 101000 | ||
| Toyota rav4 car jerks upon accelerating from stop. car is sluggish to accelerate. could case wreck when turning left across a street or hit from behind if rav4 does not accelerate correctly. failure started to occur suddenly without prior problems. dealership states ecm needs to be replaced based on tsb from toyota (tsb # 000206), tsb states improvements have been made to the engine control module (ecm) (sae term: powertrain control module/pcm) manufacturing process to reduce the possibility of this condition occurring -- this indicates that it is a known issue, that is occurring due to a poor manufacturing process. there are several websites where other 2001-2003 rav4 owners are complaining about the same issue. | |||
| 05/20/2010 | 67400 | ||
| When driving my 2001 toyota rav4 l, i started to notice that after taking off from a stop light/sign or basically excelerating, it acted as if it did not want to go into gear, there seemed to be no power, then the engine would reved, finally it lunged and jerked into gear. it felt as though the transmission was slipping. i took it to my mechanic who has serviced my car religiously every 3000 miles. he could not find the problem, in fact the diagnostic test showed nothing. after doing much research online i read all the other complaints regarding the same issue, including one from the new york times--i'm upset to find out that toyota corp. a company who i have trusted for many years has know about the problem with the ecm. driving this car in this condition poses a very frightening situation whereas this is an accident waiting to happen with serious injuries and/or death. | |||
| 05/12/2010 | 82500 | ||
| Transmission failure due to faulty ecm on 2001 toyota rav 4. toyota issued a service bulletin in 2006 to the dealers but failed to notify me, the only owner of the vehicle. | |||
| 04/29/2010 | 81000 | ||
| 2001 toyota rav4 with 81,000 miles. ecm failed causing transmission to fail. safety issue created due to poor accelration and eradic shifting. toyota will not accept responsibility of the transmission failure due to the ecm failure. | |||
| 03/04/2010 | 90000 | ||
| My spouse has a toyota rav4, 2001 and it experieced major stalling problems while driving, almost like the transmission was going out. we took it to the toyota service team in berkeley, ca three times for a potential fix. first it was the engine control monitor (ecm at $1,040), then it was the transmission fluid at $266, then it was a bend pipe/tube leading to the transmission. the bottom line is we're still experiencing the same problem one month later. | |||
| 04/17/2010 | 144480 | ||
| 2001 toyota rav 4 transmission suddenly started slipping, shifting hard at low speeds. has 144,480 miles. aamco shop diagnosed it as a known computer defect, sent faulty information that fried the clutches in the transmission. the repair is underway, takes 4 days and costs $3,900 for new computer and transmission repair. | |||
| 03/01/2010 | 125000 | ||
| My toyota rav4 2001 model, 125000 miles on it. i stopped at a stop sign, when turned green tried to move , but the car wouldn't move. it just did a little, then i some how parked in the road side. took it to different garages, mieneke said 6000 dollar repair on the transmission, another said 4800 dollar for refurbished transmission, aamco did a transmission repair for 2800 dollar.... all these places they are not sure whether it is transmission or ecm problem. i just choose to get it done with the cheapest one. i feel like it is a problem with ecm and the transmission of toyota. being a customer i have no way knowing who says the right thing? now i hear that toyota rav 4 has defective ecm that can cause transmission problems? now i am worried is it safe to drive that car any further? | |||
| 12/10/2009 | 99500 | ||
| Transmission started jerking and slipping in second gear then jumping to third gear, then taking off in third gear, flush tranny and reprogram ecm, dint 'help also check engine light is on for code p0758, i was told i need a new ecm and a new transmission. toyota knew of this ecm problem and fail to notified its customers | |||
| 03/14/2010 | 71000 | ||
| 2001 rav4 transmission did not want to change gears. took to dealer, denied problem. took to another shop, changed to new ecm in transmission. problem fixed. toyota needs to own up to bad parts. | |||
| 03/23/2010 | 98000 | ||
| My 2001 toyota rav4, 98000miles, has a prblem. trans mission shift around 30miles and engaging shift 2nd to 3rd, rpm gage jumping up 5000~6000 rpm on every driving and finally check engine light came up. dealer ship said it was out of warranty and needed reprogram ecm. after fixed it happened again they said it needs new ecm and reprogram. and had same problem. now they say it needs transmission rebuld too. they already knew these problem through their bulletin some years ago and didn't noticed owners. it would be very dangerous if shift was changed when rpm gage jumped up. it should be a recall issue. also i read some article for class action lawsiut was filed for this. | |||
| 12/13/2009 | 116000 | ||
| During a trip to the los angeles area from our home in fremont, ca. our 2001 toyota rav4 refused to enter 1st gear, then would slam into gear suddenly, causing a bucking effect. after about 2 hours and some attempts at adding trans fluid it started running ok. two days later on the freeway home it suddenly started in again, leaving us with no power to drive on the road to get out of the way of traffic until it slammed into gear again. we made it back home by remaining on the freeway and not stopping as much as possible. i took the car to my mechanic who informed me that the transmission was ruined and needed replacing. he showed me the chipped-up gears on the unit. after repairing the transmission i drove it for a day and a half and the slipping and bucking started in again. i immediately returned it to the shop and they spent a lot of time checking it because it was working just fine for them. computer diagnostic came out normal. i told them to keep it and drive it for a day. sure enough it went bad after about 5 hours. after having the actuators replaced they returned the car to me. it lasted 1 day. at that time i checked online and discovered the problems with the ecm. i printed it and gave it to my mechanic. they replaced the ecm with a new one ($1200) since no rebuilder would re-program the old one because of the recurring problems with it. the car now runs fine but only after about $4000 because of a faulty ecm that no one seems to want to admit is the real problem. | |||
| 03/31/2010 | 120000 | ||
| I drove my car to work and it was driving and shifting just fine (automatic). i parked, turned the car off, and went inside to punch in. not 10 minutes later i returned to start the vehicle and it immediately shifted hard out of park into reverse. when it shifted into first gear i could tell there was a problem, the car basically sputtered into the gear and could barely shift out of it into second. once it did the car jerked forward and i felt like i did not have good control of it due to the way it was jerking in and out of gear. during this time the rpms would go way up and suddenly down again, and it seemed like every time i applied the gas (and thus engaged the transmission) the vehicle started reacting in an unpredictable manner. there didn't seem to be any rhyme or reason for when this happened, sometimes it was ok but in general the car had a great deal of trouble shifting out of 1st and 2nd gear. once i was going over roughly 30mph the car was generally ok, but would occasionally sputter. as far as events leading up to the failure, the engine control module has been recalled i believe twice on this particular vehicle and it has always had check engine light problems. the check engine light had been on for roughly 12k miles previous to this happening with no incident; the diagnostic read that i needed a new catalytic converter but 1) the computer, in my opinion, isn't reliable because it's been recalled/reprogrammed and clearly has a defect and 2) the catalytic converter dying should be a slow death with a gradual decrease in gas mileage and eventual choking of the engine at up to 40k miles after the diagnosis. this happened immediately and from one engine start to the next. | |||
| 03/26/2010 | 125841 | 1 | |
| Toyota 2001 rav4: check engine light has been on since at least august, 2004 (documented). toyota claimed to fix per a recall notice. from february 2002 to date, there has been intermittent groaning beneath car, whining in first gear, and what felt like clunking. could not pass smog tests because of check engine light code. in october, 2009, car died. could not restart, had to wait for tow (midnight on a dark road). had work done in oct, 2009, and i requested the parts. they replaced my coils, plugs and air filter for $1,330. i have had brakes replaced , fluids changed, o2 sensors replaced ( since then, the car is mis-shifting, clunking or groaning, rough engine. on 3/25/2010, i took it in and toyota service recommended that i let it go and buy another car. they told me to just come and get the car without any work done, because it would cost me between $6,000-$7,000 for repairs. i was never told that i had ecm and transmission problems throughout all of these visits to toyota service. i believe that toyota waited me out so that they could just sell me another car instead of revealing the true cause of my problems. the ecm and transmission for this car is no longer available as a new item, so i would have to get a rebuilt transmission, which the defective ecm would end up destroying. i am afraid to drive the car because of the possibility that the transmission will fail. *cn | |||
| 12/22/2009 | 89900 | ||
| On december 22nd, i experienced slipping transmission problems. i took it to our local toyota dealership, and was told that there was no problem. i then took it to a independent transmission shop. i learned that that my transmission was destroyed, and had to be replaced. a rebuilt transmission was installed. i still had problems, and upon further investigation, the torque converter had to be replaced. with the torque converter replaced, i drove my toyota rav 4, only to experience more problems. i personally began invesgating the problems with toyota rav's, and learned of all of the other complaints logged against toyota, due to transmission problems. it has been 3, almost4 months, and my toyota is currently in the shop, getting a shift solenoid. i called toyota, for assitance, and was told that it was not covered under warranty. currently, i have over $4700 in repairs to this vehicle. | |||
| 03/24/2010 | 120000 | ||
| My 2001 rav 4 bagan having trouble with the transmission. i have trouble getting started and the car shifts very hard. when the car finally shifts, it often lurches forward. i have trouble getting on the highway and am fearful to drive in traffic. very scary! | |||
| 03/20/2010 | 112000 | ||
| 2001 toyota rav4, transmission has started to jerk us around, lurch in traffic and feels like it comes out of gear while driving/accelerating in traffic or pulling out into traffic. then all of a sudden you are not moving. | |||
| 07/24/2009 | 102494 | 1 | |
| Faulty computer. i am the original owner. the computer caused the transmission to engage into wrong gears,resulting in transmission failure. cost to me of $4,847.00. i was never notified by toyota of this problem. technical bulletin #1046. *tr | |||
| 03/24/2009 | 75000 | 1 | |
| Toyota 2001 rav4 transmission shift problem since march 2009. approx miles to date 95,750. when i first took it in, i checked with autozone for diagnostic check which was free because the check engine light came on. i then took the readings to toyota who told me they wouldn't accept autozone's diagnostic and i had to get another one from them which cost $100. then they told me it was just the gas cap and turned the check engine light off. within 2 days, after my e-check, the light came back on has been on ever since. i have taken it back several times for oil changes and they never said that there was a problem. the diagnostic from autozone stated the shift solenoid was bad but toyota said it was the gas cap. i have done some research and i am now aware that i am not the only one with this type of problem. this is shameful that they choose to ignore this serious malfunction to get major money from the consumers. i am more upset with the fact that i bought the car in may of 2006 and they knew then that there was a problem. the warranty is a joke, that's a major part that they won't honor and they are purposely ignoring it so that it's not covered or their problem. why wait until someone gets hurt or killed because they don't want to own up to their defective parts. my car will get stuck in first gear and jump to second very hard. i have taken the car to a foreign car repair shop last spring and they did a quick fix by trying to see if replacing the transmission fluid to see if that worked but it lasted for only a week. during my last maintenance check at toyota, i was told i probably had six months, still never acknowledging that it was a defect in their part or that it was covered. it's not fair to the consumer to be ignored and taken advantage of by this company. please don't ignore our complaints they are real and serious. *tr | |||
| 02/09/2010 | 93500 | 1 | |
| Hello, my wife and i purchased a 2001 toyota rav 4 in 2003. it served us well until about a month ago, when at 93,500 miles it began to have shifting problems. when the car was cold, i would step on the accelerator and the car would crawl along; then it would begin to slip, as if i had hit a patch of ice--the engine would rev but the car would not go forward. and i heard a loud and ominous clanking noise from underneath the car as i crawled along. as the engine warmed up, the problem subsided so i headed home. as i was driving down the highway the car stalled momentarily. thankfully, no accident occurred, though i could have easily been rear-ended. after many hours spent with my mechanic, our selling toyota dealer, and a local transmission shop, we were told that the ecu module in the rav was going bad and that is what wrecked our transmission. we needed a rebuilt transmission and a new ecu module. grand total for the work: a whopping $4500! i googled the problem and read that hundreds of other people have experienced the same problem; that in 2006 toyota issued a service bulletin to its dealers, acknowledging that there was a problem with ecus in ravs model year 2001-2003. but the owners of these vehicles were never notified, leading to a burn-out of rav transmissions all across the country. a class action lawsuit has been filed against toyota to get them to take responsibility for their defective parts. i called toyota; they politely but firmly refused to pay for any of the work, simply claiming the vehicle was out of warranty. then i spoke with the general manager at the dealership--same answer. this is not simply a matter of money and inconvenience; these vehicles are dangerous and i believe it is just a matter of time before someone gets into an accident as a direct result of these defective parts that toyota installed in its vehicles. please pressure toyota to take responsibility for the problem it has created! thank you. *tr | |||
| 01/10/2010 | 103000 | 1 | |
| My 2001 toyota rav-4 began having gear shift problems about january 10, 2010. it bumped, lurched, burped going into 2nd, 3rd and 4th gears. i took it to my regular service dealer and they checked it over, they drained and replaced the fluid, pan gasket & filter. while driving it home it began the gear problem again. i then took it to a recommended transmission shop. they reconditioned the transmission. it was ok for a few days; took it back; more work done as part of transmission warranty. still not fixed. big problems shifting into second and third gears most of the time. *tr | |||
| 02/05/2010 | 178200 | 1 | |
| My complaint is about my 2001 toyota rav4. about three weeks ago i started having problems with my transmission. the transmission started to shift as if it were going to stop. it started to jerk, slow down so much until i thought that i was going to get hit from behind. i had to put my flashers on so the other drivers would slow down and go around me. i do not feel safe in my car anymore. i have had the transmission checked but no error code appears. i was told without a code they don't know what was wrong. the transmission will shift o.k. for a while and then it will start, jerking, losing power, and failing to accelerate. i am afraid to go very far in my car for fear of being stranded. i see that other people are having the same kind of problem with their toyota. please help! thank you *tr | |||
| 08/15/2009 | 86000 | 1 | |
| 2001 toyota rav4 at 86,000 miles having transmission trouble due to electronic control module. *tr | |||
| 02/11/2010 | 92000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. the contact stated that when pulling from a light and trying to depress the accelerator pedal, it did not respond. all of a sudden, the vehicle jerked forward as if someone had stomped on the gas pedal. she noticed the problem several times prior to the failure to a smaller degree. she took the vehicle to a repair shop and the mechanic stated that the transmission was the cause for failure and most likely needed to be rebuilt. the contact called the manufacturer and filed a complaint with a representative. the vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. the current and failure mileages were approximately 92,000. | |||
| 04/18/2009 | 87145 | 1 | |
| Transmission slipping, unable to accelerate. severe jerking, bone rattling and very jarring, loss of power and vehicle stalling. occurred several times, had repaired immediately and a high cost to me. transmission hasn't felt right since. stopped driving vehicle to replacement of ecm was replaced. i'm not confident that the transmission didn't suffer damage during this limited time it was driven and until the repair could be made. i haven't felt completely safe because the failure was so severe and quick to surface. *tr | |||
| 09/15/2009 | 56000 | 1 | |
| 2001 toyota rav4 suddenly started shifting hard/jerking...took to mechanic, who could not find problem...no check engine light...drove vehicle few days and the problem returned...had vehicle towed to toyota dealership, told transmission would have to be replaced, ecu failure. *tr | |||
| 01/20/2010 | 108000 | 1 | |
| The transmission on my daughter's 2001 toyata rav started slipping two weeks ago. my daughter still is a college student and still resides at home commuting to school (15 miles one way) everyday. i am a mechanical engineer and have religiously maintained all our vehicles and know that the transmission should not give any problems with just over 100,000 miles. i have driven all my vehicles way past over 160k miles and never have had any problems. i have researched the internet and there are alot of complaints with this same problem. toyota should be made to recall and fix the problems. *tr | |||
| 06/03/2009 | 1 | ||
| I also had to shell out $3000 to replace a faulty ecm for the toyota rav4 2001. the car had low mileage and just past the 7 year warranty. the car's transmission is not shifting and the car almost died on the way to the dealership. i found thousands of reported cases of people sharing the same grief and apparently this problem with the ecm extends to 2002-2003 rav4 and corollas as well. toyota knows about this problem because they had a recall the patch the ecm at 2006. but the patch does not work and perhaps a small bandage to mask the real problem. and toyota banked on the fact that car will exceed the warranty so they blow all of us off and make us pay for the part or dump the car. i brought this up with the dealership and also with toyota headquarter and they vehemently denied this is a wide spread problem and refused to fix the problem for free or to do a recall. but just doing a casual search this problem is the highest reported problem with any toyotas and this problem spans to eu and australia as well. the only reason why this is not publicize is because luckily no one died, or we don't know about it. but the rav4 can easily stalled on the freeway and causing another car to slam into the rav4. toyota has a history of lying to the public. for the last 10 years, their cars all had some type of electrical problems. it's not just the accelerator or brake issue, it's electrical. they have a poor design that kills. i hope this letter can prompt another investigation into other models of toyota that had suffered with other issues in the last decade. *tr | |||
| 05/10/2009 | 140000 | 1 | |
| Engine control module and auto transmission failure. bought rav used july 2007 with 109,230 mi. check engine light was on (has remained on) but was diagnosed as o2 sensor & rav operated perfectly (live where emissions check not required). may 2009 tranny started alternating between working good, shifting rough, slipping between gears, and not downshifting at slow down or stop. had mechanic with over 15 yrs experience at toyota dealership check it (after hours). he was unaware of connection to faulty ecm so we thought trany was bad & he flushed tranny. that reduced frequency of symptoms but did not stop them. we still thought problem was mechanical & tranny rebuild/replace was inevitable & i drove it longer to save up money for repairs. i live on a semi-rural ohio state route with 55mph posted limit & 65mph average speed. i had numerous near misses when the vehicle would not accelerate properly or began to accelerate normally then slipped, hesitated, or refused to shift. my 18yr old son drove the rav in dec & pulled out of our driveway in front of a semi tractor trailer rig with what would have been safe distance except that the rav decided not to accelerate. the truck was able to pass, but had there been oncoming traffic, it would not have been able to slow enough in time. intermittent symptoms continued until 12/14/09 when 2nd & 3rd gear burned out & i drove home 20 miles in 1st. just parts thru toyota will cost $2000 for rebuilt tranny plus $1000 for ecm. independent repairmen can fix the ecm for $65. had i at least known root cause of the symptoms was ecm not tranny (toyota's known since 2006 or before) i could have saved $4-5k & avoided 7 months of risky driving. i challenge anyone who thinks this is not a safety issue to drive one of these and rely on it when it fails in 65mph traffic. or we can wait until someone is killed where there is enough evidence to show this problem was the cause of the accident and not poor driver judgment. *tr | |||
| 07/30/2009 | 1 | ||
| I bought my 2001 toyota rav 4 in 2004. in july 2009, my transmission started slipping and bucking. i have done some research and it seems that this has been an issue for many others with a 2001-2003 rav4. it is terrifying to drive this vehicle but it's all i have. it would cost me more to replace the transmission than it would to just pay it off. i am concerned that i will have an accident, as i do a lot of commuting. i am so disappointed that i have invested so much money in the maintenance of this unreliable vehicle. i heard about toyota's recall on the news yesterday and i am disgusted that toyota has not addressed this issue. this should be as pertinent as a faulty accelerator. i bought my toyota because i had heard that they had a reputation for safe, well-made vehicles. my life is put on the line everytime i have to drive that contraption, and i expect that if nothing is done about this issue to ensure a compensation or extended warranty of some kind, toyota will lose my business( among many, many others, i'm sure.). more importantly, everytime anyone who is having this issue with a toyota rav 4 gets in the car, they are increasing the risk of injury or death caused by an accident from this cheap, faulty, unreliable transmission. please consider this issue when reviewing toyota's lack of concern for their driver's safety. i am sure that some bigwig is sitting in an office somewhere, profiting from the money that toyota saved by using defective parts. *tr | |||
| 01/26/2010 | 114000 | 1 | |
| In our 2001 toyota rav4 we recently began experiencing difficulty transitioning between gears. the car jerks and takes a moment to shift. we took it into the dealership and were told that the computer and transmission needed to be replace. upon researching this i have found hundreds on cases of the same thing happening to 2001-2003 rav4 owners. *cn | |||
| 01/05/2010 | 68860 | 1 | |
| I have an automatic 2001 rav4. while driving we noticed the hard shifting into different gears. then it started to lurch and stall. it happened sporadically. then within a week's time every instance you drove it this happened. it took two times before my mechanic saw that it needed a new transmission, and a new computer that talks to the transmission(ecm engine control module) which they installed. *tr | |||
| 01/20/2010 | 134000 | 1 | |
| My transmission needs to be replaced on my 2001 rav4 due to a faulty computer. *tr | |||
| 01/02/2010 | 115000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav 4. while driving 30 mph, the contact heard a noise in the rear of the vehicle. the contact also observed that the vehicle was driving abnormal. the dealers diagnosis confirmed that the transmission and computer needed to be replaced. a check engine light has never illuminated on the dashboard indicating that there might be a failure. regular maintenance has consistently been maintained by the dealer. the contact stated that the manufacturer should be responsible for the repairs since this was a manufacturers defect. the vin was unavailable. the failure mileage was 115,000. updated 03/04/10. *lj | |||
| 01/12/2010 | 90800 | 1 | |
| Harsh shifting in 2001 rav4. *tr | |||
| 12/30/2009 | 61000 | 1 | |
| I have 2001 toyota rav4. i brought this vehicle in 2001 at molle toyota, kansas city, mo 64114. i am the first owner of this vehicle. transmission suddenly failed while driving this vehicle, and it is snowing on that day. luckily there are no vehicles behind my suv. this vehicle only has 61000 miles. this is the first time i had any problem on this vehicle and it's a big one. i use this vehicle daily to drop my kid at school. i am filing this complaint as a safety concern. reported this problem to toyota. they told be to file a complaint here as well. *tr | |||
| 12/29/2009 | 139768 | 1 | |
| 2001 toyota rav 4 with faulty ecm causing jerky and unresponsive shifting, leading to dangerous highway situations when vehicle is not responsive and forward motion is unsure necessitating pulling over onto the shoulder. toyota response is replacing the ecm for $1135 and possibly replacing transmission for $4032. this is the same complaint as many other rav4 owners. please investigate this situation. pauline olson salinas, ca. *tr | |||
| 12/24/2009 | 92000 | 1 | |
| Experiencing transmission problems (jerking & slipping) with my 2001 toyota rav4. took it the northway toyota dealership in latham, ny. was told that ecm needs to be replaced ($1300) and potentially a transmission ($3400). taxes and labor are to be added. googled dct (error code) p0755 obtained during the checkup and found toyota's technical service bulletin tc002-06 from march 3rd, 2006 describing this problem and indicating the need to replace ecm. this repair would have been covered under toyota federal emissions warranty (96 months or 80,000 miles). why toyota did not contacted me to let me know about this problem in almost 4 years making me to pay almost $5000 for their mistake? *tr | |||
| 04/03/2009 | 145000 | 1 | |
| 2001 toyota rav4. while driving on the interstate vehicle suddenly lurched and jerked, coasted then lurched again, suddenly losing speed, then stalled. engine revved and transmission kept jerking, would not engage fully. traffic was heavy and was nearly run over by truck. extremely dangerous! managed to pull over to shoulder. eventually, managed to drive home at reduced speed on back roads. dealer replaced computer chip, $1,000 bill. toyota notified dealers in 2006 of faulty chip, not me. now, 12-11-09, transmission will not go into gear at all. began hesitating in traffic, as if cutting out. *tr | |||
| 11/05/2009 | 110400 | 1 | |
| As i tried to accelerate through an intersection where the cross traffic did not stop, my car would not accelerate beyond 25mph and my family and i came dangerously close to a pretty serious accident. unfortunately, i cannot afford to replace the transmission right now, which is what is needed, so i do have to continue to drive the vehicle. i have to utilize little used roads and hope that i can get a little more life out of my current transmission! *tr | |||
| 11/09/2009 | 108000 | 1 | |
| Going at below 40mph car on the expressway in rush hour traffic to take my son to school my 2001 toyota rav4 began to jerk repeatedly under acceleration. this was extremely frightening as i felt the car would lunge forward out of my control and hit the cars in front of me! it would stop if over 40 could be maintained. a few days prior i experienced this 2 single jerks while driving through a parking lot. the car was taken in to a nearby dealer for diagnosis. i am being told that i need to replace the car's computer and may possibly need to replace the transmission. toyota has issued a service bulletin on this some years ago but i was never notified. the jerking represents a very serious safety and consumer liability and there should be some recourse for prevention. *tr | |||
| 11/16/2009 | 69000 | 1 | |
| I have a 2001 toyota rav4 and have a problem with the transmission. the car lost its ability to drive because the ecm for the transmission broke. it cost about 1,000 dollars to fix and the car still doesn't sound or drive like it used to. i am afraid the transmission will fail in bad weather or on a hill and i will hurt people. the mechanic told me that other cars with this ecm problem later do have transmission problems and calls to toyota are not fruitful. there is approximately 69,000 miles on this car and i am the original owner of this car. the power train should not be a problem to a relatively young car like this it should be under warranty to 100,000 miles not 60,000 miles. this car and the other toyotas i am reading about should be recalled they are dangerous. *tr | |||
| 09/12/2009 | 120000 | 1 | |
| After not having problems for nearly 4 years, the cil came on and the transmission began hard-shifting from 1st to 2nd gear. the ecm code was for an o2 sensor heater. changed the sensor, light came back on calling out a gear and the shifting was worse. took it to the dealership. they flushed the oil and flashed the ecm per tsb. ran fine for one day. cil came back on and hard shifted horribly while on the freeway on the way home. pulled over and checked fluids. all fluids looked clean and were at appropriate levels. headed for dealership again. got on the freeway and low gear hard-shift went away, but suddenly lost all power and narrowly avoided an accident at 60 mph! car regained power and shifted fine in low gears but would not shift above 3rd. drove rest of the way to dealer at 35 mph and dropped it off for diagnostics. i have spent almost $2k in diagnoses, parts, and labor and the problem is not fixed. now, we nearly were killed on a major freeway! this is dangerous! this problem manifested in september and peaked yesterday (11/17/09). we cannot afford to keep paying to repair this obviously unsafe defect. *tr | |||
| 10/19/2009 | 172438 | 1 | |
| My 2001 toyota rav4 shifts gears erratically and stalls while being driven. it started while i was driving on the interstate by suddenly surging while i was driving 70mph. now it occurs daily while trying to take off from a stopped position or even while driving speeds of 25 to 40 mph. i had the transmission flushed but this did not alleviate the problem and i've been getting estimates in regards to the transmission. *tr | |||
| 05/10/2009 | 82000 | 1 | |
| The computer in my rav4 failed. it was giving my transmission intermittent commands to drive in the wrong gear. for example, my mechanic said there were times the car was essentially in 2 gears at the same time. i was nearly in an accident because the car bucked and almost stalled as i tried to move forward from a stop. once it started happening i drove to the nearest mechanic i could find and only made right turns because i was afraid and didn't know what the car would do. it burned up the transmission and i had to have it replaced. when the computer was reset (as when the battery is disconnected) the car would drive normally for a few miles and then the ecm would begin giving the wrong commands again. the mechanic had to drive the car to the nearby toyota dealer to get the ecm repaired and he got to experience the problem. he said it was a scary ride, which it was. when i spoke with toyota's customer service the rep denied that the rav4 has a history of this problem. when i told him that i had researched on the internet and had found many people with my problem he stated that anyone could create fake internet postings, including myself. please, please research this. toyota takes no responsibility and i worry what will happen. my car has been fixed but i don't want other people to go through what i did. i don't want someone to be injured or killed because their car has the same issue mine did. it comes on very suddenly, it is not the case of a small problem gradually becoming worse. if i had known that i could make a report like this i would have done so sooner. *tr | |||
| 01/01/2002 | 4000 | 1 | |
| Not easy to explain, i have been having this problem on going mildly for the past four years but every time i would bring it in nobody could see the problem. i have been having a problem mostly starting the car and then after braking it almost feels like a clog. i was told about two years ago it was the cat converter, had it repaired for $1000 and it did not cure the problem. i just brought it in because it is getting so much worse, i was told it was my spark plugs and cylinders so i had that repaired and after driving for 5 minutes experienced the same problem was told it was the computer and it had to be replaced for $1300 dollars. (was told that this problem did not show before i had the cylinders repaired.) i live in the northeast and am terrified when the snow and ice begin because when in clogs or bucks i am open to losing control of the car. *tr | |||
| 11/04/2009 | 106000 | 1 | |
| 2001 rav4 transmission just failed today. read anytimes article about ecm problem. when i called toyota, i was told that nothing could be done even though they knew that ecm problem would cause transmission to fail. this should have been recalled or at the very least notify owners so that we could have the problem fixed before truly expensive repairs need to be made. this is not the first issue i have had with my car that toyota failed to notify me of in time to correct. *tr | |||
| 10/01/2009 | 68000 | 1 | |
| I was driving to work when i stopped at the red light when it turned green i tried toaccelarate but my was stuck and there was a heavy traffic i took this car to the toyota dealer they told me it was the transmission i took it to a transmission place i changed it but two day after it gave me the same problem only this time on the highway i started looking for answer and found out that most of the 2001 rav 4 ecu came out with a problem but never got a recall now the toyota company are not taking any responsibility for this is there anyone that can help me with this pro thank you there is a website where you can see all the people complaining bout the same problem i had it seems that toyota has known about this problem but never did anything about ithttp://www.carcomplaints.com/toyota/rav4/2001/transmission/problems_shifting.shtml. *tr | |||
| 10/26/2009 | 142000 | 1 | |
| 2001 toyota rav4 2wd 4 cylinder. the transmission is stalls at take off, i was told i have to replace the ecm and transmission. my car stalled in the middle of an intersection almost causing an accident, leaving our car in the middle of the intersection while there was on going traffic. *tr | |||
| 10/10/2009 | 120000 | 1 | |
| My 2001 toyota rav 4 would not shift when i pulled into traffic and almost caused accidents as i pulled onto the interstate, it seems that service bulletin was issued for transmission problems and i never got it and now toyota wont fix it, i have small children in the car daily. *tr | |||
| 10/15/2009 | 170098 | 1 | |
| I own a 2001 toyota rav4 and the transmission started acting funny this morning. in reverse it started jerking. i also noticed some hesitation in 1st and 2nd gears. i decided to leave the car at home and took a ride to work. my wife took the car to school to pick up the kids and it was driving fine. when she picked up the kids from school and she got on the freeway all of the sudden the transmission started jerking my wife almost got hit by a suv. she managed to pull over and turn the car off. when she turned it back on after 2 minutes and started driving it was fine. i searched online and come to find out this is been a known problem with this truck. i just like to know how come some one never took any action including toyota. when i called the local toyota dealer they advise me to have the car checked and the ecu needs to be replaced because apparently there has been 14 cars in their service department which had the same issue. *tr | |||
| 09/27/2009 | 11600 | 1 | |
| 2001 toyota rav4 stalls at stop lights, does not want to shift into first or second gear, very dangerous for our driver at college in st. louis. in research, have found numerous similar complaints re 2002 rav4s and it appears it is faulty engineering. diagnostics indicated internal transmission problems. *tr | |||
| 07/21/2009 | 85000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. when attempting to accelerate, he experienced gear failure. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and the transmission module was replaced. the failure mileage was 85000 and the current mileage was 97335. | |||
| 09/13/2009 | 98000 | 1 | |
| While driving at typical city speeds, the transmission made a loud clanking sound and the car stated stuttering intermittently. often when starting from a stop, the car had trouble finding a gear and did not move forward. while driving, sometimes there was little or no acceleration. this caused a problem for drivers behind me. the fix was a new engine control module (ecm). fortunately, the mechanic knew about toyota's technical bulletin on this matter. *tr | |||
| 09/18/2009 | 115000 | 1 | |
| The ecm computer on my 2001 rav4 is failing, causing the transmission to stall during automatic shift change. this occurs each time you start in 1st, moving to second gear and is very dangerous. this lasts several seconds and can repeat in second gear. traffic behind you can easily run into you and if you are entering a freeway, you can be seriously injured by transmission failing or stalling as a result. toyota issued a tsb in 2006 to dealers yet did not notify owners. this is a serious safety issue and an immediate recall should be issued to repair this problem. my mechanic and one dealer i talked to indicate that the ecm computer and transmission need to be replaced at an estimated cost of $5000. my mechanic indicated he has seen over 100 vehicles on this at his business alone. this is not an isolated problem. since my vehicle is over 8 yrs old and 115k mileage, there is no extended warranty. why did toyota notify its dealers in march 2006 of the problem and not notify the customers. why have you not addressed this issue by asking toyota to issue a recall to correct this very serious issue. if the computer fails completely, the car will more than likely stop in traffic. my mechanic indicates that a new computer must be put in and the transmission must be re built. this started on friday, sept 18th, about 4pm as i was driving home on the freeway. i had the vehicle immediately checked and this was the determination. i have parked the car since and cannot drive it until repaired. please advise on this before someone is seriously injured or killed. thank you. *tr | |||
| 09/17/2009 | 118000 | 1 | |
| Complaint regarding ecm on 2001 toyota rav4. ecm causes shifting issues with automatic transmission resulting in unsafe operation of vehicle. requires replacement of ecm at a minimum. *tr | |||
| 01/28/2009 | 75473 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4 utility. the contact stated that intermittently the vehicle would down shift. as a consequence his risk for vehicle crash was increased. he has taken the vehicle to multiple dealers, in which the technician have reprogrammed the ecu, replaced the computer module and transmission. none of the repairs have remedied the failure. he contacted the manufacturer and was only offered a $300.00 discount toward future repairs. the failure mileage was 75,473. the current mileage was 80,426. bl | |||
| 08/26/2009 | 172500 | 1 | |
| 2001 toyota rav4 4wd car has not had any problems until recently when the transmission started acting up. it is very intermittent. when starting from a stopped position or getting onto a freeway the car will loose its power. the transmission slips, jerks, and engine speeds up without car properly accelerating. very dangerous situation because you cannot merge with traffic, can?t get out of the way of other vehicles once the car enters an intersection, or could get rear ended by other vehicles. i can drive the car for a couple of days without the problem showing up. had it in to my mechanic twice and they can?t reproduce it to fix it. no problems show up on the computer check. when it does happen it might only happen once when starting out from a stop and then be fine for many days or miles. i cannot make it do it. after researching this problem on the internet i have learned it is a defective design problem with the ecm module that controls the transmission. toyota has issued a technical service bulletin dated march 6, 2006. they have not notified owners of the problem. *tr | |||
| 08/05/2009 | 100000 | 1 | |
| Rav4 2001 transmission problem, the transmission went at only 100,000 miles, dealer replace the transmission but they charged me $3,600 this include the new ecm they installed required by warranty in the transmission. please make note if there is more vehicles(rav4 2001) with this issue. *tr | |||
| 09/04/2009 | 145095 | 1 | |
| Car had check engine light coming on; mechanic ran diagnostics on system- check engine light went off. radiator needed replacement. after car pickup, car gradually started shifting abnormally between 2nd and 3rd gear- 2001 toyota rav4. *tr | |||
| 12/31/2006 | 80000 | 1 | |
| My 2001 rav4, with just over 80k on it, went belly-up. two days before the extended warranty expired (bought it certified used), the transmission started slipping, disabling the car 2 hours from home. the dealer it was towed to said they couldn't find anything wrong with it, put in 3/4 qt of tranny fluid, called it good. in february, after it was out of warranty, it once again died on a trip, again 2 hours away from home. the dealer i had it towed to this time said it needed a new transmission. the code was p0770 for solenoid malfunction. after long negotiations with toyota they replaced the transmission. *tr | |||
| 10/17/2008 | 85000 | 1 | |
| Fall '08 2001 toyota rav4 began stalling unexpectedly while changing gears between 2 and 3 rpms. sudden jerks and halts occur after coming to complete stops and attempting to accelerate to go. diagnostic test claims solenoids but toyota dealership suggests replacing ecm and/or transmission. an expense of about $4500 without guarantee of fixing the problem. extremely dangerous when driving in highway, keeping up with traffic pace suddenly halts and looses power. *tr | |||
| 06/08/2008 | 93000 | 1 | |
| January 2008 i had the ecm reprogrammed by toyota after receiving a letter to come in for this. on june 3, 2008, i experienced a sudden stutter followed by a loud noise while driving. the following morning while driving to work the vehicle stuttered and felt like it was going to stall. it would hesitate on acceleration. i called the dealership for servicing and took the care in. the advisor told me to replace the ecm and transmission. the service code indicated that the transmission failed. the toyota tech service bulletin (tc002-06) from 3//3/06 indicated that improvements had been made to the manufacturing process of the ecm and to repair this problem, r&r ecm which was not done in the recall. *tr | |||
| 12/15/2008 | 99820 | 1 | |
| My 2001 toyota rav4 began acting up and would not shift correctly. it would shift very hard, and would often hesitate before shifting into gear. the check engine light came on, and the vehicle was taken to a transmission shop. the shop recommended replacing the transmission and ecm monitor to correct the issue, as they were very aware of the issue with the rav4's and also because metal shavings were found in the transmission pan. toyota is well aware of this issue, and continues to try and avoid their responsibilities with these vehicles. in march 2006, toyota sent dealers a technical service bulletin warning them that some consumers might complain about harsh shifting. it said improvements were made to the computer ?manufacturing process to reduce the possibility of this condition occurring.? it then told the dealers to replace the module and if that did not work to replace the transmission. but consumers owning the vehicles were never notified about the problem. toyota also refused to do anything is the vehicles mileage is over the 80,000 warranty period, and lucky for them, most vehicles do not have any issues until they are out of the warranty period. *tr | |||
| 08/15/2009 | 68700 | 1 | |
| 2001 toyota rav4 has transmission slippage/harsh shifting. manufacturer defect in ecu is well known but toyota will not replace defective item. anyone driving this model is in a ticking time bomb for transmission failure. if it happens at speed, there will be death/injury incurred. information was in n.y. times on 8/26/2009 article. i am the owner of this vehicle and want to be added to the nhtsa list of complaints/concerns about this well known defect. request agency pressure toyota to recall/replace ecu/ecm/transmission as needed on every operational rav4 in the 2001-2003 range. toyota issued a technical service bulletin tc002-06 on march 3, 2006 advising service managers to replace ecm/transmissions.. only if customer complains this is a devious way of avoiding an outright notification/recall and i request your good agency help owners like me who are endangering their families/them selves & the general public on our roads. i am a licensed driving instructor in the state of connecticut and will make everyone i know aware of this dangerous situation with a toyota product. your assistance is appreciated. *tr | |||
| 05/18/2009 | 83732 | 1 | |
| My toyota rav 4 (2001) suddenly started sliding, jerking, motor racing in may of 2009. it had just passed the 80,000 mi mark, and the shifting of the transmission nearly stopped. i had bought it used, and when we checked with the local dealership, found that the 2006 bulletin on the problems with the ecu which controls the transmission had resulted in the ecu being 'flashed'. so it had the work done which would supposedly fix the problem. it is lucky that it happened on a street and not on a freeway, which would most likely have resulted in a terrible accident. toyota was phoned, a complaint was made. nothing has happened. at my own expense, i had the ecu rebuilt; the damage to the transmission was there, but the rebuilding of the ecu enabled me to drive the car. i don't know how long it will last. *tr | |||
| 04/17/2008 | 88586 | 1 | |
| Cost of repair: 2684.47 & car was at dealership for app. 1 month total. my rav4 started occasionally shifting hard and would not go into the next gear. when it finally went into the next gear it felt like a sudden jump. the engine would rev and the rpms would increase while the car was in neutral. it reached a point where it would not go into the next gear at all. i took it to toyota dealership. i spoke with service advisor ,he said that the problem was due to the engine control module. a service bulletin (tc002-06 89661-42650) instructed in cases such as mine the ecm was to be replaced. and he also strongly advised that the transmission fluid needed to be flushed, although it did not show any need to be, but he and the master mechanic felt it would be needed. the original quote for the above was over $1500. when i complained that i didn?t feel it was right that i should pay when it was a known bad ecm the price dropped for ?customer loyalty, blah, blah?. they felt they did me a favor and only charged me $740.47 . two days after i got it out of the shop it did the same exact thing. i had been very disgusted with the service i received, the not returning of phone calls, etc. the last place i wanted to go was back to the dealer. on or about may 2, 2008 i took it back to the dealership. the engine oil light had begun to flicker. the original problem still existed. they were unable to duplicate the problem. the check engine light was on. they said the engine oil light and the check engine light was on due to oil gelation and the catalytic converter. i went for a ride with service advisor tom druzynski and we quickly were able to duplicate original problem. i was then told the transaxle needed to be replaced and the engine rebuilt. service adv told me repairs would cost $7000. i unsuccessfully complained to corporate toyota 2 times. repair cost went from 7000 to 1800.the a/c hasn't worked since. *tr | |||
| 07/03/2008 | 86000 | 1 | |
| I gave the rav 4 gas the engine was revving up but the car did not move. i put it in neutral and then drive to no avail. i had to be pushed off the road since the car did not move . i had to have the transmission rebuilt at a cost of $3700. *tr | |||
| 01/04/2009 | 81000 | 1 | |
| My 2001 toyota rav 4 started experiencing hard shifting late last year. the shifts became harder early this year particularly between 2nd and 3rd gear. i've never had any serious problems with my vehicle and at that time i had probably 78000 miles. when the hard shifting occurred, my vehicle would almost stall completely while driving. i started doing some research and discovered a known transmission trouble supposedly solved by reprogramming my ecm card(which i had done). this however did not solve my problem. according to other's who had the same thing done, the transmission will have to be replaced because the faulty programming has already damaged my existing transmission. i am still driving my rav4 waiting for it to completely fail. toyota should be responsible for replacing the transmission. i bought a toyota at a higher price point, for it's reliability! the 1st major repair made on my vehicle should not be the transmission. *tr | |||
| 03/23/2009 | 97000 | 1 | |
| The ecu computer on a 2001 toyota rav4 caused the automatic trans to not shift like it should. it got so bad that it felt like it went into park coming to a red light. computer ecu had to be repaired and the trans rebuilt and the trans shop that did the work was not so good. toyota wants $4200 to fix. *tr | |||
| 06/25/2009 | 97323 | 1 | |
| Somewhere around the later part of june, 2009 my car began hesitating. i took it to the dealer and they could not find what was wrong with it. i took it back and then was informed the it was my ecm. i contacted toyota to have this problem fixed since it was a manufacturing problem during production. they informed me that it was my responsibility to get it fixed. my vehicle has around 97,000 miles on it. this is happening on a regular basis. several times my family and i were endangered because someone almost hit my vehicle from the back because of the hesitation. as of today, i have not been successful at getting toyota to offer any assistance in getting this repairs. the consumer stated the vehicle would loose acceleration and the rpm spiked. whenever the consumer stopped at a light, the vehicle failed to move immediately. the technician informed the consumer the transmission was slipping, due to a problem stemming from the ecm, which was not reading properly which was affecting the transmission. updated ivoq. 08/07/09.*jb | |||
| 06/09/2009 | 121000 | 1 | |
| All of a sudden out of the blue my transmission started slipping and hard shifting. we drove it home to park it until we could figure out the problem. $1000 later and no thanks to toyota it is fixed. it was the computer that needed reprogrammed. thankfully the transmission wasn't shot b/c we didn't drive it after it started to hard shift and slip. took it to toyota and they were going to charge us $5000 for a new transmission. but we found someone to help us with the computer problem. *tr | |||
| 06/15/2009 | 106000 | 1 | |
| Faulty ecu in 2001 rav4 automatic causes internal transmission failure. slipping & double-shifting between 2nd & 3rd gear, longer ecu is used the worse the slipping occurs. resetting ecu fixes problem for several hours and tranny will work perfect, then it starts acting up again. *tr | |||
| 07/06/2009 | 81000 | 1 | |
| Our toyota rav 4 is having electronic control module is a bust. it controls among other things our transmission, and the shifting of gears. the ecm has pretty much ruined our transmission. there has been many rav 4 owners with this same problem. and toyota is (was) a reputable company. one would think they would make this right. our warranty was up last year. and there was recalls on different computer things from them but, they will not help us. and we do not have the money to fix this. and this is our only family car. one we need to help us get to work. any suggestions? *tr | |||
| 02/01/2009 | 123000 | 1 | |
| I am one of the many unlucky people who own a 2001 toyota rav-4 which has had check engine light issue for years. after brining to toyota more than once to have them not be able to turn off i am now facing a failed transmission- over $2,500 to fix. as i see all these complaints regarding the faulty ecm and toyota's lack of acknowledgement i am disgusted. shame on toyota and as a once loyal owner i will never buy a toyota again and would not recommend to anyone. *tr | |||
| 01/31/2009 | 61696 | 1 | |
| Rav4 do not shift gear. some times it was like jerked shifting and i searched about this problem in internet and found several problem reported in carcomplaints.com site. this is what happened to me. i took car to a dealer - lombard toyota, il, and told about gear shifting problem. at first they did not say anything about the known problem with rav4. when i said, i researched about this problem in internet and found that rav4 has a gear shifting problem and toyota knows about it, and there is a tsr-tech service bulletin, and it needs to repair free. they told me let us take a look at. after half an hour, they told me i am lucky it is still under warranty 8yr/80000. i purchased this one on 2/??/2001. so i am luckily covered. i did a little argued that even if i am out of warranty, toyota should take care of this problem because it is a defect. they did not care much. and i did not press on it. so here is the problem-according to toyota service bulletin tc002-06 revised model 2001-2003 rav4 equipped with automatic transaxle may exhibit a harsh shift and/or m.i.l on dtc p0750, p0753, p0755, p0758, and/or p1760. improvements have been made to the engine control module (ecm) sae term - powertrain control module/pcm) manufacturing process to reduce the possibility of this condition occurring. use the following procedure to repair the vehicle. they replace a r&r engine control module. my rav4 drives good now. i still think my rav4 is really not smooth. or atleast that is the way i feel. this is it for right now. if anything comes up i will update later. *tr | |||
| 12/17/2008 | 98500 | 1 | |
| My 2001 rav4 developed a shifting issue, and eventually produced a check engine code, which indicated an issue with the transmission solenoid. the transmission shop tells me that i need a new transmission at the cost of $3200. they also tell me that this is a common issue with the 2001-2003 rav4s, and that toyota is aware of it. a techinical service bulletin was issued in 2006, indicating that there was an issue with some rav4s, and that the ecm should be replaced - if not the transmission may be ruined. i was never informed of any possible issue, and now my vehicle is ruined. it is extremely dangerous to drive, and would not shift into gear correctly. this is a safety issue in that i was unaware that there was any issue, and until the check engine light came on, i was unaware that my car may not shift correctly at any given moment. *tr | |||
| 11/08/2008 | 85400 | 1 | |
| On november 8, while traveling to worcester to see a friend recovering from a serious medical next i called two of the major transmission specialists in the area; cottman transmission in northampton and the tranny shop in palmer, where brian and scott told me that toyota's reprogramming didn't work, and that i'd need to buy a new module out of pocket for $900-1100. they both said that if i caught it early, i wouldn't need a new transmission. it seems toyota is aware of this problem, but unwilling to pay to make it right. *tr | |||
| 08/01/2008 | 124000 | 1 | |
| 2001 rav 4 transmission not shifting right. just started to happen. cannot drive the car, i do not have the money to fix it. dealer and another garage said it needed a new transmission. i guess that ravs have this problem and toyota won't acknowledge the fact that they do and keep selling them and people keep getting ripped off. *tr | |||
| 06/10/2008 | 92000 | 1 | |
| I have not been injured, but believe the issue with my transmission is not only a manufacturer's defect, but poses a safety issue depending on the severity. there are hundreds of others experiencing this same issue with their toyota rav4s that were produced between the years 2001-2003. a defective computer part is causing damage to the transmission, ultimately destroying them if not caught early and replaced at a cost of $1200! in many cases, the transmission still needs to be replaced at an additional cost of around $3500 or more. it is sickening that a company such as toyota would not recall this part and cover the cost of malfunctions! it is a safety issue, as you never know how severe the lurching and skipping of the transmission will be. it can come out of nowhere and that certainly creates the potential for accidents. i think this issue is on the rise because it tends to happen with higher mile vehicles. i truly hope more consumers will file complaints so that toyota will be forced to stand behind their product. i am glad that i have heard of no reported injuries at this point-i hope that remains the case. *tr | |||
| 07/21/2008 | 75000 | 1 | |
| Acceleration frequently hesitates causing driver to pull out into traffic without power. this problem has recently gotten worse and happens every time i drive. internet research suggests a bad ecm is causing the problem. *tr | |||
| 07/06/2008 | 117000 | 1 | |
| I have a toyota rav4 2001 car. its an auto transmission with 117,000 miles on it. suddenly about 10 days ago i started feeling the harsh shifting / bucking / jerking while taking the car. i then went to a near by toyota dealer for diagnostic test and what they have found was a fault code p0755 (harsh shift and/or m.i.l. ?on? dtc p0750/p0753/p0755/p0758/p1760) which is basically recommending to replace the engine control module. i then searched about this fault code on the internet i ended up on a website (http://www.carcomplaints.com/toyota/rav4/2002/transmission/problems_shifting.shtml) where i could see numerous similar complaints. it looks like toyota has made a fault ecm and have installed in so many rav4 (b/w 2001 - 2003 model year), which made so many customers like us to go through a lot of service expenses. please do the needful so that toyota makes a reimburse the expenses for all the customers who has gone through some financial burden due to this. *tr | |||
| 07/07/2008 | 83000 | 1 | |
| Our 2001 toyota rav4 recently started shifting very hard and the check engine light came on. i took the car to the dealer and started to do some research. the car was very dangerous to drive as there were large hesitations before the next gear would catch. i found out that toyota put out tsb tc002-06 in regards to a defective ecm computer that controls the transmission. our ecm did need to be replaced, but toyota needs to take responsibility for this serious safety issue. they should be replacing this part for free. toyota has admitted the part is defective, yet will not stand behind their product. the damages to our car due to this computer could have cost in excess of $5,000 to repair. *tr | |||
| 06/16/2008 | 134833 | 1 | |
| My '01 toyota rav4 began experience shifting problems in aug07, it would not shift properly, and would suddenly slam into gear. this happened sporadically on and off, check engine light would go on and off. due to this problem, it made it very dangerous to merge onto highways, as i'm trying to accelerate and the car won't go beyond 1st gear, and then once i'm running, it slams into gear, almost causing me to hit the car in front of me. in nov07, based on a notice from toyota, i sent car to dealer to get ecm reprogrammed. apparently this was causing the problem. well, it did nothing. so in june08, as the problem got even worse, i sent it back to dealer. they said i needed the ecm replaced, this caused my car to get worse. so a week later, i took it to a transmission specialist to get transmission rebuilt. *tr | |||
| 04/24/2008 | 68000 | 1 | |
| As described by many others that own a toyota rav-4 (2001) , my car experienced major problems shifting. after researching the problem, i discovered that it was described in a service bulletin released by toyota. i took my car to the dealership and demanded that they replace the ecm instead of simply resetting it as they were planning on doing. the problem has not returned to date, but had it not been for the information provided by others (on various websites), i would not have known to make this request. i was lucky that my vehicle was under the specified mileage and that the costs were covered by the warranty. *tr | |||
| 04/03/2008 | 112000 | 1 | 10/17/2001 |
| 2001 toyota rav 4 has premature transmission failure causing slipping, and delayed shifting. *tr | |||
| 03/08/2008 | 87000 | 1 | |
| Transmission slipping on 2001 toyota rav4. service bulletin issued requiring replacement of computer to fix this problem. bulletin extended warranty to 80,000. consumer never notified of this problem. computer went bad at 87,000 miles. toyota and consumer currently going round and round over whether toyota or consumer must pay for computer replacement. consumer also told that transmission may now need to be replaced. toyota has received numerous complaints about this problem from rav4 owners and in many cases the shift problems related to the computer failure has resulted in damage to transmission which toyota will not pay for. *tr | |||
| 09/25/2007 | 15 | 1 | 03/01/2001 |
| Rough shift in low gears causing engine to rev but car does not move. had solenoids replaced, problem still exists. told ecm needs to be replaced but other owners said this has not corrected the problem. car revs but goes no where and creates dangerous situation especially in dense traffic with big trucks. *tr | |||
| 03/31/2007 | 80000 | 1 | 01/10/2001 |
| Tl*- the contact stated that while driving the 2001 toyota rav 4 at 65 mph (with 80000 failure mileage the vehicle began to make a clinking noise. the contact pulled over to the side of the road and turned the vehicle off. the vehicle would not restart. the vehicle was towed to a mechanic, who stated that there was a sludge build up, and the transmission had to be replaced. *ak | |||
| 08/20/2004 | 31000 | 100 | 01/20/2004 |
| Vehicle hesitates frequently when engine cold. will not accelerate even with accelerator pedal fully depressed. hesitation last for several seconds. extremely dangerous pulling into traffic because one is never sure if vehicle will accelerate normally or limp along for several seconds. *jb | |||
| 07/01/2001 | |||
| The vehicle doesn't respond to throttle pressure and transmission doesn't shift down properly. this is noticed as a hesitation. when the transmission finally down shifts it shifts all the way to first gear, then roars for a few seconds, then shifts quickly. | |||
| 08/25/2001 | 12 | 10/01/2000 | |
| Vehicle exhibits intermittent hesitation upon acceleration from stop or low speed.hesitation has occurred since shortly after vehicle purchase date, with increased frequency during last 60-90 days. hesitation occurs both with air conditionong on and off, and with 4-speed automatic transmission overdive on and off. 2-3 occurrences per week are currently experienced. most frequent when vehicle is making slow turn (both right and left) and lasts 5-10 seconds even if accelerator is nearly fully depressed. hesitation has also occurred when moving straight ahead from stop or from low speed (5-10 mph) stop and go traffic. dealer has been notified and could not replicate problem or offer a solution, however vehicle was driven for only a short time by dealer's service technicians. dealer indicates no report of similiar problems either at this dealership or to toyota usa although i know of other 2001 rav4 owners who have reported a hesitation problem to their dealers and have not had the problem resolved. while this problem is intermittent, this is,in some ways, worse than if it happened every time because there is no way to pedict the event and compensate for it.*ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - CONTROL MODULE (TCM, PCM) | |||
| 03/20/2008 | 1 | 12/13/2003 | |
| I have not had an accident or injuries to what my complaint is about. i personally think this is a safety issue. i drive a 2001 toyota rav4 and recently started having shifting issues. i started to research this issue and came across this website called carcomplaints.com and found many others with the same issue. toyota is aware of the problems because they came out with a tsb in 2006. when you come to a complete stop and then go to drive the car forward the vehicle doesn't shift properly therefore could be a safety issue with not being able to move out of the way of on coming traffic. please visit this website and see the amount of people having the same issues and i like many others feel there is a defective ecm in these vehicles sending faulty signals to the transmission causing the vehicle to not shift properly and could potentially cause accidents. the other problem is that this is not happening all the time, its sporadic and even the dealer is having difficulty duplicating the problem. i hope more people make complaints and i would be interested in seeing how many have. thanks! *tr | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - TORQUE CONVERTER | |||
| 01/28/2008 | 72000 | 1 | 02/18/2001 |
| I have a toyota rav 4 4wd 2001 model. at 47,000 miles i had an engine replacement done by lynch toyota under warranty. 25,000 miles later vehicle was diagnosed with a cracked flex plate. repair was done by aamco and in their written report they state that due to an alignment dowel that was cut off when lynch replaced the engine, the engine became misaligned and the flex plate cracked. in addition the torque converter also had to be replaced. the reports were handed to lynch and their service manager does not accept responsibility for this and reported that the cracked flex plate was more than likely due to poor materials. i still have the flex plate and would like to know if there is a way to have it checked to find out if indeed it was made from poor materials. aamco don't appear to believe this to be the case. *tr | |||
| POWER TRAIN - MANUAL TRANSMISSION | |||
| 02/26/2011 | 158000 | ||
| Tl - the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav 4. the contact stated that while driving she tried to change gears and was unable to shifted. she also mentioned the vehicle jerk violently when she finally got it to shifted. the vehicle was taken to a local shop who diagnosed an electrical problem on the computer. the manufacturer who did not offered any assistance since the vehicle was out warranty. the vehicle was not repaired. the failure and current mileage was 158,000. pm | |||
| 06/07/2010 | |||
| Tl-the contact owns a 2001 toyota rav4. while the contact was driving approximately 15 mph, the manual transmission began to stutter and then the vehicle completely stalled. the engine restarted and resumed normal. the failure occurred intermittently. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. the failure mileage was unknown. js | |||
| 01/01/2008 | 74000 | ||
| Toyota rav4 2001 model - standard transmission that failed at about 74,000 miles. | |||
| 09/08/2007 | 1 | ||
| Circuit board for transmission failed and valve. *tr | |||
| 10/20/2000 | 1 | ||
| The transmission shifts slowly, pops into reverse while in the car wash and the rpm gauge shows high rpm's when accelerating in third gear. nlm | |||
| POWER TRAIN - MANUAL TRANSMISSION - FLOOR SHIFT ASSEMBLY | |||
| 04/10/2006 | 73000 | 1 | 01/03/2001 |
| 2001 rav4 manual transmission - the gear shift started moving back and forth in the 5th gear position when pressure was applied/released from the gas pedal. went to balise toyota in west springfield, ma and was told that this was normal behavior (even though i had the car for 5 years and it just started happening. about a week later, the car started popping out of 5th gear. balise then admitted that this was not normal and repaired the problem (there was a service bulletin from toyota out about the problem). when i got the car back, the gearshift did not move when in 5th gear. it is now december and the gearshift is once again moving back and forth in 5th gear and balise toyota is telling me it is normal and they refuse to fix the problem while the car is still under the extended warranty. there are other people on the internet who have reported this same problem. toyota should have a recall to fix the problem as having a car drop out of gear is a safety hazard, especially at highway speeds when it would be most apt to happen. *nm | |||