10.0
really awful- Crashes / Fires:
- 2 / 2
- Injuries / Deaths:
- 1 / 0
- Average Mileage:
- 1,241 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
The NHTSA is the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints can be spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem. See the Back button — blue bar at the very top of the page — to explore more.
The door lock actuators required repair on all my doors for the RAV4 2020. They stopped working after the 3 year warranty was up. This is a safety issue. I had to manually lock and unlock my doors, which left in a dangerous position at night. Over the course of a year all 4 doors needed to have the actuators replaced. This happrened in 2024.
- Cranford, NJ, USA
The paint on my 2020 Toyota RAV4 (Blueprint color) is peeling and deteriorating prematurely, on the hood. The vehicle has been properly maintained and has not been in any accidents. The paint started peeling without any external cause. I-??ve noticed similar complaints from other 2020 Toyota RAV4 owners, especially those with the Blueprint color, reporting the same issue. This suggests a widespread paint or clear coat defect from the manufacturer. The peeling paint not only affects appearance but also exposes the metal body to rust and corrosion, which could eventually compromise the vehicle-??s safety and structure. Toyota has not issued a recall or offered repairs for this known problem, and many owners are being asked to pay out of pocket for costly repainting. I am requesting that NHTSA investigate this issue as a potential manufacturing defect and urge Toyota to take corrective action through a recall or warranty extension for affected vehicles.
- Woodbridge, Va, VA, USA
The hinges for the rear door/hatch broke. The door became unaligned and would not close and I had to drive my vehicle to a repair shop with the rear door ajar. This has not been inspected by manufacturer, no police or insurance inspection either. There is no reason these hinges should be worn and literally torn after 5 years.
- Sierra Vista, AZ, USA
Liftgate hinges on my 2020 RAV4 hybrid XSE failed, causing misalignment so the liftgate/tailgate does not close properly or completely. Liftgate hinges are made of materials that are not strong enough for consistent and safe operation. Toyota has not issued a recall or provided safety warnings or notifications, nor is the company providing replacement hinges. RAV4 owners are left to pay for the replacement of these hinges when it-??s a quality issue that can impact the safe operation of 2020 Toyota RAV4s. Toyota recently settled a lawsuit brought by an individual because of this issue.
- Solomons, MD, USA
Power lift gate not opening and shutting then noted that the mount on the passenger side is partially sheared off the car bracket and starting to separate on the drivers side. Was unable to close the hitch all the way, and beeping continuously while driving so brought to a toyota dealer service who ordered replacement pistons, in the mean time battery died due to being unable to close back. Once piston parts were obtained by toyota service center, had to have the car towed due to battery not able to be charged, then they noticed the bolts starting to shear off. Stated they have never seen anything like this but when looked online, found this has been a common problem and a class action suit has been filed for this exact reason
- Sykesville, MD, USA
right rear hinge for hatchback failed and making my hatchback unusable. I have been on several websites and this common issue it seems for Rav 4. Toyota will not fix it.
- Southbridge, MA, USA
The Rear Hatch started to get stuck. It is automatic so you would normally press a button to open and close and it would slowly move up or down and close shut on its own. When the issue started, it would "pop open" but stay stuck to a point where I would need to manually lift it open. (hitting my head on it often) Right before I took it to the dealership service, it would not close properly. While it seemed close, the notification showed it open therefore, not allowing me to lock my car and the lights on the car would need to stay on while car was parked and off. Driving home, the "open door" notification was beeping non-stop. Once again I had to open and close manually until it was considered "closed" Brought the car into the Toyota Dealership to assess. They found that the power lift gate hinges on the door were coming off and it needs to go to an Auto Body for realignment. I performed research online and found this to be a very common issue with the Toyota RAV4's. I have had leased 2 RAV4's prior to this one and never had a problem (those were manual hatches) [XXX] [XXX] My car has 33k miles on it although this issue (not as severe) started a while ago. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
- Stratford, CT, USA
This vehicle is equipped with a power back door (PBD) that has begun to malfunction. March 29, 2024 was the first occurrence of the PBD malfunction when the opened back door would not fully close after clicking the appropriate button on the electronic key switch. There were no warnings that preceded the malfunction. The PBD would only close the back door a few inches before stopping. Additional clicks only closed it a few more inches and manual closing (requiring significant pressure) was required to fully close the door. Additional random occurrences of this PBD malfunction have happened over the past six months and have now become so frequent that on September 30, 2024 I turned off (via the multi-information display) the PBD function and must now resort to fully manual opening and closing of the back door. Based on multiple other complaints filed with NHTSA for this particular vehicle (2020 Toyota RAV4; NHTSA ID Numbers 11572353, 11572802, 11573768, 11579590, 11585733), I inspected the edges of the back door, the body's back door cavity, and the two back door spindles for damage, foreign objects, dirt, etc. that might impede PDB operation and found none. I also inspected the two back door hinges and saw no damage, no warping, no corrosion, and no movement of the hinges from their original installation locations. This PBD malfunction affects safety as the force required to manually open and close the back door is significant and operation of the back door might be impossible for people not physically able to effect the force needed. The vehicle is available for inspection and has not yet been inspected by the Toyota dealer where I purchased the vehicle in August 2020 or by others.
- Seattle, WA, USA
Trunk lift gate unable to close or open properly due to faulty lift gate shock and strut supports as diagnosed by dealership in January 2024. As of then there is was no ETA on parts to complete repair and was blamed on Toyota not supplying enough parts beyond new vehicles and warranties vehicles. Only resolution was to not use the trunk, or as little as possible and told that I was added to a 700+ person waiting list.
- Minneapolis, MN, USA
For about a year now the back hatch has not opened or closed properly. It sometimes stops just after the latch releases and will not go up. Sometimes it will not come down when you use the switch or it only comes down a few inches and stops. Recently the rear hatch is not aligned with the door opening and does not shut properly. When the rear hatch is closed, you can see that it is not seated in the opening. One side is still open. You can hear road noise from the rear hatch. I worry that exhaust fumes are getting in the rear hatch.
- Iron Station, NC, USA
Over a period of tme water has been collecting in the right rear door. Upon doing some research I found out that this is a problem with the Rav4 of this particle year. During my search I found out that there are drain holes at bottom of the door under a rubber gasket. I lifted the gasket up and there was a large amount of water that came out. After a couple more rains the exact same thing happened again. I took the car to the Toyota dealership where it was purchased from and told them the problem and they stated that the gasket on the bottom of the door needed to be replaced, but not only the right rear door but all three of the other doors as well, but could not explain to me how the water was getting in the doors. I had to pay over $500 in order to get this repair which I feel the cost should be absorbed by Toyota because a design flaw. Any help would be appreciated.
- Lexington, SC, USA
The rear hatch liftgate hinges are not adequately structured to withhold pressure under normal use. Over varied short durations of time from the vehicle being new, the rear liftgate hinge's structure fails. The hinges split and crack. This damage occurs despite factory liftgate struts being in plate to assist in the opening of the liftgate. In my case this issue first appeared during and after a snowstorm. A multitude of similar complaints on forums. This has caused my liftgate to misalign and not close. I have had to turn off the auto liftgate and slowly close it despite it is now rubbing the right rear fender/quarter area. As of now I have to repair the issue with new hinges that have not been redesigned, that will again likely prematurely fail. You can view the complaints within Toyota Forums, all see February 2024 class action lawsuit, Hughes vs Toyota attached with the below photos
- Richmond, KY, USA
My 2020 Rav4 back trunk hinge is coming loose, there for the truck won't close evenly. I took it to dealership to get it fixed, but instead they blamed me but its clearly a manufacturing problem they don't want to take responsibility for it.
- Indian Trail, NC, USA
Tailgate hinge assembly failed/failing. It is available for inspection upon request. Failed hinge has placed the tailgate out of alignment. This prevents the tailgate to close properly, allowing for weather penetration, as well as preventing full closure of tailgate. This safety concern can potentially allow the tailgate to fall off the vehicle during travel, placing myself and others at risk of severe injury. The problem has not been confirmed/reproduced by a dealer or independent service center. The vehicle/component has not been inspected by any other representatives. There were no warning lamps, or any other symptoms prior to failure. This problem first occurred at 0625am, FEB09_2024. Tailgate opened with no issues. Tailgate failed to close on its own, due to misalignment.
- Pennsauken, NJ, USA
When driving down the road at a relatively high speed, the sunroof unexpectedly shattered, which could have led to an accident.
- Longview, TX, USA
Under normal use, the rear Lift gate hinge appears to be failing for no reason. A gap on passenger side of the rear lift gate and body appears to widen and the hinge is squeaking as if it's failing. This causes the power lift gate to not close from time to time. This is still an issue and has not been addressed yet.
- Fresno, CA, USA
Sunroof shattered while driving.
- Gastonia, NC, USA
There is a recall for the roof rails leaking water which can damage the air bags and electrical components. They will not fix the roof with new gaskets unless you actually see the water coming in. My concern is that it is leaking and I'm just not seeing it because the 110 degree weather. I do not want to be in an accident with my wife and kids in the car and have the air bags not work. They should fix the gaskets before it leaks and leads to further potential damage or even life threatening results(air bags being wet and not deploying). They will not fix my roof until it actually starts leaking even tho there is a recall in place. This is ridiculous.
- Phoenix, AZ, USA
Torn bracket holding very rear door in place
- Albuquerque , NM, USA
- Novi, MI, USA