Home · 2012 Toyota RAV4 Plug-in Hybrid · Complaints

What 266 owners told NHTSA about the 2012 Toyota RAV4 Plug-in Hybrid

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (266)Crash / fire / injury (46)Visibility & wipers (60)Speed control (50)Brakes (39)Electrical system (31)Seat belts (31)Engine (23)Airbags (22)Transmission & drivetrain (22)Body & structure (16)Steering (10)

60 of 266 complaints match · Visibility & wipers · clear filters · page 3 of 3

Dec 28, 2015Visibility & wipers

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 TOYOTA RAV4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE WIPERS WERE NOT OPERATING CORRECTLY. THE PASSENGER SIDE WIPER DID NOT FULLY DESCEND PROPERLY. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 15V577000 (VISIBILITY/WIPER); HOWEVER, THE PART TO DO THE REPAIR WAS UNAVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 12,000. VIN TOOL CONFIRMS PARTS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA ODI 10816550

May 12, 2015Visibility & wipers

THE DRIVERS SIDE SUNVISOR STARTED TO DROP DOWN AND WILL NOT STAY IN THE UP POSITION. WE (HUNBAND AND SONS) HAVE ALL HIT OUR HEADS ON THE ON THIS DANGLING SUNVISOR SEVERAL TIMES. THE FRAME OF THIS SUNVISOR IS VERY HARD AND IT ALMOST GAVE ME A HEADACHE. MY A THE DRIVES HEAD IS HIT HARD ENOUGH DURING A SUDDEN STOP THIS THING COULD KNOCK THE DRIVE OUT COLD. MY HUSBAND AND TWO SONS WHO ARE A LITTLE TALLER THAN I, THEY HAVE A DIFFICULT TIME SEEING OUT OF THE FRONT WINDSHIELD BECAUSE THE VISOR WILL NOT STAY UP OR BACK AGAINT THE WINDSHIELD. THE BROKEN BRACKETT IN THE SUNVISOR COULD CAUSE A SERIOUS ACCIDENT. I HAVE RESEARCHED SUNVISORS ON THE TOYOTA VEHICLES AND FOUND THERE HAS BEEN SEVERAL UNANSWERED COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE SUNVISORS.

NHTSA ODI 10715991

Feb 10, 2015Visibility & wipers

WARMING UP THE CAR IN THE AM BECAUSE OF ICE ON THE WINDSHIELD THE WINDSHIELD CRACKED ON THE DRIVER SIDE ABOUT 2" FROM THE BOTTOM TRAVELED ACROSS TO PASSENGER SIDE AND BACK DOWN. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10682634

Nov 5, 2014Visibility & wipersBody & structureEquipment

DRIVER DOOR AN D WINDOW AND COORDINATED LOCK ARE OUT OF SYNC: DRIVE ABOUT 1 MILE AND LOCK CLOSES LIKE SOUND OF BULLET. HAD BEGUN ABOUT 6 MOS. FOLLOWING PURCHASE (AUG, 2012). TAKING TO DEALER TOMORROW & LEAVING CAR UNTIL PROPERLY REPAIRED! THIS IS A TOYOTA RAV4 (2012), PURCHASED NEW. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10652824

Aug 5, 2013Visibility & wipers

ON A SUNNY HOT DAY VEHICLE WAS PARKED FOR APPROX 20 OUTSIDE. ENTERED THE VEHICLE ONCE NO MISHAP. UPON SECOND ENTRY "3 MINUTES APART" WHEN DOOR WAS CLOSED REAR WINDOW JUST FELL APART. I FOUND GLASS ON THE GROUND OUTSIDE OF THE VEHICLE AND THE REMAINING GLASS IN THE VEHICLE. WHAT APPEARS TO HAVE HAPPEN IS THE REAR WINDOW EXPLODED. NOT AWARE OF ANY PRIOR DAMAGE TO THE WINDOW. TOYOTA WAS GIVEN TWO ATTEMPTS TO REVIEW THE GRIEVANCE ON EACH OCCASION CLAIMING OWNER FAULT OR RESPONSIBILITY. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10533612

Jul 1, 2013Visibility & wipers

2012 TOYOTA RAV4 REAR CARGO DOOR WINDOW SHATTERED, AND GLASS FELL INSIDE VEHICLE AND OUTSIDE VEHICLE. THIS OCCURED WHILE CAR WAS PARKED, AND THE DRIVERS DOOR WAS BEING CLOSED. VEHICLE HAD BEEN IN GARAGE, NO VISIBLE DAMAGE TO REAR WINDOW HAD BEEN NOTED. I FEEL IT IS A DEFECT IN THE GLASS, AS SEVERAL OTHERS HAVE BEEN REPORTED; HOWEVER TOYOTA FEELS DIFFERENTLY, AS I CAN'T PROVE THERE WAS A DEFECT IN THE GLASS, SINCE THE GLASS IS IN A MILLION PIECES INSIDE MY VEHICLE AND ON THE GARAGE FLOOR. I AM FAIRLY SURE A SPACE ALIEN CAME DOWN AND HIT THE BACK GLASS SHARPLY, EXACTLY AT THE MOMENT I WAS CLOSING THE DRIVERS DOOR...BUT I CAN'T PROVE THAT EITHER. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10522628

May 25, 2013Visibility & wipers

THE REAR SIDE WINDOW (NOT THE REAR PASSENGER WINDOW - THE STATIONARY ONE TO THE TRUNK) SPONTANEOUSLY EXPLODED WHEN I CLOSED THE DRIVER SIDE DOOR AFTER GETTING INTO THE CAR. THE CAR WAS PARKED IN MY ENCLOSED GARAGE. THERE WAS NOTHING HITTING THE WINDOW AND THE WINDOW WAS NOT CHIPPED OR CRACKED BEFORE THE EXPLOSION. 90% OF THE GLASS IS ON THE GARAGE FLOOR INDICATING AN EXPLOSION VS IMPLOSION. THE CAR WAS NOT EVEN RUNNING AT THE TIME. AIR PRESSURE INSIDE AN ENCLOSED CAR SHOULD NOT CAUSE A WINDOW TO EXPLODE. OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE 62. THE CAR WAS LESS THAN A YEAR OLD! *TR

NHTSA ODI 10513538

Oct 21, 2012Visibility & wipers1 injury

DRIVER SIDE WINDOW SPONTANEOUSLY EXPLODED AND SHATTERED, SENDING GLASS PARTICLES THROUGHOUT THE PASSENGER COMPARTMENT. DRIVER SUSTAINED SMALL CUT TO LEFT MIDDLE FINGER. ROAD CONDITIONS WERE SUNNY AND DRY WITHOUT ROAD HAZARDS. NO OTHER VEHICLES IN VICINITY. NO GRAVEL ON ROAD. WINDOW APPEARED TO BE INTACT PRIOR TO THIS SPONTANEOUS INCIDENT. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10481329

Sep 4, 2012Visibility & wipers

I OPENED THE VEHICLE TRUNK TO PLACE A SMALL BOX INSIDE. WHEN I SHUT THE TRUNK DOOR, THE GLASS ON THE PASSENGER-SIDE, REAR QUARTER PANEL SHATTERED. THE LOCATION WAS PARTICULARLY TROUBLING BECAUSE THE WINDOW WAS LOCATED DIRECTLY BEHIND MY INFANT'S CAR SEAT. THERE WERE NO PRIOR SCRATCHES OR CRACKS ON THE PANE. ALSO, THERE WAS NOTHING ON OR NEAR THE GLASS THAT WOULD HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THE INCIDENT. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10473831

Jun 25, 2012Visibility & wipers

VEHICLE IS ONLY A FEW WEEKS OLD AND THE WINDSHIELD BEGAN DEVELOPING A CRACK FROM THE PASSANGER SIDE SPREADING TOWARDS THE CENTER OF AND DOWN TOWARDS THE BOTTOM OF THE PASSANGER SIDE. *TR

NHTSA ODI 10463061

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Working with the data? Download all 266 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 21, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2012 Toyota RAV4 Plug-in Hybrid verdict →