Home · 2015 Toyota RAV4 Hv · Complaints

What 302 owners told NHTSA about the 2015 Toyota RAV4 Hv

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 (302)Crash / fire / injury (80)Electrical system (84)Steering (45)Engine (37)Brakes (31)Body & structure (30)Transmission & drivetrain (25)Speed control (21)Airbags (15)Fuel system (13)Visibility & wipers (8)

Newest first · 302 complaints · page 5 of 13

Sep 13, 2022

Nathing everything is my car working good

NHTSA ODI 11484250

Sep 2, 2022Fire

Yesterday, on 9/1/2022, my son parked the car on the parking lot of CVS in Tucson, AZ. He turned the car off and locked it and went into the store. While at CVS the car spontaneously burst into flames. More specifically the front of the car burst into flames. The car has been meticulously maintained and was in perfect mechanical condition. No one smokes. There was nothing flammable in the car. It just caught on fire out of the blue on its own while parked. Good thing no one got hurt and no other property damage occurred, but the car is totaled. It had about 88,000 miles on it. Thank god it was not inside the garage at night or our house would most likely have burned down as well. This is a VERY disturbing event. No one expects their well-maintained car to catch on fire while turned off and parked. We would like the incident investigated.

NHTSA ODI 11482676

Aug 24, 2022FirerelatedFire

The contact owned a 2015 Toyota Rav-4. The contact received notification of Customer Service Campaign: 21TG01 (12-Volt Battery Size and Installation Inspection). The contact stated that she inspected the battery and confirmed that it was the correct battery size prior to the failure. The contact stated that after refueling the vehicle, she drove to her friend's residence at an undisclosed speed when the vehicle experienced a loss of power steering assist and the air conditioner and radio inadvertently turned off. The contact arrived at her friend's residence and parked the vehicle for approximately 45 minutes to an hour. The contact restarted the vehicle and drove down the driveway when the vehicle lost motive power with smoke coming from underneath the hood. The contact and her friend exited the vehicle before it caught fire. A police officer was driving by when he witnessed the fire. The fire department arrived on the scene and extinguished the fire. Police and fire department reports were filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow yard and deemed totaled by the insurance company. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.

NHTSA ODI 11480949

Aug 24, 2022Engine

The car hesitates when I press the gas and also does this when the cruise control is activated

NHTSA ODI 11481093

Aug 24, 2022Lights

The contact owns a 2015 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that the illumination from the headlights was poor due to scratches inside the headlight housings. The contact stated that the illumination made nighttime driving difficult. There were no warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 53,000.

NHTSA ODI 11481002

Aug 16, 2022Steering

Cs Traction Light Is On Cause INTERNAL OPEN IN STEERING ANGLE SENSPR MODULE THE STEERING ANGLE SENSOR TRANSMITS THE STEERING WHEEL'S RATE OF TURN, WHEEL ANGLE, AND OTHER IMPORTANT DATA TO THE SPECIFIC VEHICLE'S COMPUTER. IF THERE IS A FAULT IN THE SIGNAL, THE COMPUTER CAN DISABLE THE VEHICLE'S STABILITY CONTROL. Correction REPLACE STEERING ANGEL SENSOR MODULE

NHTSA ODI 11479597

Aug 4, 2022Electrical systemBody & structure

The power hatch door liftgate support rods problems. The hatch door won't close. This is the third times. First two times were under warranty, this time is after warranty. The liftgate must have mechanical or design problem when manufacturing. If the hatch back door suddenly drop, it will hurt my head or body when I try to reach my trunks.

NHTSA ODI 11477644

Jul 22, 2022Engine

OUR 2015 RAV 4 IS EXPERIENCING A TORQUE CONVERTER SHUDDER AT ABOUT 40MPH. WE CAN FEEL THIS RATTLE OR AS TOYOTA HAS EXPLAINED IN A WARRANTY POLICY BULLETIN # POL17-06 DATED 9-15-2017 AND REVISED IN 2021, A SHUDDER, AND HAVE CONCERNS FOR OUR SAFETY WHILE DRIVING. OUR MECHANIC TEST DROVE THE CAR AND FELT THE SHUDDER. HE THEN PROVIDED THE WARRANTY POLICY BULLETIN WHICH WE THEN PRESENTED TO BALISE TOYOTA ON POST RD IN RHODE ISLAND. THEY ALSO DOCUMENTED AND EXPERIENCED THE SHUDDER CONFIRMING OUR CONCERNS AND THOSE OF OUR MECHANIC. BALISE TOYOTA TOLD US OUR vin # WAS OUTSIDE THE WARRANTY COVERED PERIOD. TOYOTA IS COVERING VEHICLE TO NOV. 2014 AND OUR VEHICLE WAS PRODUCED FEB. 9, 2015. THE WARRANTY ENHANCEMENT PROGRAM (ZH1) WARRANTY EXTENSION FOR TORQUE CONVERTER SHUDDER ON CERTAIN 2013-2015 MY RAV4 OFFERING A SECONDARY COVERAGE FOR 8 YEARS FROM DATE OF FIRST USE OR 150,000 MILES. OUR VEHICLE FALLS WITHIN THIS COVERAGE ALLOWANCE, TOYOTA CORPORATE REFUSED OUR CLAIM FOR INCLUSION. HOWEVER, WE ARE SUSPICIOUSLY CLOSE TO THE INCLUSION DATE, EXPERIENCING THE VERY ISSUE, HAVE CONFIRMATION FROM A MECHANIC AND THE DEALERSHIP HAS ALSO CONFIRMED EXISTENCE OF PROBLEM UPON TEST DRIVE. WE NOTICED THE SHUDDER ABOUT A MONTH BEFORE HAVING IT CHECKED OUT. I WILL PERSUE TOYOTA FURTHER BUT WOULD LIKETO REPORT THIS ISSUE AS THEY ARE NOT COVERING ALL VEHICLES PRODUCED BETWEEN 2013-2015 AS I THINK THEY SHOULD. MY RAV4 IS BEHAVING EXACTLY AS THEY DESCRIBE A VEHICLE WITH A FAULTY TORQUE CONVERTER WILL. PROBLEM THEY ACKNOWLEDGE THE ISSUE BUT WILL NOT CONSIDER MY CAR AS IT IS OUTSIDE THE DATE THEY HAVE DECIDED TO MAKE. THEY NEED TO EXTEND THAT DATE OUT TO COVER ALL VEHICLES EXPERIECING THE ISSUE.

NHTSA ODI 11475313

Jul 11, 2022

Transaxle Repair: reman transition with torque converter. The car begins to shake around 60MPH as well as acceleration gets stuck at times. The Toyota dealership looked at the vehicle 2 times before the cause was addressed.

NHTSA ODI 11473451

Jun 10, 2022Speed control

The contact owns a 2015 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated while driving 5 MPH, the vehicle independently accelerated while pulling into to a testing facility. The contact depressed the brake pedal and steered away from the tent and the vehicle came to a complete stop. The contact was unaware if there were any warning lights being illuminated. The vehicle was driven to the residence. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer and was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 18,870.

NHTSA ODI 11468596

Jun 8, 2022Steering

Toyota informed me That my 2015 Rav4 is not eligible for Recall no. 15V144000, it does not apply to my VIN. However my Electric Power steering has malfunctioned with 82k miles on the Vehicle

NHTSA ODI 11468235

May 27, 2022

The white paint on my vehicle is chipping like crazy. I was told by my insurance company that there was a problem with the white paint on Toyota vehicle from 2008-2019. This is very disheartening as I’ve always buy toyota vehicles for their excellence.

NHTSA ODI 11466338

May 27, 2022Speed controlFuel system

My vehicle has a problem with torque converter shudder that has gotten worse over time. At first it was shuddering and now vehicle bulks and momentarily slows down at the speed of 20mph thus creating an unsafe situation. Toyota has a Torque Converter Shudder Warranty Enhancement Program (ZH1) for vehicles of my age and mileage, but my specific VIN number does not fall under this warranty enhancement. I spoke to Toyota Brand Engagement Center senior adviser Drew and explained to him that it is a safety issue due to my vehicle unexpectedly slowing down in traffic. But he refused to do anything to mitigate this safety concern.

NHTSA ODI 11466414

May 23, 2022SteeringElectrical systemEngine

Power to the vehicle was lost while making a turn under a stop light. Emergency flashers were used. All dashboard lights came on at the time the vehicle lost power. Radio stopped. The car was turned off and was able to be restarted after several seconds. The danger was having a vehicle stopped under a stop light for several seconds. The problem has yet to be repeated. It happened just this morning 5/23/22. No other warnings were given before loss of power. We have not yet had an inspection by any other parties but will plan on it as we are aware there had been an issue with a 12 volt battery case in the past on this model.

NHTSA ODI 11465757

May 21, 2022Body & structure

About three months ago the liftgate on my 2015 Toyota RAV4 SUV, suddenly started not wanting to close properly as if the door shock absorbers had slipped out of place. I clarify that at no time has my vehicle been impacted, forced or stolen. The moment I opened the door with the button, once I went to close it, it stayed open, causing my vehicle to get wet inside every time it rains. I can not park it in open places because they can force the door that is left open and they can steal it. There are times when the door opens but doesn't want to close, and other times it just doesn't want to open. I understand that I have taken very good care of my vehicle and this is an essential part of it. I hope you can give me a quick solution on this. Thanksyou!

NHTSA ODI 11465597

May 19, 2022Transmission & drivetrain

Transmission does not work prior to 60,000 miles

NHTSA ODI 11465297

May 10, 2022Transmission & drivetrain

Transmission shudder between approximately 25-40 mph. Toyota had a recall on some of the 2013-2015 RAV4 for this problem by the vin number.

NHTSA ODI 11464008

Apr 27, 2022Transmission & drivetrain

Light acceleration causes car to jerk and stutter while increasing speed

NHTSA ODI 11462374

Apr 21, 2022Transmission & drivetrain

The contact owns a 2015 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated while driving approximately 25-50 MPH, the vehicle was vibrating. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact was able to continue to drive the vehicle. Additionally, the contact stated that the failure mainly occurred while depressing the accelerator pedal. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed and determined that the torque converter needed to be replaced. The vehicle was then taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the torque converter needed to be replaced. The dealer informed the contact that the vehicle could not be repaired under an unknown extended warranty for the torque converter as the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and advised as the dealer. The failure mileage was approximately 140,000.

NHTSA ODI 11461625

Apr 19, 2022Electrical systemFire

The contact owns a 2015 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while his wife was driving, the instrumental panel shut down after the vehicle was pulled over. The contact mentioned there was a dark brown smoke coming from the front passenger dashboard and the front of the vehicle was on fire. The fire department extinguished the fire. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow lot. The contact contacted the dealer to inform the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 87,000.

NHTSA ODI 11461306

Mar 20, 2022Equipment

When my phone is connected to Bluetooth for hands free talking, the person I’m talking to says that they can’t hear me clearly, so much background noise. After looking this up I see several hundred people saying the same thing. It’s now a law that you can’t be talking on your cell phone to your ear, wouldn’t this be considered a safety issue? Thank you [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

NHTSA ODI 11457484

Mar 18, 2022Fire

On March 14, 2022 ( about 5:05pm)got in my car to drive to the post office to mail a package. ( less than one mile from my home) I noticed when I started the car that the computer appeared to be rebooting. It was grey and had a line at the bottom appearing to progress from left to right. I drove to post office, parked, turned off the car, locked it and went into post office. Waiting in line, a man came in and said whomever owns the silver RAV4 out front, your motor is smoking. I said that’s mine, went outside in shock, called 911 and the motor was in flames within minutes. I first noticed flames coming through crack in hood by the windsheild. I have no idea why this happened. Owned the car since 2018, never had a single issue. Car is totaled. Progressive Car insurance is investigating and will hopefully approve a fair settlement, minus my deductible.This is the most bizarre thing I”ve ever seen. Please advise if you know what I can do to at least get my deductible refunded from Toyota. Thank you By the way, I almost went to the gas station first, my tank was on E, it could have been a deadly situation had i done that first. Ps. I have a video of the fire that would not upload. If there is another way to get it to you, please let me know. Thank you.

NHTSA ODI 11457207

Mar 3, 2022EngineFire

The contact's father owned a 2015 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while the vehicle was parked unattended, the vehicle dashboard spontaneously caught fire. There were no reported injuries or property damage. It was unknown who extinguished the fire. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer but was not diagnosed or repaired. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was approximately 50,000.

NHTSA ODI 11454967

Feb 28, 2022Steering

Power steering suddenly failed (and dash lights came on) when my wife and 6 year old son were driving down the road at highway speeds nearly causing accident. After turning car off and back on, it was restored. NHTSA Campaign ID: 15V144000 addresses this exact issue, but our VIN falls outside those included, even though its the same model year. Opened case with Toyota Corporate. Dealer says they have to reproduce issue to do anything, but being an ECU flaw, it nearly impossible to reproduce on demand.

NHTSA ODI 11454413

Feb 22, 2022Steering

The contact owns a 2015 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while his wife was driving at approximately 50 MPH, the steering wheel seized while the power steering warning light was illuminated intermittently. The contact mentioned that the vehicle lost power steering functionality. The contact stated that the vehicle was restarted and operated as designed. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided a case number. The VIN was not included in NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V144000 (Steering). The approximate failure mileage was 77,000.

NHTSA ODI 11453350

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Working with the data? Download all 302 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 26, 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 2015 Toyota RAV4 Hv verdict →