What 302 owners told NHTSA about the 2015 Toyota RAV4 Phev

On Friday February 27, 2026 as the vehicle was being driven it caught fire. Fire department and sheriffs office was called to the scene. Vehicle fire was put out but the whole front end burned.

NHTSA ODI 11721498

When I try to start up my car after a full month of parking as usual I knew already it has a dead battery so I jump started then once it started I heard a very small explosion with smoke coming from underneath the glove compartment then I found a very small fire started from the same place so I left the car and I called 911 who came and extinguished the fire after the entire car was already engulfed and exploded in fire. The car closed the other two cars on both sides to melt partially as well. The picture attached has the incident number.

NHTSA ODI 11569829

The contact owns a 2015 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while his daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the steering wheel was inoperable and all the warning lights illuminated. The steering wheel was seized and the vehicle lost motive power in the middle of the street. The contact's daughter noticed the vehicle was smoking from under the hood. The contact's daughter exited the vehicle and the vehicle caught on fire. The fire department arrived and extinguished the fire. A fire or police report was not filed. The vehicle was towed to the tow yard. The insurance company declared the vehicle a total loss. The contact was informed of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V734000 (Electrical System), however, the contact stated he did not receive the recall notification. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000.

NHTSA ODI 11554307

Approximately two minutes after turning the vehicle off, smoke started coming from the engine area. Within the next two minutes, flames emerged. The fire quickly engulfed the vehicle in flames causing a total loss. The fire department declared it a loss and stated a cause will likely not be known by them. I was not in the vehicle at the time of the smoke. A truck next to the vehicle quickly moved away. Insurance company is in route to investigate. No warning signs prior.

NHTSA ODI 11510956

Today I started my RAV4 in my driveway to warm it up and went back in the house. Approximatly 5-10 minutes later someone knocked on the door to let me know the car was on fire. The fire department said it was likley that the fire started in the engine and spread to the rest of the vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11509082

The contact owned a 2015 Toyota Rav-4. The contact stated that while her son was driving at 60 MPH, he heard an abnormal, popping sound as a burning odor began to emit from the vehicle. Her son and the other occupants immediately exited as flames began to emit from the vehicle's engine. The fire and police departments arrived at the scene and the fire was extinguished. No one was injured due to the failure. A police report was filed. The vehicle was towed from the scene and taken to an independent tow yard. The dealer nor the manufacturer were notified of the failure. The vehicle was totaled. The failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA ODI 11506960

Car caught on fire in my driveway .

NHTSA ODI 11492163

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

Slow down to make a right turn, the car completely shut off. Put on emergency lights pulled into nearest safest parking lot, braking systems failed, finally put car in park. Pulled keys out of ignition. Took a look around nothing was physically wrong, got back into vehicle started it, with no problem. Took it through the same parking lot, through the drive-thru. Started smoking at the second window, pulled back into the parking lot, shut off vehicle. Got out of vehicle to access smoke, fire started, got back int car then an explosion. Grabbed my daughter and my things the best I could. There was about two or three more explosions afterwards, the fire department came to take out the flames; this was after other employees from the same area tried to put out the fire with fire extinguishers but it wasn’t much help. It halfway burned into the ground, the Fireman had to use the jaws of life to get the hood off of the car to extinguish the fire.

NHTSA ODI 11430552

The contact owned a 2015 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while his wife was driving and making a right turn the vehicle loss motive power and stalled without warning. The contact stated that his wife coasted to the side of the road, restarted the vehicle, and several unknown warning lights flashed on the instrument panel and then disappeared. While driving through the drive-thru at McDonalds his wife was notified by an employee of an abnormal burning odor. While pulling out of the drive-thru, the vehicle stalled. The driver restarted the vehicle and pulled into a parking space and the vehicle caught on fire underneath the hood. The contact stated that after his wife removed the child from the vehicle there were a series of explosions. The Fire Department was called out and the fire was extinguished. A fire report was filed. The vehicle was towed from the scene and deemed a total loss. There was no injuries and no medical attention was needed. The dealer and the manufacturer were not contacted. The approximate failure mileage was 90,000.

NHTSA ODI 11429925

The contact owns a 2015 Toyota RAV4. The contact stated that while driving approximately at 45 mph when they noticed the vehicle's speed began to lower as if it wanted to stall. The contact was able to pull over and turn their vehicle off. The contact attempted to restart the vehicle however the vehicle failed to restart. They noticed smoke coming from underneath the hood of the vehicle. The contact opened the hood of the vehicle to cool the vehicle down however in about 1-2 minutes they noticed flames near the engine of the vehicle. The fire department was called and put out the fire. A report was not filed. There were no injuries and no medical assistance needed. The vehicle was towed. The contact was waiting on the status of the vehicle from their insurance report. The dealer was not made aware of the issue. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA ODI 11429597

Was driving along when some warning lights came on, specifically the check engine light, traction control off light and the AWD light. 2 seconds later I heard a loud pop, saw smoke coming from the hood. I pulled over and looked in the engine compartment and saw flames. I suspect the coolant line popped and caught fire. My safety could have been at risk if the battery exploded or oil/gas components were to catch fire. The car is currently at a dealer to be inspected. A NHP accident report was filled out and can be available if needed.

NHTSA ODI 11426907

Driver was driving on the highway when the screen turned off and on and the steering wheel seized momentarily. Approximately 5 minutes later, screen went blank again and could not accelerate. Driver pulled over to the side of the road. Strange noises were coming from under the hood and the car starting smoking and then caught on fire.

NHTSA ODI 11426275

The contact owned a 2015 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that after pulling into the driveway after driving for approximately 30 minutes, the contact parked and exited the vehicle. The contact stated that approximately 10 minutes later there was a loud explosion heard. The contact looked out to see the vehicle on fire. The fire department was called and extinguished the fire. The contact was unsure if a fire report was filed. The vehicle was deemed a total loss. The cause of the failure was unknown. There were no injuries sustained. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 123,000. The VIN was not provided.

NHTSA ODI 11424912

I WAS DRIVING WITH MY 2 SONS FROM JFK AIRPORT TO WOODSIDE, QUEENS IN NEW YORK. WE JUST GOT OFF THE VAN WYKE HIGHWAY AND WERE TRAVELING WEST ON QUEENS BOULEVARD. THE SPEED LIMIT ON QUEENS BOULEVARD IS 25. WE WERE APPROACHING A RED LIGHT WHEN WE NOTICED SMOKE COMING FROM THE UNDER THE HOOD. I PULLED OVER AND TURNED OFF THE CAR, WHEN WE GOT OUT OF THE CAR WE NOTICED THERE WERE FLAMES STARTING TO COME OUT FROM UNDER THE HOOD. WE IMMEDIATELY GRABBED OUR ITEMS, PURSE, PHONE, COATS AND GOT AWAY SAFELY FROM THE CAR. WE CALLED 911 AND WITHIN A FEW MINUTES THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ARRIVED AND PUT OUT THE CAR. THE WHOLE FRONT OF OUR CAR AND DASH WERE BURNED AS WELL AS PART OF THE DRIVERS SEAT. OUR INSURANCE STATED THE CAR WAS TOTALED. OUR CAR WAS INSPECTED IN DECEMBER AND HAD LESS THAN 5,000 MILES. WE PURCHASED THE CAR NEW FROM TOYOTA IN 2015 AND HAD IT SERVICED BY THE DEALER EVERY 6 MONTHS. THE FIRE DEPARTMENT SAID LEAVES HAD CAUGHT FIRE, BUT IT HAD RAINED THAT DAY AND THE ENGINE SHOULD NOT GET HOT ENOUGH TO LIGHT LEAVES ON FIRE. AN ENGINE FIRE ON A 2015 CAR WITH LESS THAN 5000 MILES SHOULD NOT HAPPEN.

NHTSA ODI 11400064

SHORTLY AFTER DRIVING WITH NO ISSUES, THE PARKED CAR STARTED TO SMOKE FROM UNDERNEATH THE HOOD. WITHIN SECONDS, A LARGE FIRE HAD STARTED WHICH COMPLETELY CONSUMED THE CAR AND ALSO SPREAD TO MY WIFE'S CAR AND THE HOUSE'S CARPORT. INSURANCE INVESTIGATOR INFORMED US THAT THE FIRE LIKELY STARTED IN/NEAR THE ENGINE TOWARDS THE DRIVERS SIDE BASED ON WHERE THE HOTTEST PARTS OF THE FIRE APPEARED TO HAVE BEEN. HOWEVER, NO CONCLUSIVE DETERMINATION WAS MADE REGARDING THE CAUSE. THE CAR WAS IN GOOD CONDITION AND HAD NOT HAD ANY MAINTENANCE WORK PERFORMED ON IT RECENTLY. THERE WERE ALSO NO SIGNS OF INTRUSION BY RODENTS OR OTHER ANIMALS. THIS HAPPENED WITH NO WARNING. I'VE ALSO SINCE LEARNED THIS HAD HAPPENED ONLY ONE MONTH BEFORE TO THE PARENTS OF ONE OF OUR CHILDRENS' FRIENDS. THEY ALSO HAD A RAV4, ALTHOUGH NOT THE SAME MODEL YEAR (I BELIEVE IT WAS A 2013). I HAVE ALSO SEEN MANY OTHER REPORTS WHILE RESEARCHING THIS ISSUE. IF THERE IS A DEFECT OR DESIGN FLAW CONTRIBUTING TO THESE FIRES, IT SHOULD BE ADDRESSED QUICKLY!

NHTSA ODI 11315799

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2015 TOYOTA RAV4. WHEN THE CONTACT STARTED THE VEHICLE AND ATTEMPTED TO DRIVE FORWARD, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED WITHOUT WARNING. AS A RESULT, THE VEHICLE CRASHED INTO THE FRONT PASSENGER TIRE OF A PARKED AND UNOCCUPIED VEHICLE. AFTERWARDS, THE ENGINE RPMS INCREASED AND THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO REV EVEN THOUGH THE CONTACT WAS DEPRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL WITH BOTH FEET. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE PROCEEDED TO MOVE BACKWARDS WHILE THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS STILL DEPRESSED. THE PASSENGER WAS ABLE TO REACH THE GEAR SHIFT AND PLACE IT IN THE PARK POSITION TO STOP THE VEHICLE. A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. THERE WERE NO INJURIES. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE DEALER AND MANUFACTURER WERE NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 40,000.

NHTSA ODI 11141402

CAR STALLED SO I PULLED OVER. THERE WAS SMOKING UNDER THE HOOD. WITHIN MINUTES IT TURNED INTO A BIG FIRE. FIRE DEPARTMENT HAD TO BE CALLED.

NHTSA ODI 11138884

THE CAR WAS BEING DRIVEN IN PHILADELPHIA AT A LOW SPEED WHEN THE ENGINE CAUGHT FIRE. THE FIRE QUICKLY WAS OUT OF CONTROL AND DESTROYED MOST OF THE CAR, INCLUDING THE ENGINE, DASHBOARD, FRONT SEATS, WINDSHIELD, WINDOWS, FRONT TIRES WHICH EXPLODED, AND AIRBAGS.

NHTSA ODI 10840172