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What 328 owners told NHTSA about the 2018 Toyota RAV4 Phev

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 (328)Crash / fire / injury (62)Electrical system (128)Engine (32)Brakes (30)Transmission & drivetrain (26)Lights (23)Visibility & wipers (21)Speed control (20)Airbags (16)Body & structure (14)Fuel system (12)

26 of 328 complaints match · Transmission & drivetrain · clear filters · page 2 of 2

Dec 13, 2017Transmission & drivetrain

FROM A DEAD STOP WHEN ACCELERATING THE VEHICLE WILL NOT SPEED UP IT ACTS LIKE ITS IN 6TH GEAR. TO GAIN CONTROL I NEED TO PUSH THE ACCELERATOR TO THE FLOOR & THEN IT SPEEDS UP ALMOST UNCONTROLLABLY. THIS HAPPEN AT 12 TIMES. SEE MY COMMENT BELOW THAT I SENT TO TOYOTA CORPORATE OFFICE. I HAVE WANT I CONSIDER A SEVERE SAFETY ISSUE WITH MY 2018 RAV4 ([XXX]). UPON ACCELERATING FROM A STOP THE VEHICLE WILL NOT SPEEDUP IT ACTS LIKE IT IS IN 6TH GEAR TO GET IT GOING I HAVE PUT THE GAS PEDAL TO THE FLOOR AN THEN IT SOMETIME SHOOTS AHEAD ALMOST HITTING A VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME. RECENTLY IT HAPPENED 3 TIMES IN A ROW TWICE I GOT IT TO RECOVER BUT THE THIRD TIME I NEEDED TO PULL OF THE HIGHWAY & RESTART THE ENGINE. THIS HAS HAPPEN AT LEAST 10 TIMES. PHILLIPS TOYOTA SERVICE SAID IT IS A FLY BY WIRE PROBLEM (COMPUTER CONTROLLED). MY FIRST VISIT PHILLIPS DID NOT EVEN WRITE A SERVICE REQUEST ON THE SECOND VISIT THEY DID, BUT ON 12/04/2017 THEY DID NOT AGAIN. THIS GOING TO CAUSE EITHER A REAR END OR FRONT ACCIDENT. WHEN ACCIDENTS HAPPEN LITIGATION USUALLY FOLLOWS. LETS GET THIS FIXED. PHILLIP TOYOTA SAID OTHER OWNERS HAVE HAD THIS SAME CONCERN. 12/04/201 [XXX] CC: CONSUMER PROTECTION AGENCY NATIONAL SAFETY CONSUL INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

NHTSA ODI 11054484

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Working with the data? Download all 328 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 20, 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 2018 Toyota RAV4 Phev verdict →