What 162 owners told NHTSA about the 2024 Toyota RAV4 Phev

I was in a drive thru and my car had been idling for less than 5 minutes in the rain and started shuttering really bad with my roms dipping low. i put the vehicle in park and the the entire vehicle shut off and would not stay on without dying. for the next 20 minutes everytime i tried to start it it shut off immediately no matter what i would do. the vehicular kept telling me “Engine Stopped steering power low”. it let me put the vehicle in accessory mode and was fine but my steering wheel remained locked. after about 30 minutes i was able to get the vehicle to start and pull up about 15 feet before it shuttered and i put it in park and it died again. i had to get it towed to the dealership.

NHTSA ODI 11745756

After driving my 2024 RAV4 in rain for about an hour, I was then parked for about 5 minutes in a parking garage and the engine shut down and warning light came on for power steering, and white smoke /steam came out of the engine. Engine would not restart, even after tow truck arrived thirty minutes later. Once dealership received my vehicle they say it starts fine and can't find any issues. They have been unable to duplicate the issue. I saw this same issue online and have requested they check the MAF sensor and the battery load test. Seems to be a big issue in these cars.

NHTSA ODI 11735299

The contact owns a 2024 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, an abnormal sound was heard coming from under the hood and would shudder towards the front-passenger side. In addition, the contact stated that the failure caused her to crash into a rail guard, and the rear driver-side tire had deflated, and the rim was damaged. No injuries were sustained, and no medical attention was sought. No police report was filed. In addition, an independent mechanic arrived on scene to replace the tire. The local dealer was contacted; however, the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired due to the warranty having expired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 40,000.

NHTSA ODI 11730748

After driving IN RAIN for about 27 Miles then idling in slow traffic, vehicle started running poorly, stalled and would not run properly. Got "Reduced Engine Power, Visit Your Dealer Message". Engine would start but stall when put in drive. I held up traffic for several minutes. After several minutes of restarting and stalling, I ran engine in park for 2000-3000 rpm for about a minute. The car then ran fine and I drove for over a week before I could get it to the dealer. It seemed to be run fine during this time. Dealer found code P010014, MAF sensor and replaced the sensor. Toyota TSB T-TT-0763-24 appears to describe this issue but it does not appear to have a real resolution for this. It is 'under investigation' Just replacing the sensor, if it is just another one of the same type does not give me confidence that this dangerous condition may not happen again. There are many reports like this one.

NHTSA ODI 11730402

I was driving the car for 25 minutes over main roads and freeway. There was lots of rain and water on the roadways, plus we just had major snowfall recently that was melting. I get to my destination and had my car in idle for 7 minutes in park. I shift into Drive and my car shudders and the engine shuts off with an error "Engine Stopped- Steering Power Low". I turn off the car and let it sit for one hour. Come back start it up and it does, only to repeat the shudder and then throw the same code. I had it towed to Toyota of Auburn, WA. They don't know what the problem is.Reddit forums have consumers with the same car complaining about this issue with no resolve.

NHTSA ODI 11725047

This is my 2nd report to NHTSA and the 3 rd time in one year that this has happened to my 2024 Rav 4. It’s raining and I just pulled in to a Publix parking lot and not even 5 minutes of me sitting here preparing to go into the store my engine starts sputtering and shuts off. I’ve taken my vehicle to a Toyota dealership both previous times and they said they didn’t find anything

NHTSA ODI 11719554

I have had multiple instances where the vehicle has failed to accelerate when making a left hand turn. Each time this has occurred, my car has rolled into the intersection from a stop at a small decline, but the gas seems to do nothing. My car silently rolls forward and then I have no power or gas and am trapped with no acceleration. I’m worried this is going to get me into an accident and seriously injured. It does not happen super often, but enough that I know there is a problem. Dealer has not been able to see any codes, and we have not been able to recreate the issue in front of the service advisors.

NHTSA ODI 11711581

The contact owned a 2024 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while driving at slower speeds at a gas station, attempting to drive into the car wash, the vehicle independently accelerated and crashed into a fence and a nearby tree, where the vehicle came to a stop. No warning light was illuminated. In addition, the contact attempted to depress the brake pedals to stop the vehicle; however, the vehicle continued accelerating and lost control, resulting in the crash. The vehicle was towed and deemed a total loss by the insurance provider. The diagnosis was not available. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 14,480.

NHTSA ODI 11711477

I am submitting this complaint to document an unresolved vehicle safety concern and loss of confidence in safe operation. My vehicle experienced serious safety-related malfunctions and warnings, and despite service visits, I was not provided written confirmation that the vehicle was safe to operate. After repairs were reportedly completed, I repeatedly requested written safety verification, which was not provided. Due to the unresolved safety concerns and lack of written safety assurance, I did not feel it was safe to resume driving the vehicle. A loaner vehicle was provided while the safety issues were being addressed. The loaner was later recovered before my safety concerns were resolved and without advance notice, leaving me without a vehicle that I could confirm was safe to operate. I am reporting this because I continue to lack confidence in the safety of the vehicle and want this documented as a safety concern. This complaint is not about customer service, but about unresolved safety issues and the absence of written confirmation that the vehicle is safe to drive.

NHTSA ODI 11708815

I was driving home, about a 30 min drive, in heavy rain. Once I got home, I left my car running to run inside. When I came back out the car was shaking and idling funny. A "low steering power" diagnostic came up and then also a parking malfunction. I turned the car off. It would barely turn over and still multiple diagnostic lights on. I pulled in into the garage and after sitting off for about 10 minutes, it started fine. I've seen multiple posts about this same issue. It's definitely a safety concern.

NHTSA ODI 11700739

Rav 4 2024 Mileage 44,780 Got off work and started car and drove home no issues was driving in the rain for about 30 mins. I get home and park and my car is sitting for a minute. Then it started to idle strange/ shaking and I see the rpms are jumping between 1k-2k I try to give it gas and nothing happens. I end up turning the car off and back on and the car starts but sputters/shakes and turns right off this happens multiple times. I leave it alone and start it 30 mins later it starts but is shaking very badly. I turn it off and call for a tow to the dealership. I go back and start it an hr later it starts fine and runs fine. I get it towed to the dealership and they keep it for 1 1/2 days they find nothing wrong saying everything is running the way it is designed to run. I go and pick it up and they state they completely inspected and drove multiple times there is nothing going wrong. I take the car and drive it for 3 mins around the block then park the car engine shuts off on its own but everything is still on message states engine stopped power steering low. Took it back the dealership has no idea what’s going wrong. This is a concern because it can happen while driving and the car will stop on its own and cause an accident. This needs to be addressed due to the dealership not knowing what is going on and it being a safety concern.

NHTSA ODI 11698298

The first time I was stopped at a red light and the car started acting like it was missing and then it shut off this was during rain the message on the dash said engine stopped steering power low. The next time this happened I was parking it a parking lot and the engine did the same it rpm started going up and down like it was missing then it shut off and showed the message engine stopped steering power low this was also during rain after I had been driving in the rain. After about 20 minutes both times the car would start and drive as normal. I have looked online and multiple people have had the same issue.

NHTSA ODI 11694734

Had to have my 2024 Toyota RAV 4 towed for a second time in 2 month after driving in heavy rain. During the first instance, I drove less than 10 miles on the highway in very heavy rain. Arrived at my destination, put the car in park and the engine and RPM meter started pulsating, revving feeling as if the car were going to stall. Turned the engine off, had the vehicle towed to the dealership who found "no issues" with the car. Again on September 23, 2025, I drove through a heavy rain storm, arrived a my destination and again the engine/RPM were pulsating/revving. An hour later when I went to leave (in no rain), started the vehicle and the engine began to sputter, all warning lights on the dash board went on including in part "Parking Support Brake Malfunction Visit Your Dealer", "Pre-Collision System Malfunction Visit Your Dealer" and "Engine Stopped Steering Power Low", and the engine sputtered and shut off. Had the vehicle towed to another dealership where it has been for 5 days with the technician telling me he cannot replicate the issue. This is a serious problem for a new vehicle with 17k miles. Not only is this is a safety risk due to vehicle failure/shut down, it is a serious defect in a product that I paid $40,000 for. Please do all that can be done to force Toyota to fix this issue, as it appears based on review of similar complaints on this website that this is happening quite a lot. Separately, it is more than concerning that total engine failure does not generate codes sufficient for Toyota technicians to diagnose such a fatal problem.

NHTSA ODI 11690178

When idling with intermittent wipers on, the vehicle began smoking under the hood, engine light came on dash as well as “steering power low” warning, then engine shut off. The vehicle was unable to be started again after waiting a few minutes. The gear shift could not move from parked. The vehicle was purchased new and had only 20,000 miles on it. I ended up having it towed to a Toyota dealership but by that time the battery was drained from leaving the hazards on too long. They could not identify any other problems and sent me on my way with a working vehicle. After talking to a manager at another Toyota dealership, they identified that this is an occasional problem with this vehicle. The manager was able to contact Toyota who suggested they replace the air intake tube and bezel. Hopefully after these new parts are replaced I will not experience a random shutdown again. It’s such a specific set of conditions to cause the problem but a quick search online showed that other people have encountered similar situations with the wipers on intermittent while idling. Someone mentioned pressing the switch to turn off the automatic engine shut off as a temporary fix. I was blocking traffic and police had to direct traffic around me while I waited for the tow. Thankfully the traffic was not moving fast.

NHTSA ODI 11681091

Vehicle has stopped in the middle of the road 3 times so far each time I’m getting a message: Engine stopped Steering Power low

NHTSA ODI 11677065

Driving down the highway in the pouring rain. Pulled over because the engine felt like it was about to stall. Whole engine cut off and check engine light came on with “engine stopped - power steering low”. Would act like it wanted to start again but shut back off every time. After about 30 minutes it started back up without any check engine lights or messages. This is the 3rd time its happened. Always in the rain.

NHTSA ODI 11665093

I was driving home in exceptionally heavy rain. Before getting home, I decided to stop at a coffee drive thru. It was still raining pretty heavily as I drove up to the pick up window. I had my foot on the brake as I waited for my order. A few minutes went by when suddenly the car shook a bit and completely shut off. A warning sign came up on the dash screen that read “engine stopped, steering power low” and instructed to put the car in park. That warning message would come up every time I tried to put the gearshift back in drive. I kept trying to restart the car many times, the engine cracked but no start. At one point I even tried putting the car in neutral to attempt to push it out of drive thru lane but the car and steering wheel were locked in place. There was no way to move either. It’s still raining at this point but it has significantly lightened up. About 15 - 20 minutes later, the car started up like normal and I was able to put the gearshift in drive. The car is less than a year old and nothing like this has ever happened before. There were absolutely no warning signs prior to this happening, everything on the dashboard and the mobile app associated with the car showed the car was in “good health.” I am SO incredibly lucky this happened at a drive thru and not in the middle of a highway or busy intersection. You are left completely helpless since the engine completely shuts off and the steering wheel locks. If this happened on a highway, it would immediately create a multi vehicle accident or potentially worse. This is a HUGE safety risk that needs to be addressed immediately. I plan to take the vehicle into the dealership for inspection because I do not feel 100% safe anymore.

NHTSA ODI 11660675

I was sitting with the car in park. The car was running. My vehicle started shaking and said “Engine stopped, steering power low”.

NHTSA ODI 11660113

I drove through heavy rain and after sitting in park for about 15 minutes, my car started shaking and the dashboard lit up. I received a power steering low message and when I tried shifting into drive, it said car not ready to drive. I turned it off and back on and it started, but eventually stalled after a few seconds. I called a tow truck to have it taken to the dealership and by the time he arrived, it start up like normal. Based on what im seeing online, this is becoming more of a common problem.

NHTSA ODI 11657694

The contact owns a 2024 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that after driving for 45 minutes, the vehicle was parked. While attempting to restart the vehicle, there was an abnormal sound coming from the vehicle. The engine stopped; engine power was low, and the message “Not ready to Drive” was displayed. The contact stated that the gear shifter failed to move, and the vehicle failed to start. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, who determined that the vehicle was working as designed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer informed the contact that there were no diagnostic trouble codes saved in the history. The manufacturer was contacted, and referred the contact to another dealer, but no additional assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 8,063.

NHTSA ODI 11655231

I was in a parking space at the local library, waiting on my children. It was raining, and had been raining most of the day. I had driven about 60 miles in the rain before going to the library. The car was on, but in park. The car started slightly shaking (like a big truck was going by), and it looked like some smoke was coming out of the engine. The car then flashed some lights on the dash and gave the following message: Engine Stopped. Steering Power Low. It then turned off, and I tried to turn it on multiple times to no avail. After researching online while waiting for a tow truck, I saw multiple references on Reddit to this problem. I waited about 20 minutes and was able to turn the car on, though it was hesitant. I was able to cancel the tow and drive the short distance home. It was scary because it came out of nowhere and this is a BRAND NEW CAR with only about 27,000 miles on it. I am not happy that this would be something I will have to worry about in the future. I have not reported it to the dealership, but saw online most people had no luck at the dealership and were told to report it here.

NHTSA ODI 11653246

This is a follow up of an incident reported on 3/30/2025, after the vehicle was driven approximately 30 miles in the rain, then stopped for 5 to 10 minutes idling with windshield wipers on intermittent setting. Engine began to shudder, engine rpms increased/decreased erratically as the engine shook. The vehicle was turned off. After approximately 5 minutes, restarted vehicle and engine again ran erratically and then stalled, displaying “Engine Stopped, Steering Power Low” on the message center in the driver’s display. After the engine stalled, the vehicle would not restart and had to be towed. After being towed, the vehicle started and ran smooth. A short while later, the vehicle was started but again ran erratically, but did not stall right away and was turned off. The next day, 3/31/2025, the vehicle was taken to the dealership service department. The dealer stated that there were no diagnostic trouble codes stored in the vehicle computer, the battery was good condition, and the charging system was operating normally. They had no explanation for what happened. The service advisor suggested that when the gas tank was filled, it was overfilled after the gas pump clicked off. This, in fact is not the case. The gas tank was not overfilled. The service advisor was informed that there are other complaints online by other owners of the same symptoms under similar weather conditions while the vehicle is idling. The advisor stated that if it happens again, have it towed to the dealership service department

NHTSA ODI 11652240

SUV shut off during heavy rain storm and won’t crank back up until after at least 5 to 7 minutes. I have had this happen four times and have had my vehicle towed to the Toyota dealership, etc..

NHTSA ODI 11651953

On 3/30/2025, I drove my 2024 Toyota RAV 4 Adventure about 30 miles in the rain with the wipers on. I then put the car in park, with the wipers still on intermittent setting and the engine still running. After sitting in park like this for approximately 5 minutes, the engine began to shudder, with engine RPMs decreasing and increasing erratically, and the engine was also shaking as the RPMs increased and decreased. I then turned the car off for approximately 5 minutes. When I restarted the car after 5 minutes, the erratic RPM resumed, and then the engine stopped running, and my display screen showed the following message: “Engine Stopped, Steering Power Low”. The check engine, check steering, and check battery lights were also illuminated on the dashboard. The vehicle would not restart after several tries and ultimately ended up having the vehicle towed 30 minutes. Once the tow truck dropped it off, the engine started right up and the error messages were no longer displayed.

NHTSA ODI 11651590

The contact owns a 2024 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while driving 50 MPH, the vehicle started to shake abnormally. There were several unknown warning lights illuminated. The contact turned off and restarted the vehicle, and the vehicle responded as needed. The contact stated that the engine shut off and the power steering fluid was low. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed, but no fault codes were retrieved, and the battery was in good condition. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 13,048.

NHTSA ODI 11650548