2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime Problems

Observed arcing noises and strong electrical fire smell upon plugging in L2 EVSE charging cable. MIL lit, Hybrid Vehicle Charging System codes active; vehicle refused to charge afterwards. Self-diagnosed and repaired defective 6.6 kW onboard charger. See pics of clear arcing damage withing charging unit - possible fire risk.

The vehicle generated an error message "Plug In Charging System Malfunction" warning on the dash. The remedy is a Toyota T-SB-0021-21 which requires a software upgrade to fix the air fan sensor reading to the charging unit. This is only considered part of the 60 month/60,000 mile power train warranty despite it being part of the battery charging system which has a 150,000 mile warranty. It is also presumably caused by a software error Toyota has made. They should fix this at no cost to the customer, instead I was charged $215 plus tax.

Observed arcing noises and strong electrical fire smell upon plugging in L2 EVSE charging cable. MIL lit, Hybrid Vehicle Charging System codes active; vehicle refused to charge afterwards. Self-diagnosed and repaired defective 6.6 kW onboard charger. See pics of clear arcing damage withing charging unit - possible fire risk.

A recall on this vehicle has not been addressed since it came out in July 2023

During snowy but manageable conditions, the brake system on my 2021 RAV4 Prime SE failed to respond, and the vehicle did not decelerate when I pressed the brake pedal. A “Pre-Collision System Malfunction” warning appeared shortly before impact. I was unable to steer away despite attempting an evasive turn. The vehicle collided with the car in front of me, and the airbags did not deploy. I was driving at a reduced speed due to snow. The vehicle ahead (a BMW SUV) began slowing. When I applied the brakes, my RAV4 Prime did not slow down at all—there was no deceleration, no ABS pulsing, and no traction control intervention. The vehicle continued moving forward as if the brakes were not engaging. At the same time, I saw a dashboard warning indicating a Pre-Collision System (PCS) malfunction. I attempted to turn the wheel to avoid the collision, but the vehicle did not respond to steering input quickly enough to prevent impact. Despite the collision, no airbags deployed. The vehicle has been regularly maintained (oil changes every 5,000 miles, new tires last year, all service intervals followed), and there were no warning lights or issues beforehand. Safety Concerns: •Complete or partial brake failure •Electronic braking or stability control malfunction •Pre-Collision System malfunction •Airbag non-deployment in a front impact •Potential systemic issue affecting Toyota hybrid/Prime models This incident caused significant fear and distress for both me and my child who was in the vehicle, and raises serious concerns about whether similar failures could occur for other owners.

The car has a grinding sound and a brake slipping feeling that occurs while traveling and braking over rough pavement. It does not happen consistently, but it does happen fairly regularly (every 2-4 weeks). Note, the grinding sound can range from subtle to quite loud, depending on bump/timing of braking. This has been happening since I purchased the car and continues to happen, which is why I put today's date as the incident date, and I have been bringing it up with the Toyota maintenance department at most maintenance appointments. Their shop manager has driven it and thought I was mistaking it for the ABS activating. I have driven it with him, ABS has activated, and when he pointed it out to me, I have let him know that what is happening is definitely something different than the ABS activating. I have tried to find a location to show them to replicate it with the service center, but it happens randomly on rough patches. For example, it happened on a spot near the dealership that I thought I could use to show them, but when I drove over the same area again and braked, nothing happened. So, I have not been able to replicate this with the service center, but it is most certainly happening. I have notified Toyota through their consumer contact system that this issue is going on and they said Toyota tracks issues like this. However, no resolution has been offered. Other Toyota Rav4 Prime owners of the same year have experienced this (see [XXX] and [XXX] ). Although the maintenance manager was stumped, he said at a recent visit that another Prime owner voiced the same type of thing happening. Toyota needs to investigate to determine what the issue is and remedy the issue. I am concerned this could lead to a larger issue and is a safety recall issue that warrants immediate attention. It does not seem that Toyota is taking this seriously. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

During snowy but manageable conditions, the brake system on my 2021 RAV4 Prime SE failed to respond, and the vehicle did not decelerate when I pressed the brake pedal. A “Pre-Collision System Malfunction” warning appeared shortly before impact. I was unable to steer away despite attempting an evasive turn. The vehicle collided with the car in front of me, and the airbags did not deploy. I was driving at a reduced speed due to snow. The vehicle ahead (a BMW SUV) began slowing. When I applied the brakes, my RAV4 Prime did not slow down at all—there was no deceleration, no ABS pulsing, and no traction control intervention. The vehicle continued moving forward as if the brakes were not engaging. At the same time, I saw a dashboard warning indicating a Pre-Collision System (PCS) malfunction. I attempted to turn the wheel to avoid the collision, but the vehicle did not respond to steering input quickly enough to prevent impact. Despite the collision, no airbags deployed. The vehicle has been regularly maintained (oil changes every 5,000 miles, new tires last year, all service intervals followed), and there were no warning lights or issues beforehand. Safety Concerns: •Complete or partial brake failure •Electronic braking or stability control malfunction •Pre-Collision System malfunction •Airbag non-deployment in a front impact •Potential systemic issue affecting Toyota hybrid/Prime models This incident caused significant fear and distress for both me and my child who was in the vehicle, and raises serious concerns about whether similar failures could occur for other owners.

Upon entering a light controlled intersection at a relatively slow speed (probably less than 20 mph} on wet pavement, an oncoming car suddenly made a left turn directly in front of me. I applied the applied the breaks hard and slid into the passenger side of the turning vehicle. The ABS system did not function. The air bag did not deploy. At the moment of the collision my speed was reduced and I do not know the threshold for airbags to deploy, but this was a direct front end collision. I was able to brace myself and was not injured. I am not claiming the airbag malfunctioned as the speed at the moment of impact was not high. However, I have complained to the Toyota dealer service department almost since the car was new, that the ABS does not function. They have repeatedly told me that it is fully operational based only on the fact that the system registers as "on." Being "on" does not mean it is functioning. Questions: What component failed? ABS and possibly airbag How was my safety at risk? Non functioning ABS resulting in a potentially preventable accident Has the problem been confirmed? Yes, byt the dealer though they claim the sliding of the car is due to old tires. However, the tires are withing the legal limist for tread depth and I have complained about the problem since the car and the tires were nearly new. Has the vehicle been inspected? yes, byt the Toyota dealer and an independent Toyota crash inspector Were there any warning lights etc? No

Observed arcing noises and strong electrical fire smell upon plugging in L2 EVSE charging cable. MIL lit, Hybrid Vehicle Charging System codes active; vehicle refused to charge afterwards. Self-diagnosed and repaired defective 6.6 kW onboard charger. See pics of clear arcing damage withing charging unit - possible fire risk.

The vehicle generated an error message "Plug In Charging System Malfunction" warning on the dash. The remedy is a Toyota T-SB-0021-21 which requires a software upgrade to fix the air fan sensor reading to the charging unit. This is only considered part of the 60 month/60,000 mile power train warranty despite it being part of the battery charging system which has a 150,000 mile warranty. It is also presumably caused by a software error Toyota has made. They should fix this at no cost to the customer, instead I was charged $215 plus tax.

During snowy but manageable conditions, the brake system on my 2021 RAV4 Prime SE failed to respond, and the vehicle did not decelerate when I pressed the brake pedal. A “Pre-Collision System Malfunction” warning appeared shortly before impact. I was unable to steer away despite attempting an evasive turn. The vehicle collided with the car in front of me, and the airbags did not deploy. I was driving at a reduced speed due to snow. The vehicle ahead (a BMW SUV) began slowing. When I applied the brakes, my RAV4 Prime did not slow down at all—there was no deceleration, no ABS pulsing, and no traction control intervention. The vehicle continued moving forward as if the brakes were not engaging. At the same time, I saw a dashboard warning indicating a Pre-Collision System (PCS) malfunction. I attempted to turn the wheel to avoid the collision, but the vehicle did not respond to steering input quickly enough to prevent impact. Despite the collision, no airbags deployed. The vehicle has been regularly maintained (oil changes every 5,000 miles, new tires last year, all service intervals followed), and there were no warning lights or issues beforehand. Safety Concerns: •Complete or partial brake failure •Electronic braking or stability control malfunction •Pre-Collision System malfunction •Airbag non-deployment in a front impact •Potential systemic issue affecting Toyota hybrid/Prime models This incident caused significant fear and distress for both me and my child who was in the vehicle, and raises serious concerns about whether similar failures could occur for other owners.

Upon entering a light controlled intersection at a relatively slow speed (probably less than 20 mph} on wet pavement, an oncoming car suddenly made a left turn directly in front of me. I applied the applied the breaks hard and slid into the passenger side of the turning vehicle. The ABS system did not function. The air bag did not deploy. At the moment of the collision my speed was reduced and I do not know the threshold for airbags to deploy, but this was a direct front end collision. I was able to brace myself and was not injured. I am not claiming the airbag malfunctioned as the speed at the moment of impact was not high. However, I have complained to the Toyota dealer service department almost since the car was new, that the ABS does not function. They have repeatedly told me that it is fully operational based only on the fact that the system registers as "on." Being "on" does not mean it is functioning. Questions: What component failed? ABS and possibly airbag How was my safety at risk? Non functioning ABS resulting in a potentially preventable accident Has the problem been confirmed? Yes, byt the dealer though they claim the sliding of the car is due to old tires. However, the tires are withing the legal limist for tread depth and I have complained about the problem since the car and the tires were nearly new. Has the vehicle been inspected? yes, byt the Toyota dealer and an independent Toyota crash inspector Were there any warning lights etc? No

Random windshield crack that appeared out of no where when leaving work. 4 hour time span of video shows no foul play, nobody was mowing the yard. No way anything hit it - I confirmed. Crack started to expand up and out both ways. Can run my finger along the entire crack without any surface impacts or bumps felt. First noted crack 4/29 and has expanded since.

Sunroof exploded while driving down the freeway. Covering the occupants in glass, including the driver, this caused cuts from glass shards. This is a known issue to Toyota. They decided not to do a recall. They are lucky that the sunroof exploding did not cause a fatal accident.

Am I supposed to wait for an accident or a fire? This vehicle seems unsafe for my family. This needs your immediate attention.

Car makes a startling loud noise like a fog horn a few seconds after starting. Noise is loud enough and unexpected it has caused me to accidently press on accelerator on occasion if I have started moving. Apparently a know problem but fix is only European focused. Fortunately nothing was in front of me when this happened. Happens frequently on first startup but never every time. TSB is BE-00612T-TME Need to force dealers to fix this before an accident does occur.

This is a rotating car seat. At first the seat would rotator from side to rear facing fine. After 5/6 weeks it didn't rotate all the way to rear facing without using the release button. Then when locked in the rear facing position when applying minimal force to the seat it rotates without the use of the release button. After removing the seat from my vehicle the seat was stuck on the side facing position and would not enter either the rear or front facing position. The contact stated that the car seat was located in the back seat on the passenger side. The manufacturer requested that the seat be sent back. The contact was refunded the purchase amount.

Harness strap frayed below car seat base pad where strap is not visible or accessible during routine use. Discovered during cleaning of the seat. This weakens the harness and puts the child at risk. Car seat has not been inspected. Manufacturer has not responded to warranty claim.

Front Driver side and front passenger side door actuator has failed. Locks are non responsive to key fob or interior master switch. The door locks have to be manually unlocked with the key or by the individual in the vehicle. It is a complete safety hazard. My local Toyota dealer has quoted me $1,767 to fix the two faulty actuators. The car is 5 years old with 89,000 miles.

The car had a front passenger and two rear seat passengers, one right and one left. In the middle rear seat there was a tray of cupcakes weighing ~2lbs. As we were driving at night in a complex area of freeway onramps and offramps an alarm started to deploy, beaping steadily. I glanced down at the multi-info-display (MID) and couldn't tell what the alarm was, and I was driving at around 55-60mph, at night. Over the next 45 seconds or so the alarm increased in frequency to the point of starting to sound outright urgent. I finally saw noticed three tiny icons in the lower right part of the MID, amidst an array of other lit icons and indicators, representing the 3 rear seats, and the center one was not illuminated. The car's sensing system apparently determined the seat was occupied but the occupant not belted in. I told everyone to check seatbelts. By now everyone in the car was in a state of near panic as all belts were secured. At the last few seconds, distracted by the urgency of this alarm and trying ascertain what the heck it was, I nearly struck traffic cones and had to swerve to miss them. Thank fate as I swerved to get back into my lane (cones were cordening off a whole lane which I was heading into) and didn't run into another vehicle--it easily could have resulted in a crash. I visited a car owner forum and here is a comment from another owner, "...Toyota doesn't need to have such an obnoxious seatbelt warning system -- even just for the front-seat occupants -- in which the sound gets louder and louder and louder; it's about the worst I've seen in any brand...." Other seatbelt alarms in my experience sound, then stop, then restart, but never escalate like this one. The combination of an atypical satbelt alarm that escalates to the point of urgency, combined w/ a hypersensitive seat occupant sensor confirmed by others, difficult to focus on while driving alarm icons , makes this design potentially disastrous as my story suggests.

I was driving on US1 near Dover, DE towards 307 South Boardwalk avenue unit 202, Rehoboth beach, Delaware, 19971. I was driving at around 60 mph and following the traffic flow. I suddenly could not steer the car, the car swayed to the left, hit the curb and came to a stop after I applied breaks. On reviewing its safety issues, I came across this article. https://www.motorbiscuit.com/the-2021-toyota-rav4-prime-is-dangerously-bad-at-emergency-steering/

The contact owns a 2021 Toyota Rav4 equipped with Dunlop Tire, Tire Line: Grandtrek PT20, Tire Size: 225/60/R18, DOT Number: V4H0. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, the vehicle started shaking abnormally. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to continue driving to her destination. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed that three of 4 tires needed to be replaced. The dealer replaced the four tires. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 31,386.

Hello Nhtsa, It is a brand new car, while we were driving on the freeway, all off a sudden, we hard noisy drive, eventually smelled plastic. When we saw under the "Underbody plastic shield with clips loosen up" and it is handing half on the road. we were scared and it could even fire up the whole car as we smelled a burning smell. I called Toyota Custer service a couple of times and reported the issue. again called towing company took to the dealer. dealer "Town county Toyota Charlotte" Dealer manager was very rude and says it cannot be fixed, it is back-ordered, left us on the road to take out the car. It is such cheap material for Such an EXPENSIVE car. It has an 18KW battery and gas we would have been caught up in a fire in the car. We were so disappointed and shocked for a few days. # Again it is first in segment plugin EV. It makes weird noise occasionally while reversing or staring going in 10-15miles per hour. Riased 2 service tickets with toyota customer care, no response so far. First ticket: 220119002484 second ticket: 220108001683