2002 Toyota RAV4 Automatic Transmission Problems
- 254
- Owner complaint records in our dataset
Records are owner complaints, not a measured failure rate.
Owner complaint recordsComplaint records reflect reports in our dataset and do not measure how frequently the problem occurs across all vehicles.
Among these 254 stored complaint records:
- 6 indicate a crash
- 2 indicate injury
- 1 indicate fire
What owners report
- engine light · 17 records
- check engine · 16 records
- automatic transmission · 11 records
- transmission failure · 10 records
- light came · 8 records
- control module · 8 records
Mileage in stored records
| Band | Records |
|---|---|
| 60–100k mi | 117 |
| 100–150k mi | 89 |
| 30–60k mi | 20 |
| 150–400k mi | 12 |
| 1–30k mi | 2 |
Complaint records
Owner-submitted complaint content, presented as stored.
Automatic Transmission
I have a 2002 rav4 all wheel drive automatic, and the transmission started acting up at 98,000 miles. The car would shudder at stops, sometimes lunging forward. I would hold up traffic as it continued shuddering until it would finally go into second. Sometimes on the freeway it would slip out of gear and shudder as well. I would have to reduce speed until it would go into second. Sometimes at intersections i would…
ODI 10287023
Automatic Transmission
Transmission problems with 2002 rav4: the "checking" engine light on my car was on a week ago, then the next day, i put my car to koons toyota at tysons, virginia for checking the problem, also i requested 120,000 mile service. After service was completed by koons, i found that my car has the harsh shifting occurs, meaning that, at the low gear, when stepped on the gas pedal. My car hesitates to shift into the…
ODI 10289005
Automatic Transmission
The transmission started slipping and there was a lack of acceleration after coming to a complete stop. Once the car would finally accelerate, it would bang into gear. The transmission issue is a know problem with the 2002 toyota rav4's and toyota is refusing to do anything about it if the car has over 80,000 miles on it. *tr
ODI 10286602
Automatic Transmission
2002 toyota rav4 with auto transmission, 94k miles; transmission is not shifting between 1st and 2nd gear in a safe manner. The rpms reach 4000 - 5000 before transmission shifts to 2nd gear. This is dangerous when merging on a highway ramp as the car is not shifting to reach higher speeds in order to merge safely. Also, in stop and go traffic, car is not shifting into 2nd gear in a timely manner and could cause life…
ODI 10286301
Automatic Transmission
Yesterday, 2002 toyota rav4 transmission began to slip and hesitate jeopardizing passenger safety. I understand toyota issued tsb 00206 but chose not to recall or otherwise inform customers. Further i understand replacement ecm is over $1,000 and a transmission rebuild may cost nearly $4,500. Toyota evidently is unwilling to correct or otherwise offer financial assistance to correct this dangerous defect. *tr
ODI 10286182
Automatic Transmission
Apparently with all the chatter about toyota rav4s there is clearly an issue with the transmissions. Mine as well has started to slip and buck in and out of 2nd gear. An investigation is definitely warranted and should lead to a recall by toyota. *tr
ODI 10288705
Automatic Transmission
There were no events leading up to failure. My transmission on my 2002 toyota rav4 started slipping and pulling out of the blue. It had 87,280 miles and had been regularly serviced and inspected. It failed to accelerate at intersections and on take off , making driving very dangerous. I took it in and was told by the repair shop the engine control module was defective and had caused the transmission to fail ,…
ODI 10289278
Automatic Transmission
In the middle of a trip, after stopping, the transmission started jerking when switching gears. Since then it has been an intermittent problem. Sometimes it downshifts for no reason, sometimes it doesn't fully engage into first gear. Sometimes it works fine. Sometimes it has trouble accelerating going uphill, it will downshift and rev to redline and won't shift to the next gear. I took it to the dealer, and they…
ODI 10287154
Automatic Transmission
My 2002 toyota rav4 has 100,102 miles on it and started to have transmission problems, i.e. Slowing down while driving posted speed, not moving after red light turns green and the vehicle seems to jump while just driving down the road. We called a reliable transmission repair place who informed us that "toyota rav4s are notorious for this dangerous situation and it's not the transmission it's the computer. Take it…
ODI 10291820
Automatic Transmission
Transmission started to "roughly" shift. Almost lost power on freeway. This happened suddenly. No warning of transmission failure. Was working perfectly earlier in the day. Drove home in slow lane with hazards on. Afraid engine would shut down on freeway. *tr
ODI 10284833
Automatic Transmission
In 2006 my transmission just disintergrated with 103000 miles, had it rebuilt the transmission shop said that the computer was not doing it's job than come to find out that toyota had a tsb on it and never notified anyone. Now about in march of 2009 at about 145000 miles 2nd to 3rd gear started to slip again. Now so this is my second time i'm having this problem it seems i can't get more than 100,000. Sad these…
ODI 10323303
Automatic Transmission
After having problems with my transmission i found out that there was an electronic control module that was defective and caused damage to my transmission. Toyota dealers in my area would not offer any help other than to say that it will cost me ~$5,000 for new emc and new transmission. From all of the complaints so far i would guess that toyota is making more money on replacing transmissions then they make on…
ODI 10293098
Automatic Transmission
In mid september i started to notice my car really having trouble picking up speed especially when starting off after a complete stop. Over the next few weeks the problem became much worse. The car would hesitate to change gears and when it did it would jerk really hard (it sounded like the bottom of the car was going to fall out). I felt like i was going to wreck several times because it would not pick up to speed…
ODI 10291233
Automatic Transmission
Erratic transmission operation, e.g. Severe slipping and improper downshifting which causes rapid deceleration of the vehicle with no warning or indication to following drivers. According to the dealer, the transmission failure resulted from failure of the engine control unit (ecu). This car's ecu was recently reprogrammed by toyota in accordance with tsb eg010-02. This tsb addresses spurious catalytic converter…
ODI 10286327
Automatic Transmission
I have a 2002 toyota rav 4. After experiencing some problems with accelerating, the check engine light went on (the same evening that i experienced the acceleration problem). I took it into an auto center and they reported that it was code # p0755 - stored in system solenoid b malfunction. I was told that i would need to replace the ecm. They told me that toyota has been having alot of problems with this and that…
ODI 10285659
Automatic Transmission
A safety problem occurred on our 2002 toyota rav4 when the transmission suddenly stopped engaged the gears correctly. This is a safety issue because when driving in traffic and or trying to turn when oncoming traffic was approaching and not knowing if or when the car would move or engage gears was frightening. This problem occurred overnight. With 47,717 miles on the car, the transmission had to be rebuilt. This…
ODI 10284599
Automatic Transmission
My 2002 toyota rav4 began intermittently bogging down and hard jerky shifting. I'm unable to accelerate when this happens and the car looses forward momentum. I encountered a close call when i attempted to pull out into traffic, the rav4 bogged down, would not accelerate and i narrowly missed being hit by oncoming traffic. Fortunately i live in a low traffic area. My mechanic said the problem is the engine control…
ODI 10284894
Automatic Transmission
I own a 2002 toyota rav4. I've been the sole owner of this vehicle and purchased it band new in 2002 from a local honolulu toyota dealer. In mid/late 2009, the vehicle started having transmission problems: hard shifting in lower gears 1, 2 & 3, hard shifting when placing the vehicle in reverse, the vehicle shaking and vibrating when slowing down and sudden acceleration from the stopped position when the gas pedal is…
ODI 10312887
Automatic Transmission
Re: 2002 toyota rav4 - at approximately 56,000 miles, this vehicle's transmission began erratic behavior, i.e, stalling in traffic, hesitating and unpredictable shifting. Safety was a main concern as the vehicle was stalling during merging with fast-moving traffic. Transmission failure was diagnosed by a technician and a factory rebuilt transmission was installed to correct the failure. The ecm was replaced as well.…
ODI 10292958
Automatic Transmission
I own a 2002 toyota rav4. On august 22nd, 2009 i noticed that when i would come to a complete stop, it would take a while for the car to accelerate and pick up speed. Once it did get moving, the car would jerk forward and eventually pick up speed. Everytime i would come to a stoplight, i would be deathly afraid that my car wouldn't start up again and that i would be hit from behind. When driving on the highway, it…
ODI 10282747
Automatic Transmission
I have a 2002 toyota rav 4. About 1 month ago, the car begin shifting hard into reverse and second gear. At some times the shifting would stall, i.e. It would not shift into second gear right away and when it would, it would shift hard. I did research online and learned about the ecm/ecu problem that is causing 01-04 toyota rav 4s to have trouble with shifting. I took it to toyota and they followed the procedures on…
ODI 10284110
Automatic Transmission
Car jerks and loses acceleration, almost caused an accident as i was entering an intersection. *tr
ODI 10281602
Automatic Transmission
2002 rav4 jerks at low speeds while automatic transmission is trying to shift gears. *tr
ODI 10280543
Automatic Transmission
Tl* the contact owns a 2002 toyota rav4. While driving between 45-50 mph the transmission exhibited gear shifting failure. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for inspection. The technician concluded that the transmission had slipped gears,therefore the vehicle was repaired. After the repair the failure resurfaced. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer and repaired. However none of the repairs have…
ODI 10287435
Automatic Transmission
I have a 2002 toyota rav4 in which i recently replaced the computer for the transmission. My car would not accelerate from a stoplight, then would jerk from 1st into 2nd gear--a definite safety issue when attempting to gain speed on a highway. After i replaced the computer, the car ran fine for about a month, and now the "check engine" light went back on and it is starting to jerk again and not accelerate properly.…
ODI 10280384