Lemberg Law is investigating complaints regarding brake malfunctions in the 2021 Toyota RAV4. Vehicle owners are reporting that the brakes of their SUVs often fail, sometimes causing accidents.
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There is zero doubt that there is a major problem with the 2021 Toyota RAV4’s brakes. Also, it is clearly a safety issue.
So far, owners of the 2021 Toyota RAV4 have filed 17 complaints with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). These complaints include brake issues with the Hybrid and Prime models. At least four of the complaints report accidents, one of which involved four vehicles (including the RAV4) and resulted in three injuries. Many more report near misses.
The owner of a 2021 RAV4 Prime states in his NHTSA complaint: “It appears to be an issue with the regenerative brakes switching over to the mechanical brakes when the car believes there is wheel slip.”
Another Prime owner states: “While braking there is a brief release, which I believe happens when (the) car switches from regenerative to friction braking. It feels like I have taken my foot off the brake for a moment, but I have not. Result is (that the) car briefly stops braking, which can cause (a) loss of control. Has happened consistently for months, less pronounced with hard vs soft braking.”
Another 2021 RAV4 Prime owner points out that the 2010 Toyota Prius had a similar brake issue for which a recall (NHTSA CAMPAIGN 10V039000) was issued.
Toyota Lexus HS250H vehicles were also recalled. Dealers were required to rewrite (the) programming of the anti-lock braking system (ABS) control unit free of charge.
The recall stated that customers “experienced an inconsistent brake feel after ABS actuation during slow and steady application of the brakes on rough or slick road surfaces. Stopping distances may be increased compared with a customer’s expectation for a given pedal force.” The consequence, it said, was that “vehicle stopping distances may increase relative to a customer’s expectation, increasing the risk of a crash.”
Whether the cause of brake problems in the 2021 Toyota RAV4 are exactly the same isn’t known because Toyota denies there is a problem. But an owner from California believes it is, stating in his complaint:
“When the vehicle goes over a pothole (or bad road condition) while you are braking, the brakes don’t work for a second, the car feels like it is surging. I almost hit the car in front. This happens a lot. It’s the exact same problem with the 2010 Prius.”
Despite accidents caused by brake failure, there isn’t a single manufacturer communication on file with the NHTSA that deals with 2021 Toyota RAV4 brake problems. The company seems to be in denial.
As another RAV4 complaint states: “Every time I try to talk to Toyota about this they tell me there is nothing wrong.”
2021 Toyota RAV4 owners are experiencing the same or similar problems that 2010 Toyota Prius, and 2021 Toyota Highlander and Sienna owners have experienced. Most state that when they press down on the brakes the car doesn’t stop. Some say that their cars speed up instead of slowing down when they press the brake.
There are too many NHTSA complaints to quote them all. So, we have singled out those that report accidents as well as a couple where drivers were able to avoid accidents.
The Maryland owner of a RAV4 Prime that crashed says the SUV “was in stop and go traffic. Brakes did not switch from regen (regenerative) braking to physical brakes. Slammed on the brakes several times, they did not slow the car enough. Eventually, the brakes locked up as the RAV4 rear-ended the car in front.”
The car in front smashed into the next one and that one into the one in front of it. Three cars were damaged and three people were injured. One was taken to the ER.
To make matters worse, the airbags didn’t deploy.
According to the complaint, Toyota Motor North America inspected the vehicle and said from the event data recorder they could tell the ABS had activated. The owner disagrees.
“There was no notification, and the brakes locked up. Speed went from 46 to 21.1 mph. This occurred at 3,573 miles on only a few month-old RAV4. I’m well aware of what ABS feels like when it goes off.”
The owner of a 2021 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid states that while driving approximately 10 mph, the vehicle failed to stop while the brake pedal was depressed. This resulted in the SUV crashing into two parked vehicles. It eventually came to a stop after crashing into a curb. Like the incident above, there were no warning lights and the airbags failed to deploy.
The owner filed a police report and the vehicle was towed to a local mechanic and then to a local dealer where it was awaiting diagnosis. The failure mileage was approximately 8,000.
This complaint describes two sudden acceleration incidents. The first was on October 6, 2021. The car lurched forward and hit a pole after the brake did not engage. “My car has an auto-braking system which did not function as designed. I took it to Toyota. They determined there were no issues with the vehicle.”
The owner insisted there was something wrong and warned that it would happen again – and could be much worse.
Two months later, while in a drive-thru using the hold button that holds the brake in place, the car began to accelerate and the brakes would not engage.”An error message on the dash said ‘BRAKE MALFUNCTION’. I could not stop the car. I put (it) in Park, but it did not stop the car.” The car jumped the curb, drove into oncoming traffic, and hit two cars.
“They were traveling north, I was traveling west. It’s a miracle another car did not hit and kill me. The most frightening experience of my life.”
After another inspection, Toyota once again said “they could not find anything wrong with the vehicle.” They also maintained “that the brakes were never engaged, which is an outright lie and utterly insane.”
“My car has an auto braking system, so why didn’t it work? Clearly, it malfunctioned.”
Collecting medication from a pharmacy drive-thru, a 2021 RAV4 owner used the brake-hold feature on the vehicle. This meant he didn’t have his feet on any pedals and wasn’t holding the steering wheel.
“I did not get any notifications, warnings, alerts, or beeps from the vehicle prior to the incident. As I reached my arm out to get my medications and payment from the pharmacy window, the vehicle sped off (accelerated) at a high rate of speed. The vehicle was on break-hold and I did not touch anything. I was able to bring my arm inside and stop the vehicle and put it into the park position. I then put it into reverse and returned to get my medications.
“When I went to put it back into drive, the brake-hold indicator was still on and so I pressed the button to disable it. I drove the vehicle home and parked it. The vehicle did not roll forward. The vehicle took off at a high rate of speed and my arm was sore afterward. Luckily, there was no one in front of me at the time of the incident. The pharmacy technician stated, ‘That was close!’ The next day, I took the vehicle into service at the Toyota dealership.”
After an investigation, the dealership said they couldn’t find anything wrong.
While exiting an interstate and applying the brakes, the 2021 RAV4 struck a small bump (pot-hole) in the roadway with the front passenger wheel.
“The car lurched forward and stopped slowing down. The brakes had disengaged on all wheels. After approximately 2 seconds, the car started braking again and I was able to regain control and stop. This momentary loss of braking ability could have caused me to rear-end the vehicle in front had I not left excess room. The loss of brakes increased the braking distance required and could lead to the loss of control if the roadway is slick.
“I have been able to reproduce this issue. No ABS or TCS lights illuminated. No beeps or other warning messages materialized.”
The ABS monitors the speed of the individual wheels to detect locking. The TCS detects when there is a lack of traction and wheels lose their grip on the road.
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Brian Jones spent more than 30 years working as an ASE Certified Master Tech and Parts Specialist at multiple dealerships. Brian has become an authority in the industry, traveling across the country to consult for car dealerships and contributing his expertise as a writer for several major automotive publications. In his spare time, Brian enjoys working on pickup trucks, muscle cars, Jeeps and anything related to motorsports.
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I bought a 2021 Rav4 Hybrid LE in December 2021. Almost immediately I heard a strange noise when I applied the brakes but was told by Toyota that was just a “drill down” noise the brakes make because there is no emergency brake you can manually set. It is automatic. I did not think that made any sense but went on my way and the noise got louder so I took it back and they said I needed a new brake kit. Shortly after they replaced the brake kit, the noise started again but was not as loud at first. Soon after that the noise returned and I brought it in a couple more times but could never get it to duplicate the sound while driving with the mechanic. I did not think about the fact that I never pulled up to the dealership and had the mechanic get in right away. They always had me have a seat to wait for the mechanic and magically I could not get it to produce the noise during the time they drove it around with me. So I decided to try to record it on my phone which is not easy because it is not always consistent-happens most often pushing the breaks but also immediately after releasing the brake. I was finally able to record it on my phone loud and clear and thought for sure they would be able to figure it out but they told me no one could hear it. I said, “well that’s funny because the guy you sent to pick up my car said he heard it loud and clear.” So they had me send what I recorded on my phone via text which now they could miraculously hear. My husband and coworkers also heard it loud and clear from my phone recording but Toyota said without the vehicle making the noise while they drive it, they can’t really tell what the problem is. They offered to give me a loaner Rav4 so their head mechanic could drive it around for a few days. But you guessed it-no noise-no solution. So I went on my way again and for a brief time (maybe a week) I didn’t hear it but after a week it is back to as loud as ever. But I don’t trust Toyota to be honest with me about what is actually wrong with it. I have read about problems with Rav 4’s with a vin number beginning with 4T3 which is what my vin number begins in but I can’t find an exact cause for the noise I am hearing when I press and take my foot off the brakes. I am sooooo beyond frustrated from all the time and energy I have spent dealing with this issue to still have no resolution. I just want to know what my options are in getting Toyota to buy back this car and my extended warranty at no loss to me. I will never buy another Toyota again and since 2008, my whole family of 4 has driven nothing but Toyota. Please advise.