There are 14 stored owner reports matching the brakes leading-label group for the 1998 Toyota RAV4 in our NHTSA-sourced dataset. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
This group counts stored reports whose component label starts with one of this site's matching prefixes, ignoring case. Each matching report counts once within the group. Components mentioned later in the label or only in the narrative are not searched. How component counts work
Loaded 14 of 14 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)EVEN AFTER I REPLACED THE BRAKE PADS WHILE DOING MAINTENANCE, THE BRAKES ARE STILL LOOSE AT TIMES, MOSTLY AFTER RUNNING ON THE HIGHWAY.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 1998 TOYOTA RAV4. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING 25 MPH, THE BRAKES WERE APPLIED AND THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL NOISE. IN ADDITION, THE VEHICLE WAS DIFFICULT TO COME TO A STOP. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE THE FRONT DRIVER'S SIDE ROTOR WAS REPLACED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VIN WAS NOT INCLUDED IN ANY RECALLS. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE MILEAGE WAS UNAVAILABLE.
THE BRAKES FAILED TO WORK TWICE AND THE VEHICLE LURCHED FORWARD INSTEAD INTO DRIVE. THIS WAS AT LOW SPEED WHEN ATTEMPTING TO COME TO A COMPLETE STOP AT A RED LIGHT. WHEN THE FIRST BRAKING ATTEMPT FAILED, THE BRAKE WAS PUMPED A SECOND TIME AND IT FAILED TO STOP AND ACCELERATED INSTEAD. FIRM PRESSURE WAS APPLIED TO THE BRAKE PEDAL A THIRD TIME AND THIS DID PROMPT THE VEHICLE TO STOP BUT IT WAS CLOSE TO REAR-ENDING ANOTHER CAR ALREADY STOPPED AT THE LIGHT. *TR
ENGINE LIGHT CAME 0N. CONSUMER APPLIED BRAKES, AND VEHICLE WENT FORWARD AND JUMPED CURB. CONSUMER'S VEHICLE HIT ANOTHER VEHICLE, AND LIGHT WENT OFF. NEXT DAY, DEALER CHECKED SYSTEM'S COMPUTER AND A SENSOR KICKED UP THE IDLER. SENSOR WILL HAVE TO BE REPLACED. CONSUMER WAS UNAWARE OF THE CAUSE, AND IF IT WAS AN INTERMITTENT PROBLEM.*AK
NO SUMMARY
SQUEAKY BRAKES WHICH GRADUALLY BECOMES WORSE WITH GRINDING NOISE, PROBLEM WITH ALL ROTOR AND NEED NEW BRAKES, ONE MONTH LATER WITH BRAKES STILL SQUEAKY
BRAKING SYSTEM IS DEFECTIVE, AND ON WET PAVEMENT AT 20MPH THE BRAKES LOCK UP. DEALER AND INSURANCE COMPANY CONTACTED. AFTER REPAIR WORK HAD BEEN DONE, PROBLEM STILL EXISTS. EXTENDED STOPPING DISTANCE OCCURS WHEN BRAKES ARE APPLIED. *AK
INTERMITTENTLY THE BRAKING SYSTEM MALFUNCTIONED, CAUSING THE BRAKE PEDAL TO BE "HARD" AND EXTENDED STOPPING DISTANCE. THE VEHICLE SLID, ALMOST RESULTING IN AN ACCIDENT. CAUSE UNKNOWN. DEALER CANNOT DETERMINE PROBLEM. *AK TOYOTA DECIDED TO TAKE VEHICLE BACK AND GIVE CONSUMER A NEW ONE. *SLC
BRAKES FAILED.
POWER ASSISTED FRONT DISC AND REAR BRAKE DRUMS FAILED.
TS
WHEN APPLYING BRAKES PEDAL GOES TO FLOOR ,CAUSING EXTENDED STOPPING DISTANCE. ALSO, VEHICLE CONTINUES TO ACCELERATE AFTER BRAKES ARE APPLIED. PLEASE GIVE ANY FURTHER DETAILS. *AK
WHILE PASSING A TRUCK BRAKES LOCKED UP. DEALER WAS CONTACTED . PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION. *AK
BRAKES SQUEAK. *YC
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
NHTSA source checks for this vehicle year
Checks are recorded separately for each dataset, not for the whole page. Dates use UTC. A missing check date does not mean no records exist.
Vehicle import recorded: May 4, 2026. This is the stored import date, not confirmation that every source was successfully refreshed.