There are 4 owner-reported powertrain & transmission complaints for the 1999 Toyota RAV4in NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
1999 TOYOTA RAV BEING DRIVEN BY MY 18 Y/O DAUGHTER. SHE COMPLAINED THAT THE CAR WOULD REV AND THEN JOLT WHEN IT WOULD FINALLY SHIFT INTO GEAR. WE BROUGHT IT TO A AAMCO DEALER TO HAVE DIAGNOSTICS DONE. THEY SAID IT WAS THE COMPUTER THAT NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. SINCE WE DIDN'T HAVE THE MONEY AT THE TIME WE DECIDED SHE SHOULD DRIVE IT HOME AND PARK IT. IT DIED ON THE WAY HOME WHILE SHE WAS ON THE FREEWAY. IT JUST WOULDN'T SHIFT INTO GEAR AND SLOWED DOWN TO A STOP IN THE MIDDLE OF PARLEYS CANYON (I-80) IN UTAH. NOT THE BEST SITUATION FOR A YOUNG GIRL TO BE IN! SHAME ON TOYOTA FOR NOT ADVISING THEIR CUSTOMERS OF THIS PROBLEM AND ADVISING US ON HOW TO PREVENT A WHOLE TRANSMISSION REPLACEMENT! *TR
TL*- WHILE DRIVING A TOYOTA RAV 4 WITH 80000 MILES ON THE ODOMETER THE TRANSMISSION POPPED OUT OF FOURTH GEAR AND WOULD NOT ENGAGE . SHE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER, AND WHILE THEY WERE REPAIRING THE GEAR SHIFT, THEY ALSO DETERMINED THAT FIFTH GEAR NEEDED TO BE REPAIRED. AT 12,000 MILES THE VEHICLE EXPERIENCED THE SAME FAILURE WHILE IN 5TH GEAR. THE CONTACT DID NOT WANT THE SAME TECHNICIAN TO REPAIR THE VEHICLE BECAUSE SHE WAS CONCERNED THAT THE VEHICLE WILL NOT BE REPAIRED CORRECTLY. *AK UPDATED 03/19/07. 8JB
WITHOUT WARNING, CAR POPS INTO NEUTRAL FROM FIFTH GEAR. THIS INADVERTENT ACTION IS STARTLING, AND, IN MY OPINION, DANGEROUS. I DID NOT LOSE CONTROL OF CAR, BUT ONLY BECAUSE I WAS ALERT AT THE TIME. *NM
WHILE STARTING VEHICLE FOR FIRST TIME AND WHEN SHIFTING VEHICLE INTO DRIVE IT WOULD TRAVEL IN REVERSE. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION. *AK
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.
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026