2013 Toyota RAV4 Steering Problems

The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that the steering wheel intermittently stiffened while driving straight and while making left and right turns. No warning lights were illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the steering column assembly failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 75,000. The dealer diagnosed the vehicle as needing a steering column assembly and dealer was not assisting with diagnostic fee or repairs.

The contact owns a 2013 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that an abnormal clicking sound was coming from the steering column without warning. The contact had taken the vehicle to the dealer where he was informed that the steering gear and rack and pinion needed to be replaced. The contact was also informed that there were no recalls associated with the VIN. The contact then took the vehicle to an independent mechanic who provided the same information as the dealer. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 103,000.

STRUTS ARE MAKING A LOT OF NOISE IN THE REAR OF THE CAR, ALSO HEAT SHIELD GROMMETS ARE LOOSE AND PRODUCES A BANGING SOUND UNDER THE CAR. ALL THE NOISES ARE NOTICEABLE WHILE DRIVING AT LOW SPEEDS. TORQUE CONVERTER AND 6 SOLENOIDS HAD TO BE REPLACED

STEERING RACK IS BAD AND NEEDS TO BE REPLACED.

CAR WON'T START. PANEL TURNS ON BUT IT WON'T ENGAGE THE STARTER. CAN HEAR A BUZZ NOISE, LIKE A MAGNETIZED COIL GOING OFF. SHIFTER IS LOCKED. STEERING WHEEL IS LOCKED. BRAKE IMPOSSIBLE TO PUSH DOWN. ONLY WAY I CAN START THE CAR IS WITH THE EMERGENCY PROCEDURE PUSHING THE START BUTTON FOR 15 SECONDS. BUT STILL THE SHIFTER IS BLOCKED IN PARKING AND TO BE ABLE TO DRIVE THE CAR I NEED TO USE THE LITTLE SWITCH UNDER THE BUTTON SIZE COVER NEXT TO THE SHIFTER. TOYOTA HAS NO CLUE WHAT IS GOING ON. VEHICLE HAS 45K MILES

WHILE STOPPED AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT WITH THE TRANSMISSION IN DRIVE, THE ENGINE SHUT OFF WITHOUT WARNING, AND THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED. THE RADIO AND HEADLIGHTS REMAINED ON. THIS THE SECOND OCCURRENCE WITHIN 6 WEEKS.

CLUNKING NOISE COMING FROM THE STEERING COLUMN WHEN MAKE LEFT OR RIGHT TURNS AT LOW AND HIGH SPEEDS. DEALERSHIP INSPECTED MY CAR, EVEN TEST DROVE WITH ONE OF THE MECHANICS, AND THEY CLAIM THEY CAN'T FIND ANYTHING AFTER SEVERAL APPOINTMENTS AND INSPECTIONS. FINALLY, THEY SAID IT'S SOMETHING WITH MY STEERING AND HAVE YET TO FULLY DIAGNOSE AND FIX THE PROBLEM. A QUICK GOOGLE SEARCH AND YOU'LL FIND MANY PEOPLE WITH THE SAME PROBLEM AND LITTLE HELP FROM THE DEALERSHIP.

CAR ENGINE WOULD NOT TURN ON. INDICATOR LIGHT FOR STEERING WAS ON.. ONCE I PULLED THE STEERING HARD THEN CAR STARTED FINE. SEARCHING ONLINE I SEE THERE ARE REPORTS OF AUTO STEERING ISSUES WITH OTHER MODEL. BATTERY WAS FUNCTIONING FINE AS EVERYTHING ELSE WOULD TURN ON, IE, RADIO, AC ..FAN, LIGHTS

MANUFACTURER: TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION NO. (VIN): XXXXXXX. BOUGHT A TOYOTA CERTIFIED AT DEALERSHIP, (PUSH BUTTON) HOWEVER IN SIX OCCASIONS, CAR ENGINE WOULD NOT TURN ON. INDICATOR LIGHT FOR STEERING WAS ON. AFTER SEVERAL TRIES, AND ONCE I PULLED THE STEERING HARD THEN CAR STARTED FINE. TOOK CAR TO DEALER TO CHECK IT, THEY SAID NOTHING WAS WRONG WITH CAR. THE LAST TIME, THE CAR DID NOT START EVEN WITH THE TOYOTA ROAD ASSISTANCE STAFF/TOWING, WAS UNABLE TO GET IT OUT OF GARAGE, AREA WAS TOO LOW. ENDED UP LEAVING CAR AT GARAGE OVERNIGHT. NEXT DAY, I RETURNED THE CAR, DID A TRADE IN FOR NEW TOYOTA. HOWEVER, DEALER OR TOYOTA CO. DID NOT ADMIT PROBLEMS WITH CAR. BATTERY WAS FUNCTIONING FINE AS EVERYTHING ELSE WOULD TURN ON, IE, RADIO, AC ..FAN, LIGHTS.

AFTER READING SEVERAL NEWS STORIES TODAY (04/09/14) ABOUT THE RECALL OF 27 TOYOTA MODELS (INCLUDING 2013 RAV 4), FOR: ?CABLES FOR THE DRIVER AIR BAG MODULE THAT CAN BE DAMAGED, DISABLING THE BAG, THOUGH A WARNING LIGHT WILL COME ON (3.5 MILLION VEHICLES, 1.67 MILLION IN THE U.S.). ?SEATS THAT DON'T LOCK IN PLACE (2.32 MILLION, 670,000 IN NORTH AMERICA) ?STEERING COLUMN BRACKETS THAT MAY BECOME LOOSE OR FAIL (760,000, EUROPE AND ASIA ONLY) ?WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR (160,000, ASIA ONLY) ?STARTER MOTOR FIRE HAZARD (20,000, ASIA ONLY) I CALLED THE DEALER WHERE I BOUGHT MY CAR - TOYOTA OF ROCK HILL. I WAS INFORMED THAT RECALLS ARE "COMING," BUT THEY DIDN'T HAVE SPECIFIC INFORMATION FROM TOYOTA YET. I SHOULD BE GETTING A LETTER IN THE MAIL AND THEN I TAKE THE CAR IN FOR SERVICE. FRUSTRATING TO SEE THAT THE MEDIA HAS MORE INFORMATION ON THE ACTUAL RECALLS THAN THE TOYOTA DEALER. SO, IF SOMETHING HAPPENS BETWEEN NOW AND THE TIME I GET "MY LETTER," (MY AIR BAGS FAIL OR THE SEATS BECOME DISLODGED DURING AN ACCIDENT), I'M PRETTY MUCH SCREWED. *TR

ON LOCAL ROAD, ACCELERATING FROM STOP. VEHICLE SUDDENLY "SHUT-OFF" GOING INTO NEUTRAL AND UNABLE TO PUT BACK INTO DRIVE. STEERING WENT "LIMP". VEHICLE DRIFTED RIGHT, POWER STEERING WAS EFFECTED, STEERING DIFFICULT. VEHICLE COASTED INTO PARKING LOT TO THE RIGHT, FORTUNATELY NO VEHICLES HAPPENED TO BE PASSING ON THE RIGHT AT THAT PRECISE MOMENT, THEREFORE NO ACCIDENTS. BUT THERE COULD HAVE EASILY BEEN ONE. ATTEMPTS AT RESTARTING VEHICLE RESULTED IN "TAKE EV TO NEAREST DEALERSHIP" MESSAGE AND SEVERAL WARNING INDICATORS ON DASH. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO ORIGINATING DEALERSHIP WHICH IT CONTINUES TO BE DIAGNOSED AND UNRESOLVED. VEHICLE WAS PURCHASED ON 9/3/2013 < 6 DAYS PRIOR. *TR