1999 Toyota RAV4 problems & reliability
62 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 1999 Toyota RAV4, alongside 3 safety recall campaigns. Last verified Aug 7, 2026. Complaints are unverified reports submitted by owners to the federal Office of Defects Investigation.
Each complaint is counted once (by NHTSA case number), even when it names several vehicles.
9 complaints report injuries (14 injured).
Federal crash records (FARS 2020–2023): 1999 Toyota RAV4 vehicles were involved in 20 fatal crashes with 15 occupant deaths. Involvement counts are not adjusted for how many are on the road and do not imply fault or a vehicle defect.
Most reported problems
| Component | Complaints | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Air Bags → | 14 | 23% |
| Vehicle Speed Control → | 14 | 23% |
| Electrical System | 6 | 10% |
| Structure | 6 | 10% |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 5 | 8% |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 4 | 6% |
| Power Train | 4 | 6% |
| Seat Belts | 4 | 6% |
| Suspension | 4 | 6% |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 3 | 5% |
Component groups as classified by NHTSA. A complaint can name more than one component, so shares may sum to more than 100%.
All 18 reported components →Common symptoms owners describe
Keyword analysis of complaint narratives; one complaint can describe several symptoms.
Mileage when problems occurred
Among the 23 complaints that included a usable odometer reading, the median reported incident mileage was 110,000 miles (middle 50% between 77,888 and 142,254 miles).
Complaints by incident year
What owners report
“I lost control of the vehicle and I overcorrected causing the car to go airborne. I hit head on into an embankment then continued to roll 3or 4 times before stopping. There were no indications or warnings to make me think these parts were going to malfunction. My airbags never deployed and the seatbelt did not lockup.”
Air Bags · filed Jan 31, 2024
“Tl* takata recall. The contact owns a 1999 toyota rav4. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 20v033000 (air bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact called toyota of wallingford (859 n colony rd, wallingford, ct 06492, (888) 927-7559) where it was confirmed…”
Air Bags · filed Aug 31, 2020
“Tl* the contact owns a 1999 toyota rav4. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 20v033000 (air bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. An unnamed dealer was…”
Air Bags · filed Aug 18, 2020
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Technical service bulletins
58 manufacturer communications (TSBs, service campaigns, warranty extensions) are on file with NHTSA for the 1999 Toyota RAV4. The 10 most recent:
OBSOLETE NOTICE January 22, 2024: This bulletin is now obsolete. Please see T-SB-0057-18.
T-SB-0043-14 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 22, 2024
TSB: Replacement certification labels (the vinyl label installed on the driver door or door post) and VIN plates (the metal plate riveted to dashboard) (see Figure 1) for most 1979 ? 2023 model year vehicles may be…
TSB003220 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Aug 17, 2023
TT: Some Toyota vehicles installed with Toyota Complete Maintenance Care (TCMC) brake pads may exhibit a groan or squeak noise in various driving conditions
TTT063620 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 17, 2022
POL: This consolidated Tire Warranty Guide contains the complete warranty terms for all brands of ground and spare tires currently in use by Toyota. This information must be kept near the point of vehicle sale and be…
Toyota PRO19-02 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Jan 12, 2022
Toyota Safety Recall and Service Campaign - Technician Certification Requirements
Toyota Safety Re · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 17, 2021
TT: Some Toyota vehicles installed with Toyota Complete Maintenance Care (TCMC) brake pads may exhibit a groan or squeak noise in various driving conditions.
T-TT-0636-20 Rev · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Mar 12, 2021
TSB: Replacement certification labels (the vinyl label installed on the driver door or door post) and VIN plates (the metal plate riveted to dashboard) (see Figure 1) for most 1979 ? 2021 model year vehicles may be…
T-SB-0032-20 Rev · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Feb 3, 2021
TT: Some Toyota vehicles installed with Toyota Complete Maintenance Care (TCMC) brake pads may exhibit a groan or squeak noise in various driving conditions.
T-TT-0636-20 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Dec 14, 2020
TT: Some Toyota vehicles installed with Toyota Complete Maintenance Care (TCMC) brake pads may exhibit a groan or squeak noise in various driving conditions.
T-TT-0636-20 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Dec 14, 2020
TSB: OBSOLETE NOTICE April 07, 2020: This bulletin is now obsolete. Please see T-SB-0032-20. Replacement Certification Labels and VIN Plates
T-SB-0304-17 Obs · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions · issued Apr 7, 2020
TSBs are repair guidance manufacturers send to dealers — they are not recalls and repairs are not automatically free. Full documents are available on NHTSA’s site.
Safety recalls
The 1999 Toyota RAV4 has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns — recall repairs are free at franchised dealers regardless of the vehicle’s age.
Check whether your specific vehicle is affected
Recall campaigns often cover only certain VIN ranges. Enter your VIN on the official NHTSA site to confirm whether your vehicle is included and whether the repair is still open.
Check VIN on NHTSA →Buying a used 1999 Toyota RAV4?
- · Decode the seller’s VIN with our free VIN decoder to confirm the exact year, engine and trim.
- · Check for unrepaired recalls by VIN on NHTSA’s official lookup — recall repairs are free.
- · Among complaints with usable mileage, the median reported incident mileage was 110,000 miles. This does not predict when a particular vehicle will develop a problem.