2004 Toyota RAV4 power train problems
23 owner complaints filed with NHTSA name the power train on the 2004 Toyota RAV4 — 15% of all complaints for this model year.
What owners report
“I have 2003 registered as 2004.This vehicle that I has Manufactured November 2003 base on the sicker beside driver side door and it's been registered as 2004 .Now the problem that I have is slow moving to first gear suddenly jump to second gear (This is Automatic Trnasmission) I thought it was…”
filed Apr 25, 2026
“I was driving on a highway, there was a red light and I pressed on the brakes. The car kept going forward, the brakes became resistant to any pressure and the car continued to roll forward. There were no warning lights when the car was started or during the incident. I kept trying to brake the car…”
filed Oct 29, 2024
Verbatim excerpts from complaints filed with NHTSA. Reports are not independently verified.
Power Train problems in other RAV4 years
| Year | Reports | Share |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 RAV4 | 6 | 8% |
| 2024 RAV4 | 7 | 4% |
| 2023 RAV4 | 10 | 7% |
| 2022 RAV4 | 10 | 7% |
| 2021 RAV4 | 20 | 5% |
| 2020 RAV4 | 36 | 6% |
| 2019 RAV4 | 80 | 9% |
| 2018 RAV4 | 26 | 8% |
| 2017 RAV4 | 16 | 5% |
| 2016 RAV4 | 11 | 5% |
| 2015 RAV4 | 25 | 8% |
| 2014 RAV4 | 20 | 10% |
Other reported problem areas on the 2004 Toyota RAV4
Counts are unique NHTSA complaints naming this component group. Complaints are unverified owner reports; mileage is computed only from complaints that included a usable odometer reading.