2018 Toyota RAV4 Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other RAV4 years
- More complaints than other years 9th of 31 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 3 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- 5 out of 5 stars
Owners have filed 332 complaints with NHTSA about the 2018 Toyota RAV4. That ranks 9th out of 31 RAV4 model years for complaints. The most reported problem area is electrical system (129 complaints, 39%), typically at around 16,500 miles. Complaints mention 31 crashes, 32 fires, 18 injuries. There are 3 safety recalls covering this model year. NHTSA has opened 1 defect investigation involving it.
- 332owner complaints
- 3safety recalls
- 1NHTSA investigations
- 31complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2018 Toyota RAV4 problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electrical System problems | 129 | 39% | 16,500 | “electrical contacted” (20%) | — |
| Unknown or Other | 69 | 21% | 5,625 | — | — |
| Engine | 32 | 10% | 48,000 | — | — |
| Service Brakes | 28 | 8% | 10,000 | — | — |
| Power Train | 26 | 8% | 9,470 | — | — |
| Exterior Lighting | 23 | 7% | 5,600 | — | — |
| Vehicle Speed Control | 20 | 6% | 14,400 | — | — |
| Visibility/wiper | 17 | 5% | 9,400 | — | — |
| Air Bags | 16 | 5% | 17,000 | — | — |
| Structure | 14 | 4% | 10,110 | — | — |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 12 | 4% | 8,000 | — | — |
| Steering | 11 | 3% | 94 | — | — |
| Forward Collision Avoidance | 6 | 2% | 61,000 | — | — |
| Tires | 5 | 2% | 29,825 | — | — |
| Lane Departure | 4 | 1% | 12,538 | — | — |
| Visibility | 4 | 1% | 3,525 | — | — |
| Seat Belts | 3 | 1% | 9,500 | — | — |
| Suspension | 3 | 1% | 12,450 | — | — |
| Back Over Prevention | 2 | 1% | 55,000 | — | — |
| Electronic Stability Control (esc) | 2 | 1% | 16,000 | — | — |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 2 | 1% | 6,900 | — | — |
| Latches/locks/linkages | 2 | 1% | 50,000 | — | — |
| Seats | 2 | 1% | — | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 2 | 1% | 56,000 | — | — |
| Chest Clip, Buckle, Harness | 1 | 0% | — | — | — |
| Equipment | 1 | 0% | 18,000 | — | — |
| Firerelated | 1 | 0% | 35,000 | — | — |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 1 | 0% | 78,000 | — | — |
| Wheels | 1 | 0% | — | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2018 Toyota RAV4 recalls (3)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Electrical system:12v/24v/48v battery
Problem: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2013-2018 RAV4 vehicles. Certain replacement 12-volt batteries may not fit properly in the battery tray, allowing the battery to move and contact the hold-down bracket, possibly causing a short circuit.
Risk: A battery short circuit increases the risk of a fire.
Fix: Dealers will replace the battery clamp sub-assembly, battery tray, and positive terminal cover, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed December 27, 2024, to 2013-2014 RAV4 owners. Additional owner notification letters will be mailed in phases, phase 2 will begin on May 14, 2025, and phase 3 in late July 2025. Owners may contact Toyota's customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 23TB13 and 23TA13.
Equipment:other:labels
Problem: Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Toyota Camry, Corolla, Rav4, Sienna, and Yaris iA vehicles equipped with factory-installed floor mats. The load carrying capacity modification label may be incorrect. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."
Risk: An incorrect label may lead to unintentionally overloading the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: SET will notify owners and provide a corrected label for placement over the inaccurate label, free of charge. The recall began August 23, 2019. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. SET's number for this recall is SET19A.
Equipment:other:labels
Problem: Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Toyota 4Runner and Tundra, 2018 Toyota Highlander, RAV4 and Lexus GX460 and 2017 Toyota Sienna and Tacoma vehicles. These vehicles may have incorrect load carrying capacity modification labels. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."
Risk: An incorrect load information label can result in the operator overloading the vehicle and increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Toyota will notify owners and provide them with corrected labels, free of charge. The recall began on January 23, 2018. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are H0Z for Toyota vehicles, and HLF for Lexus vehicles.
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
NHTSA defect investigations
- Battery Hold Down Bracket Thermal Events (PE21005) — opened Feb 25, 2021, closed Aug 12, 2024, led to recall 23V734.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
The contact owns a 2018 Toyota RAV4. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds and turning right or left, the vehicle lost power and failed to accelerate as needed while depressing the accelerator pedal. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer and…
Cooper tires 225/65R17. Purchased 4 tires in June. From installation the tires were bouncy. The garage said it was the struts, so I replaced the struts, but the problem persists. 2 weeks later I took the car back. They said there was nothing wrong with t he tire. They rebalanced them. But that did…
Before o had taken my RAV4 into Toyota for the recall a AAA tech. had replaced the battery after jump starting it. There was nothing wrong with the sensors or anything else but after the battery was replaced all the electric sensors that are for lane change warnings and cruise control etc. stopped…
The contact owns a 2018 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while in reverse(R), the rear-view camera was black and failed to operate as intended. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined that the camera was inoperable and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not…
The hands free feature over the cars microphone/stereo is unusable; leaving vehicle owners frustrated, and more likely to operate cellphones outside of standard hands free practices. I have been on numerous phone calls where people have told me that they were unable to hardly hear a thing I was…
Other Toyota RAV4 years
| Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 RAV4 | 89 | 3 |
| 2024 RAV4 | 176 | 3 |
| 2023 RAV4 | 158 | 3 |
| 2022 RAV4 | 149 | 1 |
| 2021 RAV4 | 387 | 1 |
| 2020 RAV4 | 635 | 6 |
| 2019 RAV4 | 879 | 7 |
| 2018 | 332 | 3 |
| 2017 RAV4 | 307 | 3 |
| 2016 RAV4 | 240 | 3 |
| 2015 RAV4 | 305 | 4 |
| 2014 RAV4 | 197 | 4 |
| 2013 RAV4 | 257 | 2 |
| 2012 RAV4 | 260 | 5 |
| 2011 RAV4 | 287 | 11 |
| 2010 RAV4 | 400 | 14 |
| 2009 RAV4 | 327 | 15 |
| 2008 RAV4 | 575 | 14 |
| 2007 RAV4 | 1,004 | 14 |
| 2006 RAV4 | 705 | 11 |
| 2005 RAV4 | 141 | 5 |
| 2004 RAV4 | 154 | 2 |
| 2003 RAV4 | 315 | 0 |
| 2002 RAV4 | 527 | 0 |
| 2001 RAV4 | 309 | 0 |
| 2000 RAV4 | 30 | 3 |
| 1999 RAV4 | 62 | 4 |
| 1998 RAV4 | 77 | 4 |
| 1997 RAV4 | 54 | 0 |
| 1996 RAV4 | 47 | 0 |
| 1995 RAV4 | 1 | 0 |
See all Toyota RAV4 problems by year, every Toyota model, or the Toyota VIN decoder.
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2018 Toyota RAV4?
Owners most often report electrical system, unknown or other, engine problems. The top one, electrical system, accounts for 129 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2018 Toyota RAV4?
Yes, 3 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2018 Toyota RAV4 a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other RAV4 model years, the 2018 has more complaints than most years, and NHTSA rates it 5 out of 5 stars overall in crash tests. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.