My rav 4 keeps shutting off midway driving. It just looses power and goes dead. There are times when it restarts right away but on other occasions the lights comes off the dash board, and they flicker

how's the voltage? sounds like a charging or slipping belt lowering the battery voltage ,these cars need a full 12 volts to function. otherwise have a good Toyota tech check the TSB,S and the pcm.

Ya I would check your batter terminals and make sure they are clean first..

Thank you for your response. The battery is less than 6 mths and I did a full servicing last week where the battery was serviced. I should have mentioned that the ABS light stays on 95% of the time. Also over the years i've had problems with the headlights. They just goes out but normally comes back on once I turn off and on again. This was checked several times but as they always stays on when checked the problem remains unresolved. The light in the sun screen was also out for over nine mths and just recently, it is back on. I'm thinking maybe its a sensor gone bad but I am absolutely blank when it comes to cars but will research what those acronym means and indeed take it to a good technician.

My 2007 Rav4 is doing the same thing. The dashboard lights usually flicker off first as a warning before the entire car shuts completely down, usually while driving. Nothing but your brakes work as you coast obrake to a stop as safely as possible. When it restarts, all is sometimes normal with the check engine, VBS & 4WD light on solidly. We replaced a sensor before this issue, then a new throttle and computer. None of these repairs have fixed the problem. Any ideas?

Casine , thanks flor Your posting. I'm having the same issue and no one can identify the problem . I have replaced the battery , also replace a sensor from the transmission. Could you share what was the problem in your car? Thanks a lot

Turned out to be a missing screw that keeps two contacts together causing it to lose power (12V) when they move. It took two shops months and two unrelated major "repairs" to figure this out. Craziest issue I've every had with a car during my 30+ years of car ownership. I hope this helps.

Thank you!!!! I hope that's the case with my car . I'm already down $1200 for unrelated major repairs. Thanks again.

Hi, I have the same problem. Where was the missing screw located? Thanks!

Hey man , this is your lucky day!! After spending over $2k and almost replacing the computer ......we finally found a defect with the battery ground cable ....make sure you check that cable , that might be the whole problem. Let me know and good luck !!

This has happened with my 2007 Rav 4 twice this month, most recently leaving us more or less stranded except we were on vacation anyway.. Can anyone confirm if the battery cable/loose screws actually fixed the problem, please? Otherwise I'm thinking it's time to go car shoppping.

It was a loose screw in my case (2007 Rav4).

I don't have an answer but I have the same problem, My SUV is not even a year old, with 900 miles, and today was the fifth time mine has cut off while driving. I took it back to the dealership and they couldn't find anything wrong. I called my insurance agent and he told me to take it back and make them give me a new one.

Mine is shutting down too. Engine and total electrical while driving. No warning. Have to restart while moving. Have to reset clock and radio. Prompt came up to do voice recognition for Bluetooth. Toyota Canada says fuel pump ecu. Makes no sense to me why it would shut down all the electrical. They say it might've shorted out the board in which case no one understands why it restarted. Toyota Canada is not being good about it. It's a 2016 and had 30,000 km when it happened. My 2013 RAV4 shut down twice while driving but did not shut down all the electrical as well

It has happened to me alsotwice...after reading this forum and thanks to a non Toyota technician...found out that the battery screw were loose...after tightening..it's started ...thanks god it saved me tons of money..

Where is this loose screw that's mentioned a few times above? Guru55RB6 mentioned it was a loose battery screw, was that the same screw you others found to be the culprit. (And what exactly is a "battery screw"?)

It turned out to be a loose fuse box screw. It took 2 repair shops 2 months and 3 unecessary repairs to figure out it was a damn loose screw. Thankfully I got most of my $ back. Crazy weird situation.

Thanks TCZ8M. How about you other loose screw victims. Any more details you can provide? We installed a new battery, but got a 1am call from my son when it died again tonight.

Does anyone have the above issue and then when you go to restart it it just whines?

Gosh! My rav4 is also shutting down on me whilst in motion. My mechanic thought that the battery was an issue and measured the power fluctuating to 8. I got it changed today but it stopped again on my drive home. I will try the cables and screws solution. Thank you.

My sons 2007 Limited started having these issues after a recent battery change. So today, after reading through many threads on many different sites, I decided to go out and wiggle a few wires while the car was running to see if I could recreate this "intermittent" problem. No luck on the wire wiggle, but when I shut the hood,the car stalled. So I pop the hood, restart the car, and start looking around for something loose when I see the burn mark on the underside of the hood (right above the positive terminal on the battery). The positive battery terminal connector bolt was making contact with the metal on the underside of the hood. The battery that replacement was taller than the old one and hence the clearance issue. This may not be related to all or any of your issues, but its worth a look.

Thankd guys. Yes it turned out the battery terminals needed cleaning. Now problem is solved. Hope its permanent.

Are any of you parked on hill with full tank of gas, I’m having issue with my 2018 rav4. Toyota said something about emissions and gas mixing doesn’t do well parked on hill at a full tank

2015 RAV4 xle just had this happen. Took my daughter to camp about 6 blocks parked on an incline face down shit it off walked her in came back out started normal drove to the next stop sign made a left went 2 blocks and at the 3rd stop sign all the lights came in and it stalled. I put it I need park and she restarted normal. Freaked me out because in 64,000 miles she's never done this.

My issue was a loose fuse box screw too. Cost nothing to fix, but lots of unecessary repairs & frustration.

I left my 2016 rav4 gas electric car on in auxiliary mode will that effect the battery

I took the car to Toyota dealership. After collecting almost 2k from me and replacing the air fuel sensors, and water pump,doing an Efi induction combo maintenance, the car still stalls. Please what do I do

Check the ignition relay in the fuse box under the hood. In my 2007 RAV4 the ignition relay was in the fuse box on the drivers side on top of the wheel well.

I am having the same issues with all the dash lights coming on and loss of power steering but engine still running. do you think the computer needs to be reset.

about a month ago we commented on checking the ignition relay and comes to find out when we changed the ignition relay, we have not had an issue with the dash lights going off and the car starts and runs with no stalling issues. We had a good idea it was the ignition relay, we did some experimenting by pressing a finger on the relay while my daughter turned the ignition switch on and we found when the dash lights came on we could feel the relay when it clicked but when she turned the ignition switch on and the dash light didn’t come on and the relay didn’t click we new the relay was intermittent and needed to be replaced. Replacing the relay corrected the problem of stalling while driving and not starting all the time.

i have a question i was just reading this conversation and i have a 2019 Rav 4 that is douing the same thing.. did anybody's check engine light stay on? or did it act like a normal start with no warnng lights on after it restarted? or did anyone see this

another picture

ok here it is the right photo... ugh

Hello having the same issue with stalling while driving. A 2016 Rav 4 .When it stalls a red light comes on saying Cooling System Malfunction. It starts right back up .Have had it in to the Dealer 4 times already and they tell me they can't find anything wrong. Also my driveway is a hill and the car has leaked gas twice now and the Dealer tells me NOtHING can be found leaking.They make me feel like I'm losing my mind.

Same exact problem Crestmont Toyota New Jersey keeps charging me even with the extended warranty not even 50 thousand miles on vehicles

GuruGK8NH well the leaking gas could be from the tank seal being split just enough for it to leak( tank seal is the welded area around the tank that puts the 2 halves together) the cooling system malfunction that is a little bit trickier that one i would check and make sure that the coolant levels are where they are supposed to be and then monitor the level if it looks like after a week or so you have to add coolant to your car then you have a big problem on your hands

Msolon, go back to your dealer and tell them to call Bill Kidd's Toyota, Jerry's Toyota or Jones Toyota in Maryland i can tell you for fact that they know that the problem is the fusible link in the main fuse panel under the hood that is a 100 amp fuse and and also they will need to clean the terminal ends that connect to that fuse. once that is done you should not have any issues for a good while if you need pictures email me and i can send them to you whtwlf316.cp@gmail.com

some issues, accumulated dirt in the gasoline pipe.

My RAV4 did that 4 weeks ago. I coasted to a stop, shut if off and restarted successfully. brought it to the dealer and they reviewed the cars on board problem computer and did a visual scan. Nothing. YESTERDAY my car was dead as a doornail when I went to start it. THe 12v battery was dead. I just had it towed to the dealer. The dealer said they had a new "Software fix". We will see if that helps. My car also has one of the two gas problems I am aware of. It won't take more that 10 gal at a fill up. I BELIEVE THAT IS A GUAGE PROBLEM, with the fuel light coming on before it reaches 2 gallons left. I see at least 10 people who say they continued to drive it 100 miles or more after the low fuel light went on. The other problem, which I do NOT have, is the tank accepting less and less fuel. I believe that is caused by the rubber bladder. When I had this EXACT PROBLEM with a 77 Corvette, which also had a fuel bladder, the problem was that air holes in the metal tank that held the bladder did not have its air holes punched out. If you have that problem have someone check for that. My care is 6 weeks old and three major problems. It is trying my patience. I am trying to find ONE owner who has NOT had either of the gas problems. I know that the 2019's had it too. Toyota has made promises to fix it. But the problem is two years old. I am beginning to think that they are not even working on it.

THis happened to me on my 8 week old Rav 4 Hybrid XLE, twice. Both times it was on flat roads, once pulling ouf ot a driveway, the other while driving along at 35 mph. I thought it might be the fuel pump, as that is stalling is the symptom that has lead to 5.8 million cars being recalled. But they tell me no, it happens at "higher speeds". God forbid. If it happens again I am to have it towed to the dealer. Where they will not find anything wrong again. But this time I will give them the suggestions made in this dialog and ask they check things out you all have mentioned.

Had the the same problem. The issue was the screw that holds the battery tight to the car was loose and could touch the car body thus short circuit. I tightened up the screw and the car is fixed.

I am having the same issue. So many lights come on, that I didn't even know there were that many. Lose power steering, speedometer and blinkers but car keep running. I have had it to the dealership 3x's and this last time they told me it's loose wires in my fuse box. So when the car shuts down I can wiggle the wires in the front of the box and I hear it click and I know it will start again. Not sure if I can secure the wires running to the fuse box, but this might be then end of the line for me. Electrical issues are the worst and most expensive

To UJR. I petitioned Toyota to look into my RAVs stalling and the dealer and regional tech teamed to mount a robust investigation that is going into the 5th day tomorrow. If more of us do the same they will be under tremendous pressure to solve it. Call the Customer Experience line and request they open a ‘case’ and assign a case manager. I am in frequent contact with them.

A follow up on the RAV4 Hybrid stalling problem I have experienced twice. My RAV4 Hybrid XLE, with just 4,000 miles was in just before Christmas for an intensive evaluation lead by the a Toyote regional technician. They had car for 6 days. They said they ran every test they could think of but found nothing. They are now saying keep driving it and if it happens again they will look again. I am not happy with that answer. Stalling is a huge safety issue. They found two causes of stalling in RAV4s and had two very large recalls because of safety concerns. My car stalling is no less dangerous. In heavy traffic on a fast road it could cause a major accident killing many. If you have a RAV4 that has stalled and no issue has been found I would like to know and speak to you. I am concidering several courses of action depending on how widespread unremedied stalling is. Let me know and I will send you a message with my email and phone number. .

Here was the problem I found

Same thing has been happening with my RAV4 2016. A whole bunch of lights light up for a second and the car stalls. Sometimes it will start back up again, sometimes it will. I've taken it back to the dealership many times and at first they said they had discovered another problem incidentally in the course of diagnosing it, however they said that the ABS Actuator needed replacing, a %600. They covered the cost. However they said that this wouldn't have caused the stalling problem. It's happened to me many times, driving on a freeway and in peak hour traffic on a busy road. It's very frightening, but thy just keep saying they have never encountered this problem in a RAV . This is a major safety issue. How do you check to see if something is a known problem? Is this information known only to Toyota? I am terrified of driving as last time it happened, it happened it peak hour and there were many near misses. I couldn't start the car and it had to be towed I've told the dealership that it's happened in peak hour traffic but they just keep saying the same thing. Bring it back when it happens again. It doesn't seem acceptable. It happened to a third party and only went 200 metres before the problem happened again after they had said they couldn't diagnose. It only happens sometimes but once something that serious happens, They keep saying they'd driven it around and it didn't fail on them. They had it for 3 weeks to put in a the new part. They keep saying it didn't happen to then when they took it for a drive, It is very frustrating as it's very dangerous.

Same issue here with my 2009 RAV4. Was driving last week and my car shut off at a light, all the dash lights came on. Electric still worked. Turned right back on. But a few days later and now my Check Engine, Traction, and 4WD lights are all on. Drives fine though. Brought my car to Auto Zone for a code scan, and got all the codes related to the Evaporative Emissions system. AutoZone said I likely needed to replace the Evaporative Emissions Canister, but a shop said it could be that or just the computer electronics related to that, so I'm sadly going to the shop this afternoon. Funny enough, my battery is also defective. No nuts or bolts or cables seem loose or worn, so I think it's just a defective battery. Will post an update after the car is fixed.

2016 Rav4. I am getting the shutdown of engine and electric on right turns and occasionally a hard stop. My wife never gets the issue. It seems I drive more vigorously. Car loses power and engine shuts down, power steering goes out, and usually it starts up immediately again. But today for the first time it shut down and wouldn't restart, I had to put it in Park and restart. I also got various messages on the screen, Charging System Failure once, Traction Control Turned Off the next time, and Key Not Detected the third time. This is frustrating. Is there any common traits in all of these electrical issues we can use to put together a check-list of things to try? First things obviously battery connections.

OK, another possible solution. I believe I have located my issue. The guy who last changed my battery failed to install the rear bracket rod that cinches down the bracket over the battery, holding it secure in place. The battery was able to slip and slide all around, causing a short somewhere in the wiring, shutting down the car. It was almost always in a right turn. So I bought a new threaded J-rod and cinched down the battery tight so it doesn't move. I took the RAV4 out for some vigorous driving and sharp turns and hard stops and did not have any shutdowns. So check your battery, make sure they are immobile.

Hi Tony Dicenzo, are you in MA? I am in MA with very similar experiences as you outline and would love to be in touch. Please Private Message me your email address so we may exchange more information

Here's what i know. I had a 2020 RAV4 hybrid. It stalled 3 times, and each time the dealer looked at it and did not find the problem. The last time they had it for 7 days and had a corporate mechanic work with them. They gave me a good trade in for a 2021 rav4 that has a conventional gas engine. This car has not had the problem.

Let me add this! They recalled a lot of cars with the exact same problem for a faulty gas pump but said mine was not on the recall list. They also looked for ever 'fix' mentioned in this stream. I also had the dead battery issue and the gas tank issue. I solved the battery by turning off ever assist that used battery. They replaced the gas tank. Nice car, great gas mileage, but i had lost confidence in it. I cannot have a car stalling at highway speeds.

I have had the same thing. 3 stalls for no reason. First one was with a small pothole filled with water. And this was about 6 months after owning the vehicle. It just did a quick shut down and restart. Called right away and was told to keep an eye on it. I had also reported the 2nd stall with its oil change and still no answer, she wasn't throwing any codes. I have had to jump start it once with a dead battery out of the blue. That was the straw that broke the camel's back in confidence in the vehicle AND with my work in that not being able to come in i lost my job. Then the other 1 was with minor rough roads in wettish conditions (cloudy, misty days) and the same thing a quick shut down and restart. No indicator lights came on. It has been in several times since its happened and got the firmware update of which did not solve the problem. 5 days without a car. I was told to drive it in if it happened again without turning it off of which i did because i was in medium traffic when it died. Scared the hell out of me cause i was expecting an uncontrolled crash. They went over it and cannot find anything. They took off the remote start and towing harness to see if that was it. Don't know yet if that's really it. Mine is not on any of the recalls they have had for it. I have a case with Toyota and a tech is coming to look at it this week. I have also reported this to NTSHA or however that's spelled. I have a bunch of a reports from car gurus and car complaints. com that addresses the same issue. They are going to get a ton of questions about this. And just cause i am a gal doesn't mean i am dumb on this. I know enough to make me "dangerous" I am in the process of restoring a 79 Monte with 80k on her. =p I'd like it if they would take it back, give me some kind of credit for it beyond trade in value and give me a new one. I don't want to be the sacrificial lamb to get them to do a recall.

I had the same problem for a few months on my XLE 2014 (stalling/restarting on bumpy roads), after checking it at 2 different independent garages and no luck I started to google the problem and found the ideas here about checking battery and fuse wiring. So I went to a third garage where I nomrmally only go to rotate the tires and the mec found the issue in less than 1 minute ! It was the battery support bracket was not firmlly secured and when bumps happened, the bracket could move a few milimeters and touch the positive battery cable. He did the revision with the engine on and in front of me. I went again through the same bumpy roads in Montreal and no more issues with the car. Hope you can also find a fix for yours.

"Where is this screw?" - ANSWER. I didn't read every reply, so forgive me if this is a repeat. I'm a YouTube (YT) mechanic (at best), so I'm going to explain this the way I'd want someone to explain it to me. I have a 2007 Rav4 (wife's car) where several lights come on and the power steering goes out. First, RAV4's have an electronic power steering unit, not a hydraulic one... they have no reservoir to fill up. That is important because it means your problem is electrical, hence why all the lights. Second, check that your battery cables are connected tightly to the battery posts and have no corrosion (Google if you don't know what that is). If it's tight and clean, then there is a short in your system and it will be on the ground (negative terminal) side. Third, remove your battery and air box (YT videos for this) and trace the three cables coming off the negative battery cable. One grounds right under the battery tray, the second grounds near the starter on the engine housing and the third goes into the fuse box. If the first and second ground points are snug (cannot twist and move it), then it's the one in the fuse box. On YT search "Toyota RAV4 Fusible Link" and you will find how to disassemble your fuse box (make sure not to have the battery in the car) and it is probably one of those three big fuse's screws that have come loose. If that's the fix, it explains why all those lights keep coming on, because they're all connected to the battery and not getting the 12V they need... a loose battery connection (what I'm referring to as a short).

I too am a rigorous driver. I'm going to check my battery as I just got my car back from the mechanic and experienced a shutdown as I may a rough right turn. My 2018 Toyota RAV4 came to a slow crawl. I quickly came to my senses and turned on the hazard which bought me some time to place it in park and successfully restart it. After that experience the car immediately starting blinking errors (Traction, ABS, etc) when I hit a bump in the road. After reading a few helpful responses here, my thought turned to the fact that I noticed a J - Rod in the rear of my car. I thought nothing of it until now. I will see if it helps the problem and repost later!!

Please Help -My dad's 2017 Toyota RAV4 apparently swerved on a county road (he may have had a medical emergency). The vehicle was corrected into the correct lane but it looked like an overcorrection where the RAV4 went off the side of the road, hit a telephone pole and rolled three and a quarter times. I had a case against Toyota. Both Toyota and my attorneys agreed the car lost power but then regained power again. Toyota is trying to say that due to a medical emergency my mom launched herself from the backseat to the front, and turned the car off, then put it into park, and then turn it back on again all in 3.4 seconds and that was why the airbags did not deploy. Our expert witness said he is 99.9 percent sure there was a defect and he found lots of trip codes at very short distances indicativie of a possible power failure. Toyota blocked some of his testimony. It is hard to fight a large corporation. Toyota claims they have never had issues with any of their 2013 to 2018 Toyota RAV4s having intermittent power failure. Clearly this is not the case. If you have any invoices showing a short sentence about what your issue was and that they didn't find anything or that it was due to a loose fuse box screw or anything or even if they found nothing at all but they put on an invoice what your complaint was.....all of that would be helpful as we lost due to all the smoke and mirrors they blew at the jury and we are looking at hiring an appellette attorney to try to get this case overturned so we can hopefully get a new trial. My son was partially ejected and had a severe brain injury and is disabled now. My mom was ejected and died at the scene. Please feel free to email me at avidreaderamy123@gmail.com or my husband at bnelsonco158@gmail.com.