The end of the year is quickly approaching, and during that time people and organizations usually reflect on the future. However, Toyota appears to be having trouble correcting prior errors with their cars in the latter months of 2023.
In the last two months, the Japanese automaker has declared two significant recalls. One of these, which was made public in September, concerned 21,780 Tundra and Tundra Hybrid pickup trucks that may have been overloading due to a false modification label.
Then, in October, we learned that a considerably larger batch of cars—751,000 in total—were being returned to dealers. At the time, we were discussing Highlander SUVs and the possibility of body components being lost while driving off the front bumper.
As if it were attempting to avoid going a single month without releasing a recall, Toyota made a statement at the beginning of November that will impact at least 1,854,000 RAV4 SUV owners.
That is the number of vehicles of this kind that Toyota will need to receive over the course of the next few months in order to address a potentially very deadly fire.
More importantly, the automaker discovered that some of the new 12-volt batteries are smaller than the ones that are typically used in SUVs. This implies that there is a chance that the hold-down clamps won’t tighten properly if a conventional battery is swapped out for one of these defective ones.
In the event that this occurs, the battery may shift very slightly—especially during more assertive turns. That in and of itself isn’t a problem, but here’s what could happen next: the positive terminal of the battery could make contact with the hold-down clamp. That could result in a short, and as you are well aware, shorts nearly invariably result in fires.
The impacted models were created between 2013 and 2018. This indicates that all of the impacted cars belong to the fourth generation of the model; the fifth generation, which was released in 2018, is exempt from this problem.
By year’s end, owners will start getting notices, and the recall itself won’t start until 2024 (Toyota claims it’s still working on finding the right solution for the issue).
However, it is anticipated that the positive terminal cover, battery tray, and hold-down clamp will need to be replaced by Toyota dealers as part of the solution. All of these upgrades will be carried out at no additional expense to owners, as is customary in similar situations.
You may check whether your American RAV4 SUV is impacted by this issue by visiting the NHTSA website. Furthermore, Toyota is happy to provide information if you contact its Brand Engagement Center at 1-800-331-4331.