2003 Toyota Avalon Engine Problems

“The auto surges forward as I'm trying to stop either at a stop light or parking spot. This has happened 3 or 4 times and my mechanic said the only way to fix it would be for it to happen while he was driving it. There's no pattern to when it happens but it's scary and I'm afraid to let my wife drive it. It happened yesterday as I was coming to a complete stop before entering a 2 lane highway. The other times it happened was pulling into a parking spot and applying the brakes to stop. I now put the car in neutral when it happens and the engine is racing away. …”

“The engine started cold and revved to 2500 RPM and then oscillated between 2500 and about 3000 RPM and never slowed down. I put the car in drive and drove it the block and a half to my house using the brake to stop at the only stop sign on the route but stopping was difficult. The next morning I experienced the same ultra-fast idle and drove the car on an errand that was about 2 miles distant. The same pattern persisted but the brakes were heating up and smelling from frequent use in keeping the car within the city speed limit. …”

“I was involved in a collision where my passenger side front tire came off of a ledge in a construction zone at which point I lost control of the vehicle. There was no barrier in place on that side. I chose to direct my vehicle toward the mud pit on the right of the road. I corrected to the right causing the vehicle to go off of the road and nose dive through the first mud/dirt embankment. I expected the airbags to deploy on both side and front taking the speed and force of the collision with the first embankment and the yaw of the vehicle in the air. …”

“The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Avalon. The contact stated while driving 40 mph, the vehicle started smoking and the engine stalled. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with the engine needing to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 96,000.”