2007 Toyota RAV4 Problems

What owners report

Owners of this model year most often write about two very different problems: a clunk or pop felt through the steering wheel when turning, usually reported between roughly 20,000 and 130,000 miles, and excessive engine oil consumption that many noticed only after a low-oil light or a failed oil test. The steering noise tends to come on gradually, while the oil use often shows up without any leak or warning light. Rear suspension corrosion and tie-rod alignment issues, unintended acceleration reports, and a small number of window-switch and airbag complaints round out the sample.

1. 1
   Steering

   Clunk or pop in the steering wheel when turning

   • 242 complaints (24%)
   • median 46,000 mi at 4.9 yrs old (209 state mileage)
   • 7 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $700 (median of 64 quotes)
   • filed 2007–2021

   Owners describe a clunk, knock or popping noise and sometimes a felt catch through the steering wheel when turning at low speed, while parking, or backing out of a driveway. Several say a dealer identified the intermediate steering shaft or column bushings and quoted a few hundred dollars or more to replace it, and some had the part replaced only to have the noise return years later. A few complaints mention the wheel seizing or feeling loose. Reported from as low as about 19,000 miles up to roughly 130,000 miles, usually appearing gradually and heard mainly at low speeds.

   What to check: Turn the wheel lock to lock while parked and at walking pace and listen for a clunk or feel for a notch. Ask whether the intermediate shaft or steering column has been replaced and keep the receipt.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Getting the clunk/thunk when turning the steering wheel left or right. Cant believe Toyota has not stepped up with a acknowledgement of mfg defect of material or pg design and assisted customers with this problem. I am now very concerned with my son driving this car and will have to have it repaired even without Toyota's help.”

   NHTSA complaint #10512300, filed 2013-05, 82,080 miles

   “My RAV4 was making popping noises in the steering, I took it to the dealership to have it looked at. The dealership said that the steering shaft had to be replaced and there was not a recall on that. I have never heard of a car having a serious problem with steering, especially one with only 70,000 miles on it. Anyway, I had to pay $380 to have that fixed and they also did an alignment. They said that I needed the alignment because of the repair. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10473276, filed 2012-09, 69,500 miles
2. 2
   Engine

   Excessive engine oil consumption

   • 163 complaints (16%)
   • median 94,500 mi at 8.3 yrs old (133 state mileage)
   • 1 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $3,500 (median of 16 quotes)
   • filed 2009–2022

   Owners report the engine using oil with no visible leak, in some cases a quart every few hundred to a thousand miles, and some found the dipstick nearly dry or the oil light on between changes. Complaints describe dealers running an oil consumption test and either saying the use fell within an acceptable range or, in other cases, that the vehicle no longer qualified for warranty coverage by time or mileage. Mostly reported between roughly 65,000 and 190,000 miles, often noticed during routine checks rather than after a specific event.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Check the oil level on the dipstick before and after a test drive, look for a service record of an oil consumption test, and ask how often oil is added between changes.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Takata recall-I just purchased this used vehicle a couple of months ago. It started using oil right away. The Toyota dealership says it's a problem they're well aware of, and, if I had brought it in before august, before I had purchased it or ever even seen it, it would have been covered, but now they want $5000.00 to rebuild the engine!”

   NHTSA complaint #11053538, filed 2017-12, 143,000 miles

   “Our 2007 RAV4 is consuming/burning oil at an extreme rate. There is no oil leaking from the vehicle. We are adding a quart every 2-3 weeks. We had the dealership perform their test (three times) when the recall came out over a year ago. At that time we were told our vehicle did not meet the criteria to be covered under the recall. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11085162, filed 2018-04, 180,000 miles
3. 3
   Suspension

   Rear suspension corrosion, tie rods and alignment

   • 283 complaints (28%)
   • median 65,112 mi at 6.3 yrs old (210 state mileage)
   • 22 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $651 (median of 50 quotes)
   • filed 2007–2025

   Complaints describe rusted or broken rear suspension and sway bar components, rear tie rods that could not be aligned, and in some cases a rear wheel that turned at an angle while driving. Several owners say a dealer performed the rear suspension campaign but that alignment problems remained, and others report being told parts were unavailable for a long period. Mostly reported from about 40,000 miles upward, with several cases above 100,000 miles on older vehicles in rust-belt use.

   Recall 16V596000Recall 13V383000Recall 12V373000

   What to check: Have the rear suspension arms and tie rods inspected on a lift for rust and check whether the rear alignment can still be set; ask for proof that the rear suspension campaign was completed.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “I bought the car 3 months ago from price auto. The tires wee fine at that point although after about 30 days I noticed the driver rear tiire was wearing a lot and the passenger rear was wearing also so I decided to buy new tires 4 of them from tire warehouse. When doing so I asked for an alignment thats when I found out that there was a recall on my vehicle and it was with the alignment. The rear alignment has to e sealed shut after initial adjustment or it could come loose and a bad accident could happen. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11404947, filed 2021-03, 129,000 miles

   “Nhtsa #16v-596: received notification sept. Or oct 2016 and have been checking w/ dealer since. Still waiting for parts. 4/18/17 called Toyota and was told june 3017. Not holding my breath. Meantime rear alignment is incorrect following previous lower control arm encasement in epoxy and can't be corrected. Tires wearing improperly while waiting for Toyota.”

   NHTSA complaint #10979682, filed 2017-04, 82,000 miles
4. 4
   Vehicle speed control

   Unintended acceleration or high idle when braking

   • 120 complaints (12%)
   • median 30,000 mi at 3.5 yrs old (104 state mileage)
   • 21 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $1,450 (median of 12 quotes)
   • filed 2007–2018

   Owners describe the engine revving and the vehicle continuing to move or surging forward while the brake pedal was pressed, sometimes requiring neutral or shutting the ignition off to stop. Some say a dealer found no stored fault codes, shortened the accelerator pedal or replaced throttle parts, and in several cases the behavior returned afterward. Reported at widely varying mileage, from vehicles with only a few hundred to a few thousand miles up to around 90,000 miles.

   Recall 11V1130004 related service bulletins

   What to check: Confirm the floor mat is the correct one and properly secured, and ask whether the Smart Stop Technology campaign and any accelerator pedal recall work were completed.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My 2007 Toyota RAV4 experiences sudden and random instances of uncontrollable acceleration when attempting to stop. Under full brake pressure the engine revs to 4000 RPM and continues to move. When I shift to neutral to stop the vehicle, the engine revs to 6500 RPM. Sometimes it will return to normal idle after a few seconds and sometimes it is necessary to turn off the ignition. It usually restarts normally but occasionally repeats the 6500 RPM. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10216273, filed 2008-01, 500 miles

   “May 5, 2010 accident. Toyota RAV4 2007 accelerated. At time of acceleration I had already begun braking to make a right turn. Engine began loud racing and car accelerated. With very little room to maneuver I turned car hard right to avoid cars and ran into a large tree with car still accelerating stopping only when hitting tree and bounced off. When car came to a stop engine was still racing and very loud. The accident was on private property so police were not called. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10330642, filed 2010-05, 26,500 miles
5. 5
   Air bags

   Airbag warning light and spiral cable fault

   • 102 complaints (10%)
   • median 87,000 mi at 6.5 yrs old (83 state mileage)
   • 27 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • owner-quoted repair $516 (median of 20 quotes)
   • filed 2008–2024

   Owners report the airbag warning light staying on and a dealer tracing it to the spiral cable in the steering column, which needed replacement. Some complaints describe curtain airbags deploying without a collision, and others mention long waits for airbag recall parts and being unable to sell the vehicle with the light on. Mostly reported between roughly 60,000 and 140,000 miles, with deployment reports at higher mileage.

   Recall 14V168000Recall 11V245000

   What to check: Check that the airbag light comes on and goes out at startup, and ask whether the driver airbag and curtain shield airbag recalls have been completed on the vehicle.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “The air bag warning light indicated a problem. I took it to a Toyota service center and they indicated that it coded b1801, a message to replace a spiral cable. Since this condition causes the airbags to be inoperable, I had them repair the problem cable. When I look online, this seems to be a widespread issue with other owners and is certainly a safety issue.”

   NHTSA complaint #10533100, filed 2013-08, 65,700 miles

   “I was driving on a dirt road around 25-30 MPH when my drivers side curtain shield airbag (csa) deployed unexpectedly. Previous to deploying, the seatbelt had suddenly locked into place. I leaned back to get the seatbelt to release, and as I tried to lean forward to see if it had, the airbag suddenly and unexpectedly deployed. I stopped the vehicle and looked around the car for damage from a collision and observed none. I also did not feel or sense a collision happening. …”

   NHTSA complaint #11387223, filed 2021-01, 138,000 miles

Buying note. A pre-purchase inspection that covers the steering shaft, rear suspension rust and alignment, and a documented oil consumption check will tell you most of what matters on this model year. Ask for records showing which recall and service campaigns have been completed.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.