NHTSA Owner Complaint Log
This page lists owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2019 Toyota RAV4. Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA and do not by themselves prove a defect or defect rate.
The vehicle is a 2019 Hertz rental RAV4 Hertz. On October 12, 2023, when I moved the gearstick to reverse the vehicle accelerated uncontrollable at extremely high speed and crashed into a wall. Braking did not stop the vehicle.
"Engine Maintaince Soon" light continues to go off while driving the car making the dashboard impossible to use. Took the Rav4 to the dealership and said it would be $536 to replace the coolant bypass valve. It is a know issue on 2019 and newer Rav4 Toyota vehicles and needs to be recalled.
Water Pump failure; check engine light came in while the car was not moving.
engine coolant flow shutting valve code p268115 over heating vehicle
RAV4 2019- Engine maintenance required visit dealership alert. Toyota dealership said it was the coolant valve. As I’ve seen online most 2019 rav4 are having the same issue.
Engine Coolant Bypass Valve Got Bad At Only 38k Miles.Toyota asked 750$ for 15min repair.And it common issue with 2019 Toyota’s.That part should be recalled and replaced for free!
The Engine Maintenance Alert appears on the screen. Mechanic confirmed it is the coolant bypass valve that has been shorted. Forums from other similar model RAV4 report the same issue at low mileage. This can cause the car to stall at high speeds.
It was observed several points of rust and corrosion in the middle of the roof, and the paint and clear coat was out in this rust points.
As I opened up the fuel door - a spring popped out - after I finished fueling- I tried to reopen the fuel door but could not - this can strand a driver when gas gets low as unable to refill the gas tank due to inability to open the door
My car has been maintenanced and cared for routinely yet an engine maintenance light has come on. When I took it to the dealership I was told that I needed to spend $600 to replace the engine coolant bypass valve. After researching how to change that and what the parts consisted of I found that HUNDREDS of not thousands of people who have 2019-2020 Toyota RAV4’s have also experienced this problem. My car only has 90,000 miles on it and this is happening to other RAV4 owners who don’t have near as many miles. I would happily pay this if it was just something that happened but after researching and finding out so so many others are experiencing the same problem in the same year model car it is frustrating that there isn’t a recall on this part. If over 500 people are experiencing the same issue in the same type of car, that is 100% means for a recall. Thank you.
While driving on Highway 52 on a Saturday morning at approximately 8:40am (9/23/2023), I heard a loud sound like a gunshot. There was not anything on either side of the highway and no accidents around me. Then I noticed a weird whistling sound and heard little bits of something falling down in the front passenger, driver seat and front middle console. Upon looking up, I saw a gaping hole in the middle of my moonroof and pieces of the glass were coming down inside the car. I looked for any large object that could have possibly come down to hit the moonroof but there were only pieces of glass. Upon parking the car, I saw that the moonroof glass has exploded OUTWARDS toward the sky, not inward, indicating that there was not anything that dropped down through it. There was no other sign outside of the shattered moonroof and pieces. No rock, no nothing. No warning signs, nothing to indicate anything was at all wrong with the moonroof, which actually had worked fine just the prior week, opening and closing as always with no grating sounds or unusual sounds, just the usual smooth open/close for both the 2 opening functions. Upon doing a Google search, we saw that there is a entire list of Toyota owners who have reported this problem but have had Toyota claim that there is nothing they can do and it is NOT a safety issue; Toyota also claims that there had to have been a crack or nick in the moonroof glass of all vehicles that have had this happen but my moonroof had absolutely nothing wrong with it nor did it have any kind of prior damage to this incident happening. Research shows it may be a possible manufacturing error on the glass maker. I am taking the car in to my Toyota dealership to have it repaired. I did call my insurance company but they did not ask me to take it for inspection. They merely gave me the parameters for which they were wiling to pay for part of the repair cost after my deductible. I took ample photos of the damage as soon as it happened.
In September 2023 I kept getting a warning on my 2019 Toyota RAV4 saying “engine maintenance required”. My car had roughly 50,000 miles. I was not due for an oil change and I serviced my vehicle regularly. I tried to take it to autozone to read the code but nothing came up and they said I just needed an oil change which I knew wasn’t true. I finally took it to a local Toyota dealership on September 23, 2023 and the first thing the advisor said to me after I told her about the warning message was “I already know what’s wrong with it, you’re like the 4th car today with the same issue”. The issue was a defective coolant bypass valve. The advisor said the cars most affected were RAV4’s followed by corollas and it was happening at random mileages. I asked if there was a recall and there wasn’t, she advised me to call Toyota to make a complaint which I did and nothing happened. I had to pay around $1000 to get a defective part fixed that Toyota knew about and still hasn’t issued a recall. Theres a class action lawsuit currently involving 2019-2023 corollas and RAV4s, but I still don’t understand why there hasn’t been a recall. If I didn’t get it repaired, my engine could have overheated multiple times causing more issues. They are knowingly not recalling a defective piece of a equipment that has been installed in hundreds of thousands of cars.
At 41K miles it pop up out of no where and for no aparent reason engine maintanance required. Took the dealer it was the engine coolant bypass malfunctioning. Car has all maintanance up to date by toyota dealer.
Coolant Bypass Valve is faulty and is a common problem that is breaking for me.
At 46K miles it pop up out of no where and for no aparent reason engine maintanance required. Took the dealer it was the engine coolant bypass malfunctioning. Car has all maintanance up to date by toyota dealer.
Wide spread issue with "engine coolant bypass valve". This has been going on for a long time and a lot of Toyota rav4 drivers are affected. Engine maintenance required pops up in the middle of the screen unexpectedly while driving which is distracting and a safety issue. Toyota refuses to take accountability for their faulty valves and issue a recall. Please help with this issue. If you google this, it will show there are so many people affected by this.
Unintended acceleration.
Just received Engine maintenance required message that can not be cleared. I pulled in to my local firestone who looked up the error code p268115. This turns out to be the need to replace a coolant bypass valve and seems to be a pretty common issue with RAV4s but has yet to be on a recall. This can cause the vehicle to stall in traffic and overheat causing a major safety issue. the car is at about 24,000 miles.
Toyota said the water coolant valve needs replacing and that it’s a common problem with RAV4s. They’re charging over 900 USD to fix this. It is a faulty part that comes with the Toyota.
Engine coolant bypass. Apparently this is a MAJOR, common and CONSISTENT issue that is extremely dangerous! I’m not sure why this hasn’t been recalled yet. please please PLEASE provide us with some information
COOLANT BYPASS VALVE FAILED. APPARENTLY IT IS A COMMON ISSUE WITH THIS VEHICLE.
Car is shaking when turned on. Will stall if car is not shifted to gear sometimes. When AC is on, car will jump rpm. car acceleration is weak and will jump to 5-6k rpm. car also smells burnt sometimes when driving. car also smells like gasoline sometimes. car does not hold proper amount of gasoline.
engine light would not reset. I'm told that i have FAULTY HEATER BYPASS VALVE. I will also need a flush on my coolant. Total repairs just under $1000.00. The light came on around 69,000 miles.
The contact owns a 2019 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated while driving 40 MPH, the vehicle hesitated while attempting to accelerate. The contact stopped at a traffic light and the vehicle became inoperable. There were several unknown warning lights illuminated. The contact referenced NHTSA Campaign Number: 20V064000 (Engine and Engine Cooling). The vehicle was towed to the dealer. The vehicle was diagnosed and determined that the head gasket needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and determined that the vehicle was not included in a recall. The failure mileage was approximately 62,000.
"Engine maintenance required" comes on. TEch at auto shop cannot reset it. Does not need oil change or anything with engine. Also, both driver and passenger upper airbags seen accumulating moisture marks and leaving dark lines. This does not make sense.
The fuel system will not fill up the full tank. When the tank is half full it signals for the pump to stop and that is all that will go in the tank.
Engine Maintenance Required light came on. Got it checked out by Toyota Dealer and the coolant bypass valve needs to be replaced. It seems to be a common problem with RAV4s.
“Engine maintenance required - Visit Dealer” warning came on. Vehicle was diagnosed with needing a new coolant bypass valve. Researching online, and in Toyota groups, this is a known and widespread issue. The dealer stated they have had many of these repairs come in, yet Toyota has not issued a recall or TSB. This is a repair costing between $500-$1000. That's a healthy sum of money to be spending on a fairly new car.
Coolant bypass valve failure, which can result in Engine overheating or complete seizure, which can endanger passengers in a vehicle. “Engine Maintenance Required “ message shows up on dash and cannot be cleared away. South Bay Toyota rep acknowledged that this has been an issue for model year 2019.
Check engine light on for coolant bypass valve, apparently car is over heating ?
My Engine maintenance notification came on this week and I took my car for diagnosis. It was determined that it is my the coolant bypass valve was the issue and this seems to be an issue for RAV4s. I researched Recalls for this issue and found a recall code 20TA04 for 2019 - 2020 RAV4 Toyota .I currently drive a 2019 RAV4 but this recall doesn't show under my VIN # But I am having the same issue. Its frustrating when this is a known issue that the dealership is aware of but wants charge large sums of money to fix a problem that is not normal wear and tear. chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2020/RCMN-20V064-1370.pdf
Vehicle take to dealer to diagnose seatbelt warning buzzer and SRS inoperative light illuminated. The dealer diagnosed the problem as a defective coolant bypass valve. This seems to be a rather common diagnosis. With the air bag system inoperative, I feel insecure driving the car without this important safety system.
Back driver's door panel retaining water. Water swishes back and forth. Replaced roof clips on top already. Just realized today that it was not my gas tank making the sound.
I was driving my 2019 rav 4 and a warning came on my screen that stated “ engine maintenance required. Visit dealer.” No check engine light came on just this warning that would not go away. I went to orileys to see is they could tell me what was wrong and they were unable to read it since it was not a check engine light. The orileys employee told me I had to take it to a Toyota dealership to find out exactly what was wrong with it. I contacted my local dealership and they confirmed that it was a coolant bypass valve that failed and that he has seen this warning pop up on at least 10 Rav 4’s and that every time it is the coolant bypass valve that has failed.
“Engine Maintenance Required, Visit Your Dealer” warning message pop up on 2019 Toyota Rav4. Then the vehicle was taken to Toyota Dealer which they diagnosed as Coolant Bypass Valve failure. The dealer charged an outrageous amount to replace that valve with hose assembly. After researching online, this is a widespread issue in 2019 and newer Toyota Rav4.
Engine maintenance notification came on and car was taken in for diagnosis. It seem the coolant bypass valve was the issue and this seems to be an issue for Camry's, Corrolas, and the RAV4s. Toyota wanted to charge an outrageous amount to fix this when it is a known issue across the board and is widely talked about online through research.
2019 Vehicle with less than 45K miles Got a message to take the car to the dealership. Dealership tells me that the coolant bypass valve needs to be replaced. Dealership representative tells me this is a common issue with cars like mine and the part is back ordered for an indeterminate amount of time. After doing some research, I see this is a major issue with quite a few Toyota models, not just Rav4.
The front windshield just started a crack on the drivers side near the wiper blade. No rock or chips and I hear the glass crack while driving. I hear this is a problem with the factory glass from Toyota on the RAV4.
The contact owns a 2019 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to adjust the front driver's side seat when the seat adjuster failed to operate as needed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the seat track assembly needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 35,000.
Warning Engine Maintenance light popped up on 2019 RAV4 Adventure, with notification to see dealership. Took vehicle in and was informed that the coolant bypass valve has internal circuit failure. Vehicle has has 23,000 miles, this should not be happening to a relatively new car. Appears to be a widespread defect per the Internet: [XXX] [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Toyota service bulletin: T-SB-0079-20 (August 14, 2020) Outer Rear View Mirror Image Vibration While Driving (Causes distraction and could lead to and accident because image in side mirrors are unusable due to vibration) Dealer refuses to do this repair because it was only covered under a 36mo or 36,000 mile warranty. My car currently has 23,500 and this repair should be covered...or be a recall! Some 2019 – 2020 model year RAV4 and RAV4 Hybrid vehicles may exhibit a vibration/shaking of the image shown in the outer rear view mirror(s) while driving. Mirror vibration can be observed at highway speeds of approximately 50 – 70 mph on typical concrete/asphalt road surfaces.
The problem for Toyota is well known on the engine bypass valves. Several Toyotas owners are experiencing this issue on replacement, even service team members are suprised this part isn’t recalled yet.
The car leaks anytime it rains or I wash it. The water comes in above the front passenger and driver doors. The railing leaks into the front of the car.
I am not able to fill up the fuel tank to capacity. 8 gallons is all I. An vet in the tank. The tank is not full. The gauges show it’s about at the half way mark.
2019 RAV4 with persistent check engine light. Dealership states it is a faulty coolant bypass valve. Valve is not leaking, it appears to be an issue with the part.
In my Rav4, I had a message pop up that said "Engine Maintenance Required" and it wouldn't go away. I couldn't get rid of it. So I took it to the dealership and they immediately said that I needed my engine coolant bypass valve replaced. They also said it has been a constant issue with other Rav4 vehicles, but there has not been a recall yet. So I paid $650 to get the valve replaced and the continuous message taken off.
In July of 2023 at only 23K miles but out of warranty coverage, I received the Engine Maintenance Required warning for the failure of the Coolant Bypass Valve. I took it to the dealership (Alamo Toyota in San Antonio, TX) and they said it needed to be replaced and would not be covered under warranty. They quoted over $850 to do the replacement but the part was on national backorder. After returning home I started doing research and found that this is happening at a very high rate and thus there is obviously a defect to this part. Toyota should be treating this is a defect, fixing the issue and providing the fix as a recall fix. I should not have to pay near $1000 to replace a defective part with another defective part that will most likely fail again. Since I am a very low mileage driver, from July 2023 to now I have only driven 4K miles, I have not replaced the part but continually monitor the engine temperature and for any coolant leakage. I know there is now a class action lawsuit but shouldn't the NHTSA get involved due to the number of failures on RAV4s and Corollas and the lack of responsibility being taken by Toyota?
“Engine maintenance required - see dealer” message around 60k miles and subsequent coolant bypass valve issue should be a RECALL for 2019 RAV4s. Toyota either deliberately enabled this message to pop up to require vehicle owners to spend over $600 at Toyota dealerships, installed faulty coolant bypass valves, and/or failed to properly code messages in the vehicles. The message will not go away and requires only Toyota to disable it. Thousands of owners have had to take their vehicles into Toyota dealerships to correct the message and/or valve issue, costing at least $600. For these reasons, this should be a RECALL.
Getting the following issue: 2019 RAV4 : P268115 Engine Coolant Bypass valve circuit short to battery or open This is happening to a lot of other cars - it seems like Toyota has a faulty coolant valve
Vehicle had been in for routine maintenance 6 weeks prior. Around 46k miles, the check engine light came on requiring me to bring it back to the Toyota dealer. I wasn't able to bring it to the dealer for about 6 days after it came on due to appointment availabilitly. Once I brought it in, they told me the coolant bypass valve had a circuit short and needed to be replaced. This part was replaced and is unable to be inspected. This is a safety issue especially during the summer as this short could cause the engine to overheat.
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026