NHTSA Owner Complaint Log
This page lists owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2020 Toyota RAV4. Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA and do not by themselves prove a defect or defect rate.
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026
THE ACTUAL FUEL TANK CAPACITY OF THE 2019-2020 RAV4 HYBRIDS DO NOT MATCH THE ADVERTISED CAPACITY. THE AVERAGE AMOUNT OF FUEL THAT HAS BEEN ABLE TO ENTER THE TANK WHEN THE GAUGE SHOWS NEARLY EMPTY IS 9-11 GALLONS IF UNSAFE FUELING PRACTICES ARE USED. THE FUEL NOZZLE FROM THE PUMP MUST BE PULLED OUT FROM THE VEHICLE TO PREVENT IT FROM SHUTTING OFF WHILE REFUELING.
THIS IS FOR A 2020 RAV4 HYBRID, THE NTHSA SYSTEM SEEMS TO BE LUMPING THIS TOGETHER WITH THE REGULAR RAV4. THE FUEL TANK HAS ISSUES ACCEPTING FUEL UP TO THE LEVELS SPECIFIED IN THE MANUAL OR THE CALIBRATION OF THE FUEL LEVEL SENSOR IS OFF. PER THE OWNERS MANUAL PROVIDED BY TOYOTA WHEN THE REFUEL LIGHT ILLUMINATES THE CAR HAS APPROXIMATELY 2.2 GALLONS OF FUEL REMAINING. WHEN THIS LIGHT ILLUMINATES I AM ONLY ABLE TO FILL THE CAR WITH 9-10 GALLONS OF FUEL. THE TANK CAPACITY IS 14.5 GALLONS SO THE CAR IS MISSING 2.3-3.3 GALLONS OF FUEL EVERY FILL UP. THE FUEL GAUGE DOES NOT READ FULL AT THIS POINT EITHER. TO GET THE MISSING FUEL INTO THE VEHICLE YOU CAN SLOWLY "TOP OFF" UNTIL THE CORRECT AMOUNT OF FUEL HAS BEEN ADDED BUT THIS BECOMES A SAFETY CONCERN AS THE PUMPS SAFETY MECHANISMS CONSTANTLY ENGAGE MAKING IT IMPOSSIBLE TO TELL WHEN THE TANK IS ACTUALLY FULL AND WHEN IT WILL BEGIN SPEWING OUT THE EXTRA FUEL ON TO THE GROUND. I WATCHED THE FIRST FILL AT THE DEALERSHIP AND THIS DID NOT OCCUR. THE ISSUE SLOWLY PROGRESSED IN THE FOLLOWING FILLS AND NOW OCCURS DURING EVERY FILL.
I CANNOT FILL THE TANK FULL. I HAVE TRIED SEVERAL GAS STATION PUMPS AND FILLING SLOWLY AFTER THE PUMP CLICKS OFF. WITH TIME AND EFFORT, I CAN GET ANOTHER 2 GALLONS IN, BUT THE RANGE IS LESS THAN ADVERTISED. THIS HAS OCCURRED WITH EVERY FILL SINCE I PURCHASED THE VEHICLE. I INVESTIGATED ON-LINE AND WITH MY SERVICE DEPT AND SAW OTHERS ARE HAVING THE SAME ISSUE. I ALSO SAW A CLASS ACTION SUIT. I FILED A COMPLAINT WITH TOYOTA AS WELL.
THE FUEL TANK WILL ONLY ACCEPT LESS THAN 10 GALLONS OF FUEL. THE STATED CAPACITY OF THE FUEL TANK BY TOYOTA IS 14.5 GALLONS. THIS DEFECT CAUSES AT LEAST TWO PROBLEMS: THE MARKETED RANGE OF THE VEHICLE IS MARKEDLY DIMINISHED, AND THE FUEL GAUGE GIVES FALSE, MISLEADING INFORMATION TO THE POINT YOU NEVER KNOW HOW MUCH FUEL IS LEFT. THESE ARE SAFETY ISSUES BECAUSE YOU DO NOT KNOW FOR SURE WHEN AND WHERE YOU WILL RUN OUT OF FUEL.
2020 RAV4 HYBRID XSE WILL NOT FILL TO A FULL TANK OF FUEL AFTER COUNTLESS REPEATED ATTEMPTS. THE OWNERS MANUAL STATES IT'S A 14.5 GALLON TANK AND ONCE THE LOW FUEL LIGHT COMES ON YOU SHOULD HAVE ABOUT 2.2 GALLONS OF RESERVE FUEL. I AM UNABLE TO GET EVEN CLOSE TO THE 12.3 GALLONS GIVE OR TAKE IT SHOULD NEED. I CAN ONLY PUMP AROUND 9 GALLONS OF FUEL. THIS LEAVES ME WITH ONLY GETTING A RANGE OF 350+ MILES TO A TANK. ALSO THIS ISSUE WAS DISCOVERED IN 2019 AND NO ONE LET ME KNOW MY 2020 WOULD BE AFFECTED BY THIS WHEN PURCHASING. TOYOTA SHOULD HAVE MADE THIS CLEAR BECAUSE IT WOULD HAVE CHANGED MY DECISION. ALSO AFTER REPEATED ATTEMPTS AT THE DEALERSHIP THEY SAID THEY HAVE NO FIX FOR THIS ISSUE AT THE TIME.
SINCE PURCHASING, THE VEHICLE WILL NOT ALLOW FOR FULL FILLING OF GAS TANK TO 14.5 SPECIFIED GALLONS. THE REPORTED RANGE OF THE VEHICLE IS THEREBY REDUCED. IN ADDITION, THE VEHICLE IS NOT ACHIEVING ANYWHERE NEAR ITS MFG SPECIFIED GAS MILEAGE OF 27/30/29. THE MOST THE VEHICLE CAN ACHIEVE IS 22.4 MPG.
SIDE VIEW MIRRORS ON BOTH DRIVER AND PASSENGER SIDE SHAKING WHEN ON HIGHWAY SPEED
OUR 2020 TOYOTA RAV4 HYBRID XSE HAS A FAULTY FUEL TANK. TOYOTA ADVERTISED THAT THE TANK IS 14.5 GALLONS. WE ARE ONLY ABLE TO FILL ABOUT 10 GALLONS.
THE GAS TANK ON MY NEW TOYOTA RAV4 HYBRID, MODEL YEAR 2020 WILL NOT EVER FILL TO CAPACITY OR ANYWHERE NEAR IT. I PURCHASED IN NOVEMBER 2019. THE ADVERTISED RANGE OF THE CAR WAS OVER 500 MILES PER TANK AND MY RANGE IS ONLY 375 MILES TYPICALLY. AFTER A SEARCH ONLINE I SEE THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM EVEN BEFORE I PURCHASED THE CAR, YET I WAS NEVER INFORMED OF THE DEFECT OF THE TANK BY TOYOTA THAT IT WILL NOT FILL TO ANYWHERE NEAR THE STATED 14.5 GALLONS.
GAS LIGHT COMES ON AFTER THE CAR HAS CONSUMED ~10 GALLONS. THE VEHICLE IS ADVERTISED HAVING 14.5 GALLON TANK WITH 580 MILE TRIP.
TOYOTA ADVERTISED AND SOLD THE CAR WITH 14.5 GALLON TANK, BUT I CANNOT FILL MORE THAN 10 GALLONS BEFORE THE PUMP SHUTS OFF AUTOMATICALLY, AND I DO NOT GET THE RANGE THAT IS ADVERTISED.