My 97 Rav4 shut down on the highway yesterday. Checked the oil when I lifted the hood. It has only been 4500 since the last oil change, but the oil was barely registering on the stick. The engine will turn over, but will not start. Do Toyotas have an auto shut off mechanism when the oil gets too low or is my Rav4 toast? There were no warnings, temperature, low oil light, nothing.
View 15 RepliesYesterday, I was driving on the highway at a 65-70 miles per hour (basically pushing it for my '96 RAV4). Suddenly, the car turned off. The engine cut out and the battery and oil signal came on. It did not lurch as if I had popped the clutch, nevertheless, I went to restart it as I was going down the hill and it made it home for the next 40 miles.
View 1 RepliesI have a 1997 Toyota RAV4 with 137,500. I got it in 2004 with 93,000 miles. Since I've had it, it burns about 1 quart of oil every 1,000 miles or so. I don't think it's been getting worse since I've had it. I had the compression in the cylinders checked last year, and the compression's good in all four of them. What the problem might be? It the problem worth repairing, or should I just keep adding a quart of oil every 1,000 miles? Also, does burning oil damage other parts of the car?
View 5 RepliesMy wife’s ’97 RAV4 has 135,000 miles on it. Two days ago it started bucking/hesitating (feels more like bucking, and its worse if you try to give it the gas) at speeds below 25 -30 mph. No loss of speed/power when going uphill. Its worse when the engine is cold.
I cleaned the throttle body with spray cleaner, no change. I added Prestone fuel system cleaner to the gas and have driven 20 miles since then. Very little if any change so far. I always use good gas (Chevron regular) and the car has been well maintained (primarily by me).
Timing belt, seals and both bearings were replaced two years ago. Just about a year ago I changed the plugs, air filter, distributor cap and rotor. The fuel filter has never been changed, and the spark plug wires have never been changed. What I can try next? Where is the fuel filter located? I have the Toyota repair manual. It shows a pic of the filter, but not where its located. I have one ready to install if that could be the problem.
1997 Rav4 with 185k miles burns some oil. I replaced the PCV valve thinking that may be the issue. That seemed to stop the visible smoke at a cold startup but alas, the problem still persists. We bought the car for a song at 180k so I don't feel I'm out much. The previous owner took incredible care of the car so it is solid in most areas.
I did learn the previous owner followed a dealer recommend oil change interval and changed the filter with every other oil change so this may explain some things.
My real question, if the engine does need a refresh, what is the best option? I've not at all afraid of tackling a major overhaul myself and, in the past, have had pretty good luck with aftermarket rebuilt short blocks. But that was years ago. The dealer cost for a crate motor is outrageous and not justified for a '97 anyway. So at this point, I'm just looking for some advice from others who may have been down this road. Again, the rest of the car is solid and we don't have much money in it at this point so would like to keep it as our 'second' car for awhile.
Two years ago a mechanic told me that my rear differential mount was broken - hitting the floor board. He told me this was not dangerous - just annoying. This is a car I rarely use but now considering using more. It currently has 170000 miles on it driven in the mild climate of California. Just what is involved and what should the cost range be?
View 2 RepliesI have a 1997 Toyota Rav4. 2nd owner. No accidents. Regularly maintained at a mechanic. No issues until this one. I searched the forums looking for an answer, seen similar but not exactly my issue. The car has an intermittent starting problem. This never happens in the morning. It only happens when the car is driven a short distance. When the key is turned to start the car, the engine does not crank. All the electrical comes on. We had the starter rebuilt. I have had it towed to my mechanic five times. Each time, when it is unloaded from the tow truck, it starts right up. We have left it there overnight and all day. They cannot replicate the problem. I drove the car to a friend's house 1 mile from mine and it would not start for 24 hours so I had it towed to the mechanic. Again once it was unloaded it started right up. A couple months ago we did a major service with a timing chain/belt. It did not happen for a couple months. Now twice in a week it has happened. My mechanic will not do anything more until it fails completely.
View 2 RepliesSeveral weeks ago someone backed into my '97 RAV4 in a parking lot. Body shop charged around $900 for the repair (estimate indicates labor for both headlights, but doesn't look like they replaced them). This afternoon one of the low beam headlights burned out. I went to change both sides just to be safe. On both headlight assemblies, grasping the wire assemblies to the low beam bulbs, the headlight assembly on both the left and right side is loose within its housing. I've changed the bulbs in the past, this is something new. Take it back to the body shop? What happened????
View 7 RepliesI recently purchased a 1997 Rav4 (3F-SE Engine) with 162000 miles. Overall, it is a great car. The only problem (besides a clutch, which can wait) is that it hesitates/bucks between 1500-2100 rpm while accelerating. This happens usually on a shift change from 1st to 2nd, or while in 2nd and after decelerating to make a turn. This only happens after the engine has warmed up, i.e. the temp gauge is above 25%. When cold, there is no hesitation at all. It just passed emissions testing. Check engine light is off. I recently replaced the TPS (and adjusted it properly), with no change in symptoms. This car does not have a MAF sensor.
View 8 RepliesOn the way home yesterday I was caught in a deluge. I ended up having to go through one spot where the water was pooled, but not really that deep. Anyways, 45 minutes later I arrive home, park the car, and 15 minutes later the car horn starts blowing constantly. This went on for several minutes, stopped and started a few times, then eventually stopped. Nothing I tried would make it stop, it just eventually stopped on its own. So as not to wake the neighbors last night I pulled the fuse to the horn. With the fuse back in, the horn still works, what caused the problem?
View 5 RepliesI had the timing belt, water pump and thermostat replaced on my '97 RAV4. The next morning while braking at a red light I heard a rapidly repeating sound that sounded like metal on metal. The car never made that sound again but now I'm hearing a noise coming from the passenger side of the engine (timing belt side). When the engine is cold I don't hear it. After driving a while its starts, then once the engine warms up it generally goes away (except for this morning which was the coldest morning since this started, temps in the 40s).
I was only hearing the noise when the car was stopped either in drive or reverse (reverse sounded louder) if I lightly let up on the brake pedal (there's no pulsing in the brake pedal). Once under way the sound goes away. This morning it was making the sound virtually every time I came to a stop (once the car warmed up) even with my foot firmly on the brake pedal. I recorded the sound Saturday while standing still with the car in drive and my foot slightly easing up on the brake pedal. The sound starts at the 20:30 mark, what it could be?
I bought Toyota rav4 2007, 3 months ago ,and last week the engine lights and vsc,4wd came on ,then after 1oo of miles driven ,didn't do anything went off and it was on yesterday, I had to go three different places stopped and started , I filled up the tank the lights were still on ,and today, I started the car went off again ,I stopped couple of times, still good,(the car runs perfectly, i don't notice any malfunctioning ).
View 1 RepliesI have a 2006 Rav 4 with about 75,000 miles on it. Recently, the dealer maintenance department recommended a top engine clean. What is that and is it necessary?
View 4 RepliesI have a 2002 RAV 4 with 75,000 on it. The check engine light suddenly went on this morning. I have not gone to the dealer yet as it will be expensive to do so. I have an extended warranty but am not sure if they will cover the cost. As to the problem, is there a quick fix to this? Can I just do it myself?
View 30 Replies44k miles. V6 Rav4 Sport. Coolant seems very low. I can't see any crusty coolant in or around the engine. Does the water pump need to be replaced? I don't hear anything like marbles in a can. Researching online water pump could fail multiple times even under 100k. That means I don't want to have the same pump installed. My powertrain warranty expired 4 months ago so I doubt Toyota would do anything with repair costs.
View 16 RepliesMy 2000 Rav4 has 120,000 miles on it- engine timing belt and everything with done at 60,000 miles. About a year after this work, i noticed an engine noise that only shows up when the A/C is on, or the engine is under lots of stress, and only sporadically. It sounds just like a thin metal blade being stuck in a fan- and it's very loud. It disappears immediately after I let up off the gas, and does not always reappear when I reapply the gas.
It is consistent though in that it starts close to the 3000 rpm range. I've checked for interference on anything with the belts and cooling fans, but don't see anything there. Other than the noise, engine has been working great. Also checked the motor mounts, they seem okay. The only conclusion I can draw is that something is interfering with a rotating part, maybe by the flex of the engine under stress, but I can't point a finger to anything.
I have a 2010 Rav4, the tire pressure, track light and the engine light came up. I put air on the tires, about 30 lbs, but the pressure light is still on.
View 7 RepliesI am hearing a really strange "groaning" or grunt noise right after the engine turns over. The colder is the louder it is. It only lasts about a second. It's only when the engine is cold.
View 1 RepliesI have a 1998 Toyota Rav 4 with apporximately 140,000 miles. When I fill the gas tank the check engine light comes on, the engine runs rough (like a misfire). Diagnostic code comes back a "lean mixture,bank 1". When the tank reaches approximately 3/4 of a tank the light goes out and the engine runs smooth and fine. Then, when the tank reaches just belwo hal a tank the light once again comes on and starts running rough again. Have drained the tank, used dry gas, Startron to counter the ethonal etc. Nothing seems to work.
View 1 RepliesI have a 2011 RAV4 with 122,000 miles. For the last few months I have heard a fluttering noise coming from the engine compartment, usually at in-town speeds when I step on the accelerator gently, for example to maintain speed on an incline.What could this be?
View 3 RepliesMy mother and I own a 2001 RAV4 and over the past few weeks/couple of months we've had 4 instances where the car wouldn't start. Everything works - lights, radio, windows, etc. but when we try to start the engine it just makes a repetitive ticking sound and won't turn over. The first 2 times it happened the car eventually started but the second two times we had to get a jump. I suspect that there is a loose connection somewhere in the battery, but when it happened again the other day my mother got a jump and drove to the dealer for a look; the repairman said that the battery was fine and couldn't offer any other explanation for it.
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