- Vehicles
- 423,456
- Built between
- Oct 2009 – Aug 2014
- Models
- 2
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 7 November 2016
- Repaired
- 63%
- Unrepaired
- 108,517
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between October 2009 and August 2014. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2009-2012 Toyota RAV4Built October 2009 to December 2012
- 2012-2014 Toyota RAV4 EVBuilt July 2012 to August 2014
Repair progress
108,517 of 423,456 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q1 2018.
63% repaired — 264,713 of 423,456 reported
- Owners not reachable
- 50,226
Manufacturers file these figures with NHTSA each quarter. Vehicles the manufacturer could not trace, or that have been scrapped or exported, are counted separately and are not included in the unrepaired figure.
What the defect is
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2009-2012 RAV4 vehicles manufactured October 27, 2008, to December 19, 2012 and 2012-2014 RAV4 EV vehicles manufactured July 24, 2012, to August 29, 2014. In the affected vehicles, water may drip onto the joint that connects the wiper linkage to the wiper motor.
What could happen
Over time, the dripping water may cause corrosion and wear at the joint, potentially resulting in the separation of the wiper linkage. Once this occurs, the wipers would not function, reducing driver visibility and increasing the risk of a crash.
What gets fixed
Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will replace the water diverter channel. In addition, a new wiper linkage with a wiper motor crank arm will be installed. The wiper linkage will have a protective cover over the wiper linkage joint to minimize water splash and a retainer ring to prevent the wiper arm from separating from the wiper motor. The recall began on November 7, 2016.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtOctober 2009 to August 2014
- Recall reported to NHTSA18 September 2015
- Owners notified7 November 2016
- Latest repair reportQ1 2018 — 63% repaired
Your rights
A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.
That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 18 September 2015.
To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.
Manufacturer contact
Owners may contact Toyota's customer service number at 1-800-331-4331.
Official source
- Recalling manufacturer
- Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing
- Recall initiated by
- MFR
Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Additional notes
Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.
Check your own vehicle
This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.
A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.