2008 Toyota RAV4 suspension problems

What is wrong

Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain model year 2006-2011 Toyota RAV4 vehicles manufactured October 31, 2005, to September 7, 2010, and 2010 Lexus HS250h vehicles manufactured July 6, 2009, to August 26, 2010. The affected vehicles have rear suspension arms (rear tie rods) with adjusting lock nuts that may have been improperly tightened after servicing. As a result of being loose, the arm may have thread damage and may rust, possibly leading to the failure of the arm and an abrupt change in the vehicle's alignment.

Risk

Failure of the rear tie rod could cause a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Toyota will notify owners and dealers will replace both rear suspension arms and encapsulate the locknuts, free of charge. The recall began on September 30, 2016. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1‑800‑331‑4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are G0V for Toyota vehicles and GLK for Lexus vehicles. Note: This recall supersedes recall 13V‑383, in which some vehicles were only inspected, sealed, and did not have both arms replaced. The affected vehicles were previously recalled under 13V‑383, but did not have both rear suspension arms replaced at that time. Those vehicles need to have both arms replaced as part of this recall remedy.

Recall number 16V596000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Toyota is recalling certain model year 2006 through 2011 RAV4 and 2010 Lexus HS250h passenger vehicles manufactured from October 2005 through September 2010. If the nuts for adjusting the rear wheel alignment are improperly tightened during service, the rear suspension arm (rear tie rod) may develop unwanted movement and rust leading to thread damage and eventual failure. Failure of the rear tie rod will cause an abrupt change in the vehicle's alignment.

Risk

Failure of the rear tie rod could cause a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the tie rods and replace any that have rust or corrosion on the alignment adjustment threads. All of the rear tie rods will then be encased in an epoxy to prevent future environmental damage. Due to limitations in parts, the recall remedy will be launched in phases from September 2013 through mid-April 2014. All owners will receive notification of the recall, with most receiving second notifications when parts are available in their area. IMPORTANT: This recall supersedes Toyota and Lexus recall 12V‑373. All vehicles that have been inspected and remedied under the previous recall need to be re-inspected and have the appropriate remedy applied.

Recall number 13V383000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Toyota is recalling certain model year 2006 through 2011 RAV4 and 2010 Lexus HS250h passenger vehicles manufactured from October 2005 through September 2010. If the nuts for adjusting the rear wheel alignment are improperly tightened during service, the rear suspension arm (rear tie rod) may develop unwanted movement and rust, leading to thread damage and eventual failure. Failure of the rear tie rod will cause an abrupt change in the vehicle's alignment.

Risk

Failure of the rear tie rod could cause a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the rear tie-rod nut for looseness and replace any suspect tie-rod found loose. Dealers will also affix instructions in multiple places to prevent improper servicing in the future. The recall began on November 30, 2012. Owners may contact Toyota at 1‑800‑331‑4331 or Lexus at 1‑800‑255‑3987.

Recall number 12V373000 · Recall details

In a letter dated August 1, 2012 Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing North America, Inc. (Toyota) submitted a Defect Information Report (the federal safety agency Recall No. 12V‑373) to the federal safety agency identifying a safety defect regarding possible separation of the Rear Suspension Arm No. 1 Assembly (arm) at the threaded portion (shaft and turn buckle) of the component in MY 2006 through MY 2011 Toyota RAV4 vehicles built from October 2005 through September 2010 and in MY 2010 Lexus HS250h vehicles manufactured from July 2009 through August 2010.According to Toyota, if the adjustment nuts for the rear wheel alignment are improperly tightened when alignment is performed in service, backlash may develop at the threaded portion of the arm, followed by rust formation.The threads may then wear causing the arm to separate, which may result in a loss of vehicle control.In analysis of both Vehicle Owner Questionnaire (VOQ) data submitted to the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) and consumer complaint data submitted to Toyota, ODI identified 131 non-duplicative reports alleging failure of the subject rear suspension arm (Note:some of the complaints and related service records refer to the arm as a rear tie rod).Six of the complainants allege the failure resulted in some loss of vehicle control.For purposes of this analysis, loss of control events involve alleged complete or partial departure from the intended lane of travel.An additional four complaints reported difficulty maintaining control of the vehicle when the arm failed.Recalled vehicles will be inspected for proper torque of the adjustment nuts and replaced as necessary.In addition, Toyota will take several actions to reduce the potential for improper torque in future alignment procedures.This includes:(1) providing proper tightening sequence and torque specification information to two major wheel alignment equipment manufacturers, who would disseminate the information to alignment shops using their equipment; (2) installation of a clip on each arm with an instructional label showing proper tightening sequence and torque specification (the clip must be removed to perform a wheel alignment); (3) installation of additional labels on the front and back vertical surfaces of the Rear Suspension Arm No. 2 assemblies; and (4) providing an instruction booklet to owners to place in the glove box.This investigation is closed.

PE12013