The contact owns a 2011 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, there was an abnormal clunking sound coming from the rear end of the vehicle. The contact stated that the vehicle felt as if the rear suspension had failed. The vehicle was taken to a certified mechanic, who determined that the rear suspension arms were detaching from the subframe. The dealer was contacted and informed the contact that the vehicle was previously included in TSB: 0042-14, the federal safety agency ID Number: 10060729 (Suspension), and was repaired in 2013. The contact was informed that the VIN was not included in the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 16V596000 (Suspension), and the campaign had since expired in 2019; and the repair was not covered. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure, and it was confirmed that the campaign had expired. The failure mileage was approximately 195,000.
2011 Toyota RAV4 suspension problems
16 complaints (6% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 74,500.
- owner complaints
- 16
- of this car's complaints
- 6%
- typical mileage
- 74,500
- crashes
- 0
- recalls
- 3
Which part fails
Owners did not name a specific part.
At what mileage
Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.
Toyota RAV4 suspension problems in other years
Related recalls
Suspension: rear
- 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
Suspension: rear
- 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
Suspension: rear
- 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
What 2011 Toyota RAV4 owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
I have replaced the front suspension and the back suspension. I have replaced the driveshaft and the muffler and tail pipes. Now they say the entire undercarriage and the brake lines are all rusting out. This car is 2011 and has just 34,607 miles on it and has been keep in a garage its entire time. Now it is unsafe to drive. Drive Shaft fell off in December.2022.
I have discovered that my 2011 rav4 is part of the federal safety agency Recall No. : 16V‑596 even thought my vin doesn't list it as being part of the recall. As I recently tried to get a rear wheel alignment done due to misaligned rear tires (bowing out). The 3rd party mechanic stated that doing a rear wheel alignment was impossible due to the federal safety agency Recall No. : 13V‑383 repair/fix done by a Toyota dealer where epoxy resin was used to seal the right and left Rear Suspension Lower Arm No. 1 (“arm”) for looseness. The only way to complete the alignment safely would be to completely replace the right and left Rear Suspension Lower Arms. Which perfectly matches the required fixed from the newer the federal safety agency Recall No. : 16V‑596 which remedies the improper temporary repair/fix done by the Toyota dealer to fix the earlier the federal safety agency Recall No. : 13V‑383. As such the VIN range and manufacture date for the federal safety agency Recall No. : 16V‑596 likely need to be extended to cover all rav4 2011 models.
Replaced both rear control arms and adjustment bolts. Technician said I was lucky not to have been driving. Supposedly when aligning my tires - the screws showed rusty and broke off. Paid $900 to have replaced. This should not happen in a car like toyota. I am the original owner and have always taken excellent care of my vehicle.
I have fixed my rear suspension more than 4x and it continues to go bad, it works fine for a couple of weeks but still not running well then it shocks and goes back to bouncing whenever it hits a bump or anything not smooth on the roads. It happens when driving and you feel it a lot more when it's running on local roads. The visibility is bad, the defogger does not work and I have to wait about 15-20 mins or open the window. When I put my hands on the vent for the defogger there is no air coming from it.
While turning right to go down the next aisle in a parking lot my passenger rear tie rod aka control arm broke at the factory weld! I purchased this car brand new off the lot and have been told by numerous mechanics that this should not happen and it's a defect. Had I been on the freeway, this would have been catastrophic. I drive a 2011 rav4 with 104,000 miles and these have been recalled for this issue, however my VIN# is not one of the recalled ones. The toyota dealership is going to charge me $600 to replace it. I'm asking for them to take a look at the other one and replace it if necessary.
I noticed that the steering wheel felt a bit "loose" at any rate of speed. I also observed that my r back seat shakes when driving at high rates of speed(50 MPH +). My vehicle has just over 66k miles on it. I maintain it according to the user manual. I brought my car in a for four wheel alignment. The rear tires could not be aligned because the nuts for adjusting the rear wheel alignment were frozen and could not be removed. In order for the car to be aligned, the rear tire rod needs to be replaced. There was a recall on this back in august 2013 ( for 2006-2011 rav4), however, my particular VIN number does not qualify for the recall thus I have to pay out of pocket in order to for my car to be aligned correctly (replaced the rear rod). This is the 2nd report I've seen on this site for the same issue(frozen toe) - same model vehicle. Is there anything to be done to get this covered under warranty? Thank you.
Suspension: while driving in the interstate, I heard a "pop" and the sound of something sliding from the back passenger side too the back driver side of the vehicle. I then felt the back of the vehicle "wobbling" and I heard a "clucking and rubbing" sound. I managed to get to a repair station, and observed the back driver's side tire leaning inward at the top, and it had been rubbing against the wheel well and a cord. The repairman looked it over and found no reason for a bolt that ranged about 5-7 inches to shoot out, resulting in the back wheel to almost fall completely off that way, as the undercarriage "looked pretty good." I just purchased the vehicle just over 3 months ago from a certified dealer. The carfax reported no previous accidents and the car was reportedly maintenance as recommended, (every 3000 miles). I'm afraid to drive it now. What's to keep this from happening to the other three tires???
Tl* the contact owns a 2011 toyota rav4. While driving approximately 65 MPH, the steering wheel veered to the left without warning. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to a local dealer. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer where it was diagnosed that the shocks were leaking oil and needed to be replaced. The shocks were not replaced. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency campaign numbers: 16v096000 (seat belts) and 15v577000 (visibility/wiper). The failure mileage was approximately 65,000.
I brought my car in a for four wheel alignment becuase I replaced four tires. The rear tires could not be aligned because the the nuts for adjusting the rear wheel alignment were frozen and could not be removed. In order for the car to be aligned, the rear tire rod needs to be replaced per toyota certified dealership. There was a recall on this back in august 2013 ( for 2006-2011 rav4), however, my particular VIN number does not qualify for the recall thus I have to pay out of pocket in order to for my car to be aligned correctly (replaced the rear rod). I feel that this VIN and others should have qualified for the recall.
Questions about the 2011 Toyota RAV4 suspension
Does the 2011 Toyota RAV4 have suspension problems?
Owners have filed 16 complaints about the suspension of the 2011 Toyota RAV4, 6% of all its complaints.
At what mileage do 2011 Toyota RAV4 suspension problems start?
The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 74,500 miles.
Was there a recall on the 2011 Toyota RAV4 suspension?
Yes, 3 recalls: 16V596000, 13V383000, 12V373000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.
What year does the Toyota RAV4 have bad suspension?
The Toyota RAV4 model years with the most suspension complaints are 2007 (125 complaints), 2010 (101 complaints) and 2008 (81 complaints).
Other 2011 Toyota RAV4 problems
Acceleration 69Visibility 50Brakes 48Engine 36Seat belts 30Transmission 25Airbags 20Electrical 19Body 16Steering 15Fuel system 13Driver assistance 10Tires 5Wheels 5Seats 3Lights 2
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2011 Toyota RAV4?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history