2017 Toyota Rav4: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 2017 Toyota Rav4
On the 2017 Toyota Rav4, the failure owners report most often is other electrical problem, and the reports cluster around 50,000 miles. The earliest to appear is headlight failure or clouding, reported by a median of 5,000 miles. Overall it scores 70 out of 100, high risk for a 2017.
High risk for a 2017 — 188th riskiest of the 263 2017 vehicles we can rate. 415 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork.
What breaks on the 2017 Toyota Rav4
Owners have reported 57 named failure modes on the 2017 Toyota Rav4, and the three most-reported carry 32% of everything filed, which is an unusually even spread for one model year.
Other electrical problem leads with 78 reports, about 0.3 per 1,000 vehicles and with the middle half of reports between 21k to 90,000 miles.
Other engine problem follows with 28 reports, usually reported between 30k to 80,000 miles. 11 of those reports mention a fire.
Other brake problem follows with 26 reports, usually reported between 4k to 30,000 miles. 1 of those report mention a fire.
By system, the reports fall mostly into electrical (93), engine (41) and brakes (38).
The mileage the reports cluster at
220 of the reports on the 2017 Toyota Rav4 came with an odometer reading, and half of those were filed before 23,000 miles.
Cumulatively, 77% by 50,000 miles, 94% by 100,000 miles and 99% by 150,000 miles of the dated reports had been filed, with 1 filed above the top of the chart.
The busiest stretch is between 0 and 10,000 miles, which alone holds 36% of the dated reports.
67% of the dated reports were filed below 36,000 miles, which is early enough that a fair number of these cars were still under a factory warranty when the owner complained.
In the order they tend to show up: headlight failure or clouding around 6k, other lighting problem around 6k, cruise control failure around 9k and other brake problem around 10k.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
Showing the 12 most-reported failure modes of 57. The full list is in the table below.
How reports accumulate
Every report with an odometer reading, cumulative, from 0 to 200,000 miles. A further 1 report came in above that, which is why the line stops short of the top. A curve that climbs early is a car with early problems, whatever its total.
- Line share of reports filed by that mileage
- Dashed the median reported mileage
Severity, and what it costs
Across the named modes, 40 mention a crash, 35 a fire, 30 an injury and 3 a fatality. Those are the words owners used in their own complaints, and NHTSA does not verify them, but they are the closest thing in this data to a measure of what a failure actually did.
The average severity weight across every report on this year is 5.26, where a stalled engine or a failed airbag weighs many times more than a rattling trim panel, and a figure this high means the reports are dominated by failures with safety consequences rather than annoyances. The weighting is set out in full on the methodology page.
What the top failures cost to put right, as editorial estimates for an independent US shop rather than figures from NHTSA: other electrical problem at $250–$2,000, other engine problem at $300–$4,000, other brake problem at $300–$1,800 and headlight failure or clouding at $150–$1,800. Dealer labour, a seized bolt or a part that is no longer made can push any of these past the top of its range.
16% of the reports on this year sit in the engine, transmission, drivetrain or cooling systems — the four where a repair bill is usually four figures.
Every reported failure mode
| Failure mode | System | Reports | With reading | 25th | Median | 75th | Per 1,000 | Typical repair | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other electrical problem | electrical | 78 | 28 | 21k | 51k | 90k | 0.3 | $250–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Other engine problem | engine | 28 | 16 | 30k | 60k | 78k | 0.1 | $300–$4,000 | High |
| Other brake problem | brakes | 26 | 13 | 4k | 10k | 30k | 0.1 | $300–$1,800 | High |
| Headlight failure or clouding | lighting | 16 | 13 | 1k | 6k | 20k | 0.1 | $150–$1,800 | Moderate |
| Other body or interior problem | body | 14 | 9 | 10k | 23k | 35k | 0.0 | $200–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Cruise control failure | adas | 12 | 10 | 5k | 9k | 9k | 0.0 | $200–$1,400 | High |
| Other powertrain problem | transmission | 12 | 5 | — | 25k | — | 0.0 | $400–$4,500 | High |
| Airbag failed to deploy in a crash | airbag | 11 | 11 | 9k | 19k | 24k | 0.0 | $1,000–$5,000 | Critical |
| Other lighting problem | lighting | 11 | 10 | 350 | 6k | 26k | 0.0 | $120–$1,200 | Moderate |
| Other fuel system problem | fuel | 9 | 4 | — | 26k | — | 0.0 | $300–$2,200 | High |
| Other visibility problem | glass | 9 | 7 | — | 24k | — | 0.0 | $150–$1,400 | Moderate |
| No-start or intermittent start failure | engine | 8 | 3 | — | 60k | — | 0.0 | $200–$1,800 | Moderate |
| Other steering problem | steering | 8 | 2 | — | 39k | — | 0.0 | $350–$2,400 | High |
| Other wheel or tire problem | wheels | 8 | 5 | — | 7k | — | 0.0 | $200–$1,500 | High |
| Seat belt or retractor failure | airbag | 6 | 2 | — | 4k | — | 0.0 | $200–$900 | High |
| Sunroof failure or glass breakage | body | 6 | 2 | — | 16k | — | 0.0 | $700–$4,500 | High |
| Fuel pump failure | fuel | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $600–$2,600 | High |
| Alternator or charging system failure | electrical | 5 | 4 | — | 27k | — | 0.0 | $450–$1,600 | High |
| Instrument cluster or gauge failure | infotainment | 5 | 5 | — | 30k | — | 0.0 | $350–$1,400 | Moderate |
| Other speed control problem | adas | 5 | 2 | — | 6k | — | 0.0 | $250–$2,000 | Critical |
| Wiring harness or short circuit | electrical | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $400–$3,500 | High |
| Tire blowout or tread separation | wheels | 4 | 4 | — | 14k | — | 0.0 | $200–$1,500 | Critical |
| Tail light, brake light or signal failure | lighting | 4 | 3 | — | 30k | — | 0.0 | $100–$900 | Moderate |
| Other suspension problem | suspension | 4 | 3 | — | 18k | — | 0.0 | $350–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Water pump failure | cooling | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $500–$2,200 | High |
| Torque converter failure | transmission | 3 | 2 | — | 92k | — | 0.0 | $1,100–$3,200 | High |
| Fuel tank, filler or EVAP failure | fuel | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,800 | Moderate |
| Control module (ECM/PCM/BCM) failure | electrical | 3 | 1 | — | 13k | — | 0.0 | $700–$3,000 | High |
| Ignition switch, key fob or immobilizer failure | electrical | 3 | 3 | — | 5k | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,500 | High |
| Loss of braking | brakes | 3 | 2 | — | 26k | — | 0.0 | $400–$3,000 | Critical |
| Master cylinder or brake booster failure | brakes | 3 | 3 | — | 1 | — | 0.0 | $450–$2,200 | Critical |
| Parking brake failure | brakes | 3 | 3 | — | 5k | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,300 | Moderate |
| Airbag inflator rupture | airbag | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $0–$0 | Critical |
| Lane keep or steering assist fault | adas | 3 | 2 | — | 2k | — | 0.0 | $200–$1,600 | High |
| Control arm, ball joint or bushing failure | suspension | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $400–$2,200 | High |
| Engine bay fire | engine | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $4,000–$20,000 | Critical |
| Stalling while driving | engine | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $300–$2,500 | Critical |
| Complete transmission failure | transmission | 2 | 2 | — | 18k | — | 0.0 | $2,800–$8,000 | Critical |
| Backup camera failure | infotainment | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,200 | Moderate |
| Premature brake pad or rotor wear | brakes | 2 | 2 | — | 19k | — | 0.0 | $300–$1,400 | Moderate |
| Tire pressure monitor failure | wheels | 2 | 1 | — | 30k | — | 0.0 | $80–$600 | Low |
| Exhaust leak or fumes in the cabin | emissions | 2 | 2 | — | 43k | — | 0.0 | $250–$2,000 | High |
| Other driver assistance problem | adas | 2 | 1 | — | 38k | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,800 | High |
| Oil leak | engine | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $250–$2,200 | Moderate |
| Overheating | cooling | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $400–$3,500 | High |
| CVT failure | transmission | 1 | 1 | — | 128k | — | 0.0 | $3,000–$8,500 | Critical |
| CV axle or driveshaft failure | drivetrain | 1 | 1 | — | 39k | — | 0.0 | $450–$2,200 | High |
| Differential or transfer case failure | drivetrain | 1 | 1 | — | 5k | — | 0.0 | $900–$4,200 | High |
| Fuel leak or fuel odor | fuel | 1 | 1 | — | 43k | — | 0.0 | $300–$2,500 | Critical |
| Fuel gauge or level sensor failure | fuel | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $300–$1,200 | Moderate |
| Audio or connectivity failure | infotainment | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $150–$900 | Low |
| Brake line, hose or caliper failure | brakes | 1 | 1 | — | 1k | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,600 | Critical |
| Rust or structural corrosion | body | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $500–$6,000 | High |
| Liftgate, tailgate or trunk failure | body | 1 | 1 | — | 29k | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,500 | Moderate |
| Air conditioning failure | hvac | 1 | 1 | — | 60k | — | 0.0 | $400–$2,800 | Moderate |
| Blower motor or climate control failure | hvac | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.0 | $250–$1,200 | Moderate |
| Windshield cracking | glass | 1 | 1 | — | 42k | — | 0.0 | $300–$1,600 | Moderate |
| Unclassified problem | other | 54 | 27 | 5k | 23k | 41k | 0.2 | — | Moderate |
Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound. Repair costs are typical independent-shop ranges for the failure, not figures from these reports.
How often, against how many were built
Scaled by an estimate of how many of these cars exist, the 2017 Toyota Rav4 draws about 1.3 per 1,000 vehicles, which puts it in the 74th percentile of complaint rates among 2017 vehicles we can rate.
That denominator is the weakest number on the page and it is fair to say so plainly. Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound.
The working figure is 308,928 vehicles. If the true number is twice that, every rate on this page is half what it says; the ranking against other 2017 vehicles, which is what the risk score uses, is far more robust than the rate itself.
What owners wrote
Verbatim from NHTSA complaint narratives, trimmed for length. The odometer reading is the one the owner gave.
Other electrical problem
The car is a 2017 toyota rav4 xle AWD. The car was a replacement vehicle for a 2015 toyota rav4 xle AWD that had non reparable electrical issues and was replaced by toyota by an arbitration decision. The first day I drove the car the passive safety sense system activated while on the freeway when a car passed me on the left side. Luckily no one was behind me or their would have been an serious accident. I traded the car off 9 days later at a loss due to complete lack of trust in any toyota product. The manufacturer and the dealer treated be horribly on the previous car that I will never own another toyota again ever.
I started it and noticed immediately something was wrong. Vehicle started moving and I tried to apply brake. Brake was hard initially and vehicle continued moving. Then I was able to depress the brake pedal all the way but it kept moving. With my daughter in the car I got panic. I switched to p and vehicle kept going, though slowly on the street. Then I turned power off and removed the key. At this point all dash boards lights were on and it was making a loud, wired noise. It lasted several seconds and vehicle kept moving during this time. Finally it came to a stop in the middle of the street. The vehicle has only 4200 miles. The scary thing is, brake failed for no reason and all dash board lights were on even after the key was removed.
Other engine problem
Tl* the contact owns a 2017 toyota rav4. While the vehicle was stationary and while driving various speeds, toxic fumes emitted from the heater on the passenger side of the vehicle. Koons arlington toyota in arlington, virginia was made aware of the failure and acknowledged the presence of the fumes. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 3,000. The VIN was not available.
About 1 year after I purchased my car brand new off of the lot I started to notice my brakes starting to rub and squeak. If I was going down hill the front of my car would shake. It was terrifying. I took it to the maita toyota delarship in sacramento. They told me nothing is wrong my pads are still good. I begged them to fix them they replaced my front rotors and break pads. This dealership also performed a engine cleaning and multiple other things they said my car needed at that time running me 795$ this being on july 11th 2018. Then today sept 6th 2018. My starter is out my car no longer starts. When you turn the key all of the inside lights come on and all you hear is a clicking sound. Mind you I also had a chip in my windshield when I took my car in for inspection in july and they placed green check mark's on everything including my windshield being free from chips. I now question the integrity of this dealerships service department. Do they truly inspect and do the work on your car? Because from where I am seeing this at sitting here with a year old car in my parking lot currently not driveable I begin to wonder if they do…
Other brake problem
Breaks failed when backing out of parking space and failed immediately again when trying to pull back into parking space after car hit a car and then hit a cart corral pushing that into another car. As a result 3 cars including ours were damaged.
Purchased my new rav4 on 12/2017. On 8/13/2017 I was at a drive through and stopped at the end of the line and the service brake when I pressed the peddle the brake was firm and stopped correctly. The line moved and I lifted my foot off of the service brake and the line stopped and I applied the service brake peddle and had to press the peddle further than I pressed the peddle the first time I stopped in the line. While stopped in the line the second time the rav4 started to roll forward and I had to press the service brake even further to get the rav4 stop. The line moved forward and I lifted my foot off of the service brake peddle and the line stopped and when I pressed the service brake peddle the service brake peddle went to the floor and did not slow until I struck the vehicle in front of me. After the accident my service brake peddle was very spongy and slow to respond when pressing the service brake peddle. I took my rav4 on 8/14/2017 to local dealership to have my service brakes checked. When I took the rav4 in I did not have any paper work to sign. The afternoon the service advisor said my rav4 was ready. When I went to…
Recalls on the 2017 model year
NHTSA has issued 3 recall campaigns covering the 2017 Toyota Rav4, affecting an estimated 309,043 vehicles. A recall is a different kind of evidence from a complaint: it is the regulator and the manufacturer agreeing that something has to be fixed, and the fix is free for as long as the car exists.
The campaigns cover electrical system:12v/24v/48v battery, equipment:other:labels and tires:temporary/emergency spare tire. Whether the work was actually done on the car in front of you is a question only the VIN can answer, and the manufacturer or NHTSA will answer it free.
One caution about reading these together: a recall usually raises the complaint count for the same part, because owners who read about it go and file. The mileages stay informative; the counts get noisy.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:12V/24V/48V BATTERY
1,853,568 vehicles 2023-11-01- Defect
- Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2013-2018 RAV4 vehicles. Certain replacement 12-volt batteries may not fit properly in the battery tray, allowing the battery to move and contact the hold-down bracket, possibly causing a short circuit.
- Consequence
- A battery short circuit increases the risk of a fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the battery clamp sub-assembly, battery tray, and positive terminal cover, free of charge. Owner letters were mailed December 27, 2024, to 2013-2014 RAV4 owners. Additional owner notification letters will be mailed in phases, phase 2 will begin on May 14, 2025, and phase 3 in late July 2025. Owners may contact Toyota's customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 23TB13 and 23TA13.
EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS
1,325 vehicles 2019-06-28- Defect
- Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Toyota Camry, Corolla, Rav4, Sienna, and Yaris iA vehicles equipped with factory-installed floor mats. The load carrying capacity modification label may be incorrect. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."
- Consequence
- An incorrect label may lead to unintentionally overloading the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- SET will notify owners and provide a corrected label for placement over the inaccurate label, free of charge. The recall began August 23, 2019. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. SET's number for this recall is SET19A.
TIRES:TEMPORARY/EMERGENCY SPARE TIRE
409 vehicles 2017-05-02- Defect
- Gulf States Toyota, Inc. (Gulf States) is recalling certain 2017 4Runner , 86, Avalon, Camry, Camry Hybrid, Corolla, Corolla iM, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, Prius, Prius C, RAV4, RAV4 Hybrid, Sienna and Yaris vehicles. The spare tire air pressure was not adjusted to the proper pressure as stated on the Tire Pressure Label.
- Consequence
- A spare tire that is not inflated to the proper value may not perform as intended, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Gulf States will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the spare tires, adjusting their pressure as necessary, free of charge. The recall began June 15, 2017. Owners may contact Gulf States customer service at 1-800-444-1074. Toyota's number for this recall is 17R2.
Recall work is free at a franchised dealer regardless of the car's age. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before assuming it was done.
How it ranks in the 2017 field
The score at the top of the page, placed among its peers. The zones are the same thresholds the scorer applies, read out of the scorer itself, so the picture and the band word cannot disagree.
Scores are ranked within the model year, never across years, because an older car has had longer to accumulate reports.
- Left fewer and less serious reports
- Right more, or worse
- Marker this vehicle
Better and worse years of the same car
High risk for a 2017 — 188th riskiest of the 263 2017 vehicles we can rate. Because the ranking is against the same model year only, age cancels out of it.
Across the 30 model years of this car that carry enough reports to score, 2001 comes out best at 63 and 2019 worst at 83, with 2017 itself at 70.
If the model year is negotiable, 2001, 2004, 2003, 1999, 2000, 2005, 1998 and 2002 score lower than 2017 by a margin worth acting on. Same body, same engines, different luck — usually a supplier change or a mid-cycle fix, which the complaint data can show but never explain.
Within the 2013–2018 generation specifically, 2014 is the strongest year at 68 and 2018 the weakest at 72.
Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.
Shorter is better. Years with too few reports to score are shown without a bar rather than as a zero, because no data is not good news.
Within the 2013-2018 generation, 2014 Toyota Rav4 scores best at 68 and 2018 Toyota Rav4 worst at 72.
Where to spend the inspection money
The mileages below are where the first quarter of reports for each mode had already been filed, which makes them the point at which a fault is worth looking for rather than the point at which it happens: other lighting problem from about 350, headlight failure or clouding from about 1k, other brake problem from about 4k and cruise control failure from about 5k.
On a 2017 Toyota Rav4 with more miles than that on it, the useful question to put to a seller or a mechanic is whether other lighting problem has been dealt with, and if so with what parts and at whose expense. A car that has already had the repair is in a different position from one that has not.
Treat it as where to point the inspection, not as a prediction. A well-maintained example can sail past every mileage on this page, and a neglected one can fail well before the first of them.
What this page cannot tell you
415 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork. Every count on this page is therefore a floor: it is the number of owners who went to the trouble of filing with a federal agency, which is a small and self-selected fraction of the owners who had the fault.
Of those 415 reports, 220 carried an odometer reading, so the mileages here describe 53% of the sample rather than all of it. Owners also round: readings pile up on multiples of ten thousand, which is why this site publishes "about 90,000 miles" and not "91,438".
The failure modes are assigned by software reading the owner's own words, which is accurate in bulk and wrong in individual cases. A mode with a handful of reports may contain a misfiled one.
And nothing here predicts what one car will do. These are other people's complaints, filed years apart, on cars maintained by strangers. Read the page as a map of where this model year has previously gone wrong, then have the specific car in front of you inspected.
Questions this page answers
What are the most common problems with the 2017 Toyota Rav4?
The most-reported failures are other electrical problem (78 reports, median 50,000 miles), other engine problem (28 reports, median 60,000 miles) and other brake problem (26 reports, median 10,000 miles). Counts come from owner complaints filed with NHTSA, which are voluntary, so they show what owners bothered to report rather than every fault that occurred.
At what mileage do 2017 Toyota Rav4 problems start?
Headlight failure or clouding is the earliest failure mode to show up, with a median reported mileage of 5,000 miles and a quarter of reports before 1,400 miles. Across all failure modes on this year, the median report sits at 23,000 miles.
Is the 2017 Toyota Rav4 reliable?
It scores 70 out of 100 on our risk index, which is high — 188th riskiest of the 263 2017 vehicles we can rate. The score is a comparison against other 2017 vehicles, not a prediction about any individual car, and it is built from complaint rates, severity and how early failures appear.
Which year of the Toyota Rav4 is best?
Within the 2013–2018 generation, 2014 scores best at 68 out of 100 and 2018 worst at 72. Same body, same engines, different luck.
Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.
What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed