| Issue ID | 832530 |
| Internal NHTSA # | 10371314 |
| Manufacurer | TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION |
| Brand | TOYOTA |
| Model | RAV4 |
| Model Year | 2007 |
| File date | 04/08/10 |
| Component | STEERING |
| Product type code | VEHICLE |
| Description of the problem | I noticed a "popping" sound and started feeling a "thunk" in the steering wheel at ~ 40,000 miles in our 2007 rav4. The dealer claimed it was typical and nothing to worry about. Upon checking incident reports i discovered it is certainly typical, but whether i should be worrying about it is undetermined. Toyota knew of this problem and issued a service bulletin in 2008, neither they nor their dealers informed the owners. The problem was serious enough that it warranted a redesign of the intermediate steering shaft components to correct the problem. I believe this is a design flaw that should have been rectified through a recall. |
| Vehicle Mileage at Failure | 40000 |
| Number of Occurences | |
| Source of the issue | PORTABLE SAFETY COMPLAINT FORM (PDF) |
| City and State | COBDEN, IL |
| VIN pattern | JTMBK31V475XXXXXX |
| Was vehicle invloved in a crash? | N |
| Was vehicle involved in a fire? | N |
| Was incedent reported to police? | |
| Was medical attention required? | |
| Was part original equipment? | |
| No. of injured persons | 0 |
| No. of fatalities | 0 |
| Date of purchase | 07/08/26 |
| Was original owner? | |
| Anti-lock brakes | |
| Cruise control | |
| Number of cylinders | |
| Drive train type | |
| Transmission type | |
| Vehicle speed | 0 |
| DoT tire identifier | |
| Tire size | |
| Location of tire code | |
| Type of tire failure code | |
| Was defective tire repaired? | |
| Date of manufacture | |
| Type of child seat code | |
| Type of restraint | |
| Dealer's name | |
| Dealer's telephone number | |
| Dealer's city | |
| Dealer's state code | |
| Dealer's ZIP code |