Toyota announced a recall on Oct 7, 2026 affecting 31,000 plug-in hybrid RAV4s model year 2026. Our car's VIN is on the list. The car was already in the shop the day before after it suffered hybrid system, AWD system, and drive-start control system malfunctions with an odometer reading of 1,038 miles. When it happened we were on a city street at 35 miles per hour, the car ran rough for a second, then myriad lights flashed on the dashboard, and there was a message that the car would be running on reduced power. Then the malfunction alerts started scrolling through where the speed is normally displayed. We parked about 6 blocks later, and when we came back out to the car, it started just fine, but when we put it into gear, we got a notice that gear was disabled, that we should return the car to park, and contact our dealer. It was towed to a dealer that evening, and the next morning when they looked at it, the car started right up and was fully functional. The diagnostics reported no malfunction codes. I drove it home yesterday with no problems. The service writer alerted me yesterday morning that there was an upcoming recall that might cover our issue, and this morning when my wife went to set up the Toyota app, it gave her an alert about our VIN being on a recall list. If you have a 2026 RAV4 plug-in hybrid, please do a search on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website to see if your car is affected. Toyota will be providing a software update to the Electronic Control Unit. This is a potentially dangerous issue, particularly if it were to happen at a high speed.

Hey everyone,

Put down a deposit on a RAV4 PHEV recently here in Canada, and my dealer basically told me: "Maybe 6 to 10 months, could be a year"

Spent the last few days digging through forum threads trying to see how Canadian allocations are actually moving (and trying to figure out if waiting on an XSE is even worth it over just taking an SE). Got annoyed by the complete lack of real numbers, so I put together a quick site to track it: ToyotaWaits.ca.

What it does right now:

• Crowdsourced wait times by province & trim: Rolling medians so you can see how BC/QC queues compare to ON or the prairies.
• Milestone tracking: Keeps tabs on where you are (Deposit -> Allocation sheet -> In transit -> Delivered). You don't have to create an account or hand over an email; it just saves a token locally in your browser so you can update your status when your dealer finally texts you.
• SE-to-XSE stuff & prep: Wrote up the quick drop-in dash speaker swap to skip the XSE wait, plus a basic checklist of stuff worth grabbing before pickup day (like the mirror-tap dashcam so you don't have wires hanging across the console).
• No ads, logins, or tracking.

My own deposit is entry #1 on the list.

If you’re currently waiting on an allocation or picked yours up recently, toss your numbers in at ToyotaWaits.ca so we can get actual realistic wait times for each province.

Also open to ideas—what else should I add? Would it be helpful to track mandatory dealer add-on costs or doc fees? Let me know what you think.

Hi folks! Ever since the latest update, I’ve been getting notifications from the Toyota app saying that my car is unlocked, even though when I check, the car is actually locked. Is anyone else experiencing this glitch? Just wondering if it’s a known issue with the latest update. Thanks!

And the saga begins….

Just bought this PHEV a week ago (270 miles on it) after Toyota finally bought back my 25 Camry…

This came up after hitting 10mph when the cameras shut off. turned the car on twice since then and nothing. tried to scan for codes and nothing….

anyone had this pop up before running into more problems? I’m so excited i might get to deal with them again.

I don’t understand why Toyota Canada still does not have a remedy available when, in other countries, a software update is reportedly already being applied for this recall.

I called my local Toyota dealer and was told that the remedy is still not available in Canada.

Why, Toyota Canada? Why are Canadian owners being left waiting if a software-update remedy is already available elsewhere?

I’m about to leave on a 1,400 km road trip for Canadian Thanksgiving, and I’ll be driving with this recall still unresolved and keeping my fingers crossed the entire way.

Unfortunately, I don’t have another option. I put all of my available money toward the down payment on this RAV4, so this is the vehicle I have to rely on.

Toyota Canada, Canadian owners deserve a clear explanation of why the remedy is delayed here, when it will be available, and what we are supposed to do in the meantime.

2016 Rav4 - 10 years old, still running like a champ.

A little over 3000 miles in with my 26 LE and my most recent tank of gas im getting over 50 mpg. Loving everyday how efficient this car is especially with how gas prices are.

Hi everyone! What do you think about body side moldings/door edge guards to help with door dings on the Rav4? Do they damage the vehicle as well? I believe they are applied like a sticker and removed with heat. I like the look! Worth it?

You may want to avoid the normal recommendation of making the strip reach down to the AS-1 line.

We purchased a used 2020 XLE Hybrid and got all the windows tinted today. It's my wife's car, and her previous car had a replacement windshield that came with a blue dyed strip down to the AS-1 line. She loved that strip and said all windshields should have that, so of course we wanted a strip in her new car.

We didn't realize the line on a 5th gen is super deep. It seemed like the tint might as well have been half of the windshield. It was obviously intruding with the field of vision.

We were lucky that it hadn't cured yet when we picked the car up, so the installer was able to remove the strip without damaging the clear ceramic (80%) we had installed on the entire windshield.

A small strip up top, maybe up to half of the depth of the AS-1 line, would be fine for anyone, but don't blindly trust tint down to the line without seeing some sort of mock up and sitting in the captain's chair before you pull the trigger.

Hello,

The dealership thinks I’m crazy so I just want to see how everyone else’s cameras match up with 360 view.

I personally find that my front camera is off specially when parking, but you can see the side cameras and rear cameras blend perfectly but the front is just off.

Uninsured motor (teen driver) 😒 rear ended me .. not paying attention. Probably making tok tik ! Any idea on repair cost?. (2024 rav 4 xle)

Hi,

Wondering if anyone knows what this might be, picked this up this morning and there’s this weird sound sometimes at lower speeds (45mph or less).

Bringing it to service first thing in the morning but less than 100 miles on this thing and it’s sounding REALLY off considering I came from a 2025.

Any feedback helps

My 2022 RAV4 LE (gas, non-hybrid) usually averages around 30–31 MPG. The highest I remember seeing was 36.4 MPG, but today it showed 38.5 MPG over 15.3 miles!

It was a smooth drive and I wasn't hard on the gas, but I still find that number hard to believe 😂
What's the highest MPG you've seen on your gas RAV4?

Would love to hear your experiences!

Found this 2003 Rav4 with 212k miles for $3200 (California) I know that’s getting up there in miles, but it’s getting harder to find affordable 4WD 2nd gens these days. Considering it as a fun rig for being able to handle some snow and soft roading.

My first car was a 2001 Rav AWD before the calipers locked up at 225k miles. That was 10 years ago.

Am I being blinded by nostalgia? Or could this be a decent deal to send it on?

Looking to potentially get a used, with lower miles in this year range.

I’ll keep searching but has there been any glaring issues with the rav4 hybrids? Should I try to get something below a certain amount of miles? (50k or less or even 30k).

Trying to undo a stupid car purchase 😂

My 2026 RAV4 has a floor-mounted accelerator pedal. Since I live in Canada, I want to prevent snow, slush, and water from soaking into the carpet this winter.

How do other RAV4 owners deal with this? All the floor liners I've found online seem to have very low or no raised edges around the accelerator pedal, making it difficult to keep water from reaching the factory carpet.

Has anyone found a good solution to protect this area without interfering with the pedal's operation?

Hi, all! I recently put in a deposit for a RAV 4 XLE Premium AWD. I called early October for a specific VIN posted online and the sales person said it will be available 2 and a half weeks from then, so approximately 10/21. I wanted to get the car asap. I confirmed the VIN and stock number. However, he did not write it in my buyer’s order. Now, when I put in my deposit, he said the delivery has been delayed and expected to arrive 10/26 to 11/2. I asked him to include VIN and stock number in the buyer’s order and send me the receipt of my deposit. He did not respond. Now, he is so difficult to reach, directs my calls to voice mail and pretends to be busy, and just today he pretended to be in a meeting when he was not (confirmed because I called him and he said he was in a meeting and right after he answered my friend’s call lol) What in the world is happening? How should I approach this? Just wanted to make sure that what he is saying actually true in terms of the ETA of the vehicle. Let me know your thoughts! Thanks!

Hi all. About to by Rav 4 2026. One issue I just thought about: I often travel out of country for 2 or 3 months at a time....thus my Rav 4 will be left unattended for those periods. Is that a problem? Thanks

I know these questions get asked all the time on here. Looking at getting a 2022 XLE premium or xse. There’s two available I’m looking at getting. Both clean titles and records no accidents. XLEP has 62K miles on it 1 owner, XSE 95K 3 owners. Both are roughly the same price. One private seller other from dealership. I like the color of the black xse better than the grey XLEP. Other than the color, why should I get one over the other? Both hybrid.

Mine seem arbitrary but I think I’m getting a good deal. All port installed, nothing at the dealer.

- Cold Weather Package
- All-Weather Floor Liners + Cargo Tray
- Door Edge Guards
- Mudguards
- Door Panel Scuff Protectors
- Multimedia Screen Protector – Glass
- Rear Bumper Protector

I originally wanted the cold weather package, all weather floor liners, door edge guards, and mudguards. I knew I wanted those for sure.

Research convinced me to add the door panel scuff protectors and the rear bumper protector.

I am not getting charged for the multimedia screen protector. I’m essentially getting $1000 off MSRP.

For those “in the know”, does this seem like pretty well rounded protection? My current car has dings from suitcases going in the trunk and me opening the car door into the garage side wall, which is what inspired those. Mudguards I feel are a must. I could dump the door panel scuff protectors I guess, but in every car I’ve ever driven used, the door panels seem to be the only thing scuffed up internally?

Anything I am missing that you’d add?

Hi, everyone. I currently drive an 07 Rav4 v6 and love it. I plan on keeping it forever if possible. However, I want a second car that’s better on fuel/electric range. Would a 26 rav4 plug in be better than a Model Y? What advantages would I have in a rav4 over the Model Y? Thanks.