2021 Toyota RAV4: owner complaints and recalls

Complaints about the 2021 Toyota RAV4 are still climbing years after launch. The last three full years account for 240 of the 376 filings on record, which usually means a defect that surfaces with mileage rather than a factory fault.

376
Complaints
1
Recalls
46
Crash reports
7
Fire reports
49
Injuries
164.4
Severity index

Severity index 164.4 - High. It weights crashes, fires, injuries and fatalities per 100 complaints, so a vehicle attracting serious reports scores above one attracting many trivial ones (how this is calculated).

Middle half of all tracked vehiclesThis vehicle: 164.4p25 35p75 96cleanestworst
Where the 2021 Toyota RAV4 sits against the quartiles of every vehicle we track.

Among the 90 2021 vehicles we track with at least 40 complaints on file, the 2021 Toyota RAV4 ranks 4 of 90 by severity, where 1 is the worst. Its severity is higher than 96% of its model-year peers. See the full 2021 ranking.

What actually fails

Air BagsAir Bags: 125 complaints (33.2%)125 33%Unknown Or OtherUnknown Or Other: 71 complaints (18.9%)71 19%Electrical SystemElectrical System: 45 complaints (12.0%)45 12%EngineEngine: 36 complaints (9.6%)36 10%StructureStructure: 21 complaints (5.6%)21 6%Fuel/Propulsion SystemFuel/Propulsion System: 21 complaints (5.6%)21 6%SteeringSteering: 20 complaints (5.3%)20 5%Service BrakesService Brakes: 20 complaints (5.3%)20 5%
Systems named in complaints. One complaint can name several, so shares overlap.
ComponentComplaintsShare of complaints citing it
AIR BAGS12533.2%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER7118.9%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM4512.0%
ENGINE369.6%
STRUCTURE215.6%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM215.6%
STEERING205.3%
SERVICE BRAKES205.3%

Complaints filed per year

0601202020: 52021: 382022: 482023: 432024: 832025: 1142026: 45 (partial year)20212223242511426
Complaints filed per calendar year, not model year. The hatched bar is the current year and is still incomplete.
YearComplaints
20205
202138
202248
202343
202483
2025114
2026 (year to date)45
Complaint volume is rising - the last three years carry 2.6x the filings of the three before them, which usually signals a wear-related defect surfacing with age.

Recall campaigns

CampaignReportedComponentSummary
23V86500020/12/2023AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATIONToyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2020-2021 Avalon, Avalon Hybrid, Corolla, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, RAV4, RAV4 Hybrid, Lexus ES350, Lexus RX350, Lexus RX450H, 2021 Sienna Hybrid, Lexus ES250, 2020-2022 Camry, Camry Hybrid, and ES300H ve
Source. US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration public complaint and recall APIs (api.nhtsa.gov), retrieved 2026-07-25. Complaints are unverified consumer reports; volume is influenced by how many units were sold and how long the vehicle has been on the road. Not affiliated with NHTSA or any manufacturer.