2018 Toyota RAV4 reliability

Is it reliable?

The 2018 Toyota RAV4 has 331 complaints with NHTSA after 9 years, or 37 per year. That is more complaints per year than most RAV4 years here — over the median of the other years, which is 33. NHTSA has 3 recalls on file, including 12V/24V/48V battery and Labels.

2016 Toyota RAV4 XLE — Photo by MercurySable99, resized from the original. Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0

Complaints

331

Per year

Recalls

Years on the road

What owners report

The complaints owners file most often name Electrical system (129 of 331), then Engine (32) and Service brakes (28). Those filings include 31 that report a crash, 32 that report a fire, and 13 that report an injury.

Next to 2017 and 2019

The 2017 RAV4 has 307 complaints, 33 per year, and the 2019 has 877 complaints, 140 per year. The 2018 has more complaints per year than the 2017. The 2018 has fewer complaints per year than the 2019.

The complaint rate is complaints filed in this year’s first 3 years on the road, divided by however many of those years have passed. Recalls are a separate count. The numbers are for the US-market 2018 Toyota RAV4. How we count. Data as of 2026-10-16.

Recalls (3)

Recall electrical system, 12V/24V/48V battery 2023-11-01 · NHTSA campaign 23V734000

Summary 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.

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.

Recall Labels 2019-06-28 · NHTSA campaign 19V503000

Summary 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."

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.

Recall Labels 2017-12-20 · NHTSA campaign 17V831000

Summary Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Toyota 4Runner and Tundra, 2018 Toyota Highlander, RAV4 and Lexus GX460 and 2017 Toyota Sienna and Tacoma vehicles. These vehicles may have incorrect load carrying capacity modification labels. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 110, "Tire Selection and Rims."

Remedy Toyota will notify owners and provide them with corrected labels, free of charge. The recall began on January 23, 2018. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are H0Z for Toyota vehicles, and HLF for Lexus vehicles.

Complaints by component (331 total)

Electrical system

129

Engine

Service brakes

Powertrain

Exterior lighting

Speed control

Visibility and wipers

Air bags

Structure

Fuel and propulsion system

Steering

Forward collision avoidance

Tires

Lane departure

Visibility

Seat belts

Suspension

Back-over prevention

Electronic stability control (ESC)

Engine and engine cooling

Hydraulic brakes

Latches, locks, and linkages

Seats

Chest clip, buckle, and harness

Equipment

Fire-related

Wheels

Show 19 more Show less

Crash-flagged

Fire-flagged

Injury reports

Death reports

Complaints filed per year

Excerpts from recent NHTSA complaint filings

"Cooper tires 225/65R17. Purchased 4 tires in June. From installation the tires were bouncy. The garage said it was the struts, so I replaced the struts, but the problem persists. 2 weeks later I took the car back. They…"
Tires · filed 2026-09-13
"Before o had taken my RAV4 into Toyota for the recall a AAA tech. had replaced the battery after jump starting it. There was nothing wrong with the sensors or anything else but after the battery was replaced all the…"
Steering, Electrical system, Forward collision avoidance · filed 2026-08-03
"The contact owns a 2018 Toyota Rav4. The contact stated that while in reverse(R), the rear-view camera was black and failed to operate as intended. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it was diagnosed and determined…"
Back-over prevention · filed 2026-07-28
"The hands free feature over the cars microphone/stereo is unusable; leaving vehicle owners frustrated, and more likely to operate cellphones outside of standard hands free practices. I have been on numerous phone calls…"
Unknown or other · filed 2026-07-10
"While I am driving my Toyota RAV4, the car will suddenly shut off and I can restart it and keep driving as the month is going on. The incidents are happening more often and now the dashboard is going black. I’ve had a…"
Electrical system, Exterior lighting, Air bags · filed 2026-07-05

NHTSA crash ratings

Version	Overall	Front	Side	Rollover
2018 Toyota Rav4 Hybrid SUV AWD	5 stars	4 stars	5 stars	4 stars
2018 Toyota Rav4 SUV AWD	5 stars	4 stars	5 stars	4 stars
2018 Toyota Rav4 SUV FWD	5 stars	4 stars	5 stars	4 stars

Stars are how this vehicle did in NHTSA crash tests. They are a safety result, separate from the complaint record. Not rated means that test was not run for this version.

Fuel economy

Trim	Engine	Transmission	Drive	City	Hwy	Combined	Annual fuel cost
RAV4	2.5L, 4-cyl	Automatic (6-speed)	Front-wheel drive	23	29	25 MPG	$2600
RAV4 all-wheel drive	2.5L, 4-cyl	Automatic (6-speed)	All-wheel drive	22	28	25 MPG	$2600
RAV4 hybrid all-wheel drive	2.5L, 4-cyl	Automatic (AV-S6)	All-wheel drive	34	30	32 MPG	$2050
RAV4 LE/XLE	2.5L, 4-cyl	Automatic (6-speed)	Front-wheel drive	23	30	26 MPG	$2500
RAV4 Limited all-wheel drive/SE all-wheel drive	2.5L, 4-cyl	Automatic (6-speed)	All-wheel drive	22	28	24 MPG	$2700

Specs and fitment

5th generation, 2013–2018

Body styles SUV

Oil 0W-20 (5W-20 acceptable if 0W-20 is unavailable) , 4.6 qt capacity

Tire size 225/65R17 (LE) to 235/55R18 (Limited/SE)

Towing capacity 1,500 lbs

Known issues for this generation

Toyota recall 23V-734 (23TA13) covers 2013–2018 RAV4 vehicles after some replacement Group 35 batteries with smaller top dimensions can shift when the hold-down clamp is not tightened correctly, allowing the positive terminal to contact the clamp and short-circuit. Toyota states that can increase fire risk; dealers replace the battery hold-down clamp, tray, and positive terminal cover at no charge. Toyota estimates about 1,854,000 U.S. vehicles are involved in the recall.

Compare

Previous year 2017 Toyota RAV4 Next year 2019 Toyota RAV4 See every Toyota RAV4 model year →

Frequently asked questions

Is the 2018 Toyota RAV4 reliable?

What are common problems with a 2018 Toyota RAV4?

Is the 2018 Toyota RAV4 more reliable than the years next to it?

Has the 2018 Toyota RAV4 been recalled?

The 2018 Toyota RAV4 has 3 recalls on file with NHTSA. See the recalls table on this page for dates, components, and remedies.

How many complaints have owners filed about the 2018 Toyota RAV4?

Owners have filed 331 complaints about the 2018 Toyota RAV4 with NHTSA.

What mpg does a 2018 Toyota RAV4 get?

EPA-rated combined fuel economy for the 2018 Toyota RAV4 is 26.4 MPG. See the fuel economy table on this page for city and highway figures by engine and transmission.

What generation is the 2017 Toyota RAV4?

5th generation (2013-2018).

What oil does a 2019 Toyota RAV4 use?

Toyota’s 2019 RAV4 maintenance guide specifies 0W-16; Toyota service bulletins list about 4.8 quarts with filter for the A25 engine family.

Does the Toyota RAV4 have a battery fire recall?

2013-2018 RAV4 models are covered by NHTSA recall 23V-734 for 12-volt battery hold-down and terminal contact issues; 2019+ models are not part of that campaign.