Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2008 Toyota RAV4 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Starting in June 2018, I have had seven episodes of unintended acceleration. (I have owned the car, purchased in private sale, since June of 2013.) There were common elements to each incident:1. gradually slowing; 2. foot on brake; 3. engine accelerates sharply, a moment before complete stop in first six, a moment after in seventh and last. In each incident able to maintain control as foot already was on brake; yet in three of the incidents, including the last two, the car bucked forward a few inches despite the pressure on the brake. Situation resolved when I turned off the ignition, a reflex developed after the first incident. This last incident was particularly upsetting as I was in a long line of slow moving cars on a relatively narrow road with pedestrians on each side of my car. Each incident has been reported to the local dealer with which I have been trading for many years. …
Was at a complete stop at a signal. Had foot on the brake. Engine surged to approx 6500 RPM plowed into the vehicle in front of me. I climbed on the other vehicle. Car would not stop moving until I turned and pulled out the key from the ignition. Airbags did not go off. Reported incident to tarpon city officer, while the accident report was written up. My daughter and I were pretty banged up. Don't know if the other vehicle reported injuries. The rav was not drivable. Had to have it towed to suntoyota for repairs. Reported incident to sun Toyota service and body shop dec 22, they asked me what I wanted done about the problem. Called Toyota [phone] case #[redacted], 12/22/11 promised to call back in 24 hrs case worker [redacted]. Talked to [redacted] at Toyota headquarter in california. Still waiting for a response from Toyota. I don't feel safe in this vehicle now. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Toyota RAV4. The contact stated that while driving 25 MPH, he then applied the brake, as stopped traffic was ahead. However, the vehicle accelerated independently and crashed into another vehicle. The vehicle was destroyed. The driver and passenger suffered minor injuries. The manufacturer had not been notified of the failure. The failure and current mileage was 113,000. Updated 07/16/13 the consumer stated most of the data was difficult to interpret as far as implications concerning the events leading up to the time of impact. Specifically, the vehicle speed showed very little reduction in MPH until less than one second before impact, assuming time 0 represents impact. The data supported the consumers claim that there was no significant response to his braking when he became aware of apparently stopped traffic ahead after he had completed a lane change. …
Tl* the contact owns 2008 Toyota rav 4. The contact depressed the brake pedal and the vehicle came to a halt. Suddenly, the vehicle abnormally accelerated and crashed into a preceding vehicle. The vehicle did not halt and proceeded to crash into the preceding vehicle 2 additional times. The brake pedal was depressed with such force in an attempt to stop the accelerating vehicle that the actual brake pedal fractured. The police and ambulance arrived to the scene and occupants from the foregoing vehicle suffered unknown injuries. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where they could not duplicate the failure. The dealer advised the cause of the crash was due to floor mat interference. All repairs were covered by her insurance company. The manufacturer was contacted and currently, she was awaiting a response. A police report was available. …
While stopped at a light waiting to turn left the RAV4 engine began to rev and lurched forward with driver's foot still on the brake. Driver put car into neutral while holding down the brake pedal to prevent the car hurtling into the intersection. Driver then turned off the car and put gear shift to park. After 30 seconds restarted the car with foot on brake and the engine began to rev again with car in park. The engine noise was very loud. Car was again turned off. Car was restarted after about 2-3 minutes and engine behaved normally. Owners took car to Toyota dealer within an hour of the incident. Toyota dealership ran diagnostic and manager said driver had foot on the accelerator when it happened which is certainly not true. Dealer would not release a copy of the diagnostic report. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Toyota rav-4. The contact stated that while sitting idle with the brakes depressed, the vehicle suddenly accelerated as the engine rpms abnormally increased. The contact crashed into the rear of another vehicle, causing that vehicle to crash into a third vehicle. The contact was not injured. The police were contacted and a report was filed. The vehicle was later towed to the dealer for diagnosis. The technicians were unable to duplicate or diagnose the failure. The manufacturer was contacted and advised her that they would send an investigator to inspect the vehicle. The failure and current mileages were approximately 40,000. The consumer stated there were numerous occassions when the vehicle would lurch into gear. The consumer discovered this was called jack rabbit starts. The consumer no longer owns the vehicle. Updated 03/29/2013
The RAV4 has exhibited sudden unintended acceleration three times: latest occurred on 7/17/2015 at 7:30 pm while stopped at an intersection; the 2nd on 7/06/15 while in park in my driveway just after stating the car; the 1st on about 6/30/15 around noon while stopped at a traffic light. Fortunately, I had my foot on the break or was in park so that the car did not move. After turning the car off and restarting the problem went away. The vehicle was tested at local dealer on 7/20 with diagnostic data sent to Toyota central, but they could find no problem in the data - no error codes. The technical case number is [redacted]. After contacting Toyota customer service (case # [redacted]) I was told they could do nothing further that the car "performed as designed" per sabina charfauros, case manager, [phone] ext. 73846 updated 9/28/15 updated 3/23/2016
Tl* the contact owns a 2008 Toyota RAV4. The contact stated while parking, when she removed her foot from the brake pedal the vehicle abnormally accelerated. The contact was unable to stop the vehicle and steered into a curb in an attempt to bring the vehicle to a stop. The vehicle did not stop and instead accelerated over the curb, into a fence and finally stopped when crashing into a utility pole. The contact sustained a fractured foot and crushed dentures and was transported to the hospital. A police report was available. The vehicle was towed by the contact's insurance company and was declared totalled. This was not the contact's first instance of unintended acceleration . She was advised by her dealer that there were no recalls on the vehicle and no failures. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 14,415.
2008 Toyota RAV4 (35K miles) purchased in 12/07. After a 40 mile drive, we were sitting in stop and go traffic for approx 20 minutes. During a stop, the engine began revving loudly and lunged forward. With both feet still on the brake, the car continued to creep forward until hitting the vehicle in front of us. Then the car was put into neutral and ignition was shut off. This is the first occurrence. After settling down, and discussing the accident with the other vehicle, no damage to their car, so no need to file an accident report. We called Toyota to file a complaint. And took the car directly to the nearest dealer. After a checking out the car, they found no issues, and said the car was 'to Toyota's specifications', and there was nothing they could do. They also said they couldn't guarantee how it could happen again.
Sudden acceleration. Car was stopped in park and shifted to drive. Transmission made a large clunk sound as it went into drive and then accelerated to what sound like full throttle. My foot was on the brake and the car didn't move much but was bucking against the brake. I shifted into neutral and turned off the car. I then put it into park. I got out of the vehicle, looked under the dash and the accelerator pedal looked like it was in a normal position and the floor mats were several inches from the accelerator pedal. This took place at the bemidji high school parking lot. I then re-started the car and drove it home with no incident. There was no damage to the car and no injuries.
Related recalls
Vehicle speed control › Accelerator pedal
Toyota is recalling certain model year 2008 through 2011 Lexus lx570, 2003 through 2009 Toyota 4runner, and 2006 through 2010 rav4 vehicles. The accelerator pedal can get stuck in the wide open position due to its being trapped by an unsecured or incompatible driver's floor mat.
Remedy: The remedy is now available. The safety recall began early April 2011. The remedy will involve modification or replacement of the accelerator pedal and replacement of any Toyota all-weather floor mat.
Acceleration complaints in other RAV4 years
Frequently asked questions
How common are acceleration problems on the 2008 Toyota RAV4?
NHTSA has 92 complaints about the speed control & acceleration of the 2008 Toyota RAV4, 16% of the model year's 575 complaints.
Is there a recall for 2008 Toyota RAV4 acceleration problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 11V-113 (accelerator pedal, Feb 24, 2011). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2008 Toyota RAV4 acceleration problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 25,000 miles, and 48% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 20 crashes, 0 fires and 9 injuries and 1 death to speed control & acceleration problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.