NHTSA lists 3 safety recalls and 346 owner complaints for the 2018 Toyota RAV4 (including the hybrid).
3Safety recalls
346Owner complaints
33Complaints citing a crash
32Complaints citing a fire
Data: NHTSA recall and complaint filesUpdated Sep 27, 2026
Recalled components: electrical system and equipment. Most-reported area: electrical system (130 complaints, 38%; median mileage when it happened: 17,000). Includes the RAV4 Hybrid and the plug-in hybrid (sold as the RAV4 Prime for 2021 to 2024).
3 safety recalls for the 2018 Toyota RAV4
Newest first. Summaries are NHTSA's own wording. Open a recall for the fix and the full notice.
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.
Risk: A battery short circuit increases the risk of a fire.
The fix and full notice
Fix: 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.
NHTSA listing: RAV4. Toyota campaign 23TB13 / 23TA13.
Equipment
Jun 28, 2019
labels
Fails federal standard 110 (tire and rim labeling)
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."
Risk: An incorrect label may lead to unintentionally overloading the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
The fix and full notice
Fix: 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.
NHTSA listing: RAV4. Toyota campaign SET19A.
Equipment
Dec 20, 2017
labels
Fails federal standard 110 (tire and rim labeling)
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."
Risk: An incorrect load information label can result in the operator overloading the vehicle and increasing the risk of a crash.
The fix and full notice
Fix: 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.
NHTSA listing: RAV4. Toyota campaign Toyota H0Z Lexus HLF.
Questions about any of these recalls: call NHTSA's Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236 (TTY 888-275-9171) or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
What owners report
The areas named in the 346 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2018 RAV4. NHTSA does not verify complaints.
Electrical system130 · 38%
Most named: 12v/24v/48v battery (3) · Median 17,000 miles at failure (41 reports)
Brakes33 · 10%
Median 13,800 miles at failure (21 reports)
Engine32 · 9%
Powertrain28 · 8%
Median 9,500 miles at failure (16 reports)
Exterior lighting23 · 7%
Speed control21 · 6%
Visibility/wiper19 · 5%
Median 8,800 miles at failure (15 reports)
Unknown or other74 · 21%
Median 5,200 miles at failure (27 reports)
A complaint can name more than one area, so shares add up to more than 100%. Mileage is shown where at least 15 owners reported it.
Toyota RAV4 recalls and complaints by model year
The highlighted bars are the 2018 model year. Newer model years have had less time on the road, so their counts are lower. Counting complaints filed in each model year's first three years, the 2019 RAV4 drew the most (437) and the 2018 drew 122.
Owner complaints
2018: 346 complaintsTap or drag across the chart for other years.
Show as a table
Owner complaints by model year, Toyota RAV4
Model year
Complaints
2016
257
2017
321
2018
346
2019
900
2020
647
2021
507
2022
171
2023
226
2024
204
2025
102
2026
32
Safety recalls
2018: 3 recallsTap or drag across the chart for other years.
Show as a table
Safety recalls by model year, Toyota RAV4
Model year
Recalls
2016
3
2017
3
2018
3
2019
8
2020
6
2021
5
2022
3
2023
3
2024
4
2025
4
2026
1
Crash test ratings
NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Ratings for each version it tested. Rollover risk is NHTSA's estimate of the chance of rolling over in a single-vehicle crash.
Tested version
Overall
Frontal
Side
Rollover
Toyota Rav4 Hybrid SUV AWD
Rollover risk 16.9%
Toyota Rav4 SUV AWD
Rollover risk 16.9%
Toyota Rav4 SUV FWD
Rollover risk 17.4%
Questions
What are the most common 2018 RAV4 problems?
The areas owners name most often in NHTSA complaints: electrical system (130), brakes (33), engine (32). NHTSA does not verify complaints, and one complaint can name several areas.
Is the 2018 Toyota RAV4 safe?
In NHTSA crash tests every tested version of the 2018 Toyota RAV4 earns 5 stars overall. The table above lists each tested version.
How do I check if my RAV4 has an open recall?
Enter the 17-character VIN from your dashboard, door jamb or registration at nhtsa.gov/recalls. The lookup lists unrepaired recalls for that exact vehicle. Safety recall repairs are free at Toyota dealers.
Sources and method
NHTSA recalls file (NHTSA datasets), dated Sep 27, 2026; every campaign checked against NHTSA's recalls API.
NHTSA owner complaints file, dated Sep 26, 2026. Counted by complaint number, so a complaint naming three components counts once in the total.
NHTSA 5-Star Safety Ratings (NCAP).
NHTSA model names covered: RAV4, RAV4 HYBRID.
Complaint counts are unverified owner reports. They rise with sales volume and time on the road, so compare model years with care. How we build these pages. Spotted an error? Tell us.