2003 RAV 4 intermittent engine cut out

[Ian Baxter]

I have a Rav4 2.0 D-4d and sometimes when driving, the engine just loses power and will only run at tick over. At the same time the yellow engine light comes on and the only way to resolve the problem is the switch off the engine for a minute or so, then restart the car, where thereafter it runs as normal. THe problem happens about once a month and seems to only occur when accelerating up a slight incline. So I went to my local Toyota dealer who said the turbo needed changing for a princely sum of £2500. The dealer interrogated the diagnostics on the car and the problem did seem to point to the Turbo... However, I am more inclined to think it is a sensor or something else that needs adjusting or changing which does not need the whole turbo unit changing. My reasoning is that if the Turbo was faulty the car would not run and the problem would be continuous. No? Anyway, I would appreciate any views or suggestions as to how to resolve this as I am reluctant to spend this much, especially when the dealer stated that they could not be sure this would fix the problem... thanks in advance.