Rav T180 Excessive Diesel Knock And Stalling Problems

[chatman]

I always try and put in BP into mine and have noticed the difference....smoother and better perfomance

Stay clear of Cheapo brands as I have noticed a louder diesel rattle......

Getting between 39 and 42 mpg on steady runs to from work and visits to client sites all over country...I do about 2000 miles a month and the BP seems to be the better stuff to use...Also add a fuel cleaner every 3000 miles or so just to keep it in tip top condition...

[Kev76]

Hi folks just joined!

Just bought a T180 on Thursday, and have stalled it 4 times already! I thought this was a diesel trait or something. My old car was petrol and I used to let foot off clutch completely before touching accelerator but I cant do this on t180? I need to feather in the accelerator before taking foot off clutch more so in second gear at Junctions? It may just take a little getting used to?

Im going to watch consumption as i hoped for 35-40mpg but computer shows 30-35mpg :(

Quite happy with performance although i will probably remap it in summer! Has anyone done the remap in one of these yet? Did it improve mpg for normal use? Did it improve driveability?

Kev

[anchorman]

My clutch is very fierce and everyone who drives it stalls it at first. I think it is the asbestos free clutch material.

They can be chipped but mine isn't (see previous threads).

Regards

[Bizz]

Bizz. With yours, have you checked that nothing attached to the engine like the exhaust or air filter housing etc is touching the bodywork. It will transmit an almighty din to the cabin if it is. Can you feel more vibration through the gearstick than you can from the steering wheel?

I know that the gearbox is a weak spot but these things also have a dual mass flywheel that causes problems on 4.2's and a fault may upset the timing.

You could have more than one fault and whatever is the root cause of the vibration has cocked up the timing and they have simply rectified the syptom but not the cause.

gcparris

They all make an unbelievable knocking noise if you run them on supermarket or regular diesel. I was astonished at the difference in noise after adding BP Ultra or Shell Extra. I think Esso and Total do it but I have not tried any. If you'll pardon the pun - don't "knock" until you've tried it! Let the low fuel warning light to come on for as long as you can before filling up and don't forget that these companies all sell regular diesel which won't make any difference. The good stuff costs about 5 or 6p a litre more which is a good clue.

My original thoughts were that I had something touching the bodywork, maybe an exhaust heat shield or similar but the dealer says the noise is normal. As far as supermarkets are concerned the only thing we buy from them is the weekly food shopping.

[rav man]

i thought the clutch a little fierce at first, fortunately i have the pleasure of a diesel Mondeo one in work (on or off they're the options) which makes the Rav one look positively tame.

[Bizz]

Well guess what, the stalling and bad starting is all back. I am seriously fed up now, three attempts to fix it taking 3 weeks and it still is not right. The very loud knocking noise is still there too, after some investigations this only seems to appear in 2nd gear.

I am currently waiting for the dealer to get back to me so I can let him know the wonderful news.

[rav man]

Whats's going on with the T180's. Thre seems to be a disproportunate number of problems with them. Considering theyre basically the same car as other models this seems odd.?

[Bizz]

I am currently waiting for the dealer to get back to me so I can let him know the wonderful news.

I let him know the news and informed him that I would be taking it up with Toyota as I have had enough.

[Bizz]

Just got a text from my wife, car stalled 7 times before it would keep running.

What is the best number to ring at Toyota to get something done about this?

[rav man]

Bizz,

I posted the number for Toyota customer services on The 'Rav safety No recall' thread, but don't expect miracles. By miracles i mean anything to get done. Toyota PR do sometimes read these threads but i suspect we are not enough of a problem to worry them. Good luck with getting it sorted. Rich.

[Bizz]

Before I had even contacted Toyota they rang my dealer again, it is going back in on Tuesday, will let you know what happens.

[rav man]

Bizz,

Perhaps they are reading these more often now, and perhaps their customer service will improve. Rich.

[Bizz]

Here is the latest update, I may put this in a new thread due to new problems.

The 180 went back in for the 4th time to have the stalling problem on startup sorted, this time the ECU software was updated and at the moment it seems to have sorted it, but the other 3 attempt seemed to fix it for a while.

The really bad knock on hard acceleration in 2nd is still there and I have been told by a diesel mechanic that this could damage the engine.

Now comes the good part, erratic electrical problems are now occuring, here is a list of what is going wrong.

1. Put foot on clutch and green light comes on, press button and all eclectrical items start up but the engine does not, push button again and it fires up. (So far this has happend once)

2. CD players goes crazy when car starts, disc jumps, skips and basically wont play, you have to eject the disc and re-insert.

3. When the sun shines and the inside of the car gets hot the alarm starts going off.

4. When the sun shines and the inside of the car gets hot the passenger seatbelt alam goes off with no one sat on it, you have to put the belt in to stop the alarm.

5. This is the most worrying, cruise control set to 30 and travelling at a steady 30 until the Rav decides it wants to go faster and accelerates rapidly, I hit the brakes at between 35 and 40.

These erratic electrical problems are very worrying, I paid 27.5k for this car 9 months ago, the dealer has had it for one month of that trying to fix the initial problems and I am now totally fed up.

All the joy of owning it have gone and you just wait for something else to go wrong.

I am seeking advice on where I can go from here as I no longer want this vehicle as I have no confidence in it.

[sywy]

Bizz, has all this been sorted now?

The reason I'm asking is that my T180 has been stalling on cold start since Monday. Thought I'd leave it a few days to see if it'd clear itself, but it's still doing it. AFAIK, I'm not experiencing the excessive knocking. 8 months in, and my first problem :( Will be ringing the dealer in a few mins...

[Bizz]

Bizz, has all this been sorted now?

The reason I'm asking is that my T180 has been stalling on cold start since Monday. Thought I'd leave it a few days to see if it'd clear itself, but it's still doing it. AFAIK, I'm not experiencing the excessive knocking. 8 months in, and my first problem :( Will be ringing the dealer in a few mins...

The stalling at the moment seems to be fixed, my dealer says it is now a recognised fault and there is new ECU software that cures it.

The worrying part is that my serious electrical problems only started atfer this new software was put in.

The problem with the seat belt alarm going off is also now a recognised fault and the cure is a new seat.

As for the other problems I am not getting very far.

I am picking the Rav up today after having the seat replaced and the other bits looked at so will let you know what happens.

Bizz

[sywy]

Thanks for the update Bizz. Hope you get it all sorted soon.

Mine's going in tomorrow. will let you know how it goes.

[sywy]

Just had a call from the dealer telling me that my car is ready for collection.

They said they have reprogrammed the ECU. Will see how it starts tomorrow morning.

I'll also keep an eye on all the electrics as well!!

[chillyjeff]

Just had a call from the dealer telling me that my car is ready for collection.

They said they have reprogrammed the ECU. Will see how it starts tomorrow morning.

I'll also keep an eye on all the electrics as well!!

I have just experienced the same problem with my T180. I have done 17,000 miles. The dealer applied the software update on Tuesday and the problem has not occured since the fix.

[Bizz]

Just had a call from the dealer telling me that my car is ready for collection.

They said they have reprogrammed the ECU. Will see how it starts tomorrow morning.

I'll also keep an eye on all the electrics as well!!

I have just experienced the same problem with my T180. I have done 17,000 miles. The dealer applied the software update on Tuesday and the problem has not occured since the fix.

This was what mine looked like last night after getting it back from the dealer the day before.

The keyless entry decided to pack up as did the lock and unlock buttons on both remotes, if you unlocked the car with the key the alarm sounded and the car said no key detected.

Now can you see why I am so fed up with this car, lots of phone calls and letters today.

[sywy]

Oh dear. Sorry to hear and see that Bizz :(

Is it too late to reject the car?

I was just saying to someone this morning that the car is packed with electronics, and if anything went wrong, I wouldn't know what to do. I also mentioned the keyless entry, and the physical key. I'm not even sure where the key actually goes?? Can't remember seeing a keyhole anywhere??

Anyway, looks like my stalling problem has been sorted. Started 1st time (as it always does) and did not stall straight away. Hope it stays like that.

[chillyjeff]

Would you believe it!

I had the software fix applied for the starting problem on Tuesday. Problem cured.

Tonight, I parked the car on the drive and it failed to lock with either key or any of the door buttons. I had the same message "key not detected".

I have just locked the car with the key and I will be calling the dealer in the morning. Obviously, the software upgrade has a few bugs.

[sywy]

Oh dear :(

Looks like I might have that pleasure to come then!!

Are you using Toyota World in Tamworth, Jeff?

[chillyjeff]

Oh dear :(

Looks like I might have that pleasure to come then!!

Are you using Toyota World in Tamworth, Jeff?

No, they were far more expensive when they quoted for the first service so I use William A Lewis in Telford, within walking distance from work.

So far, they have been very good but I have only used them for servicing and this problem. Car has been trouble free up until now.

Let us know if the same happens to you.

[sywy]

Yeah, will do.

I'm the same with Toyota World, Tamworth. It's not my local dealer, as i don't live in Tamworth, but I work just the other side of Living Well/Bannatynes's health club, so it's convenient. Will be shopping around when my first service is due, in approx 2k miles.

[Bizz]

Since my ECU update my Rav has had two very serious electrical problems, once when I was driving with the cruise control set to 30 it accelerated and I had to brake to stop it.

The second dangerous electrical fault was while my wife was driving, the Rav veered to the near side violently twice within a few seconds for no reason, no driver input to brakes, steering or throttle at the time. She was driving on a straight road at around 40mph when it happened.

With the ECU update this car is very dangerous.