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Suspension Problem 2015 RAV4 XLE

34K views 52 replies 28 participants last post by  Mikey D. 
#1 ·
I purchased a 2015 XLE last November. The car AWD with 225/65 x 17 tires. The tires are Michelin Latitudes. I began to notice a rather stiff and firm ride, which under normal circumstances is not a problem. However, living in the northeast does not guaranttee good roads. When ever I hit a difference in road surface height of one inch or more (such as a manhole cover either higher or lower than the road surface or difference from one pavement type to another) the rear suspension reacts with a very sharp and harsh thunk. This reaction is the same for either side of the car. The front suspension absorbs the shock without any harshness. I have had the dealer look at it only to tell me everything is OK. We have taken it on three test drives, two of which were inconclusive. The thrid test drive involved my car and another new RAV XLE. The service manager and I drove the car over the same surface, at the same speed and there was a difference. They had a toyota field rep look at it who in turn said the car is operating as it should. In other words, they can do nothing. Everyone else who rides in the car notices the harshness. Can the installation of adjustable shocks solve this problem?
 
#3 ·
Yup.
Higher profile, more wheel travel....

It's an SUV.

But since people will try to drive it like it's a Corolla, they tighten up the suspension to reduce the chance of a rollover.
The Limited is worse than the XLE.
 
#4 ·
I've noticed a startlingly sharp bang from the rear suspension when going slowly up a ~2" step in the pavement. Wife wanted to know what it was we were going quite slow. The front went over ok without complaint, everything seems to be ok otherwise, just banged that one time.
 
#5 ·
I understand that but have driven and ridden other SUVs that did not exhibit this characteristic. In fact, most everyone rode fine although stiffer than a sedan. Hard for me to believe they could not design the suspension to be firm but also more compliant on surface differences. Other vehicles seem to be able to accomplish this.
 
#6 ·
Rough Ride is Confirmed

I have been critical about the harsh, jarring ride on the RAV4 but seem to get bashed for doing so but am not backing off of my assessment of the suspension and that is that it is a poor effort on Toyota's part. When I hit a bump, pothole, or drive about anywhere except on smooth pavement the ride in the RAV4 can only be described as bone jarring. I surely wish I did not own the car and will be trading it because of the harsh ride. I have the 17" wheels and have let the air pressure down to 30 lbs which helped some but not enough. I own two other cars, a Ford Mustang, and Fusion, as well as a new Ford F150 with no compliants even though I live on a farm and drive on dirt and gravel roads. Suppose I have owned over 30 vehicles over my lifetime and can't remember one of them that I disliked for the harsh ride. Say what you want but I am just stating my experience with the RAV4.:frown
 
#9 ·
I have been critical about the harsh, jarring ride on the RAV4 but seem to get bashed for doing so but am not backing off of my assessment of the suspension and that is that it is a poor effort on Toyota's part. When I hit a bump, pothole, or drive about anywhere except on smooth pavement the ride in the RAV4 can only be described as bone jarring. I surely wish I did not own the car and will be trading it because of the harsh ride. I have the 17" wheels and have let the air pressure down to 30 lbs which helped some but not enough. I own two other cars, a Ford Mustang, and Fusion, as well as a new Ford F150 with no compliants even though I live on a farm and drive on dirt and gravel roads. Suppose I have owned over 30 vehicles over my lifetime and can't remember one of them that I disliked for the harsh ride. Say what you want but I am just stating my experience with the RAV4.:frown
Absolutely agree that the suspension on the RAV4 is too harsh. Bought the RAV4 in April and wish I had not. I do live on a farm so do drive on dirt and gravel roads but it seems that on anything except smooth pavement the ride can be bone jarring. The suspension seems to bottom out and when it does it is harsh. Am not thinking I will own this vehicle much longer and the harsh ride is the reason. Have an 06 Ford Mustang that rides great compared to the RAV4 and suppose I have owned over 30 vehicles without a compliant on the suspension like I am making against the RAV4. Now I know that I will be bashed by a lot of folks for complaining but whatever, This is my opinion and I am the one going to be taking the hit by trading the RAV4.
That's all fine. What I'm not hearing is what you think of the ride, roughride?
 
#8 ·
Absolutely agree that the suspension on the RAV4 is too harsh. Bought the RAV4 in April and wish I had not. I do live on a farm so do drive on dirt and gravel roads but it seems that on anything except smooth pavement the ride can be bone jarring. The suspension seems to bottom out and when it does it is harsh. Am not thinking I will own this vehicle much longer and the harsh ride is the reason. Have an 06 Ford Mustang that rides great compared to the RAV4 and suppose I have owned over 30 vehicles without a compliant on the suspension like I am making against the RAV4. Now I know that I will be bashed by a lot of folks for complaining but whatever, This is my opinion and I am the one going to be taking the hit by trading the RAV4.
 
#11 ·
Obviously I do not like the ride of the RAV4. Not to say that the RAV4 does not have it's strong points but I do not like the ride. If not for the harsh jolt one gets from time to time when hitting bumps, potholes, etc, I would be keeping the RAV4 but as it is am going to test drive a Subaru Outback or maybe a 2016 Ford Escape.
 
#15 ·
I completely agree about the rough ride on less than smooth paved roads. My 2015 Limited rides like a sedan on asphalt interstates and state highways but like a Jeep Wrangler on country roads and off-road. It is also very noisy on cement roads or rough asphalt. I didn't have an opportunity to test drive on country roads prior to purchasing, although I did test drive it three times and hit some rough sections of city streets. Actually after purchasing I drove it for two months before the country road drives began to really annoy me. I would say the RAV4 jostles and bounces me around quite a bit, and it is becoming unbearable. I had some previous problems/complaints about the vehicle, but those issues are mostly resolved now. I suppose there is no solution for the rough ride, though I wish there were. I named this car "Bucking Bronco" cause that's how it feels on some of the roads I must drive. I am now looking to sell it in 3rd quarter this year and purchase the new Lexus RX. It is not an off-road capable car, but will take country and dirt roads just fine. I really think any of us who are really dissatisfied with the RAV's ride will need to move up to a luxury CUV. All of the mainstream CUV's I drove seemed about the same or worse than the RAV4, although none of the others "crashed" over sudden road surface transitions.

(I know there will likely be some harsh/inconsiderate replies to my post. I have come to expect that when anything negative is said about this vehicle. I don't care; this is my story and I'm sticking to it!)
 
#16 ·
I agree with your Rav4 assessment. It's too bad that Toyota didn't do a better job on the suspension and on noise reduction ( and some other issues too) during the 2013 redesign.This site is generally excellent for Rav4 owners, but there are too many that personalize any criticism, like sports fans, and some that offer unfounded advice. That said, the site is useful and I wish you good luck in finding your next vehicle, one that meets your needs.
 
#17 ·
Thank you! It seems more and more difficult to shop for a comfortable CUV--ride and seating/driving position--that meets other needs as well. Then when you think you have found the best choice, as time goes by it turns out not to be. I think auto manufacturers are too much influenced by enthusiast professional reviewers (i.e. sporty ride" and firm seats). They seem to be a bit out of touch with the things that are important to average consumers (who buy most of their cars)!
 
#18 ·
I drove the chevy equinox v6 2 weeks ago while my 07 rav4 was at the dealer for recall repairs... I was really surprised at how nice it was. The ride was very smooth. The vehicle did have only 35000 miles and the engine was clicking. It was a rental so I didnt care. But rentals can be a nice way to test drive a car. Depending on how I feel about this rav4 I purchased, I might be looking for a better ride soon. Granted if your looking for a nice yet rugged suv the Rav4 is it, priced right also.. Take er slow.
 
#19 ·
Just purchased a 2015 RAV4 Limited 2 weeks ago and am already searching for a solution to improve the ride comfort. Everyone here agrees the ride is harsh, but I am wondering if anyone has found a solution. Is there an after market suspension upgrade that will help?
 
#20 ·
I assume you've checked your tire pressures (32ish), and I assume you know the Limited's 18" wheels provide an even worse ride than the 17" wheels on the XLE. Two weeks in you're not looking for tires- I suspect you know they can make a modest difference. I've searched the aftermarket too with no success so far. More bad news is found in the most recent Consumer Reports magazine which has the 2015 (Rav-based) Lexus NX listed among the "worst cars of 2015", in part due to the "firm, jostling ride". If you find a solution please post it, and good luck to you, whatever you decide.
 
#21 ·
I think there may be a separate thread about the RAV4 ride quality in the forum; the cheapest and quickest ways suggested were to keep the gas tank more than 1/2 tank full and place a 60-lbs bag of sand in the cargo area to slightly dampen/soften that harsh thump... To me and my wife, we learned to just live with it and find ourselves giving more rides when with friends out - LOL.
 
#22 ·
Toyota should be embarrassed that its customers are resorting to putting weighted sand bags and filling the tank to moderate a lousy ride on a suspension system redesigned in 2013. Without question they could have done better on ride quality and insulation and on other issues too. Is it true that you get what you pay for?
 
#23 ·
In my opinion, all they really had (still can) to do is to use progress coil springs in the rear, that should smooth out the harsh edge quite a bit... Well, it's always easier for me to say than done; I am sure there are other challenges & others factors involved.
 
#24 ·
Bottom line: Toyota deemed the ride "good enough." The cars are SELLING. We are all voting YES with our wallets. Unfortunately it seems our whining post-purchasing is of little effect or consequence.

A member who is a Toyota Canadian plant worker asked for suggestions to improve the RAV for the next redesign. He said he would (and did) submit them on Toyota company forms (at their request) that would be evaluated by management/engineers. I found it strange that despite that opportunity, relatively few people mentioned softening/improving the ride!
 
#36 ·
Bottom line: The cars are SELLING.

I found it strange that despite that opportunity, relatively few people mentioned softening/improving the ride!
These are what most people would recognize as clues.

Despite what the vocal minority here claims, not everyone agrees that there is a problem with the engineering or performance of the suspension in the 4.4 Rav. Far from it, by appearances. Obviously most owners are satisfied with with their vehicles and purchasing decision.

Unfortunate that the vehicle isn't meeting the expectations of a few of you. But that is always going to be the case with any given product. Comparing the overall sales numbers to the number of complaints about the issue, it's more the perceptions and expectations of a disgruntled few likely coupled with some degree of a lack of pre-purchase consideration than some underlying deficiency with the vehicle.

I hope you folks have a more satisfying experience with your next vehicles and are able to enjoy them as much as the preponderance of 4.4 owners do theirs.
 
#25 ·
I think part of the reason why RAV's rear suspension is so bad is RAV's "uniqueness". Unlike most other Toyota vehicles which share platforms (and hence key components like suspension), the RAV is basically it's own platform. For example, Camry, Highlander, Venza, Lexus RX, Lexus EX and to a lesser degree Sienna, are all derived from the same platform. Sharing the engineering effort across a wider range of vehicles allows engineers to spend more time, effort and money on refining the design.

This is by no means an excuse for cutting corners and releasing a "half-baked" product into the market, but it does explain why the RAV has so many shortcomings compared to other Toyota models. The simple fact that Toyota launched the RAV in 2013 without taking onto account the small overlap crash test, two years after the test protocol was published by the IIHS, is inexcusable. Another example is poor transmission software tuning. The same transmission is shared across a wide range of vehicles, starting with Camry, but the software (shift points, etc.) is tuned for each model, depending on vehicle weight, aerodynamic profile, "character", etc. The Toyota 6-speed is pretty good and smooth in most cases, but the RAV is the only one which suffers from "weird" shifting behavior described by many posts on this forum (like downshifting abruptly on inclines sending the engine screaming at >4500 rpm for no good reason, or overshooting on gentle acceleration just to downshift again after one second).

Hopefully the 2016 "refresh" will address some of these issues and the Gen.4 RAV will become the vehicle that it should have been since launch in 2013.
 
#28 ·
I really don't know how the various components of the suspensions work and interact with each other. My experience with the RAV4 is that it slams over potholes and bumps, and it is "busy" and "bouncy" as well. I can no longer take it on back roads over long journeys because I got extremely car sick last time we did so. That has NEVER happened to me in any other car I have owned.

I imagine that better shocks and dampers might help control all the "busy-ness," "bumpy-ness" and body motion, but no after market solutions have been developed yet--to my knowledge. It would be beneficial to many if someone would come up with a viable solution.
 
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