It is OK to drive a RAV with a faulty coolant bypass valve. All it really does is to keep engine coolant from flowing through the heater when you have the A/C operating. Three things to watch out for: 1. Temp gauge-no overheating. 2. Visible coolant leaks from the valve if it is cracked (it is BEHIND the engine on the drivers side at the top.) 3.Keep coolant reservoir properly filled. If the RAV overheats, or the valve is actually leaking then STOP driving and get it fixed ASAP. Now I'm NOT saying that you should just keep driving and NEVER get the valve replaced. Obviously, when you can afford it and have the time get it fixed. There is always the chance the valve could crack open, or its internals clog up and that would be VERY BAD for your engine.
Highly unlikely you will be able to just reuse all the original hoses and get them over the nipples on a new valve since the old hoses are PRESSED onto the faulty valve. You will need to buy some new rubber hose at a car parts store. Here's how a long time poster in this forum removed the shorter hose under the valve with a mirror.
I'm unsure what you mean. If you bought the bare valve without the new hoses pre-installed. So to install it you need to get the pressed on bottom hose off the bottom nipple on the old valve. Since you are going to toss the faulty old valve anyway there are several things you can do. 1. One way is to try to heat the pressed on hose with a heat gun or hair dryer and twist it off the old valve--then try carefully to see if it will go over the new valve's nipple. I dont't think it will come off the old valve by heat alone but you may be lucky. If the hair dryer/heat gun won't loosen the hose enough then just try to pry it off with a screw driver . It doesn't matter if the old defective valve is damaged because you are pitching it anyway--but you want to keep the hose in useable condition. 2. If the hose just won't come off the old valve or fit over the nipple on the new valve, then you can cut the pressed on hose off the old valve and splice a new short section of hose into the cut old hose (which goes down to the T-fitting junction) with a brass barb and hose clamps and then connect that new short hose to the new valve's lower nipple using a hose clamp. Here is what the valve assembly looks like with the hoses pre-installed; the bottom nipple with the pressed on hose; the bare valve.
Yeah, I'm sorry I just couldn't understand what you were saying.
On the RAV the bottom hose coming from the nipple on the valve is pressed on at the factory. I think it is heated and a form pressed over it to CRIMP it tightly around the nipple. There is no hose clamp. In contrast, on the Camrys and Corollas that same valve has a plain old hose that just slips over the nipple and a hose clamp holds it on.
Pin Assignment | Wire Color |
1=Coolant Flow Valve Control | White |
2=Coolant Flow Valve Power | Blue |
Pin Assignment | Wire Color |
1=Coolant Flow Valve Control | LtGreen |
2=Coolant Flow Valve Power | Red |
Yes. The valves crack or the internal spring and electrical circuit fail with no explanation, rhyme or reason. There is no "cause" or modus operandi of the failure other than a large per cent of these valves are simply defective.
The valves fail randomly and with no predominate mileage range at time of failure. I have read posts here and in ToyotaNation where coolant by pass valves failed at 23k and 25K miles. There are many posts where they fail at around 45--47K miles. There are many posts where they fail at 75K-90K miles. There are few posts where they fail above 100k miles. ALL the posters with very high mileage RAVs and 8th gen Camrys in the forums and on Reddit Rav4 Club that I questioned reported that their valves NEVER failed! Also, I think we would have seen a flood of reported failures if these valves were like the 2019-2021 roof leak fiasco or the hybrid big wire corrosion issue--so I think that most or a least a majority of the valves are OK and NOT defective--but the defect % is high.
I really don't think preemptive bypass valve replacement is a good idea. It's literally a crap shoot or spin of the roulette wheel whether any given bypass valve is defective or will fail and when. That new valve you preemptively install could fail next year but your old one may have lasted 5 more years! There is no way to tell and the cost of the valve and installation is expensive. Obviously, they ALL will eventually fail like any car part --the issue is when.
Yea guess I'll just wait, hopefully Toyota is able to make an improved version in the future but I doubt it w/ the new generation RAV around the corner.
I think if they just made it out of cheap zinc alloy pot metal instead of plastic it would have been better. Also they really could have put the darn thing in a different location in the engine compartment where it would have been quicker, easier and a simple DIY job to replace. They could have used longer hoses and hose clamps instead of pressed on fittings.
