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A Toyota RAV4 battery fire investigation is closed based on Toyota’s actions to fix the 12-volt battery problems.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened the federal RAV4 investigation in February 2021 after reports of 11 engine compartment fires on 2013-2018 Toyota RAV4 SUVs.
It looked like the fires originated at the 12-volt batteries, and NHTSA suspected the 12V battery B+ terminals were suffering electrical shorts to the frames that held the batteries in place.
Seven RAV4s caught fire while driving and four burned while parked with the ignitions off. However, none of the fires involved the original 12-volt RAV4 batteries.
All the fire vehicles were equipped with aftermarket or old batteries.
NHTSA found problems with the size of the replacement battery as it relates to how the battery was secured in the vehicle, including the hold down bracket, radiator support bolt, J-hook and battery tray.
Electrical shorts could occur if there was contact between the battery hold down bracket and the positive terminal of the 12V battery.
Toyota issued consumer advisory campaign 21TG01 in November 2021 to RAV4 owners. Toyota RAV4 owners were notified about the correct size battery and offered a free inspection of the battery and retention hardware.
Owners were provided a caution label to affix to the hold down bracket and a discounted replacement 12V battery.
In November 2023, Toyota announced a recall of nearly 1.9 million model year 2013-2018 RAV4 SUVs to replace the battery hold-down clamps, battery trays and positive terminal covers with improved components.
NHTSA has closed its Toyota RAV4 battery fire investigation based on the recall and advisory campaign.
A Toyota RAV4 battery settlement was recently reached for customers of 2013-2018 Toyota RAV4 vehicles that were recalled in 2023.