Cruise control problem Quick help needed Thanks

rolovr

Maybe this is why Toyota doesn't read these forums. It's afraid of getting mud on it's face.

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RayRay · Posted: July 30, 2007, 4:25 pm Post subject:

My 07 Rav4, 4cy, 2wd does the same thing and it really is spoiling an otherwise wonderful car. It hunts and bucks like a rodeo horse when the cruise is on and I encounter a hill. I'm certain the problem is the cruise control, there is no problem when the cruise is off. The dealer, however, said it is working as it is supposed to. This is very frustrating.

flyingn · Posted: July 30, 2007, 4:31 pm Post subject:

when it starts to do this quickly back off the set mph 5 or so.. See if it stops..

RayRay · Posted: July 31, 2007, 3:51 pm Post subject:

Yes, if you back off the cruise control speed or cancel it, the bucking stops. But if I wanted a car with a cruise control that I had to babysit, I'd have bought a Kia or something. I'm surprised that so many folks, like the dealership, have said try to live with it. I've had many 4 cy cars with cruise that haven't had this problem. I think Toyota ought to fix it. My Hondas and Subarus seem to have figured out a way to make their cruise control work properly. Additionally, it appears not all 4cy Ravs have this problem. If it works properly in some, why not all?

4ever · Posted: July 31, 2007, 5:41 pm Post subject:

My Impreza , Legacy and 02 RAV all performed that way on steeper grades while in cruise. With a speed set at 100kph and on a grade the lock up converter would first unlock and the revs would increase a bit and then if it couldn't hold the speed in 4th a down shift to 3rd would take place and then the engine would scream , the speed would increase and transmission would shift back to 4th. Sometimes it would shift back to 3rd quickly and then back to 4th. I took this as a natural occurance for a 4 cylinder engine in a semi- loaded car. After awhile I got in the habit of disengaging the cruise when a hill came up.
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4ever

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georose · Joined: 10 Jan 2007 Posts: 269 07 Rav4 Sport V6 4WD

Some of you people are spoiled. Cruise control is meant for reasonably flat interstate travel. My V6 may do better than some of you 4 banger people on hills but is it really that hard to just pull the lever and downshift if needed? It is certainly easier on the engine and trans to give a little thought to how you drive uphill. You need to drive out west (like Baker to Las Vegas) to see what I mean. They have signs warning to turn off your AC in the summer going uphill. BTW you wont need to do that with your RAV.

flyingn · Posted: August 1, 2007, 5:04 pm Post subject:

I agree. The mountains that caused my issue was a mountain.. not a hill. I would not have normally had the CC on anyway. I ws just testing to see if mine would do it under extreme conditions like this.

RayRay · Posted: August 2, 2007, 12:59 pm Post subject: no mountains in WI

I'm not going up mountains. There aren't any in WI. The hills I drive should cause a car to down shift, but the repeated engine screaming, back and forth shifting is not right. If I'm spoiled, it is only because I've owned a Subaru Forester and driven a Honda Accord that are both 4 cy engines and the cruise control worked fine on these same average hills. Yes, I can cancel the cruise but why do I have to on this car when I haven't had to on others? Is it so hard to imagine that Toyota has made a mistake here? WI has rolling hills, a lot like many in PA and other states. I'm surprised that more folks haven't had this problem. I have seen that Car and Driver and at least one other Rav4 world contributer have noticed, however. So if mine is one of the few, like Timo's, then they should be fixable. I'd be interested to know how many 4cy, 06 and 07 Ravs don't do this. Apparently the 6 cy Ravs don't do it, but that is a different engine all together. If the 4cy engine can't handle hills on cruise control then Toyota ought to just say so and then design it so that the cruise shuts off before the hunting and engine screaming starts. Admit it and/or fix it, rather than hand out lame, blame the victim crap.[/b]

crtzlow · Joined: 12 Aug 2007 Posts: 1 2007 Everglade Base Model

Some more info on this problem.....and it is a problem that Toyota is aware of. Hopefully they will come out with a fix for it quickly as it is a royal pain. Team Toyota of Baton Rouge, La said that this should not be happeining (hunting) and that possibly a software upgrade or computer replacement would be the solution.

http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/WebX?14@@.f142eee/0

mov4wrd · Joined: 15 Mar 2007 Posts: 86 v6 limited

My V6 down shifts quite easily on hills too, sometimes two gears. If I didnâ€™t look at the tach, I probably wouldnâ€™t know it. I am convinced all the RAVs do it (I4 worse because less torque and one less gear, (wider spread ratios)). Not everyone complains because itâ€™s no big deal â€“ to him or her either.
Youâ€™re solution is going to be either more gears in the transmission, and Iâ€™d take it, or a CVT transmission - NO thanks.
The vehicle is trying to get you the best mpg it can, and, precisely hold your desired cruise setting - NOT an easy task; change the load (hill) when your vehicle has electronically â€œoptimizedâ€ itself, and you get downshifts. Whatâ€™s more, and itâ€™s been stated, youâ€™re trying to move a 3500+ lbs. vehicle with a large frontal area at high speed, up hill with a 2.4 4 cylinder! It does a darn good job; 20 years ago, no vehicle ever dreamed of doing that.
Anybody who claims his or her previous 4 cylinder powered vehicle got great gas mileage, never lost any speed with a cruise setting, and never downshifted, is simply incorrect.
Now, could re-engineering/reprogramming prevent the occasional downshift that spikes for a few seconds, the up shifts again? Probably, but â€œtradeoffsâ€ are the rule in engineering; youâ€™re going to give up something â€“ mpg or a few mph â€“ and the complaining will continue.