Every RAV4 model year from 2004 to 2025, scored on reported failures weighted against how many were sold — and ranked against every other Mid-Size SUV of the same year.
The RAV4 is a reliably good buy, but not in every year. Across 22 scored model years it needs fixing less often than the typical Mid-Size SUV, and its repairs cost about what you would expect. The spread between years is wide enough to matter: a 2016 costs you roughly half the trouble of a 2007.
Longer bar is better. Rank is against every Mid-Size SUV sold that same model year.
| Year | Relative standing | Class rank | Pctl | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | #4 /26 | 88th | ||
| 2005 | #3 /27 | 92th | ||
| 2006 | #16 /28 | 44th | ||
| 2007 | #22 /36 | 40th | Avoid | |
| 2008 | #19 /38 | 51th | ||
| 2009 | #20 /39 | 50th | ||
| 2010 | #10 /40 | 77th | ||
| 2011 | #14 /39 | 66th | ||
| 2012 | #9 /39 | 79th | ||
| 2013 | #7 /37 | 83th | ||
| 2014 | #7 /37 | 83th | ||
| 2015 | #9 /40 | 79th | ||
| 2016 | #5 /38 | 89th | Best year | |
| 2017 | #6 /37 | 86th | ||
| 2018 | #8 /42 | 83th | ||
| 2019 | #26 /45 | 43th | ||
| 2020 | #28 /49 | 44th | ||
| 2021 | #24 /53 | 56th | ||
| 2022 | #18 /59 | 71th | ||
| 2023 | #25 /67 | 64th | ||
| 2024 | #35 /72 | 52th | ||
| 2025 | #7 /66 | 91th |
Two things stand out. The 2006–2009 run is the weakest stretch in the model’s history — four consecutive years mid-pack or worse. And the 2019–2021 redesign years dipped hard, with 2020 landing #28 of 49, before recovering sharply: the 2025 sits at #7 of 66.
All 12 systems, measured against the class average for each model year.
Every RAV4 model year is scored across 12 separate systems — engine, transmission, brakes, electrical, steering and suspension, structure, interior, and five more. Each system is compared against how often that same system fails on the average Mid-Size SUV of the same year, so a common failure is judged against how common it is everywhere else.
Across the last three model years — 2023, 2024 and 2025 — no single system stands out. All twelve draw issue reports less often than the same systems on the average Mid-Size SUV of their year. That is a cleaner sheet than most of this class manages, and it is the strongest argument for a recent RAV4.
Older RAV4 years are not so even. Which system the trouble concentrates in — and how much more often it fails than the class — changes year to year, and changes what you should be inspecting before you buy.
All 66 Mid-Size SUVs from 2025, plotted by how often they need fixes and what those fixes cost.
2016 is the strongest RAV4 model year on record, with 2005 and 2017 close behind. It ranked #5 of 38 Mid-Size SUVs that year.
2007 is the weakest year in the model’s history, ranking #22 of 36. The whole 2006–2009 stretch underperforms, and 2019–2020 dipped sharply after the redesign before recovering.
Yes. The 2025 RAV4 ranks #7 of 66 Mid-Size SUVs — the top 10% of its class, and its strongest standing since 2016.
Failure reports filed with NHTSA — submitted by vehicle owners and repair shops alike — weighted against US sales volumes so a high-volume model is not penalised for selling well, then benchmarked within segment and model year.
All 12 systems scored, the whole class plotted, and a downloadable Full Model Report for any year — 6,000+ vehicles in the dashboard.
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