TOYOTA RAV4 PLUG-IN HYBRID 2021 Owners Manual
Manufacturer: TOYOTA, Model Year: 2021, Model line: RAV4 PLUG-IN HYBRID, Model: TOYOTA RAV4 PLUG-IN HYBRID 2021Pages: 666, PDF Size: 161.28 MB
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529
7 
7-3. Do-it-yours elf maintenance
Maintenance and care
complete when the tire pressure warn- 
ing light turns off and the inflation pres - 
sure of each tire is  displayed on the  
multi-information display.
■Effects of incorrect tire inflation  
pressure 
Driving with incorrect tire inflation pres - 
sure may result in the following:
●Reduced fuel economy
●Reduced driving comfort and poor  handling
●Reduced tire life due to wear
●Reduced safety
●Damage to the drive train 
If a tire needs frequent inflating, have it  
checked by any authorized Toyota  retailer or Toyota authorized repairer, or  
any reliable repairer.
■Instructions for checking tire infla - 
tion pressure 
When checking tire inflation pressure,  observe the following:
●Check only when the tires are cold.If your vehicle has been parked for at  
least 3 hours or has  not been driven  
for more than 1.5 km or 1 mile, you  will get an accurate cold tire inflation  
pressure reading.
●Always use a tire pressure gauge.
It is difficult to judge if a tire is properly 
inflated based only  on its appearance.
●It is normal for the tire inflation pres- 
sure to be higher after driving as heat  is generated in the tire. Do not reduce  
tire inflation pre ssure after driving.
●Passengers and luggage weight 
Tire inflation pressure
Make sure to maintain the  
proper tire inflation pressure. 
Tire inflation pressure should 
be checked at least once per 
month. However, Toyota rec - 
ommends that tire inflation 
pressure be checked once 
every two weeks. ( →P.624) 
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5307-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance 
should be placed so that the vehicle is  
balanced.
When replacing wheels, care  
should be taken to ensure that they 
are equivalent to those removed in 
load capacity, dia meter, rim width  
and inset*. 
Replacement wheels are available  
at any authorized Toyota retailer or 
Toyota authorized repairer, or any 
reliable repairer.
*: Conventionally referred to as offset.
Toyota does not recommend using 
the following: 
 Wheels of different sizes or types 
 Used wheels 
 Bent wheels that have been  
straightened
■When replacing wheels 
The wheels of your vehicle are equipped  with tire pressure warning valves and  
transmitters that allo w the tire pressure  
warning system to  provide advance  warning in the event of a loss in tire  
inflation pressure. Whenever wheels are 
replaced, tire pressure warning valves  and transmitters must be installed.  
( →P.511, 531)
WARNING
■Proper inflation is critical to save  
tire performance 
Keep your tires properly inflated. If the tires are not  properly inflated,  
the following conditions may occur 
which could lead to an accident 
resulting in death or serious injury:
●Excessive wear
●Uneven wear
●Poor handling
●Possibility of blowouts resulting 
from overheated tires
●Air leaking from  between tire and  
wheel
●Wheel deformation and/or tire dam - 
age
●Greater possibility of tire damage 
while driving (due to road hazards, 
expansion joints, sharp edges in  the road, etc.)
NOTICE
■When inspecting and adjusting  
tire inflation pressure 
Be sure to put the tire valve caps back  
on.
If a valve cap is not installed, dirt or  moisture may get into the valve and  
cause an air leak, resulting in 
decreased tire inflation pressure.
Wheels
If a wheel is bent, cracked or  
heavily corroded, it should be 
replaced. Otherwise, the tire 
may separate from the wheel 
or cause a loss of handling 
control.
Wheel selection 
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531
7 
7-3. Do-it-yours elf maintenance
Maintenance and care
Use only Toyota wheel nuts and  
wrenches designed for use with 
your aluminum wheels. 
 When rotating, repairing or  
changing your tires, check that 
the wheel nuts are still tight after 
driving 1600 km (1000 miles). 
 Be careful not to damage the  
aluminum wheels when using 
tire chains. 
 Use only Toyota genuine bal- 
ance weights or equivalent and a  
plastic or rubber hammer when 
balancing your wheels.
WARNING
■When replacing wheels
●Do not use wheels that are a differ - 
ent size from those recommended  in the Owner’s Manual, as this may  
result in a loss of handling control.
●Never use an inner tube in a leak - 
ing wheel which is designed for a 
tubeless tire. Doing so may result in 
an accident, causing death or seri - ous injury.
■When installing the wheel nuts
●Be sure to install the wheel nuts  
with the tapered ends facing 
inward. ( →P.597) Installing the nuts  with the tapered ends facing out - 
ward can cause the wheel to break 
and eventually cause the wheel to  come off while driving, which could  
lead to an accident resulting in 
death or serious injury.
●Never use oil or grease on the 
wheel bolts or wheel nuts. Oil and  grease may cause  the wheel nuts  
to be excessively tightened, leading 
to bolt or disc wheel damage. In  addition, the oil or grease can  
cause the wheel nuts to loosen and 
the wheel may fall off, causing an  accident and resulting in death or  
serious injury. Remove any oil or 
grease from the wheel bolts or  wheel nuts.
■Use of defecti ve wheels prohib- ited 
Do not use cracked or deformed  
wheels. 
Doing so could cause  the tire to leak  
air during driving, possibly causing an 
accident.
NOTICE
■Replacing tire pressure warning 
valves and transmitters
●Because tire repair or replacement  may affect the tire pressure warning  
valves and transmitters, make sure 
to have tires serviced by any autho - rized Toyota retailer or Toyota  
authorized repairer, or any reliable 
repairer or other qualified service 
shop. In addition, make sure to pur - chase your tire pressure warning  
valves and transmitters at any 
authorized Toyota retailer or Toyota  authorized repairer, or any reliable  
repairer.
●Ensure that only genuine Toyota 
wheels are used on your vehicle.
Tire pressure war ning valves and  transmitters may not work properly  
with non-genuine wheels.
Aluminum wheel precau - 
tions 
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5327-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
Left-hand drive vehicles 
1 Turn the power switch off.
Confirm that the charging connector is  not connected. Also, do not use the  
Remote Air Conditioning System during 
the procedure.
2 Open the front passenger’s  
door.
By keeping the door  open, unexpected  
operation of the Re mote Air Condition- ing System can be prevent. ( →P.460)
3Open the glove box and slide off  
the damper. 
4 Push in each side of the glove  
box to disconnect the claws, and  
then slowly and fully open the  
glove box while s upporting it. 
5 With the glove box fully open,  
slightly lift up the glove box and 
pull toward the seat to detach 
the bottom of the glove box.
Do not use excessive f orce if the glove  
box does not detac h when lightly  
pulled. Instead, pul l toward the seat  while slightly adjusting the height of the  
glove box.
6 Unlock the filter cover ( ), pull  
the filter cover out of the claws 
Air conditioning filter
The air conditioning filter must  
be changed regularly to main - 
tain air conditioning efficiency.
Removal method
A 
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7 
7-3. Do-it-yours elf maintenance
Maintenance and care
( ), and remove the filter  
cover. 
7 Remove the filter case. 
8 Remove the air conditioning fil- 
ter from the filter case and 
replace it wit h a new one.
The “ UP” marks shown on the filter  
should be pointing up.
9 When installing, reverse the  
steps listed.
Right-hand drive vehicles 
1 Turn the power switch off.
Confirm that the charging connector is  
not connected. Also, do not use the  Remote Air Conditioning System during  
the procedure.
2 Open the front passenger’s  
door.
By keeping the door open, unexpected  
operation of the Remote Air Condition - 
ing System can be prevent. ( →P.460)
3Open the glove box and slide off  
the damper. 
4 Push in each side of the glove  
box to disconnect the claws, and 
then slowly and fully open the 
glove box while s upporting it. 
5 With the glove box fully open,  
slightly lift up the glove box and 
B 
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5347-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
pull toward the seat to detach  
the bottom of t he glove box.
Do not use excessive force if the glove  
box does not detach when lightly  pulled. Instead, pu ll toward the seat  
while slightly adjusting the height of the 
glove box.
6 Unlock the filter cover ( ), pull  
the filter cover o ut of the claws  
( ), and remove the filter  
cover. 
7 Remove the filter case. 
8 Remove the air conditioning fil- 
ter and replace it with a new 
one.
The “ UP” marks shown on the filter  
should be pointing up.
9 When installing, reverse the  
steps listed.
■Checking interval 
Inspect and replace the air conditioning  
filter according to  the maintenance  schedule. In dusty areas or areas with  
heavy traffic flow, early replacement 
may be required. (For scheduled main - tenance information,  please refer to the  
“Toyota Service Bo oklet” or “Toyota  
Warranty Booklet”.)
■If air flow from the vents decreases  dramatically 
The filter may be clogged. Check the fil - 
ter and replace if necessary.
A
B 
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535
7 
7-3. Do-it-yours elf maintenance
Maintenance and care
WARNING
■When replacing the air condition- 
ing filter 
Observe the following precautions.  Failure to do so may result in the air  
conditioning system operating during 
the procedure, possibly resulting in  injury.
●Check that the charging connector  
is not connected 
Check that the charging connector is  not connected  
The air conditioning may operate due 
to the “Climate Prep” ( →P.144) set- ting.
●Do not use the Remote Air Condi - tioning System
NOTICE
■When using the air conditioning system 
Make sure that a filter is always  
installed. 
Using the air conditioning system  without a filter may  cause damage to  
the system.
■When removing the glove box 
Always follow the specified procedure  
to remove the glove box ( →P.532). If  the glove box is removed without fol - 
lowing the specifie d procedure, the  
hinge of the glove  box may become  damaged.
■To prevent damage to the filter cover 
When moving the filter cover in the  
direction of arrow  to release the fit- ting, pay attention not to apply exces - 
sive force to the cl aws. Otherwise, the  
claws may be damaged.
Left-hand drive vehicles
Right-hand drive vehicles 
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5367-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
Remove the dust from the air intake  
vent with a vacuum cleaner, etc.
Make sure to only use a vacuum to  
suck out dust and clo gs. Attempting to  
blow out dust and clogs using an air - 
gun, etc. may push it i nto the air intake  
vent. ( →P.538)
If dust and clogs cannot be com- 
pletely removed with the air intake  
vent cover installed, remove the 
cover and clean the filter. 
1 Turn the power switch off. 
2 Using a Phillips screwdriver,  
remove the clip. 
3 Remove the air intake vent  
cover.
Pull the cover as shown in the illustra - tion to disengage the 8 claws, starting  
from the claw in the upper right corner 
and pull the cover toward the front of  the vehicle to remove it.
4 Remove the air intake vent filter.
Disengage the 4 center claws from the 
Cleaning the DC/DC Con- 
verter air intake vent 
and filter
To prevent the 12-volt battery  
from discharge, visually 
inspect the DC/ DC Converter  
air intake vent periodically for 
dust and clogs. If it is dusty or 
clogged or if “Maintenance 
required for DCDC converter 
cooling parts See Owner’s 
Manual” is shown on the multi-
information display, clean the 
air intake vent using the fol - 
lowing procedures:
Cleaning the air intake vent
If dust and clogs cannot be  
completely removed 
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7 
7-3. Do-it-yours elf maintenance
Maintenance and care
filter. 
Disengage the claws in the order of    
and   to remove the filter from the  
cover.
5 Remove the dust and clogs from  
the filter using a vacuum 
cleaner, etc.
Make sure to also remove the dust and  
clogs from the inside of the air intake 
vent cover.
6 Reinstall the filter to the cover. 
Engage the claws in the order of    
and  . 
Engage the 4 center claws to install the  
filter. 
Make sure that the f ilter is not crooked  or deformed when installing it.
7 Install the air intake vent cover.
Insert the tab of the cover as shown in  
the illustration and push the cover to  engage the 8 claws.
A
B
B
A 
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5387-3. Do-it-yourself maintenance
8Using a Phillips screwdriver,  
install the clip. 
■Cleaning the air intake vent
●Dust in the air intake vent may inter - fere with the cooling of the DC/DC  
converter. If the cooling perfor - 
mance/capacity of the DC/DC con - verter becomes limited, the 12-volt  
battery may discharge. Inspect and 
clean the air intake vent periodically.
●Improper handling of the air intake 
vent cover and filter may result in  damage to them. If you have any con - 
cerns about cleaning the filter, contact 
any authorized Toy ota retailer or  Toyota authorized repairer, or any reli - 
able repairer.
■If “Maintenance required for DCDC 
converter cooling parts See  Owner’s Manual” is shown on the  
multi-information display
●If this warning message is shown on 
the multi-informatio n display, remove  
the air intake vent cover and clean the  filter. ( →P.536)
●After cleaning the air intake vent, start  the hybrid system  and check that the  
warning message is no longer shown. 
It may take approximately 20 minutes 
after the hybrid syst em is started until  the warning message disappears. If  
the warning message does not disap - 
pear, have the vehicle inspected by  any authorized Toy ota retailer or  
Toyota authorized repairer, or any reli - 
able repairer.
WARNING
■When cleaning the air intake vent
●Do not use water or other liquids to 
clean the air intake vent. If water is  applied to the DC/ DC converter or  
other components, a malfunction or 
fire may occur.
●Before cleaning th e air intake vent,  
make sure to turn the power switch 
off to stop the  hybrid system.
NOTICE
■When cleaning the air intake vent 
When cleaning the air intake vent,  
make sure to only use a vacuum to  suck out dust and clogs. If a com - 
pressed air blow gun, etc. is used to 
blow out dust and clogs, the dust or  clogs may be pushed into the air  
intake vent, which  may affect the per- 
formance of the DC/DC converter and  cause a malfunction.
■To prevent damage to the vehicle
●Do not allow water or foreign matter to enter the air intake vent when the  
cover is removed.