The Lemon Index
The 2.5 L inline-4 in the Toyota RAV4, Toyota Camry and Lexus ES, model years 2018–2025. Owners filed 2,979 complaints about cars with it (matched by VIN); 26% name the engine, #13 of the 39 everyday engines we track (1 = the most).
Known issues, checked against owner complaints
None of the issues people usually talk about stands out in this engine's complaints to NHTSA.
Also often talked about, but not standing out in complaints to NHTSA: oil consumption (1 of 2,979, under 0.1%, peers 0.5%). That doesn't mean it never happens, only that owners rarely file it with the government.
What YouTube owners say Tone 0-100, higher = more praise than trouble.
Average owner tone 44/100 across 8 model years, from 110 videos about this engine and its cars (#114 of 165 engines with a YouTube study).
Most-watched videos
- Toyota Camry 2020 in-depth review | carwow Reviews 2,195,689 views
- Problems to Look Out for When Buying a Used Toyota RAV4 - All Generations 1,874,404 views
- Why Not to Buy a New Toyota Camry 1,777,431 views
- Here’s Why I’m Buying This Toyota RAV4 1,383,568 views
- Should You Buy The Updated Toyota RAV4? Full Review and Common Problems Update 1,139,975 views
Counted from video titles and captions: praise words against trouble words, weighted by views. Videos only count when the title names this engine or a car that had only this engine in those years.
Cars with this engine Tap a year for that car's full report.
Model years from NHTSA VIN decoding of owner complaints. Only years we have a car page for.
Owner complaints by model year
Counts of complaints filed so far. Older cars have had longer to collect them, and popular cars draw more because more were sold: no one reports sales by engine, so there's no per-car rate. Compare the shares below instead.
By car
| Car | Model years matched | Complaints | Name the engine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Toyota RAV4 | 2019–25 | 1,514 | 32% |
| Toyota Camry | 2018–24 | 1,458 | 19% |
| Lexus ES | 2021 | 7 | 0% |
“Name the engine” = the share of that car's VIN-matched complaints that list the engine as a problem area.
What owners complain about
Share of this engine's complaints that name each area (one complaint can name several).
What owners write
| Complaints that | Count | Share | Median, other everyday engines |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mention coolant loss or overheating | 453 | 15% | 1.2% |
| Say the engine stalled, shut off or lost power | 355 | 12% | 14% |
| Mention fire, flames or smoke | 68 | 2.3% | 3.2% |
| Say the engine knocked, seized or failed | 55 | 1.8% | 2.9% |
| Mention the water pump | 28 | 0.9% | 0.2% |
| Mention a misfire | 14 | 0.5% | 0.6% |
| Mention an oil leak | 10 | 0.3% | 0.6% |
| Mention a head gasket | 9 | 0.3% | 0.1% |
| Mention a lifter, rocker or ticking | 8 | 0.3% | 0.3% |
Counted from the owner's own words in each complaint (all of the car, not only the engine). A share, not a failure rate.
When problems show up
Half of the owners who gave a mileage reported the problem between 2,900 and 42,000 miles; the middle report was at 13,048 miles (807 complaints with a mileage).
Recalls that name this engine 1
18V200000 Mar 2018 Engine And Engine Cooling Camry 2018
Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2018 Toyota Camry vehicles equipped with a 2.5L, four-cylinder engine. The pistons on these vehicles may be larger than specified, possibly causing the engine to stall.
Fix. Toyota will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the production date codes of the pistons and, if an engine contains a piston from the affected production period, the engine assembly will be replaced, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin May 25, 2018. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-888-270-9371. Toyota's number for this recall is J1M/J0M.
NHTSA recalls on these cars and model years whose text names this engine (its size or name). The rest (brakes, air bags, wiring ...) are on each car year's page.
In owners' words
My coolant is disappearing with no signs of leaks. I seen it was a recall on this but doesn’t when I enter my vin
2020 owner · NHTSA complaint 11777195
While traveling along an interstate highway, at 65 mph, my vehicle began to drift side to side and the overall steering feeling was loose.
2021 owner · NHTSA complaint 11776857
The vehicle transmission became inoperable while driving and the car stalled. After towing to a local Toyota dealership, the service department noted that it failed the stall test. Code P0745F identified. Vehicle required entire transmission assembly replacement at 88K miles.
2018 owner · NHTSA complaint 11776399
Against the other everyday engines
| Engine | Years | Complaints | Name the engine | Stalled or lost power | Burning oil | Recalls naming it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.5 EcoBoost | 2014–25 | 5,622 | 66% | 15% | 0.2% | 2 |
| 6.2 V8 (Gen V) | 2014–25 | 7,219 | 65% | 24% | 2.2% | 2 |
| 2.4 Theta II | 2010–22 | 21,551 | 51% | 20% | 8.1% | 8 |
| 2.4 Ecotec | 2010–17 | 6,096 | 51% | 21% | 18% | 0 |
| 3.0 EcoDiesel | 2014–23 | 2,871 | 50% | 24% | 0.2% | 7 |
| 3.3 Lambda II | 2013–21 | 3,254 | 50% | 17% | 5.9% | 2 |
| 2.0 EcoBoost | 2012–25 | 9,735 | 48% | 12% | 0.1% | 0 |
| 2.0T Theta II | 2011–22 | 3,325 | 44% | 18% | 4.8% | 2 |
| 1.4 Turbo | 2011–22 | 3,926 | 39% | 17% | 0.9% | 2 |
| 2.4 Tigershark | 2014–22 | 9,631 | 35% | 34% | 4.5% | 5 |
| 1.5 Turbo | 2016–25 | 4,471 | 33% | 27% | 0.3% | 1 |
| EA888 2.0T | 2009–25 | 7,443 | 29% | 16% | 3.7% | 5 |
| A25A | 2018–25 | 2,979 | 26% | 12% | under 0.1% | 1 |
| 1.5 Turbo | 2017–22 | 6,390 | 26% | 14% | 0.2% | 0 |
| J35 V6 | 2003–25 | 24,038 | 24% | 14% | 0.9% | 4 |
| Skyactiv-G 2.5 | 2014–25 | 2,631 | 22% | 11% | 2.7% | 1 |
| 2.7 Turbo | 2019–25 | 1,090 | 22% | 12% | 0.5% | 0 |
| 2AZ-FE | 2001–09 | 7,176 | 22% | 3.7% | 8.6% | 0 |
| 5.4 Triton | 2005–14 | 3,952 | 21% | 15% | 0.1% | 3 |
| 5.7 HEMI | 2003–24 | 23,895 | 19% | 23% | 0.1% | 6 |
| QR25DE | 2002–20 | 16,161 | 19% | 14% | 1.5% | 4 |
| 5.3 V8 (Gen V) | 2014–25 | 13,191 | 18% | 13% | 0.5% | 3 |
| 3.6 Pentastar | 2011–25 | 34,634 | 18% | 16% | 0.4% | 9 |
| 2.3 EcoBoost | 2015–25 | 3,975 | 16% | 9.9% | 0.1% | 12 |
| 3.8 Lambda II | 2020–25 | 4,423 | 16% | 8.0% | 5.6% | 0 |
| FB20 | 2012–25 | 2,336 | 15% | 8.2% | 1.7% | 0 |
| 3.6 V6 | 2009–23 | 14,214 | 14% | 14% | 0.1% | 1 |
| K24 | 2002–19 | 15,062 | 14% | 5.1% | 1.6% | 0 |
| 2GR-FKS | 2016–24 | 3,758 | 12% | 11% | 0.2% | 2 |
| 3.5 Cyclone V6 | 2007–19 | 21,313 | 12% | 11% | 0.1% | 0 |
| VQ35 V6 | 2002–25 | 12,613 | 12% | 11% | 0.2% | 1 |
| 3UR-FE | 2007–21 | 1,377 | 12% | 8.8% | 0.4% | 0 |
| FB25 | 2011–25 | 9,853 | 11% | 6.2% | 1.5% | 0 |
| 2AR-FE | 2009–18 | 4,673 | 11% | 6.6% | 1.3% | 1 |
| 2GR-FE | 2005–18 | 8,680 | 10% | 3.5% | 0.3% | 0 |
| 3.8 V6 | 2007–11 | 7,877 | 9% | 17% | 0.5% | 0 |
| 5.3 V8 (Gen IV) | 2007–14 | 9,241 | 8% | 4.5% | 1.3% | 0 |
| 1GR-FE | 2003–24 | 5,757 | 7% | 4.0% | under 0.1% | 0 |
| 4.8 V8 | 2007–13 | 726 | 6% | 4.8% | 0.1% | 0 |
Shares of each engine's own complaints, matched by VIN. They show what owners complain about, not how often engines break.
Quick answers
Is the Toyota A25A 2.5 (Dynamic Force) reliable?
No one reports sales by engine, so there's no per-car score. Of the 2,979 complaints owners filed about cars with it, 26% name the engine, #13 of the 39 everyday engines we track (1 = the most).
What cars have the Toyota A25A 2.5 (Dynamic Force)?
In our data: the Toyota RAV4, Toyota Camry and Lexus ES, model years 2018–2025, matched by the VIN in each owner complaint.
What are the most common A25A problems?
In owner complaints to the government: engine, transmission & drivetrain, electrical.
How many recalls name the A25A?
1 NHTSA recall on these cars names it.
Complaints: NHTSA owner complaints filed under each car's own NHTSA names (the same ones its car pages count), all years filed, one per complaint number. Engine: decoded from the complaint's VIN with NHTSA's vPIC decoder (displacement, cylinders, engine model, turbo, hybrid) and the engine maker's model years; a VIN that doesn't decode to exactly one engine is left out. Older cars have had more years to collect complaints, and popular cars draw more because more were sold. Source: NHTSA owner complaints (FLAT_CMPL + COMPLAINTS_RECEIVED_2025-2026), received through 20261111; engines: NHTSA vPIC VIN decoder (batch); NHTSA recalls API. Engine names and model years: Toyota.