Severe Thunderstorms, Hail, and Flash-Flood Detours: A Practical Toyota RAV4 Buyer’s Guide

If you’re shopping a used Toyota RAV4 around Watertown and you’ve weathered more than one summer here, you already know the drill. A supercell builds south of town, turns the sky that particular shade of green, and all at once US-212 is crawling because a low-water crossing east of town is running fast. Browse our used inventory and you’ll see RAV4s from several generations sitting side by side. They don’t all handle that scenario the same way. The fifth-generation redesign that launched for 2019 reworked the ground clearance, the AWD system, and the available driver-assist tech in ways that matter out here. We’ll walk the years honestly, tell you which ones we’d hand to a family without a second thought, and flag the two model years where we’d want the recall history closed out before the keys change hands.

Which Fifth-Gen Years Are the Sweet Spot?

The sweet spot lands on 2022, 2023, and 2024, mostly because those years carry the lightest recall burden of the fifth generation while keeping every storm-useful spec the launch years introduced. There’s a catch worth naming up front, though, since holding their value the way they do means they ask more on the used market.

Check the ground clearance first, because it’s the spec that separates the generations out here. When Toyota redesigned the RAV4 for 2019, one of the most practical changes for drivers on northeastern South Dakota roads was that jump in clearance. The fourth generation (2013-2018) sat at just 6.3 inches. The fifth-gen Adventure and TRD Off-Road trims measure 8.6 inches, and even the base LE and XLE trims come in at 8.4 inches. The difference matters when you’re approaching a gravel county road running two inches of fast water across it.

Our team has watched buyers skip right past this spec. Don’t be one of them.

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The 2022-2024 model years represent the cleanest slice of that fifth generation. Per NHTSA records, the 2022 RAV4 carries a single recall (compared to ten for the 2019). The 2023 carries six, most of them software-level fixes rather than mechanical concerns, including a panoramic camera software update that dealers push over the air. The 2024 scored an 80 out of 100 reliability rating from Auto Reliability Index, which draws on NHTSA complaint filings. For a compact SUV with this much tech content, that’s a strong number. Toyota Safety Sense 2.0 came standard on every trim from 2020 onward, so you’re getting pre-collision warning, lane-departure alert, and automatic high-beams on all of these years. In a sudden storm on a two-lane, those features are working, not sitting idle.

One more thing worth knowing. All fifth-gen AWD RAV4s use a rear electric motor that engages automatically when the front wheels slip, so the system needs no driver input on a slick wet county road. The system won’t replace safe driving or proper tires, but the technology runs a good deal better than what the fourth generation offered.

Which Years Should You Watch Out For?

The years to watch closely are 2019 and 2020, which launched a solid platform but carried real early-production recall baggage you’ll want documented before any money changes hands. A clean example is still a fine buy, so this isn’t a blanket warning, more a reason to read the VIN report carefully.

NHTSA documented two recalls for 2019-2020 RAV4s that bear directly on severe-weather driving. The first is recall 20V682, covering the low-pressure fuel pump. Per NHTSA records, if the pump fails, the engine can stall while driving, which increases the risk of a crash. The second is recall 20V373, specific to 2019-2020 RAV4s equipped with electric power steering. Water can enter through the steering gear box cover and cause a loss of power steering assist, and you’ll feel that right away. Our service team can verify recall status on any vehicle you’re considering, and Toyota dealers perform all recall repairs free of charge.

The step that matters is confirming those campaigns are closed on the specific VIN before the deal is done. A 2019 RAV4 with both recalls completed and a solid maintenance history is a reasonable buy. One where the repair history is unknown is a different conversation.

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The 2013 model year also deserves a flag, for different reasons. Per NHTSA records, the 2013 RAV4 (first year of the fourth generation) accumulated 247 complaints and 2 recalls, with documented issues spanning the electrical system, structure, and transmission. More practically for storm-season buyers, that fourth-gen ground clearance of 6.3 inches sits 2+ inches lower than a fifth-gen Adventure trim. On flat South Dakota prairie where drainage is slow, you’ll see that gap on flooded road approaches.

Which Year Fits Which Buyer?

The right used RAV4 year comes down to what you’re balancing: budget, recall peace of mind, and how many road-season miles a vehicle sees in a Codington County summer. No single year wins on all three at once, so the best pick depends on which of those you’re least willing to compromise.

2022-2024: the family with no appetite for recall uncertainty. The 2022-2024 range is the one our team would point to without hesitation. The recall count drops sharply, the reliability scores lead the fifth generation, and you keep full Toyota Safety Sense 2.0 capability. Ground clearance and AWD match the launch years exactly. The tradeoff is real. They ask more on the used market because the RAV4 holds its value well, and you’re paying for the peace of mind, a legitimate trade.

2020-2021: the value-conscious buyer who’ll do the homework. Two or three years removed from the worst launch-year recall activity, these model years have had time for most campaigns to wrap up. Same platform, same clearance, and the savings over a 2022 often add up. Our advice runs simple. Pull the NHTSA VIN report yourself, confirm the fuel-pump campaign is closed, and if it’s a RAV4 Prime from 2021, verify the DC-DC converter recall (23V478) is done too. Clean paperwork means these are solid trucks.

2019: proceed with eyes open. We won’t tell you to avoid it. We’ll tell you to verify everything. A well-maintained 2019 with documented recall completions and a consistent service history can be a good value buy, while a 2019 whose seller can’t produce recall paperwork is a different vehicle altogether. The Auto Reliability Index scores the 2019 at 66 out of 100, the lowest of the fifth generation, primarily because of those fuel-system complaint volumes. Know what you’re buying.

Fourth generation (2013-2018): fine for dry commutes, not our first choice for storm season. The reliability story on these reads solid for post-2015 years. But the 6.3-inch ground clearance is the plain reason we wouldn’t put a Codington County family in one as their primary severe-weather vehicle. If the budget only reaches a fourth-gen RAV4 and the alternative is a higher-mileage example of something else, a 2016 or 2018 fourth-gen with clean history is still a Toyota. Just understand what you’re giving up in ride height.

By the Sharp Toyota Team | August 2026