sutlTL

All the years I've been here I don't remember anyone asking about a RAV4. It is a Toyota and it does fall into the SUV class. I am not replacing my 4Runner but I am thinking of getting one. Anyone here drive a RAV4? Pros, cons, opinions? FYI, both SUV's will probably never see off-roading.

roger

Unless I'm mistaken the RAV4 is based on a FWD car unibody. So no heavy hauling or offroading (which you're not doing anyway). Other than that I suppose they're good people-movers. Although I've never been crazy about their styling.

MoveOvr

I drove the very first model of that car when it came out. my biggest complaint was that there was noooo power at all. at the time i believe it only came as a 4-cylinder automatic. even my mom who drives like an 80 year old, said theres no power when she pulls out to pass a car. i believe they have given it more power now with the new models.

the styling now is better than when it first came out in my opinion. the only other major problem was the noises at high speeds on the highway (not that it went fast). but still noisy...so test drive it on the highway.

other than that...it never game me any problems in terms of maintenance. reliable just like a toyota

bill

fiveofeen

they remind me on pokemons. yep frd unibody. just like a ford escape

az4x4runner

The RAV4 is one of the few Toyota vehicles that I never hear anything about. The last time I heard anything about RAV4s was a friend telling me about some idiot they know falling asleep at the wheel of one and running into a cement wall.

ATP4984

Do they make those for men yet?

94yotarunner

LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Flamedx4

The chassis utilizes Camry components. Never head anything bad about them. Reliable. Nice car. Adequate. Nothing to Rav about...

But before I'd buy one I'd consider a car instead for better mileage if nothing else.

User 051420

I brought home a 1998 from a dealer for my mom to test drive. I didn't like it at all. WAY underpowered, cheap interior, more body roll than my 4runer, slow, small, slow...... And what's with it not having a rear bumper?

The newest generations have great ratings tho..I haven't driven one.

2001Millrunner

pretty much what was said above, they're cute tho.

ctcost

Yup. They call it a 4Runner

kyle_22r

my buddy's driving one(dad loaned it to him for college), it gets up and goes pretty well. not something i'd really want to own, though

2001Millrunner

it was fun doing a 4wheel peel out on a rainy day. Oh BTW my brother's 97 RAV4 Limited had Center-Lock Diff. I thought it was a weird option...cool tho

Flygtenstein

My folks have an 04 that I spent 4 months driving when my truck was getting a new engine.

I like them a lot. They are a tall car with AWD. They are not an SUV. It has tons of space, more than my 95 Runner. It scoots around town and holds 75 down the highway really well. It is incredibly miserly on fuel, not sure on exact mileage, but I swear I hardly ever had to fill it up.

The downside, it has a queer reputation. I am a large man and drew a lot of looks getting out of it. It has tons of space for all 6'5" 285 pounds of me. I was the 1% of ownership on my liberal campus that did not have a rainbow sticker on it.

User 051420

r854rnr

I drove an '01 (maybe an '02)and it's power wasn't an issue. They are based on the camry platform and are rather small inside. I'm only 6' and I felt a little cramped. They have some good cute-ute features though.

If you're looking to get a new one, you might want to wait a bit. They are being redesigned for '06 I believe. Bigger and more power. (isn't that the story with every redesign lately?)

Dryheat

I have a '96 AWD, not all that bad. Better fuel economy than my '90 4Runner. The final drive ratio is 4.28 which is better than the 2WD so its pretty peppy around town until you turn on the AC. I have taken it off road but it doesn't have enough articulation to do anything too gnarly. I would say its as underpowered as my Runner. Has more interior noise than my Runner also. I hear that's a common complaint for all years of RAV4. It's got over 110k on it and hopefully next year I'm replacing it with a Toyota truck. I heard that they may dropping the RAV4 by 06. 2nd generation RAVs have more power and the latest one has a 2.4L engine with 162 hp.

tweeker4X4

My girlfreind has a 96 5 speed I drove it all winter while my runner was snowed in without a rear-end at the dealer. It was a little snowmobile and the 4-way locker is a nice feature. I finally got it high centered on some deep snow/ice in my driveway. But for a few days prior to that it was only me and some taco's out on the road. Also in a 5 speed you dont notice the lack of power near as much.

Ilovemountains

My ex had a 98 that was a 2 door convertible, it was a sweet little mini SUV for her, it had a 5 speed and full gauges, alloy wheels auto all wheel drive, her dad was a lawyer so for her Bday I got to pick out a bunch of goodies from Performance for her car! It had a waag bursh guard, thule roof rack and some Hella 500s. It was underpowered and the 1 time she wanted to take it off road it twisted and creaked the whole time, and you really had to run the clutch while crawling along, but for what it was it did OK, it was how ever great in the rain and snow, great for the beach and still got over 30mpg, so if the wife or GF is looking for an all wheel drive mini suv I would have to give it the thumbs up! I would buy one if I were still commuting if I needed the all wheel drive, but it would be one of the original style, I think they made the newer ones a lot lighter than they already were, my mom looked at them last year, she drove the Mazda, Rav4, CRV and the Hyundai, she bought the CRV, which is a 4 door mini van! I am still surprised at how much zip it has for a car its size with only a 4cyl that still gets good mileage, but I would never own one, I really don’t like Honda.. they make the civic for gods sake

sutlTL

Thanks guys, never expected to get that many replies but it it's good to see that SOME of you think it's ok! BTW, RAV4 is going to be for the wife. She wants a smaller car that's easier to handle, for parking at the mall especially. Should be perfect for xmas shopping! With 162hp it'll probably beat my 3.slow even with all my mods. I never new the RAV had been around since 1994 or so. Can't find too many used ones so you gotta wonder if they sold a lot or maybe it's a great car and nobody wants to let go of them.