Rav4

biteme, Apr 13, 4:43am
367358328 What's the good and bad on these please!
thejazzpianoma, Apr 13, 6:26am
Are you actually doing any offroading!
If not they are just an overpriced, thirsty and not particularly nice vehicle.

If you actually need a little bit of off road ability then compared to other softroader's in the price range they shape up O.K

What is it you are actually going to use it for!
mugenb20b, Apr 13, 6:35am
They are actually pretty good cars, just make sure you change the cambelt at recommended intervals. There are a few things I don't like about them. 1. They bounce all over the road. 2. The way the tail gate opens. 3. Front seats squash your butt cheeks together.
mugenb20b, Apr 13, 6:59am
Funny. I don't have a problem with any other cars' seats, but the RAV4.
tgray, Apr 13, 7:03am
A very common thing with these is the rear differential mounts wearing out.
Always put it into P and R and listen for a thud. Also watch for oil leaks on high K ones. Many have very noisy tyres. Test drive it to atleast the speed limit and listen for road noise. Some are very intrusive.
Apart from that, they are very good vehicles and the asking prices reflect that.
The 3 door ones are much cheaper, so consider if you really want to pay the premuim for the 5 dr version.
socram, Apr 13, 7:09am
Yeuk! Step daughter has one and apart from the peeling paint, she is happy with it. I think it is dreadful.

I hate driving it, as it is worse than the usual grey porridge, with no character at all.But, like most popular Toyotas, OK for those who don't really like cars or driving I suppose.
autocars1, Apr 13, 7:17am
Brillaint vehicles, they have the Camry heritage, 3sFe Motor and trans, brilliant system, they multi mix the engines into the MR2, Celica etc.service it and ut will serve you well for years. It's ok to get one with higher kms, then engines are beaut, and not aware of any trans problems.check for accident damage etc.
ducatiss, Apr 13, 7:44am
My wife and I drove one for 120,000 kms - sold it at 170,000. new owner is now over the 200k mark. In all of this time we only carried out basic maintenance and one cambelt change. Absolutley nothing broke on it and it never let us down. Even towed a small boat with it at one stage as well as a bit of light off roading. If the cambelt breaks on these they will NOT damage the engine - just inconvenient as you will need a tow. I think for what they are they are a great little vehicle. I would suggest the manual over the auto as my biggest criticism would be they are a little gutless (new ones with the 2.4 engine much much better) and tyre/road noise can get a bit high.They handle fine on the open road and are light and easy to use around town. Fuel consumption is around 10km/l with mixed city/highway usage. I have read some of the comments posted above and suspect that some of the posters have not actually owned one. If you can get a good one that has been well maintained you should have no problems with it.
socram, Apr 13, 7:52am
I don't think we have questioned the reliability, just the drivability.Compared to the Freelander for example, no contest in the comfort and driveability stakes.

But you are right ducatiss, until you have owned a vehicle for a decent length of time, or have at least driven them regularly, you can't be too objective.That is why I am happy to defend the Freelanders, regardless of other's perceptions, having owned 3 of them without problems for the last 8 or 9 years.
biteme, Apr 14, 8:48am
Appreciate all of the replies. Yes, I found that it bounced a bit on the road and the front seats pushed against the outside of my thighs. I'll be looking at another type of vehicle. Looking for on road use 99% of the time and just that little bit of comfort for the snow or Christchurch roads.
johnf_456, Apr 14, 9:31am
arent we funny twisting someones quotes
r15, Apr 14, 9:37am
fortunately john i consider myself a lot funnier than you

i will now get back on topic
the first generation rav4 was sometimes fitted with the 3S-GE engine, which saw significantly more power and the record making i've done 3S-GE's are usually less thirsty if driven gently

also 3S-GE's can and usually do get major damage if a cambelt breaks, but a lot nicer to drive
johnf_456, Apr 14, 9:39am
Well its "kind" of insulting and disrespectful.
socram, Apr 14, 10:40am
I thought it was funny r15 - but then, I tend to look for the humour, rather than deride those who create it. Most humour is based on a touch of disprespect or cruelty, so carry on.
bigracket, Apr 14, 3:07pm
Yet another thread- all going fine, then BOOM ( Johnf)
bigracket, Apr 14, 3:08pm
Oh and "Why the personal attack!" BET YOU!
biteme, Apr 14, 6:13pm
363919905! Just FYI. We're getting on a little and are looking to getting into a car, not down into or up into. Just a little more comfort really. Trading out of a '93 Honda Integra. Also, one of these has a cam chain rather than a timing belt.
thejazzpianoma, Apr 14, 10:39pm
Also, trying to go for a camchain engine is a mugs game promoted by car dealers who love to peddle them for purely economic reasons. their economic reasons.

Camchain engines can have their own expensive tenancies and given most are usually less economical than a cambelt design so there is rarely a financial benefit to owning one. Also, when you change a cambelt every 5 years you should be doing a waterpump, thermostat and tensioners. These things will otherwise get neglected with a camchain vehicle.

If you want something that is economical to run/own for your use in 4WD you are likely going to be much better with a euro diesel (depending on how many km's you do and if there is a purchase price premium) also, try and keep close to the 10K mark and keep depreciation to a minimum. Fuel economy is also something that can be capitalised on by going for a car as opposed to an softroader even if going 4WD and petrol.

Engines like Audi/VW's 1.8T are powerful and economical to run.
tuttyclan, Apr 15, 12:42am
Camchain engines can have their own expensive tenancies and given most are usually less economical than a cambelt design so there is rarely a financial benefit to owning one.

Do Camchain enginnes use more fuel than a Cambelt engine!
thejazzpianoma, Apr 15, 2:50am
Technically its a bit complicated as there are multiple factors involved and its hard to get a direct comparison. However, in general yes they use a little more fuel because it takes a fraction more energy to push a camchain and its associated mechanics around. It is also difficult to get a cam-chain engine to achieve perfect timing etc which is critical to getting the best economy in a modern engine. Economy will often diminish over time as the cambelt stretches too, so while it might not be very noticeable from fuel economy tests done when the vehicle is new it will be a little more apparent down the track.

Its a bit of a nit picking issue that could invite a massive side tracked debate on here but in general thats how it works.

Bear in mind its a very small difference, but given you only need to save around $100 a year to cover typical cambelt replacements costs you don't need to save much fuel to achieve that!

The best thing to do is to start comparing actual cars of similar size. You will start to see the cam chain ones tend to belong to the slightly more thirsty group. but again there are multiple factors involved so the cam chain is only one contributing factor.

In short both systems have their pros and cons, the key thing is you should never buy a car just because it does or does not have a cam chain. Its just a silly side track issue that people get hung up on when there are far more important issues to consider.

That said, you should always factor in the price of changing the timing belt if its due when you buy a car, just like you should with any other maintenance that is due.
gammelvind, Apr 15, 9:19am
If you are over 6'2" don't bother with a rav, especially the 3 dr.
gedo1, Apr 15, 9:01pm
Gee, then our neighbour who is well over that and who has arthritis swears by the early 3 door RAV4 he bought as a runaround.His exact reason for buying it was that it was easy to get in and out of!Hmmmm!
johnf_456, Nov 3, 4:40pm
Lol, a customers I know has one hes 6'5 and he swears by it! mmmmmm!