Possibly Buying A Rav 4.2, Things To Look Out For?

[SteveZero]

I have seen a Rav 4.2 listed at a local dealership (non-Toyota), it is a 51 plate NRG, has the sidestep accessory pack (?) plus the rear step too, leather seats etc... It has done 55,000 miles and has had two owners and looks to be in good condition. The car is advertised at £5500

I have the service history but it has been serviced at Mickey Mouse garages rather than Toyota, the dealer who is selling it said they have just serviced it, fitted new brake pads, oil change and new oxygen sensor. It has a 1 year warranty plus 1 year breakdown cover included in the price, looks to be a good deal. Are there any specific things that I must look out for? Seems like a well looked after, low mileage car...

BTW I currently have a Yaris SR 3DR 57-plate, valued at £7000 so I was just going to do a swap and they will give me the change back.

Thanks,

Steve.

[duncerduncs]

Hi Steve

Having just sold our 51 plate 56000 mile NRG to Mrs Duncs' parents (never selling to family again!), I think £5500 is too steep an asking price if it's a petrol model (I assume it's a petrol as you mention oxygen sensors).

I more realistic price would be nearer to £4000. They may have priced it as a diesel which has a £1000 premium over the petrol models.

They only thing we had go wrong in 16 months of ownership was 2 oxygen sensors failing, we purchased replacements online and had a local garage fit them. You can do it yourself, but after crashing my wife's last car in the garage whilst changing a rear wiper, she wouldn't let me do it...

We're both going to miss it when we hand it over in a couple of weeks :(

[SteveZero]

Hi Steve

Having just sold our 51 plate 56000 mile NRG to Mrs Duncs' parents (never selling to family again!), I think £5500 is too steep an asking price if it's a petrol model (I assume it's a petrol as you mention oxygen sensors).

I more realistic price would be nearer to £4000. They may have priced it as a diesel which has a £1000 premium over the petrol models.

They only thing we had go wrong in 16 months of ownership was 2 oxygen sensors failing, we purchased replacements online and had a local garage fit them. You can do it yourself, but after crashing my wife's last car in the garage whilst changing a rear wiper, she wouldn't let me do it...

We're both going to miss it when we hand it over in a couple of weeks :(

I have been looking in Autotrader and checking online and similar models have all been priced about the same, they do seem to hold their value well. I'm not sure if they're overpricing it myself though, similar age models with greater miles are listed on eBay for £6000 and upwards...

[SteveZero]

Sorry to reply again, I have a dilemma though. I think 55,000 miles is quite low for and 8 year old car, I found a 2003 Rav 3 with 65,000 miles on it. Do you think it'd be wiser to buy an older car with less miles or newer car with more miles?

More could go wrong with the older car because of it's age but then again, the newer car has more miles so may be more prone to problems arising from wear and tear....hmmm

Cheers,

Steve.

[anchorman]

Sorry to reply again, I have a dilemma though. I think 55,000 miles is quite low for and 8 year old car, I found a 2003 Rav 3 with 65,000 miles on it. Do you think it'd be wiser to buy an older car with less miles or newer car with more miles?

More could go wrong with the older car because of it's age but then again, the newer car has more miles so may be more prone to problems arising from wear and tear....hmmm

Cheers,

Steve.

There was a facelift which took place towards the end of 2003 which saw the names change from GX & VX to XT3, XT4 and 5. These later modeles have a slightly better spec so if the one you are looking at is an "XT" it might help you decide.

[dave.m]

Have noticed round these parts that used Rav prices are going up again.

[rambler]

hi steve

welcome to the club

i think any toyota anybody considers buying is good,they all have reputation for reliability....rav4's especially,i owned a 51reg black 3 door nrg petrol about 6 years ago roughly.

EY51EUU.....

was as good as gold to me for about 2 years,then i part ex'd it for a land cruiser colorado 'y' reg,that broke down on me within 2 months,so got rid of it, for a brand new yaris..54 reg at the time.

but missed my lovely rav so much and wanted a blue diesel one,then the one in pictures below appeared on local dealerships forecourt,test drove it...and bought it.

it had 32'000 on the clock,now has 83'000 on the clock,its a d4d,and apart from maintenance..ie,new brake discs,pads & servicing...its been good as gold....so far in almost 4 years.

so my opinion,buy with confidence

rambler

[SteveZero]

Well the Rav that I was interested in sold just before I went to put a deposit on it. The garage told me they had another similar for £6000, I checked the reg plate and noticed that they had not even bought it yet, it was up for sale in Autotrader for £4490.

All the time the salesmen spent going back ond forth to the back room was spent with them looking through Autotrader to see which car they could try and sell me next for an easy profit :censor: The meeting ended with me saying that if I wanted that car I would phone the seller and pay £4490 for it, not £6000 from them.

[rambler]

hi steve

good man,well done for walking away,as car salesmen are very pressurising people as far as im concerned.

i personally dont like dealerships,feel a little nervous in the showrooms,but IF the vehicle 'jumps out at me',is just what i want,then i do ask.

have been considering another land cruiser colorado for a while now,IF the right one came along at the RIGHT price then i may be interested,just because they can be done up for off road use much easier than the rav.

would have love to have lifted the rav,but due to monocoque construction,you can only lift it about 40mm,and that still doesnt give me enough ground clearance....for confidence off road.

a very good freind of mine has a '05' reg hilux twin cab,with raised air intake,roof rack,roof lights,under body protection,and extreme tyres & load bed cover...i am very jealous.

he had a freelander before,on a '54' reg,he spent roughly £3000 keeping it going,including a new bmw engine !!!

as it turned out one of the pistons wasnt machined correctly !!!,he then had various warning lights flashing on the dash and L/R couldnt solve these issues.

he is now very very pleased he has a toyota,...we are off to north wales green laneing for two days as from early monday morning,we have..his hilux,a suzuki jimney,a L/R discovery and being lead by a discovery 3 owned by a chap who runs a company called 'get-wet'.

should be a good couple of days out in wilds of snowdonia,camping and doing what 4x4's do best...in the rough stuff.

my rav4 is staying here in essex,safe..as im going with a freind in the jimney....ulp

rambler

[bonjo]

for your future search.

-I believe the 2003 change was mostly cosmetic & gadgets

-A number of 4.2 (incl mine) end up with seized rear camber/toe adjusters. Not a problem unless there is a tyre wear issue & you need to adjust. So check the tyres for uneven wear

-Can have rattles inside the cabin. Front dashboard area is cured by replacing the plastic cover at the base of the windscreen. Rear parcel shelf is cured by ignoring it!

-A/F, O2 sensors can go faulty prematurely (anything after 45000 miles)

-Brake pads can get sticky > uneven pad wear: check the pads (inside & outside). I will also affect the fuel cunsumption.

-Check under the car for rust where the coating might have been chipped away by stones

Otherwise the petrol it is a great car. Very quite & smooth engine (specially @ tick-over). I much preferred it to he diesel when I test rode the two.

I would probably prefer a higher mileage but newer car provided it has been looked after & serviced properly & not thrashed