Buying Old Rav 4 Lwb For Under £2000?

[Grendel]

After many years with a Toyota MR2 Mk1 I thought about getting a
4x4 but thought I couldn’t afford to run one so stupidly bought a Subaru Impreza
instead which is killing me in running costs. So have finally decided to cut my
looses and get something hopefully cheaper to run with better ground clearance
so originally thought Tarrano 2 but then found they have low mpg so thought about
the Frontera Sport 2.2Dti since compares very similar to the Rav 4 on statistics
but suffer with expensive repairs so came back around to thinking do I really
need a dedicated 4x4 or can the Rav 4 be made more off road since it only need to get across muddy field and farm
tracks which good ground clearance for shoots and always liked the look of the old
Rav 4 and they always get good reviews but not sure what I should be looking
out for when buying one since already spent a fortune on the Subaru due to not
looking carefully when I bought it and don’t want to make the same mistake with
the Rav 4.

[flyboyprowler]

Weclome to the forum Ian,

A lot of your choice will depend on budget. As a workhorse, the 4.2, 2nd generation generally is bullet proof. I have a 2003 5 door auto, petrol in Spain that is used on all surfices, with no problem. The 4.2 is permanent 4 wheel drive, with the later models from 2005/6 being the 4.3, being FWD when required, otherwise driving the front wheels normally.

There have been many reports of problems with diesel engines in early cars, have a trawl through the forum for a good read!

MPG wise, on a trip I regularly get 33 mpg, but I do have a light loud pedal, diesels, and manuals should do better. Servicing costs are fair from the dealers, and you can work on the cars your self. There is huge amounts of knowledge here, and people are always willing to help.

In my opinion, the RAV is a cracking car, I have two!!

Best of luck,

Ainsley

[jg92]

I agree with Ainsley , excellent car , see my recent post to-day re fault history over 10 yrs and 160k , still goig strong, mpg from D4D 37/38 from 2003 5dr 1.9

Jim

[Merseyshark]

When RAVs go wrong (and they frequently do, just read this forum) they can be spectacularly expensive, don't think you are avoiding high cost spares and repairs by choosing Toyota.

[firemac]

I agree with Ainsley , excellent car , see my recent post to-day re fault history over 10 yrs and 160k , still goig strong, mpg from D4D 37/38 from 2003 5dr 1.9

Jim

I also agree totally with Ainsley & JIm. We have two 4.2 petrol autos, one a 2002 5-door (bought new) and the other a 2004 3-dr (bought in 2011 with 27K on the clock). Both are brilliant cars which have been uber-reliable. Only one breakdown on the 02 car due to a broken serpentine drive belt (mind you, it was 9 years old at the time!).

No doubt the best cars overall that we've ever owned - and we've had an awful lot! If I could find a New Old Stock 4.2, I'd buy it like a shot.

[Parts-King]

When RAVs go wrong (and they frequently do, just read this forum) they can be spectacularly expensive, don't think you are avoiding high cost spares and repairs by choosing Toyota.

Sorry but they dont often go THAT wrong and are certainly a lot more reliable than the average 4x4 Yes if it goes wrong big time there will be expensive costs, but that is in no way limited to Toyota

4.2 Petrol are virtually trouble free, the diesel are too apart from DMF, but that can happen on any DMF enabled car

Kingo

[Grendel]

Sorry really should specify I'm looking at a 2.0l Petrol first generation Rav 4 since there others are out of budget.

[flyboyprowler]

I still think you will find the first series a satisfactory buy! Please don't be tempted with the Frontera, and early Land Rovers are known to be really bad! Toyota started the revolution with the RAV, and if you can find an early model, ideally in a dream world, with one owner and full history, then it will probably be bug free, and give many more years of good service.