Which '06/'07 Rav4?

[dwilson]

David min......is that no comparing apples with tennis balls.........XF Jaguar egnine and a Rav engine....?

Their both diesel engines so maybe different types of tennis balls? I have owned a Previa, LC and RAV all with diesel engines and they didn't seem to me as refined as a Peugeot, Merc or Jag diesel. I don't know why. Mind you I did drive an Avensis T180 and that seemed very good....maybe it is just down to soundproofing and personal taste?

David

[blackcts]

We have a 2.0 TDi 140 new common rail Jetta and its fantastic, very, very economical and less diesel like than my 2.2 lexus - it just never drops below 50mpg - it's much quieter and feels punchier in the lower gears, it also pulls cleanly from 6th from 35mph upwards - that said the 2.2 177 D4D really puts the hammer down from 3rd gear upwards - but I hate the gearing - what is the point in that 6th gear in the UK? I also dislike the vibration which you can feel through the gearbox at times, which is barely noticeable in the VAG common rail.

[CharlieFarlie]

Triffic!

Thanks guys - I feel loads more confident in being able to spot a good bet from a bad one now.. All I have to do now is hold my nerve until a good bet shows up..

Apologies to the guys in the petrol brigade who tried to turn me back from the dark-side.. I can't see how a car this size would suit a petrol engine.. Perhaps I ought to test drive one..

I live not far from Worcester.. If you want a second pair of eyes to look over a car if you have one on say a shortlist I would be happy to have a gander with you.. I have a Paint thickness gauge for checking any re finishing and a code reader for checking stored codes.. Plus I have been round the block a few times buying cars.....

I also have a mate who works at a franchised Toyota dealer whom im sure would look on the computer to check out the history of a car as far as is possible.. Up to you !

[voyager t180]

As Charlie said the T180 was the flagship of the Rav4 range and the spec,looks and drive are superb,especially with the 'must have' lindop chip kit which gives 38avg mpg and loads of torque.

Mine is on 64k recorded mls..and has no high oil consumption issues either.

Toyota's history shows a couple of past recalls,one of which doesn't say why,which could maybe have been an engine change?but I don't know.

Before buying I spent a full morning inspecting things like floor matts,steering wheel,pedal rubbers for heavy wear..also oil and coolant leaks,and general bodywork and interior appearance,which gave a good indication as to how well the car had been cared for.and of course a long test drive.

All seemed positive so I took the gamble and so far have been very lucky and impressed with the 180.

As said some of the '06-07 T180's do seem prone to engine issues,but strangely others are trouble free

IMO many miles of towing a big boat/caravan up and down dale cant be good for an engine..only my opinion of course.;~)

After saying that its your decision and good luck with the search..but def take up Charlies kind inspection offer.

[CharlieFarlie]

Perhaps I can shed a wee bit of light on this comparison between a Rav Diesel and a Jag 3.0.....

But first we have to remember that these are two completely different cars in a huge way....

The Jag engine is an absolute peach ! The one in my XF is the 3.0 twin turbo "S" Unit that has been mapped to 315 BHP and 690NM of torque.. It really does shift.. Standard car does 0 to 60 in 5.9 secs and is limited to 155MPH.. For some ridculous reason it does more to the gallon than our T180...

But its !Removed! useless for tip runs and dropping the seats and shifting copious quantities of junk (My wife claims some of this junk is of value I believe it should provide another opportunity to get in a tip run ..

Apart from being diesel cars these two could not be much different !

But I think the point being made is that something a petrol car lacks is low down grunt.. Tourqes as Clarkson would say..

If I'm honest I doubt I could live with a petrol engine again unless its in a dedicated sports car Or a bike !

However there is one exception... An early Rav4.... I genuinely am not trying to p!ss owners of early diesels off but the risk of buying one that has not had the engine changed is just to high ! It just is Im afraid unless the buyer is in a position to sit happily with a very very large bill indeed should the worst were to happen. If one has that sort of dollar in hand then just buy a late 150 BHP car and have done with it..

So yes I would if I were to buy an early Rav go for a petrol.. Yes the MPG is not so good and the cars are or can be a bit laborious to drive. Well in comparison to a diesel.. Safer bet by a country mile in this case though..

But the fact is I love diesels. I find petrol cars noisy horrid and lacking in the grunt factor so if I were looking for a Rav sized car I would buy a diesel but a Honda or something else. Reading between the lines The OP seems to also like his diesel engines so petrol aint going to cut the mustard.

As Don says above. Just make sure you buy one that has been done and sorted and you will have a great car...

[Apostate74]

Hey Charlie - I'm in Redditch myself. Thank you very much for the kind offer - if I wander down the M5 looking at something I might just drop you a mail to see if you are free.. A second pair of (sceptical) eyes is always a good thing..

I do like my diesels. Driving did leave me cold after riding motorcycles for many years - I didn't get a car licence until I was thirty. Might have been the bunch of sheds I drove around, mind you.. Actually my first car was an Alfa 33ti Veloce and that was followed by one of those Honda Preludes with four-wheel steering, so they were actually quite fun compared to some.. I avoided diesels 'cos Clarkson told me to.

Then I bought my A3 2.0 tdi Sport. Buckets and buckets of torque that will pull you past just about whatever you need it to an push you back in your seat nicely - whilst doing 47.5mpg combined (central Brum commute included). I'm not saying that I need a car to be fast, but have enough to overtake from fifty without thrashing the bits off it..

But it needs to go - 2003 and 160,000 on the clock - and I can't face buying the same car twice. Plus I need more room (trips to the tip should only need one journey - they are not so much fun that you want to go back several times in the same day), the boys are grown to the point where they don't actually fit in the back of a hatchback.

So, bigger with some torque and not be ugly = Rav4.

[blackcts]

Strangely I'm the opposite, I much prefer a petrol engine - take the VAG 1.4 TSi 122 engine, not overly fast but it is such a pleasant unit to use, whisper quiet, vibration and lag free, torquey wee thing for all that it is and revs when you are in the mood. The 2.0T in the mk6 GTi is superb - diesel like low down torque with the refinement and power at the top end of the rev range when you fancy it - not hard run either.

I wouldn't completely discount a 2.0 vvti rav if you don't do big miles, cheaper up front to buy and totally bulletproof - my mate has an avensis with that engine that gets serviced every few years and it hasn't given a seconds bother. Over 100k on it now too. It's not going to be as torquey as the D4D, but it's

certainly not slow in the avensis anyway, I don't find myself being as power mad with cars now, so the lack of torque wouldn't overly bother me, must be turning 30 with kids lol!

That Jag is stunning BTW - I'm sure it goes like stink!

[CharlieFarlie]

Hey Charlie - I'm in Redditch myself. Thank you very much for the kind offer - if I wander down the M5 looking at something I might just drop you a mail to see if you are free.. A second pair of (sceptical) eyes is always a good thing..

I do like my diesels. Driving did leave me cold after riding motorcycles for many years - I didn't get a car licence until I was thirty. Might have been the bunch of sheds I drove around, mind you.. Actually my first car was an Alfa 33ti Veloce and that was followed by one of those Honda Preludes with four-wheel steering, so they were actually quite fun compared to some.. I avoided diesels 'cos Clarkson told me to.

Then I bought my A3 2.0 tdi Sport. Buckets and buckets of torque that will pull you past just about whatever you need it to an push you back in your seat nicely - whilst doing 47.5mpg combined (central Brum commute included). I'm not saying that I need a car to be fast, but have enough to overtake from fifty without thrashing the bits off it..

But it needs to go - 2003 and 160,000 on the clock - and I can't face buying the same car twice. Plus I need more room (trips to the tip should only need one journey - they are not so much fun that you want to go back several times in the same day), the boys are grown to the point where they don't actually fit in the back of a hatchback.

So, bigger with some torque and not be ugly = Rav4.

Bikes ? Dont get me started on bikes !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ere mate ...... Cloverleaf ???????

[Apostate74]

Cloverleaf? - too old now, mate.. the only time my knee gets down these days is when I can't bend over to pick something up.. Some sad things have happened there of late, too..

I'm going to chop in my SV650 and buy something twin cylindered and old - that isn't a Harley - thinking about a Beemer - and bobbing it as a project.. One of these days..

Back on topic.. What do we think of this?

I've also been reading the cautionary tale in the thread started by MeggieMoo here.. Very good reason to raid my piggy bank some more...

[CharlieFarlie]

That car looks nice and clean ! Nice to have full leather and a roof which are almost essential for me ! Prices are very affordable on these cars now ..

[Big Kev]

Very clean looking example, Simon. Musta had a really heavy baby or a sharp seat for it.....make sure that mark not ready to become a hole on the back seat....!!

[blackcts]

That's a lovely RAV-4 - cracking value!

[Apostate74]

Alas - gone before I got there..

Does anybody have some patience I could borrow please? I seem to be running a litle low.. ;)

[CharlieFarlie]

To get the right car at the right price you will have to look around and hard.... The best ones fly away especially at that price !

[Apostate74]

Aye - looks like it.. It's just like me to be awkward..

Aside from the ubiquitous Autotrader and eBay any suggestions as to where I should be looking?

Pistonheads?

[spoofpig]

try a toyota dealer i got mine their full mot clean and roadside assistance warranty and a free valet kit and mats

[Apostate74]

I asked at a local Toyota dealership and the cheapest '08 they had on the network was £11k.. £2-3k over budget.. Just too steep I'm afraid..

[spoofpig]

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201306307564372/sort/default/usedcars/maximum-age/up_to_5_years_old/maximum-mileage/up_to_60000_miles/price-to/10000/fuel-type/diesel/price-from/7000/model/rav4/make/toyota/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/page/1/radius/1500/postcode/dl147pp?logcode=p


http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201307047642788/sort/default/usedcars/maximum-age/up_to_5_years_old/maximum-mileage/up_to_60000_miles/price-to/10000/fuel-type/diesel/price-from/7000/model/rav4/make/toyota/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/radius/1500/postcode/dl147pp/page/1?logcode=p

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201307057657265/sort/default/usedcars/maximum-age/up_to_5_years_old/maximum-mileage/up_to_60000_miles/price-to/10000/fuel-type/diesel/price-from/7000/model/rav4/make/toyota/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/page/1/radius/1500/postcode/dl147pp?logcode=p

[Apostate74]

Ta very much..

I don't want a T180.. Neither of the other two have leather seats. Umm and ah'd over all three, but if they ain't what I want I don't see the point in a four hour round trip to be sure..

'08 XT4/5 with leather seats below 80k in black would be lovely.. Like this.. Bit worried 'cos it's down in the smoke.. right on the end of the M40..

[spoofpig]

http://www.exchangeandmart.co.uk/used-cars-for-sale/toyota/rav4/toyota-rav4-xtr-d4d-15404117

http://www.exchangeandmart.co.uk/used-cars-for-sale/toyota/rav4/toyota-rav4-4-22-d-4d-xt-r-5dr-15448245

http://www.exchangeandmart.co.uk/used-cars-for-sale/toyota/rav4/toyota-rav4-4-22-d-4d-xt-r-new-shape-half-leatherside-steps-15456883

a few to consider slim pickings for the 2008 model a few late 2007 models

[Apostate74]

Cheers, Adrian.. I'd forgotten Exchange and Mart..

[CharlieFarlie]

Simon also worth checking on eBay.... I think the problem here is the Rav is not a common car.. By that I mean like say a vectra or mondeo so numbers to choose from are limited and unfortunately the right cars seem to be so far away.. Stick at it and the right car will turn up.. Why do you not want a T180 ?

[Apostate74]

Hey Charlie

It's not that I don't want one - it's just that I don't want to pay the premium for the extras I don't need..

Actually you have made me examine my thinking.. After typing a bunch of cobblers that I've since discarded I guess the answer is this - Price - I'm already over budget hanging on for an '08. Plus I don't trust 185 horses in that engine and I want an actual spare wheel.

Which are not reasons to pass one up if waved under my nose..

Just remembered that way back in the day I was thinking about a Hilux Surf but got put off by tales of cracking heads.. Do Toyota not like making diesels? :)

[Apostate74]

Also have a confession..

Had a nose round an '07 X3 today.. why did they have to make the front end so ugly?

[blackcts]

I love beemers, but the x3 is the ugliest car known to man. What about a Hyundai Santa FE? - nice looking big jeep