New To Toyota Rav

[mudinuri]

Hi all,

I am a new convert from Landrover to Toyota having just purchased a very nice 1998 Toyota Rav4 and

I"m a 72 year old bloke who has nearly always carried out his own servicing and repairs.

The only problem is, the bloke I bought it off didn"t have the original Owners Manual, so could anyone please answer the following questions.

1) On the 1998 Rav 4 GX model should there be a Clock and if so where should it be?

2) Where the heck is the reservoir to refill the Windscreen washers?

3) Does anyone have an Owners Manual I could buy?

4) Any problems I should be looking for?

5) And finally I had no history with the RAV except all the old MOTs. It has covered 108000 miles and I don"t know if it has had a replacement Cambelt. Are they easy for an amateur to fit?

Any help and advice would be very much appreciated.

Thanks all

[gjnorthall]

I'm sure that someone will be able to help you with a copy of the owners manual. This particular model is excellent with no particular problems - however loss of 5th gear isn't unknown. If you can't establish if the cambelt has been changed - it really is worth doing it. I would recommend replacing the coolant pump at the same time or you could well be doing the whole job again - well before the next scheduled belt change! It's within the capability of someone with reasonable mechanical skill and it makes the job very much easier if you remove the ABS pump in order to gain access - this will require the brakes to be bled when refitting. It's also a good idea to change the transmission, transfer box and rear diff lubricants if you don't have any history.

[FROSTYBALLS]

I have a pdf version of the US owner's manual for a 2000 Rav4 - if interested send me a pm with your e-mail address, and I'll e-mail it to you

[crofter]

Hi David and a big welcome to a great club.

Going from memory with this :

The washer bottle is built in under the O/S/F wing and is filled under the bonnet on that side.Think it is a black plastic cap.

The clock was mounted on the same level as the centre air vents and to the right.

The engine gave me,like many others,no problems that could not be forestalled by servicing.

A thing that is not obvious is the cabin filter and is sometimes overlooked.

To get at this empty the glove box and sqeeze the sides together and this will then allow it to hang down.

If you look through the gap there is a plastic retangular piece that is just clipped in and pulling this out you may find something resembling a dirty birds nest!

Hope this is of help to you

Del

[FROSTYBALLS]

Couple of questions from the OP:

1) The Clock on my 98 RAV4 GX doesn"t seem to be working, there"s no lights or visual signs. Is this a common fault and can it be rectified?
2) I want to check the condition of the CAMBELT. When I open the bonnet the Alternator is on the drivers side, is that the CAMBELT I can see?

[gjnorthall]

You can't tell the condition of a cambelt by looking at it - removing it and radiusing it slightly in the opposite direction to normal, might give some indication of the tooth condition and the depth of cracking at the tooth root. All very academic though - and not worth the risk of running with a belt of unknown age. The belt is behind the auxilliary belt - it's inside a black plastic casing. If it turns out to be a Toyota belt - it may or may not be the original - if it's an aftermarket brand - then it has been replaced at some point in the past.

[mudinuri]

Thanks to everyone who has given me advice.

Hope you have a very Happy Christmas

[mudinuri]

Hi, me again.

I want to fit a replacement horn to my RAV4.

Which is the easiest way to do this? Will I have to remove the Grill or the Bumper? or is there another method?

Any help most gratefully accepted.

David

[bothwell_buyer]

The horn is embedded behind the front bumper. You can access the wiring going down to the horn... I did and I fitted a set of airhorns and just stuck them in the space beside the washer filler. Or you can fit a small horn up just behind the radiator and mounted on the top cross member.

Problem with taking the bumper off, like any aged car, is getting the bolts off.

Anchorman on here takes bumpers off in his sleep and whilst their off, paints the area to stop any rust forming. So its possible!