Rav4 Petrol Or Diesel

[TaffnDebs]

Hi thanks for allowing me to join, I am looking to buy a Rav4 and just wondered the pros and cons of petrol or diesel, are all petrol engines with a cam chain or just some, thanks in advance for your help

Debs

[FROSTYBALLS]

Hello Lyndon - welcome to Toyota Owners Club.

Thread moved to the Rav4 club to generate more responses.

[firemac]

Welcome. I've owned a number of diesel and petrol RAV's since 2002. Currently we have a 3-dr 4.2 petrol automatic (and a Land Cruiser disel auto).

Your decision should depend upon how you are going to use the car. If you will mainly be doing lots of relatively short runs/commutes then petrol is a better bet as modern diesels with all the kit that is bolted on to keep them clean just don't like that sort of usage. Diesels need to get up to temperature and stay there for reasonable periods of time in order to allow them to deal effectively with the soot and various noxious gases that they produce. When they are used for short runs they don't get up to temp and essentially clog up with soot particulates which in turn can have expensive consequences in terms of repairs/replacements.

Also, do you want a manual or an autobox? If you are looking at an earlier RAV, such as the 4.2 (1999 -2006) then you will only get the autobox with the petrol engine. In this model you will have the option of 3 or 5 doors (the RAV 4.3 from 2006 to 2013 was 5 door only as is the current 4.4 from 2013). In the 4.3 and 4.4 you can have an autobox with the disel engine whilst the petrol autos in these mosels are CVTs rather than traditional torque converter automatics. The CVT box is very good however and hard to tell from a traditional TC box - unlike many CVTs in other marques that can be quite useless.

The 2.0 vvt-i petrol engine is bomb-proof. The only thing to watch out for mechanically is the water pump; Toyota water pumps can weep slightly but nevertheless go on forever. Our first RAV 4.2 auto ran for 9 years on its original water pump despite being flagged up as weeping by Toyota at every service during that time. The other thing to watch out for is the serpentine belt (essentially a very long, sophisticated fan belt that drives the water pump, alternator, air con compressor, etc.) which effectively strands the car if it breaks as it is not a service item with Toyota and has to be ordered specially (so you have no chance of finding one in Halfords even if you were able to fit it yourself and that is not a straightforward job); therefore the car will be off the road for at least 2 days until you can get it sorted. However they are very robust (ours only broke after 9 years) and are relatively easily replaced at a convenient service and only cost about £120 fitted - I reckon 5 years is a good point to replace at for your piece of mind. If you go for the automatic in a 4.2 or in a 4.3 diesel you will experience what I reckon is one of the nicest engine/box combos ever. They really are smooth and very responsive. The 4.2's is a 4-speed (top being an overdrive ratio) and the 4.3 diesel's is a 6-speed. I've not driven the new 4.4 so can't comment personally but I'm told they are just as good. The early 4.2 automatics (i.e. from '99 to '03) can sometimes suffer from a failing in the ECU that controls the gearbox but if it does occur there is a permanent software fix for abou £300.

The only drawback with the petrol motor is that it is not particularly economical, particularly if it is mated to the autobox. Our 5-dr 4.2 was my wife's car and was used mostly for urban commutes (school run, shopping, etc) with the occasional long run and it averaged 20 - 25 MPG. At the same time I was running a 3-dr 4.2 auto that was used mainly for long distance commutes (100 miles each way) and it did 33 MPG.

The D4D 2.0 diesel is an excellent engine with a good reputation. I had a 4.2 Granite manual model and it was first class, gave no problems, was used for daily commutes of about 50 miles each way and returned an average 45 MPG. Our 4.3 D-CAT 2.2 automatic was also a brilliant car which performed faultlessly and returned an average 32 MPG (this went up to 36 MPG once we chipped the engine but that is a story for another time).

If you are looking at buying a 4.3 diesel with the 2.2 engine that was built before about 2008-09 watch out for the well-documented head gasket problem - read the pinned "Charlie Farlie's Guide to the 2.2 Engine problem..." thread at the top of this forum index. RAVs with this problem were given an extended warranty (7 years) and affected engines were replaced by Toyota. So check any car of this age carefully; any Toyota dealer will; be able to tell you if it has had a replacement engine if you have the reg or VIN number. The replacement programme was very effective and I am aware of only one or two replaced engines that subsequently failed again.

Also watch out whether you are buying a 4WD or a Front Wheel only Drive as there was the option in the 4.3 & 4.4. 4.2s are mostly 4WD but the 1.8 petrol came as a 2WD. The 4.2 is permanent 4WD whereas the 4.3 and 4.4 are an "on-demand" 4WD system where they run in 2WD except when moving off from rest or when any slippage is detected at the rear when they revert to full 4WD. The transmissions are very robust and seldom give any problems as long as they are serviced properly and oil levels are maintained.

In every other respect the cars are reliable, robust and extremely well built. Rust is not a known issue.

Good luck and let us know how you get on.

[pmb]

Firemac summed it up rather well there but my water pump didn't "go on forever" and I had to have it changed. The 4.1 petrol was belt driven but the 4.2 petrol (and I presume onwards?) has a cam chain.

[firemac]

Firemac summed it up rather well there but my water pump didn't "go on forever" and I had to have it changed. The 4.1 petrol was belt driven but the 4.2 petrol (and I presume onwards?) has a cam chain.

You're correct, Paul. The vvt-i engine has a timing chain. The diesels have a timing belt.

[firemac]

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[firemac]

[firemac]

[Mike169]

Hi Debs

Welcome to the club, the best by far Toyota Rav 4 club.

Can we ask first of all what's your budjet, how much you are prepared to pay and what sort of run's/journey the vehicle you wish to buy is likely to do? Some diesels were a nightmare regarding head gaskets, some manuals seem to have clutch problems, both and all depending on year, so what i am asking is asking is what you want the vehicle for and how deep are your pockets, lol.

Regards.

[TaffnDebs]

Hi Mike my budget is around £2500, by the looks if im lucky a 53 plate tops, its for everyday use although we wont use it for work, so probably not used much during the week maybe just to the local town 6 miles away, on a monthly basis will be 250 miles down to Devon so motorway mainly with a few country roads, have test driven a diesel today and it felt a lovely drive love the driving position and it seemed to be quite pokey

Thank you for all that have replied it has been very helpful so far.

Debs

[redlew]

For that money I'd say you need to be looking at buying privately from someone who has really looked after it with a FSH.

Take your time and the right one will turn one.

[Mike169]

Hi Debs, what you don't want is a 2006-2009 diesel unless it has had a new engine fitted by Toyota as for this period they made a bad batch of engines and they were replaced FOC but with restrictions but all of the time limits are well past now. Prior to this age they were good and i would suggest an automatic as when the clutches wear out on a manual version can be more costly than you will believe.....so petrol or diesel, thats up to you, look for an automatic gearbox model. Suggest you look on Autotrader and see what's avalable and don't 'panic buy', look for one that feels good and as mentiond has service history if possible.

Regards.

[firemac]

Hi Debs, what you don't want is a 2006-2009 diesel unless it has had a new engine fitted by Toyota as for this period they made a bad batch of engines and they were replaced FOC but with restrictions but all of the time limits are well past now. Prior to this age they were good and i would suggest an automatic as when the clutches wear out on a manual version can be more costly than you will believe.....so petrol or diesel, thats up to you, look for an automatic gearbox model. Suggest you look on Autotrader and see what's avalable and don't 'panic buy', look for one that feels good and as mentiond has service history if possible.

Regards.

Can't see how she will get a 4.3 at her budget. The 4.2 in a private sale might be possible.

Re the engine type, a 4.2 auto is going to be petrol only with high mileage and it will be a pre-facelift model so there will be a risk of the ECU software problem that affects the gearbox. Although this is easily fixable, it still needs to be factored into the budget calcs. Also, the MPG is not going to be as good as with a 4.2 diesel.

I reckon a 4.2 D4D (manual only of course) would be the best option, ensuring a very comprehensive test drive to avoid any of the driveline issues that Mike refers to.

[Raistlin]

Hi, Welcome to the club... Enjoy

[TaffnDebs]

Hi I have found a Toyota RAV4 2.0 VVT-i XT3 5dr 2004 53 plate for £2600 the only slight thing thats bothering me is that it has had 6 owners, I am looking at it this evening do you think its worth me doing so.

[firemac]

Hi I have found a Toyota RAV4 2.0 VVT-i XT3 5dr 2004 53 plate for £2600 the only slight thing thats bothering me is that it has had 6 owners, I am looking at it this evening do you think its worth me doing so.

A high number of owners could indicate a problem with the car or it could just mean that several of them found that they had bought it and it didn't suit them. But the car is 12 years old so that's an average of 2 years' ownwership each - not particularly strange.

The mileage needs to be reasonable - 140K would support an average of 12K per year, which ia the norm. Mileage less than this is a bonus. Not too low however as that could indicate a lot of short, start-stop journeys which aren't good for the engine in particular.

Service record? If it has been serviced every 10K miles in accordance with Toyota's schedule, that's great. Check condition of bodywork and interior; these are excellent indicators of how well (or badly) the car has been treated.

Is it a manual or auto? If auto, at that age, you should not haveto worry about the ECU software glitch which affected the early cars. The fact that it's a XT3 indicates that it is a facelift 4.2.5 model but, to be sure, just have a look at the front end: if the indicators are built into the top raer of the headlight unit and the foglights in the lower bumper are round then it is definitely the newer model. Manuals are usually fine but give the clutch a good workout on your test drive.

If you're buying from a dealer, you will have some comeback if anything goes wrong within a reasonable period but a private sale means you're on your own legally. Make sure everything works as it should and don't be rushed.

The test drive needs to be thorough. Take your time and try to drive on as many different types of road as poss - m-ways included. A 12 yr old car is bound to have one or two issues but, if they are small then you can fix or live with them.

Good luck.