Previous owner did 25k miles in one year

[APS]

2 hours ago, Willss said:

an £8k saving is probably worth some inconvenience!!!

Indeed. You can do a lot of repairs for 8k.

[Flatcoat]

49 minutes ago, APS said:

Indeed. You can do a lot of repairs for 8k.

Given repairs are unlikely, you can buy an awful lot of fuel with that, or, buy a newer Across for the higher amount. 

[APS]

Right. I should have specified "Out of warranty repairs" as that was the context. But yes, you can do a lot with eight grand.

[piorunz]

On 10/31/2024 at 8:16 AM, Flatcoat said:

If this has stressed you then you might need to buy new. To be honest for me the mileage is a non-issue. The car appears to have been serviced correctly so what is the problem? The theft aspect can be dealt with and not every one is having their RAV’s stolen. I have a PHEV and it is great but theft was never a consideration in my purchase decision. I love my cars and had countless cars in my life, but at the end of the day it is a lump of metal, plastic and 4 wheels. What is there to stress about! 

It’s not just about losing a “lump of metal,” but also about dealing with the aftermath: insurance claims, inconvenience, and the potential for increased premiums. Plus, it’s frustrating to think that something you’ve worked hard for could be gone in minutes. Taking theft into consideration is a practical part of responsible ownership, especially with models that may be more frequently targeted.

[Flatcoat]

40 minutes ago, piorunz said:

It’s not just about losing a “lump of metal,” but also about dealing with the aftermath: insurance claims, inconvenience, and the potential for increased premiums. Plus, it’s frustrating to think that something you’ve worked hard for could be gone in minutes. Taking theft into consideration is a practical part of responsible ownership, especially with models that may be more frequently targeted.

Yes but it is also important to stop the doom mongering over thefts too. Reports on a forum are not necessarily representative of wider problems. And, Toyota have put in play a solution which can be added to with appropriate owner security devices. Let’s keep this in proportion. And I have had attempted thefts of a caravan so well aware of the implications. 

[Willss]

Don't want to make this an add on to the stolen thread but the statistics put me off getting one.  The vast majority of places in the country your Rav4 should be completely safe/fine.

However, some areas have silly levels of theft. Honest John reported last year that 12% of all Rav4s in the capital were stolen in 2023. Bearing in mind there will be plenty of plug in hybrids and older Rav4s (that wouldn't/can't be stolen) the percentage of the HEVs in the capital that were stolen will be much higher than the 12% quoted - odds I don't like!

I want to park my car and not worry unduly about it.  ATM a Rav4 would not fit that requirement in any large urban area I visited.

[Nick72]

I am careful and concerned where I leave my PHEV even though it is a company car under blanket company insurance which I don't pay a penny of. This is for two reasons. 

1. I just don't have the time nor energy for the inconvenience, filling out 50 forms, waiting to get a temporary run about, all the disruption, then ages to get a replacement. Hassle and time I absolutely want to avoid.

2. I probably have about 800 quids worth of personal gear stashed in the car. Survival, mountaineering, off grid, through to various tools. That's 100 forms to complete and the time and effort to find receipts, repurchase etc. Back to 1.

So I use a visible deterrent in a Milenco steering lock, even though the car isn't vulnerable to the CANbus attack. Nothing on display to brake a window for, it's alarmed, it's trackable, and there's a hardened steel steering lock. 

I don't think the current RAV4 hybrid situation would put me off getting one but I would insist on getting each and every fix from Toyota AND applying a steering lock AND some window stickers to multiple tracking solutions installed. But I would consider other options too and compare the insurance premiums.

I've not seen any hard stats on normalised vehicle theft rates by vehicle type and by geographic area. There may be a dataset available I could run some analytics on? Devil always in the detail as to whether a thing is really a problem or it isn't. That said, insurance premiums will follow what's happening based upon claims. So if they're going up more on the RAV4 hybrid versus other vehicles then that probably says a lot.

[NASY]

I get the feeling that likelihood of theft would certainly put me off if I lived in a vulnerable area. Some areas of the UK appear to be making people who own stuff vulnerable, car, watch, camera even a phone.

[philip42h]

11 minutes ago, NASY said:

I get the feeling that likelihood of theft would certainly put me off if I lived in a vulnerable area. Some areas of the UK appear to be making people who own stuff vulnerable, car, watch, camera even a phone.

True enough ... but under those circumstances, I'd move somewhere better ... 😉

More seriously, that generation of RAV4 (and C-HR together with other manufacturers / models) are more vulnerable to theft than they should be and are being actively targeted by criminals in certain areas. Choices include:

1. Ignore the problem and hope that it doesn't happen.
2. Avail yourself of additional security provisions and protections.
3. Switch to a less vulnerable vehicle - older / less attractive to criminals / better protected.
4. Move to a better neighbourhood.

Not all options will be available to everyone!

[NASY]

Philip you are right. Explains in some way the popularity of less desirable products - Dacia Duster for instance, where purely adequate hits a sweet spot for many including one of my neighbours.

[Mead]

Rav4Eng - Not sure if you are going to consider a Suzuki Across (phev) or what your budget is but having looked through Autotrader today apart from the various age models highlighted by Willss already I feel that the best value 2023 version on offer at present for a reasonable price (£28,790) compared to a Toyota, is the one listed here which has been dropped in price in the last month by around £2000, Its advertised as 22000 miles, two services and first registered 30th March 2023. All tyres are the same type which is often a good sign and appears to be a reasonable garage according to various reviews. Obviously from a distance and not physically seeing the car this cannot be a full recommendation and all depends on your personal circumstances etc of course. Hopefully the link below works and you find it of interest.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202410044818700?sort=price-asc&advertising-location=at_cars&make=Suzuki&model=Across&page=2&postcode=PO14 3EG&fromsra

[skidlid]

20 hours ago, Willss said:

Honest John reported last year that 12% of all Rav4s in the capital were stolen in 2023.

Did they say where the info came from or was it simply made up nonsense.

Just remember that Honest John is owned by heycar who are backed by VAG and Daimler. By some strange coincidence both companies just happen to make SUV's that occupy the same market sector as the RAV4 but generally they get much worse customer satisfaction reports.

But never let the truth get in the way of a good story (credit to Mark Twain).

[philip42h]

34 minutes ago, skidlid said:

21 hours ago, Willss said:

Honest John reported last year that 12% of all Rav4s in the capital were stolen in 2023.

Did they say where the info came from or was it simply made up nonsense.

The actual HJ statement reads: "Meanwhile, the Toyota RAV4 was the second most stolen vehicle – boasting, with 826 thefts from just 7009 on the road, a somewhat unenviable 12% theft rate."

Allegedly from HPI data. I can't "fact check" the number of thefts - I'll have to accept that there were 826. But looking at the data from "How many left" there were 59,744 RAV4 HEVs on the road, which chops the theft rate down to less than 1.4% and doesn't sound quite so alarming.

According to the Daily Mail: "The Toyota Rav4 is proportionally the fifth most stolen car in the UK of which 1,164 out of 142,919 models on the road being stolen in 2023, or 1 in 123" - that would be 0.81%, but the DM is including more RAV4s than just the HEVs.

Whatever the actual number or true statistic, the chances of a vulnerable RAV4 HEV being stolen are small, but not insignificant ... 😞

[Strangely Brown]

2 hours ago, philip42h said:

Whatever the actual number or true statistic, the chances of a vulnerable RAV4 HEV being stolen are small, but not insignificant ...

... and is very much influenced by geography and also any other visible deterrents that the owner may have in place.

IMO, the best barometer, from those most likely to have accurate information, is insurance premiums. There are some stories of massive increases and refusals to quote or provide cover. This is balanced by other underwriters who are either not as risk averse or simply don't see the same problem.

In my case: I renewed at the end of last month and the premium was actually down slightly on last year. OK, not a lot, but the point is that it hadn't gone through the roof as I was expecting and had actually reduced, a little.

Every case will be different and the risks, as we know them, can be mitigated. Not sure how much that is true in central London but it is certainly the case further away.

[NASY]

You're right, the bookies - or in this case insurance companies (same business), rarely get it wrong, my premium went down this year too.