New Rav Owner...possibly!

[Roly]

Hi all

Looking at a 2001 2.0 petrol GX with 48k on the clock, as a replacement (need more space) for a current Corolla 1.6 T3 2002 that seems to be suffering oil problems...which has got me thinking...do the RAVs suffer oil loss with their vvti engines?

Also as I've been reading through various sites I have seen the posts about Flywheels - are they a problem on petrol engines too?

Going to have a look at the car on Friday and is there anything I should be looking out for - potentially buying from a main dealer so will come with 12 month warranty.

Nervous buyer I'm afraid!

Cheers for any help

[yap]

Hi all

Looking at a 2001 2.0 petrol GX with 48k on the clock, as a replacement (need more space) for a current Corolla 1.6 T3 2002 that seems to be suffering oil problems...which has got me thinking...do the RAVs suffer oil loss with their vvti engines?

Also as I've been reading through various sites I have seen the posts about Flywheels - are they a problem on petrol engines too?

Going to have a look at the car on Friday and is there anything I should be looking out for - potentially buying from a main dealer so will come with 12 month warranty.

Nervous buyer I'm afraid!

Cheers for any help

Hi Roly

Had my 2001 gx for 3 weeks now its a toyota approved used also, i havent had any drop in oil at all so far as for flywheels same there in any case as its approved it comes with 12 month toyota extended warranty which you can extend until the car is 7 yrs old.No problems so far id recommend mudflaps get them in the deal when haggling you do get a bit of muck thrown up on the lower sills and door bottoms on the GX.Give it a good test drive check the tyres etc and bodywork for any dings scratches and get them sorted as part of the deal if you buy a toyota approved you have the 12 month warranty for any unforseen problems Good luck!

[NMaria]

I had a 2001 51 reg GX for a couple of years, did nearly 40k miles with it and it was completely fault-free. Not a drop of oil anywhere and I have not heard any reports of such problems. The only thing that I found to be a - very minor - problem and that I understand many others experienced with the same vintage too was a persistent and incurable dashboard rattle! And the alloy wheels were impossible to keep clean, having a sort of textured rather than a smooth varnished finish. Otherwise it was a fantastic vehicle. Towed our little caravan around the Alps with three adults and a heap of luggage on board, without missing a beat. Great. We are now returning to the RAV4, going to pick up our XT-R D4-D next week.

And from what I have read the flywheel problem occurred on the diesels only - but I can't be sure about that.

Hope 'your' car is a good one and that you get many happy years' motoring out of it!

[Roly]

Took the plunge and got it - what a fun car to drive!

In good condition, though front tyres are well worn with more wear on the outer edges...both the same too - backs have good tread one is Toyo and other is Dunlop, will that cause problems?? Am looking to change the front tyres to Goodyear Wrangler HP and just debating (funds) whether to do back too.

Overall very impressed with the car and the kids love it.

Bit of wheel wobble at 70 but hoping the tyres will sort that

Cheers for advice

[bigmoonface]

Sure you won't regret it Roly. I bought a 2000 RAV4 with 49k on the clock about 4 months ago. I use it for work mainly driving round country lanes and its never let me down yet!! :)

[M. Renner]

Three things should be considered, as this is what i did when buying,

a) Engine Condition, (Engine Oil, Race while first starting, Engine Air and Mobil Filter),

B) The Exhaust Pipe ( Slight smoke with sufficient water dispensing; this confirms the best tuning condition)

c) Self-help (It means self starter should work without pumping the accelerator)

I get 36 km/gallon in the highway (9 km/litre) and 7-8 km/litre in the city, smtimes even more than that.

If u drive smoothly, the consumption will b also much smoother. :P

[bitman]

Well I bought a 2001 Rav4 last year as Valetine gift for my missus. Only one sensor broke but fixed under Toyota extended warranty. The alloys corrode but that's with all Toyota / Lexus cars the same. I know since I had 2 IS200.

And guess what, I like this vehicle so much that I will ditch my Mercedes Benz C220 CDI from 2003 for a Rav4 to... Say no more...

[Nightstalker]

Hi all...

I am toying with the idea of dropping my t4 54 avensis hatchback for a 2002 rav 4 gx. I am finding it very hard though to make my mind up as all reviews say that the boot space on the rav 4 is 410ltrs and 510 on the avensis...the whole idea of changing is that I need more trunk space to be able to accomodate a double buggy (mamas and papas avria or sommet like that) and in the avensis the boot is big enough but no good if I want to add bags - travel cot - highchair and so on. I think and hope that with the rav4 I could stand the buggy up either against the rear of the back seat or up against the boot door, then I should be able to stack all the rest of the luggage up...

JUST CANT MAKE MY MIND UP.....

what u think????

[Roly]

Having moved from a T3 Corolla, the boot seems huge! Seats move forward and the height is good for stacking - kids have more room in the back now and so far we have been able to throw things in without consideration - not so with the Corolla. Helped move my sister at the weekend and was impressed with the way it swallowed everything up. All in all very impressed, feels safe and sturdy but not too big, quite quick when it needs to be, & gets lots of looks.

Have a good look round one and drive it...early days for us but have to say I'm very glad we decided to go for one.

Good luck with the search.

[Nightstalker]

going to be testdriving one on the 14th its a gold 2002 2ltr gx its only got 18k on the clock which aint to bad considering the age of the rav. Im just going to miss my creature comforts from my avensis. like the steering wheel controls climate rather than just aircon, electric folding mirrors for tight parking spaces and so on...Also I've got tape and cd player in my vensis this way I can hook up my ipod via tape convertor...IF I like the rav I will have to look at replacing the stereo with my alpine system and see if I can get the ipod hardwired in. Also in the vensis I have a 12v socket for the back seat passengers (to hook up DVD for the littlens) I believe the rav has got one just infront of the arm rest if I remember rightly...

Mainly its going to be a descision of the boot space....if the buggy we've got can stand up and there is still plenty of space for the rest of the littlens stuff then I think its going to have to be bye bye vensis...hello rav 4...just hope the running costs wont be tooo steep.... :!Removed!:

[bitman]

if you gone test drive it, bring your buggy with you so you can see your self how it fits! don't take a word from the sales people...

yes, you will loose some comforts but there is allways a way to get them back! ;-) just google around and you will find lots of aftermarket mods.

have fun,

bt