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I actually bought my mother a cr-v not too long ago. I liked the rav4 mostly because of the v6, but with gas prices i4> v6 unless you can afford it. my moms been averaging about 23-24 mpg with suburban driving which is decent, i can only imagine what a v6 would've been.
Although the 3.5L V6 is pretty fuel efficient for what it is, yeah it's not going to see those CR-V numbers your mom gets. So far the avg mpg on the speedo says 20.5 combined. Some 4 cylinder Rav4s guys are seeing as much as 28 mpg combined.
Update, and not a good one. It seems certain Rav4 V6s have transmission problems and it starts with an audible whine. Neither one of us heard it on the test drive but after a week of commuting into work my wife asked me if it was normal. Turns out there's a TSB for it and it's a two step procedure. Step one is replacing the tranny mounts, and if that doesn't work, step two is replacing the tranny.
Thankfully she's covered by the factory powertrain warranty for another 2 years/30k miles. It's going into the dealership next Friday for the tranny mounts. From what I've read on the Rav4 forum it typically does nothing, so step two is immanent. I just can't outrun V6 auto transmission issues I guess. I truly thought the CL-S would be my last transmission replacement. At least on the bright side it sounds like these replacement transmissions actually hold up and there typically isn't a second failure afterwards. It's just a giant PITA after purchasing what we thought would be a trouble free vehicle and already it's been in the shop once for a safety recall, going for a second time for the tranny mounts and possibly after that for a replacement transmission. Good times.
Thanks fellas. Yeah, it's a bummer but thankfully it's covered and not like we have to pay out of pocket for it. I just feel like a chump urging my wife to buy the car and already it's going in and out of the shop, but again, could be worse and hopefully after this it'll be trouble free for a long, long time.
Five long days after dropping the Rav4 off for the mounts (was told a 1 day job) and I just got the dreaded "Phase 2" call. Toyota is putting a newly refurbished transmission in the Rav4 for us. 5 to 6 business days to come in and then 1 to 2 days to install, which with this dealership really means 2 weeks. At least it's being done and is covered 100% by Toyota, just a giant PITA for my wife. /End Rant
Five long days after dropping the Rav4 off for the mounts (was told a 1 day job) and I just got the dreaded "Phase 2" call. Toyota is putting a newly refurbished transmission in the Rav4 for us. 5 to 6 business days to come in and then 1 to 2 days to install, which with this dealership really means 2 weeks. At least it's being done and is covered 100% by Toyota, just a giant PITA for my wife. /End Rant
Are you guys still driving it, or do you have a loaner, or did they stick you with nothing?
Are you guys still driving it, or do you have a loaner, or did they stick you with nothing?
Originally they told me they don't give out loaners anymore due to liability issues, but after expressing how disappointed I was a couple times they gave us a loaner. Tonight my wife dropped the loaner off and picked the Rav back up. When they get the tranny they said they'll give her the loaner back so at least she'll have transportation for how ever long they take to install the new tranny.
Originally they told me they don't give out loaners anymore due to liability issues, but after expressing how disappointed I was a couple times they gave us a loaner. Tonight my wife dropped the loaner off and picked the Rav back up. When they get the tranny they said they'll give her the loaner back so at least she'll have transportation for how ever long they take to install the new tranny.
and This came from the same service manager that told me the mounts would take one day. Once the trany is replaced I'll be making a formal complaint to the dealership about his misquotes.
I would look at this as a blessing in disguise, not the misquotes but the new tranny. The best 2005 RLs on the road are the ones that have had all the TSBs performed. Getting it done on their dollar is a win.
I would look at this as a blessing in disguise, not the misquotes but the new tranny. The best 2005 RLs on the road are the ones that have had all the TSBs performed. Getting it done on their dollar is a win.
Oh I definitely agree. That's what I've been telling my wife. Once this is taken care of we'll be problem-free for a long time. Of course there's other little issues people are reporting on the forums, but a tranny replacement is huge. So far everyone with the replacement tranny has reported no more whine and no issues whatsoever.
Thanks for asking, T. We're all fine. My wife and I woke up to crazy strong winds and rain last night around 3am, power was out and we heard distant tornado sirens going off, but thankfully it was just severe thunderstorms in our area. There's twigs and branches here and there on the ground, but no major damage that I or my wife saw this morning.
Thanks for asking, T. We're all fine. My wife and I woke up to crazy strong winds and rain last night around 3am, power was out and we heard distant tornado sirens going off, but thankfully it was just severe thunderstorms in our area. There's twigs and branches here and there on the ground, but no major damage that I or my wife saw this morning.
I just need to vent. The dealership we took my wife's Rav to for a recall service and the transmission whine was a complete waste of our time and was the worst dealership experience I've ever encountered. Not only did they not create any record of the initial recall work and for the engine mounts, but I suspect they never ordered the replacement transmission they said they did. They told us over a month ago it should take 5-6 days to arrive. After over 3 weeks of waiting and hearing nothing from them I contacted Toyota Customer Care and explained the situation.
Toyota Customer Care advised me to contact the customer relations manager at a different dealership and explain the situation, which I did, and the new dealership was more than willing to help us out. My wife dropped the car off at the dealership last Friday. Despite having the previous dealership tell us a new remanufactured transmission was needed, this new dealership had to document it themselves. Why's that if the first dealership already did it? Because not only did we never receive paperwork from them, but they never entered a damn thing into their computer system, so we basically had no idea if they ever performed any of the work they said they did. For all we know my wife's Rav could have just been sitting there for 5 days having never moved from it's original spot. Hell even the simple recall on the rear suspension arm bolt wasn't documented. God forbid that bolt broke and my wife got into an accident with our son in the car... you know, just scary sh*t to think about.
After the new dealership did a road test they basically told my wife they were having a hard time determining if the sound we were hearing was considered out of the norm or not. I immediately started thinking here we go they're not going to replace the tranny and they're just going to tell us it's a normal noise and send us on our way. Well thankfully they actually came through for us and told us ealier this week that they decided to replace the transmisison and it should be here hopefully by early next week and they're going to provide a loaner for my wife.
So after the horrible experience with the first dealership, this one has so far made up for it with their excellent customer service. Now what though... do I just let what the original dealership did to us go or do I go on Yelp and Yahoo and bash the original dealership or maybe contact the local news station investigative reporter? I feel like someone with no car knowledge would get completely taken by these guys, and who knows, if someone gets hurt because they claimed to do a recall service yet never did and someone recks, I'd feel terrible.
CLIFFS • Dealership #1 never provided paperwork for recall nor was it entered into Toyota computer system
• Dealership #1 claims they no longer provide loaner cars because of liability
• Dealership #1 says engine mount replacement will take 1 day - Ends up taking them 5+ days
• Dealership #1 finally breaks down and gives wife a loaner car, a Corolla lol
• Dealership #1 never provided paperwork for engine mounts nor was it entered into Toyota computer system
• Dealership #1 says engine mounts didn't fix whine so a remanufactured tranny should arrive in 5-6 business days
• After 3+ weeks of waiting for Dealership #1 to call I break down and contact Toyota Customer Care
• Sent to Dealership #2 who has to do their own diognosis because Dealership #1 never provided paperwork nor entered anything into the Toyota computer records
• Dealership #2 says they're having a hard time determining what noise is or isn't normal coming from tranny
• Wife gets call earlier this week Dealership #2 will replace tranny which should arrive in 2-3 days
• Do I bash Dealership #1 and praise Dealership #2 or just walk away?
Last edited by SuperTrooper169; 03-01-2013 at 03:07 PM.
You can bash dealer #1 on the review sites...even the BBB...really thats about all, sadly. You can file a formal complaint with Toyota as well I'm sure.
But in the case of loaners...they dont have to provide one...but for work that takes over a certain amount of time they should provide at least a rental.
Sorry you had that experience. Just goes to show...doesnt matter what emblem is on the hood...there are shit service providers everywhere.
Yeah I agree the loaner situation is kind of moot since it's not required, but the fact they told us they don't give them period and then end up giving us one makes it sit weird. But regardless, you're right, badge doesn't matter when it comes to schumcks in the service department.
No it's a different dealership. We had to travel about 2 hours south of Nashville to find the exact Rav I was looking for, so we knew for any kind of service we'd be taking it to a local dealership.
Overall the Rav4 has been a great vehicle. The only issue we've had was the transmission which Toyota replaced no cost to us in March. The week before Christmas we dropped Ravi off at the dealership that replaced the tranny to fix a small leak from one of the gaskets in the new tranny, which once again cost us nothing, so kudos to Toyota for standing behind their good faith work.
The Rav's still as fun as ever to drive. It always amazes me when I drive it after getting out of my Charger. I expect it to feel slow but it doesn't. It's gas pedal is way more sensitive so it feels so quick to respond. It's definitely not a chore to drive and I'm glad I convinced my better half to get the V6. It's so much fun to punch it off the line... I never thought an SUV could be so entertaining!
We've had two near death experiences in the Rav4. Well maybe not near death, but close calls that were avoided with a quick jolt of the steering wheel to avoid a collision. In both instances I was driving and was really impressed with how well it handled the maneuver. I don't know if the sport suspension and steering helped, but it was quick to respond and correct afterward. And of course doing the f*ck you WOT fly by afterward with the V6 made me feel much better about avoiding an accident. It must be a silver Toyota thing that makes people not notice you're in the lane next to them.
It's averaged 21.44 mpg overall, which isn't too bad for a V6. The loaner they gave us for two weeks was a '13 Chevy Tahoe. We were both impressed with it and for a moment actually started to convince each other maybe it was an option for us being we haul a sh*t ton more stuff around with two kids now, but we quickly snapped out it when it was time to fill the gas tank up after a trip to the mother land, a.k.a. Kentucky. $75+ and we were like yeahhhhhh no. It's a measly mid-$30 affair with the Rav4 being my wife throws in the Kroger 87 octane gas.
Ravi's been great and the wife is still happy with him (or her, she doesn't even know) so I'd still recommend a Rav4 to family and friends for a small crossover SUV, especially with the 3.5L if you want to have a little fun while hauling the kids to the grocery store.
Must be that good to enjoy enjoy driving it so much! I kinda agree on the pedal sensitivity on my mom's Highlander (hers has the 3.3) since it seemed so touchy after my dad cleaned the throttle body and I was driving it while my car was getting some bodywork. She probably will end up getting a new RAV4 this year since the Highlander is either getting delegated to my brother when he gets his license, or out of the family if the CEL comes back on since it apparently needs a new cat and the dealer told my dad the exhaust manifolds are rotting and will need replacement (dealer said almost $3000 just in parts that my dad's not willing to pay for a 2005). Although, I may show her to an RDX, or she said she saw a Q5 driving and liked it.
Must be that good to enjoy enjoy driving it so much! I kinda agree on the pedal sensitivity on my mom's Highlander (hers has the 3.3) since it seemed so touchy after my dad cleaned the throttle body and I was driving it while my car was getting some bodywork. She probably will end up getting a new RAV4 this year since the Highlander is either getting delegated to my brother when he gets his license, or out of the family if the CEL comes back on since it apparently needs a new cat and the dealer told my dad the exhaust manifolds are rotting and will need replacement (dealer said almost $3000 just in parts that my dad's not willing to pay for a 2005). Although, I may show her to an RDX, or she said she saw a Q5 driving and liked it.
I don't mind taking the Rav instead of the Charger at times. Don't get me wrong I love the power of the Charger, but I love the sleeper aspect of the Rav. Very few know what it's capable of.
As far as the CEL problem in your Dad's Rav4 goes, that's such a common problem with Toyotas. I've know quite a few people with Camry's that have the CEL issue with the cats/manifolds and even after replacing the entire exhaust system they still get the CEL coming on. I'm keeping my fingers crossed we never have to deal with that with our Rav. Is your Dad's an I4 or V6?
I don't mind taking the Rav instead of the Charger at times. Don't get me wrong I love the power of the Charger, but I love the sleeper aspect of the Rav. Very few know what it's capable of.
As far as the CEL problem in your Dad's Rav4 goes, that's such a common problem with Toyotas. I've know quite a few people with Camry's that have the CEL issue with the cats/manifolds and even after replacing the entire exhaust system they still get the CEL coming on. I'm keeping my fingers crossed we never have to deal with that with our Rav. Is your Dad's an I4 or V6?
It's my mom's Highlander with the 3.3 V6 where it came on. My dad's Sierra was worse with all the valve lifters having to get replaced under warranty due to some collapsing . I do like her truck, it's just that the steering feels too over boosted and I prefer the amenities in my Infiniti . I actually think my aunt's '04 RAV4 got the catalytic converter replaced under emissions warranty a few years back, too. They run fine, despite my mom's several accidents, so I'm sure your RAV will keep going for years
I gave Ravi a good wash and Mother's Pure Gold Brazilian Carnauba wax yesterday. 3.5 years and 45k miles of ownership and he still runs like a champ. Other than recall services he's stayed dealership-free since the transmission replacement back in '13. The body work after the deer incident has held up well. The only mods I've done (my wife has let me do) is a drop in K&N filter. The car still pulls hard from a stop and is enjoyable to drive on long trips.
01-13-2013, 10:09 PM
I really hope I never try to pull on a Rav4 and have them keep up. 
Those are 2G RL numbers to a T. Congrats! 
Tonight my wife dropped the loaner off and picked the Rav back up. When they get the tranny they said they'll give her the loaner back so at least she'll have transportation for how ever long they take to install the new tranny.
and 
I just need to vent. The dealership we took my wife's Rav to for a recall service and the transmission whine was a complete waste of our time and was the worst dealership experience I've ever encountered. Not only did they not create any record of the initial recall work and for the engine mounts, but I suspect they never ordered the replacement transmission they said they did. They told us over a month ago it should take 5-6 days to arrive. After over 3 weeks of waiting and hearing nothing from them I contacted Toyota Customer Care and explained the situation. 
. I do like her truck, it's just that the steering feels too over boosted and I prefer the amenities in my Infiniti 
. I actually think my aunt's '04 RAV4 got the catalytic converter replaced under emissions warranty a few years back, too. They run fine, despite my mom's several accidents, so I'm sure your RAV will keep going for years 
