Razgo

Thanks for the replies guys. It must have been something the rental car i had then? I just couldn't slide the drivers seat back far enough. hmmm.... I was hoping the v6 or at least the ZR6 had maybe sports dampers and better engine bay insulation? I was contemplating the prado kakadu but struggling to justify the $30K difference. And for some reason i just don't like the kluger at all. I only sat in the kluger grande at the car yard and it just didn't appeal to me at all. The general consensus among a lot of people is they go for the kluger as its not much more than the rav4. But i can't get past the fact that the Rav4 has **** loads of room and has a great power to weight ratio. The 4cyl rav4 i hired had tons of power but when i read so called professional reviews they say its a little under powered? On road noise insulation issue I think it's possible to fix that? like isn't there a way to insulate teh engine firewall more and underneath? the road noise wasn't terrible for me but was notable depending on the type of road surface i was on. I think i can get a Rav4 ZR6 for maybe $45K vs Prado Kakadu for $74-75K with interest rates going up i am probably better off term deposit the $30K difference until i can afford to upgrade :) I think there is more space in the Rav4 too as the Prado 3rd row seats fold into the floor loosing that 90ltr well space that the Rav4 has. I have yokohama tires on my tarago and they are quite as. hmmm...... still thinking :) russ

There were 3 things that concerned me. 1. Road noise 2. the drivers seat didn't seem to go back far enough. 3. hard suspension. This was a 2010 4cyl model. Is the V6 model less road noise? my 2007 tarago seems much more quieter than the rav4 so i was used to quiet interior. Driving from chinchilla to Roma is a good test drive for road noise and bumpy roads and i felt it was a little too still for my liking. so not sure if was just the model i had or not? They still seem to be best value for money though. I didn't like the Kluger at all. The Prado i would definatly like to own but much more expensive. zr6 $50K vs $80K for the Prado Kakado. hmmmm..... so i wondered if the zr6 was actually a little softer on the suspension? russ

I have hired a new rav4 today for the next 5 days to see how i feel about them with a view to purchase. Although this is a base model and i would be buying the zr6 it would still give me a pretty good indication. I will then hire the Klugger as well as i got a quote for Zr6 $49,890 and Grande $57K so not a huge difference in price but not sure if it's worth paying the extra just yet. Only did a short run down the gold coast and back about 200K and it was quite enjoyable ride. As i am coming from a 2007 Tarago 1.8 tonne i did notice the smaller size but not overly that much different. They seem a lot larger inside than they do from the outside too. And funny enough stepping into the seat is actually about an inch lower than my Tarago. But the Rav has the much higher clearance underneath. The first thing i miss was no gadget/change compartment on the right side of dash between wheel and door. Also they could have made the storage indoor compartment a lot larger like they do in the Tarago. small inconveniences though :) I am very impressed with how toey it actually is both off the mark and with over taking. You punch the pedal and it gives the right answer. I felt a much stiffer suspension but that was to be expected and it seemed to drive very tight on the road. A very zippy responsive vehicle with a slight sport feel to it. I will be heading out to Roma about 500K's away this week-end so i will see how things are after that trip. I can fit my wife's wheel chair int the back with still lots of room for everything else. I am actually surprised ow much i can fit in the back so far :) I do also miss the arm rest that the Tarago has for both driver and passenger and i keep reaching for that gear shift on the dash to rest my hand lol but its just not there :) Oh I also too it through some real boggy sand down the coast and it plowed through it like it was nothing. impressed with that too :) Also i was concerned with the electric power steer assist. I actually didn't even notice it :) perhaps my tarago has it too as i never noticed any difference whatsoever and it had plenty of feed back through the wheel. Well i will see how the next few days go. russ

thanks for the clarification. well i guess its like anything you can get used to it. one review i read said it didn't tend to recenter properly. not sure if that was just that car they reviewed on that day of its normal. russ

How do new to rav4 owners adjust to electric power steer? Having no real feedback when steering would take some getting used too? its the only thing i haven't really warmed to in the rav4. the only electric power steer car i ever had int he past was a V8 fairlaine, ZG from memory. going to hire one this week so i guess i will find out soon. russ

I am glad to have read this thread with first hand experience on the rav4. I will probably not do any towing at first but wanted to know the the rav4 V6 was still capable to do some off roading. I will be doing some fossicking/metal detecting around Australia so really only need to be able to do basic 4wheel driving where a normal 2wheel drive would not normally go. But at the same time I will be traveling large distances and wanted to be comfortable and have highway power. I have heard reports it can be a bit choppy/bouncy when offroad and not so much car like when highway driving? would it be not much different to driving a ute which has that bounce tendency? or way better? Because if my wifes disability I need to know she won't be flopping about all over the place. Of course i will be doing test drives before i purchase anyway though. I am also going to hire one this week for a short trip to Roma and back.(brisbane) to get some idea. I also read somewhere that rav4 made some minor changes this year? I really wanted teh landcrusier turbo deisel but just can't justify the $100K price tag yet. So i looked at the kluger & prado but decided to go for the top of the bottom range rav4 ZR6 instead as its very close overall to the kluger and prado anyway and has all the niceties :) russ

I found a great spec sheet comparison on the GLI, GLX and ultima here http://www.pressroom.com.au/newpressroom/t...taragoV6/22.xls

how's the perfomance of it?? (its a heavy car, 1800kg) I was taken by surprise on how well it performed. it simply drove like a car with a v6 in it. On take off i put the pedal to the metal flat and it gave me a good response straight to 60KM hr very quickly. i don't know what its like at highway speeds as i never tested it that far. but bottom end grunt at low speeds was impressive. my reasons for looking at a purchase is many. i needed a vehicle that could take my wifes large wheel chair as its like a lounge chair on wheels. but i also needed something that could take passengers as well. with the 3rd row fold away seats it was amazing at the extra room in the back. but i also wanted something with a bit of power and also not drive like an old van. so when i saw the specs on this V6 tarago i was sold! the only time you realise your in a van i guess is when turning tight corners. Oh and is it quite!! no noise whatsoever! and the audio acoustics when talking in the van while driving is extremely good.

I just took the GLI for a test drive today! awsome! when you slide into the drivers seat its like sitting in a car. 6 speed auto gear change is incredible good and smooth too. I am considering buying the ultima.