Owners: Would you recommend buying a used Rav4 EV?
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KurtManz
Well-known member
Many of us have bought it used and out of state.
Many first purchases were 3 year leases which expired in 2017 so that brought a wave of new owners.
Read this forum and in the facebook group to get yourself familiar with the car.
Most of us love the car even with the additional care and hassle that involves owning a compliance car.
You said you're handy which usually makes for a good match.
My tl;dr would be:
1. Most people love the convenience of a relatively purely electric "large" SUV (full 5 seater, lots of cargo space, some people add hitch) for <$20K. It's unique in its class. Usual comparison is the X but that's $100K+.
2. There are a few alternatives in the nearby horizon: https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1117536_2019-is-the-year-of-the-electric-suv/page-2
3. The cars need relatively little service, but they're only supported in California. Toyota does have traveling mechanics for other states in the US. Engaging that does take some patience (Warranty helps a lot).
4. There are a few known issues. Some of them are pretty expensive so you'll want to read about getting a Toyota warranty for them so that when you hit one of those issues you're covered for <$2K and not much more. Before buying one check it's history and see if the car has a transferrable warranty and has gone through all the recalls and any of the known issues.
5. It has a range of ~100 miles but only level 2 charging (10KWh). There's a company in california that installs an after market Level 3 charger. The owner (Tony) is very active in the forum and an overall great mentor on these vehicles.
Tony recently posted the below on FB: the only thing I would add is:
0. Check that the Tire inflation kit is in the side compartment in the Trunk. These cars do not come with spare tires (weight), but Toyota did include a "goop" pump for flats. Notice... many people recommend AGAINST using this since it could impact the pressure sensor... but in an emergency's I'd rather have options ¯\(°_o)/¯
Tony's list:
1. RECALLS - check that all recalls have been done
**** Firmware 1.3.101 (US Government recall)
**** Wiper motor (all Rav4s)
**** Seat belts (all Rav4s)
2. FOBs / KEYs - make sure the both the mechanical keys work, as well as both fobs (very common problem)
3. 12 VOLT BATTERY - Change the 12 volt battery if it is the original black top Toyota one. They aren't known to last more than 3 years. If you let the 12 volt battery fail, it can cause all kinds of issues for the car. I recommend a Bosch AGM battery, Group 24F, 60 amp/hour
4. OWNERS MANUAL - you'll want this, if you aren't familiar with the car
5. CHARGING CABLE - the original is a 120 volt / 12 amp unit with a blue plug handle
6. ADJUSTMENTS TO SETTINGS
a. Adjust door unlock remote to open all doors with 1 press; only auto-lock when in drive
b. Adjust car reverse tone to single beep
c. Adjust seat belt reminder chime to only chime once
7. CABIN HEATER - turn the heater to full blast and feel heat come out. This is a $2500 - $6000 repair, which is why you want a warranty. (Frequently fails)
8. AIR CONDITIONING - turn on air conditioning and feel cold air (this rarely fails)
9. TIRES - Check tire wear (the original Yokohamas wear out at 30-40k miles)
10. BRAKES - check brake wear (rarely much wear)
11. DAMAGE - look for obvious damage BELOW the car (ran over curb and damaged battery case, etc)
12. CHARGING - plug it into a J1772 charge station and watch it charge
13. MOTOR NOISE - listen for motor noise (frequently replaced free of charge with 5 year / 60,000 mile warranty, or Platinum Extended Warranty... could be $10,000 to $15,000 otherwise)
14. CENTER INFO-TAINMENT SCREEN - make sure center navigation screen works ($4000 to replace when not in warranty)
15. BATTERY CAPACITY - Check the high voltage "traction" battery capacity viewtopic.php?f=7&t=1625
That's about it. It's not likely that MOST Toyota dealers are going to know the car very well, or even care to do so. Use your own due diligence and don't rely on others to check these things.
Many first purchases were 3 year leases which expired in 2017 so that brought a wave of new owners.
Read this forum and in the facebook group to get yourself familiar with the car.
Most of us love the car even with the additional care and hassle that involves owning a compliance car.
You said you're handy which usually makes for a good match.
My tl;dr would be:
1. Most people love the convenience of a relatively purely electric "large" SUV (full 5 seater, lots of cargo space, some people add hitch) for <$20K. It's unique in its class. Usual comparison is the X but that's $100K+.
2. There are a few alternatives in the nearby horizon: https://www.greencarreports.com/news/1117536_2019-is-the-year-of-the-electric-suv/page-2
3. The cars need relatively little service, but they're only supported in California. Toyota does have traveling mechanics for other states in the US. Engaging that does take some patience (Warranty helps a lot).
4. There are a few known issues. Some of them are pretty expensive so you'll want to read about getting a Toyota warranty for them so that when you hit one of those issues you're covered for <$2K and not much more. Before buying one check it's history and see if the car has a transferrable warranty and has gone through all the recalls and any of the known issues.
5. It has a range of ~100 miles but only level 2 charging (10KWh). There's a company in california that installs an after market Level 3 charger. The owner (Tony) is very active in the forum and an overall great mentor on these vehicles.
Tony recently posted the below on FB: the only thing I would add is:
0. Check that the Tire inflation kit is in the side compartment in the Trunk. These cars do not come with spare tires (weight), but Toyota did include a "goop" pump for flats. Notice... many people recommend AGAINST using this since it could impact the pressure sensor... but in an emergency's I'd rather have options ¯\(°_o)/¯
Tony's list:
1. RECALLS - check that all recalls have been done
**** Firmware 1.3.101 (US Government recall)
**** Wiper motor (all Rav4s)
**** Seat belts (all Rav4s)
2. FOBs / KEYs - make sure the both the mechanical keys work, as well as both fobs (very common problem)
3. 12 VOLT BATTERY - Change the 12 volt battery if it is the original black top Toyota one. They aren't known to last more than 3 years. If you let the 12 volt battery fail, it can cause all kinds of issues for the car. I recommend a Bosch AGM battery, Group 24F, 60 amp/hour
4. OWNERS MANUAL - you'll want this, if you aren't familiar with the car
5. CHARGING CABLE - the original is a 120 volt / 12 amp unit with a blue plug handle
6. ADJUSTMENTS TO SETTINGS
a. Adjust door unlock remote to open all doors with 1 press; only auto-lock when in drive
b. Adjust car reverse tone to single beep
c. Adjust seat belt reminder chime to only chime once
7. CABIN HEATER - turn the heater to full blast and feel heat come out. This is a $2500 - $6000 repair, which is why you want a warranty. (Frequently fails)
8. AIR CONDITIONING - turn on air conditioning and feel cold air (this rarely fails)
9. TIRES - Check tire wear (the original Yokohamas wear out at 30-40k miles)
10. BRAKES - check brake wear (rarely much wear)
11. DAMAGE - look for obvious damage BELOW the car (ran over curb and damaged battery case, etc)
12. CHARGING - plug it into a J1772 charge station and watch it charge
13. MOTOR NOISE - listen for motor noise (frequently replaced free of charge with 5 year / 60,000 mile warranty, or Platinum Extended Warranty... could be $10,000 to $15,000 otherwise)
14. CENTER INFO-TAINMENT SCREEN - make sure center navigation screen works ($4000 to replace when not in warranty)
15. BATTERY CAPACITY - Check the high voltage "traction" battery capacity viewtopic.php?f=7&t=1625
That's about it. It's not likely that MOST Toyota dealers are going to know the car very well, or even care to do so. Use your own due diligence and don't rely on others to check these things.
TonyWilliams
Well-known member
It might help to know which state you are in. I wouldn’t recommend any EV except a Tesla in the state of North Dakota, for example.
There aren’t any surprises on the car. We know everything that fails, or is a problem.
If you don’t have a stomach for learning the shortcomings, and learning how to overcome them, it’s probably not a car for you.
Otherwise, it’s a great short range compact SUV that has no replacement.
If you purchase a car in California, it’s cheap to ship it to our office in San Marcos for a FREE evaluation of the car. I also recommend our JdeMO fast charge equipment, which allows you to charge in 30-45 minutes at over 18,000 fast chargers worldwide.
There aren’t any surprises on the car. We know everything that fails, or is a problem.
If you don’t have a stomach for learning the shortcomings, and learning how to overcome them, it’s probably not a car for you.
Otherwise, it’s a great short range compact SUV that has no replacement.
If you purchase a car in California, it’s cheap to ship it to our office in San Marcos for a FREE evaluation of the car. I also recommend our JdeMO fast charge equipment, which allows you to charge in 30-45 minutes at over 18,000 fast chargers worldwide.
KurtManz
Well-known member
I'm curious... what's unique about North Dakota and evs?
TShip said:
Yes I recommend buying a used Rav4 EV. (I live in Las Vegas and recently bought as used Rav4 EV.) I also do most of my own maintenance and I accept the fact that I will need to tow it back to California if I have any major service issues but that is just a facet of owning any very unique vehicle. The Rav4 EV that I bought still has Toyota's Platinum Warranty in place so that mitigates most of my risk.
Rich
I live in Massachusetts, so towing it back to Cali for service wouldn’t really be an option. I’m willing to get my hands dirty but I’m cautious and trying to be realistic about what I can handle. The most intense auto repairs I’ve done were things like replacing radiators, water pumps, brakes etc.
Kurt did a great summary of the advantages of this compliance car.
Here in Seattle, where Kurt & I live, service of the specialty items hasn't proven too difficult: Toyota of Seattle has replaced three drive units under warranty, including mine, and the only hassle is waiting for Toyota & Tesla to schedule the replacement -- five weeks, in my case.
Others with RAV4 EVs in other remote-to-Calif. locales have had much more difficulty obtaining Toyota service.
Expensive, unique things do break on these vehicles, and you're not going to run down to the junkyard to get those particular parts, so add $2-3k to any purchase price you find, for the Toyota Used Car Warranty. Don't buy anybody else's warranty (IMO).
If we hadn't bought a Tesla Model 3, I was going to buy another RAV4 EV. That's what I think of it. As Kurt mentioned, there just isn't anything else as capable in the price class. Lots of them under $20k right now, and I was going to buy and have shipped up from Calif. one with only 31k miles, I would have been all-in at $19k after shipping & taxes (but excluding the mandatory warranty mentioned above).
I am less risk-averse, because we are a three-car family, and I can tolerate downtime for repairs. If this was my only vehicle, I would probably think harder about a different path. We have a "spare" minivan for more substantial hauling, it normally gets driven about 3k/year, and if I had to, I could commute in it while Toyota & Tesla get their **** together on a repair, so the RAV4 EV fits well in my world.
Here in Seattle, where Kurt & I live, service of the specialty items hasn't proven too difficult: Toyota of Seattle has replaced three drive units under warranty, including mine, and the only hassle is waiting for Toyota & Tesla to schedule the replacement -- five weeks, in my case.
Others with RAV4 EVs in other remote-to-Calif. locales have had much more difficulty obtaining Toyota service.
Expensive, unique things do break on these vehicles, and you're not going to run down to the junkyard to get those particular parts, so add $2-3k to any purchase price you find, for the Toyota Used Car Warranty. Don't buy anybody else's warranty (IMO).
If we hadn't bought a Tesla Model 3, I was going to buy another RAV4 EV. That's what I think of it. As Kurt mentioned, there just isn't anything else as capable in the price class. Lots of them under $20k right now, and I was going to buy and have shipped up from Calif. one with only 31k miles, I would have been all-in at $19k after shipping & taxes (but excluding the mandatory warranty mentioned above).
I am less risk-averse, because we are a three-car family, and I can tolerate downtime for repairs. If this was my only vehicle, I would probably think harder about a different path. We have a "spare" minivan for more substantial hauling, it normally gets driven about 3k/year, and if I had to, I could commute in it while Toyota & Tesla get their **** together on a repair, so the RAV4 EV fits well in my world.
AgingHippie
Well-known member
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2017
- Messages
- 46
TShip said:
I love mine, but I wish I'd gotten one with less mileage even if it cost a bit more. I charge at home with a Juicenet Pro, full 40A, and I have solar and a TOU plan so I pay much less at night for electricity.
One thing about doing your own maintenance - touch the wrong thing in an EV, especially one with a 396 volt battery that can pull 40A, and it will kill you. Painfully. I don't know if I would go rummaging around in there without some serious training.
