| Road Test Toyota RAV4 GX Five-Door |
||
 |
||
|
Okay, It's Intelligent Compared with the three-door, the five-door is better suited to . . . well, maturer persons who might look, when driving a more in-your-face short-wheelbase model, as if they were trying to regain their lost youth, or something equally sad. As well as being roomier and more refined than its predecessor, the LWB five-door seems to me to be generally better handling than the three-door (and much of the direct opposition) if you include main and minor roads, motorways and the kind of modest off-roading which is all these cars will realistically be bought to tackle. And I'm sure the five-door has a more supple ride on lumpy back roads. As far as off-roading is concerned, if you want a Torsen limited-slip rear diff, it's standard only on the VX and NRG versions, not on the GX. The RAV4 runs with permanent four-wheel drive. I liked the interior presentation, which is much better than some manufacturers, preferring a more rugged approach, are prepared to put into their 4x4s. The RAV4 has some very neat details, and it's crammed with things to hold things, from shopping bag hooks to a sunglasses case. And how about those front cup-holders, eh? - adjustable to the diameter of the cups, so as to appeal to Coke-swilling Yanks. Loved The Revcounter But there are some things I appreciated a lot more. The cream-faced instruments, for example, and particularly the rev-counter in its own separate cylinder. Better seats than the previous version too, with more adjustment. And you can now take the rear seats out altogether, as a step beyond being able to fold them forward for more load space. The original RAV4 had a better engine than most of its direct rivals, and you can say the same about the latest model. I don't know that I like to mention even this uprated engine as having "Variable Valve Timing - Intelligent"; so I'll stick with Toyota's VVT-i abbreviation. This is an efficient and powerful engine for a two-litre. You get relaxed main road cruising, but with 142lb/ft of torque coming in at 4000rpm, I didn't reckon the RAV4 all that much for mid-range pull. Maybe I've been driving too many turbo diesels. Actually, there's a common rail RAV4 due in May of next year. The Toyota takes an approach favoured by several other mid-side 4x4s. It drives just like a saloon or estate, it runs quietly, and it's well balanced for ordinary road driving, but if you want to do some modest off-tarmac work it's ready for that too. Price: £17,695 Second Opinion: |
The styling of the latest RAV4 five-door was a bit of a shock at first, because of those scalloped side panels, the rather garish spare wheel cover and the curious side-on shape of the wheel arches. But after driving one for a few days I realised that this is actually a pretty smart looking mid-range 4x4, without any of the over-macho details that make some larger types seem more suitable for storming the Gobi Desert than for the school runs they so often make in real life.
