2003 Toyota RAV4 Review
Price Estimate: $863 - $1,451





+51
Edmunds' Expert Review
by the Edmunds Experts
Pros
- Steers and handles like a car, thoughtful cabin design, well-built interior.
Cons
- Small displacement engine for the class, noisy, most of the desirable equipment is optional.
What’s new
Already sporty-looking, the RAV4 compact SUV gets even sportier thanks to a new optional sport package that adds a new grille, a hood scoop, color-keyed door handles, heated exterior mirrors, tubular roof rack and gray-painted bumpers and overfenders. Inside, the package adds special sport fabric seats.
Edmunds says
A solid and pleasing package, if a tad underpowered.
For sale near Woodson, TX
50 listings
- 114,128 miles
- Issue reported, 1 owner, corporate fleet vehicle
- 5 Seats, 21 City / 26 Hwy MPG
- Grissom Auto Group (245 mi away)
- Rear Bench Seats
- Fold Flat Rear Seats
Close
Located in San Antonio, TX
AutoCheck Vehicle History Summary
Accident Free Vehicle: Yes
Personal Use Only: No
History Provider: AutoCheck
Title Details: Issue reported
Salvage Vehicle: No
Frame Damage: No
Theft History: No
Lemon Status: No
Free History Report: No
Features and Specs:
23 Combined MPG (21 City/26 Highway)
Listing Information:
VIN: JTEGH20VX36013303
Stock: 013303
Certified Pre-Owned: No
Listed since: 05-14-2025- $3,999great price
- 200,600 miles
- 1 accident, 3 owners, personal use only
- 5 Seats, 21 City / 26 Hwy MPG
- Thom's Motors (304 mi away)
- Rear Bench Seats
- Fold Flat Rear Seats
Close
Located in Houston, TX
runs and drives good cold ac nice radio gas saver four cylinder This vehicle comes with a good set of tires. The interior condition is average for thi...
AutoCheck Vehicle History Summary
Accident Free Vehicle: No
Personal Use Only: Yes
History Provider: AutoCheck
Title Details: Clean Title
Salvage Vehicle: No
Frame Damage: No
Theft History: No
Lemon Status: No
Free History Report: No
Features and Specs:
23 Combined MPG (21 City/26 Highway)
Listing Information:
VIN: JTEGH20V430110631
Stock: 110631
Certified Pre-Owned: No
Listed since: 05-31-2025
Cost to Drive
Monthly estimates based on costs in Texas
$140/mo for RAV4 Base
RAV4 Base
vs
$145/mo
Avg. Compact SUV
Toyota RAV4 Owner Reviews
Most Helpful Owner Reviews
Trending topics
380,000 and Still Going !!!!!
5 out of 5 starsRav-Fan, 09/16/2015
2003 Toyota RAV4 AWD 4dr SUV (2.0L 4cyl 5M)
Bought my Rav4L new 12 plus yrs.ago. Most dependable vehicle I have ever owned. Drove it for over 800 miles a wk for work. Starts in sub-zero weather, when our expensive vehicles would not. Maintenace cost almost nothing. Usual stuff....tires,got 109,000 out of one set, battery, brakes, wiper blades etc. this vehicle has saved me a fortune !!! I'm retired and now my trusted vehicle is … used for leisure, golf trips, ballgames etc. If I covered the odometer, you would think the vehicle has less than 50 K. Going to buy my wife a 2016 Rav, safe, dependable, fun to drive. Finally sold
my 2003 Rav, to first person who looked at it. Still ran great, and yes I bought my
wife a new Rav, which has been problem free....awesome vehicle we both love to drive.
An excellent vehicle
5 out of 5 starsDavid Scott, 12/08/2015
2003 Toyota RAV4 Fwd 4dr SUV (2.0L 4cyl 4A)
We owned this car for 12 years and it was as trouble-free as a vehicle could be. Basically, you never had to worry about something going wrong. Driver vision was excellent and seating was comfortable. We took it on four around-the-country trips and never had a problem other than a flat tire.
Toyota will pay for transmission repairs
3.88 out of 5 starsbbeek, 12/30/2010
2003 Toyota RAV4 AWD 4dr SUV (2.0L 4cyl 4A)
I just found a link to an article that documents that Toyota will pay for ECM failures/transmission rebuilds.
Here is the link:http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/07/13/toyota-extends-warranty-on-troubled-2001-3-rav4/.
You can call the center in Torrance, Calif at 800-468-7814 for more info.
I am going to get back my repair costs of $4300 for a rebuilt transmission and ECM module … replacement.
I wish I had known.
1 out of 5 starsDave C, 05/12/2018
2003 Toyota RAV4 AWD 4dr SUV (2.0L 4cyl 4A)
I was looking for a small SUV/crossover type vehicle to replace my older real estate vehicle. After retiring from real estate I didn't need a large SUV, so I wanted something smaller. I found a nice looking 2003 Toyota Rav4 that seemed to fit my bill. It ran good, the interior was nice and it seemed like it would do me well. I should have read some of the one star reviews. If I had, I … would have seen that this vehicle had a bad engine in it and that Toyota doesn't seem to care. The engine has a design defect that caused the head bolts in the back of the engine to pull up and strip the threads in the engine block. Fixing the problem means replacing the engine at a cost of at least $3000. I live on a fixed income now and I don't have that kind of money laying around. I can't drive the car any more than 100 miles without stopping, letting it cool down and putting some water in it. So basically, I'm stuck near home. I wouldn't dream of taking this car on the road. The problem with replacing the engine is that the shop will just put a used engine in the car. Not a rebuilt one. Just a used one. Which will most likely have the same problem this one has. This is the second time I've owned a Toyota and the second time I've gotten a dodgy engine. This will be the last time I have to deal with Toyota and their engines, because I will not buy another. I'll get a Honda CRV or Nissan Rouge. No more Toyotas.
2003 RAV4 Highlights
Base MSRP Excludes Destination Fee | $16,625 |
---|---|
Engine Type | Gas |
Combined MPG | 24 MPG |
Cost to Drive | $140/month |
Seating | 5 seats |
Cargo Capacity All Seats In Place | 29.2 cu.ft. |
front wheel drive | |
Warranty | 3 years / 36,000 miles |
Safety
NHTSA Overall Rating
The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration offers independent analysis.
- Frontal Barrier Crash RatingOverallNot RatedDriver4 / 5Passenger4 / 5
- Side Crash RatingOverallNot Rated
- Side Barrier RatingOverallNot RatedDriver5 / 5Passenger5 / 5
- Combined Side Barrier & Pole RatingsFront SeatNot RatedBack SeatNot Rated
- RolloverRollover3 / 5Dynamic Test ResultNo TipRisk Of RolloverNot Rated
IIHS Rating
The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety uses extensive crash tests to determine car safety.
- Small Overlap Front Driver-Side TestNot Tested
- Small Overlap Front Passenger-Side TestNot Tested
- Moderate Overlap Front Test – OriginalAcceptable
- Moderate Overlap Front Test – UpdatedNot Tested
- Side Impact Test – OriginalPoor
- Side Impact Test – UpdatedNot Tested
- Roof Strength TestNot Tested
- Rear Crash Protection / Head RestraintNot Tested
People who viewed this also viewed
4.2 average Rating out of 122 reviews. |
Starting at $30,100 |
4.4 average Rating out of 12 reviews. |
Starting at $32,600 |
4.0 average Rating out of 35 reviews. |
Starting at $30,300 |
Related Used 2003 Toyota RAV4 info
Vehicle reviews of used models
- BMW X3 M 2021 Review
- Hyundai Elantra 2020 Review
- Kia Optima Plug In Hybrid 2020 Review
- Honda Ridgeline 2021 Review
- Lexus RC F 2021 Review
Shop similar models
Shop used vehicles in your area
- Used Toyota RAV4 2010
- Used Toyota RAV4 2011
- Used Toyota RAV4 2012
- Used Toyota RAV4 2013
- Used Toyota RAV4 2014
- Used Toyota RAV4 2015
- Used Toyota RAV4 2016
- Used Toyota RAV4 2017
- Used Toyota RAV4 2018
- Used Toyota RAV4 2019
Popular new car reviews and ratings
- 2026 Cadillac ESCALADE IQ
- Ford F-150 2025
- 2026 Ford F-150 News
- Lotus Emeya
- Toyota Highlander 2025
- 2026 Volvo XC60 News
- MINI Countryman 2025
- 2024 Nissan 370Z
- New Toyota Corolla Cross
- 2026 Chevrolet Equinox News
Research other models of Toyota
- New Toyota Highlander
- New Toyota Corolla
- 2025 Sequoia
- 2025 Corolla Cross
- New Toyota Prius
- New Toyota Venza
- Toyota Corolla 2024
- Toyota Tacoma 2024
- 2025 T100
- 2024 Toyota Prius
Research similar vehicles
- 2025 Land Rover Range Rover
- 2025 Dodge Durango
- Shop BMW SUVs
- New Mazda CX-30
- 2025 Kia Niro EV
- 2025 Honda HR-V
Other models
- New Chevrolet Corvette for Sale in Springfield Gardens, NY
- Used Chevrolet Cavalier in Shakopee, MN 2005
- Used Jeep Grand-Wagoneer-L in Havertown, PA 2025
- Used Chevrolet Suburban in South San Francisco, CA 2025
- Used Chevrolet Equinox in Mount Pleasant, MI 2026
- Used Ferrari FF in Queensbury, NY 2016
- Used BMW I7 in Redmond, OR 2025
- Used Tesla Model-3 in Olive Branch, MS 2025
- Used GMC Envoy in Du Bois, PA 2009
- Used Chrysler Le-Baron in Lancaster, NY 1995