Used 2013 Toyota RAV4 Consumer Reviews
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Follow-up review at 4 years
4bras, 03/24/2014
updated 09/26/2017
2013 Toyota RAV4 LE 4dr SUV AWD (2.5L 4cyl 6A)
20 of 29 people found this review helpful
A great SUV for zipping around town, short highway travel, commuting, or heading to the great outdoors for fun weekends. One of the reasons I chose this vehicle amongst others in its size class was because, at the time of purchase, it had more cargo room with decently adjustable back seats. Even so, I did add a Thule cargo carrier for occasional extra luggage capacity. The transmission is versatile with three modes. Its 6 speed transmission with a 4 cylinder engine shifts gears more often than a 4 speed transmission with a 6 cylinder engine, but we also enjoy 27-29 mpg in the city using Eco mode. The three modes respond as follows: - Normal mode: Responsive shifting, great for busily driving around town and on the highway. - Eco Mode: Slower to shift, but shifts more smoothly, not as jumpy or punchy. We see better gas mileage during city and mixed driving. - Sport Mode: Favors shifting down 1 gear from Normal mode so that the transmission is wound tighter and the vehicle is more responsive. This is helpful on snowy and icy roads. Headlamps create a very clear wall of light for night driving with great visibility. On the interior, everything is well lit except for the power side mirror adjustment. There is no light behind this control, leaving you to feel around for it in the dark. It's a Toyota, so quality is good as expected. Oil changes uses synthetic oil, so they costs $80-$90 each, but they are only recommended every 10k miles, so that would average to about $40-$45 every 5k miles. I have kept up with the recommended 10k oil changes plus their recommended 5k checkups in between the 10k intervals. I needed a set of front brakes and new set of tires about the times expected. There were two repairs needed that were disappointing. Around 80k-90k miles, there were a few "spits" of coolant in the engine area. At the service department, we wiped them clean and kept a watch on it. Within 5k miles there were new drips--easy to see because Toyota uses a bright pink colorant in the coolant so that leaks are easy to detect (even slow leaks like this one). The water pump was replaced, which was a normally about a $500 repair. That was disappointing, but fortunately the extended warranty I bought at the time of purchase covered it. The second repair needed was at 107k. One morning there was an obvious leak from one of the seals. Fortunately this, too, was replaced under extended warranty, but otherwise it would have been an $800 dollar repair--$30 for the part but lots of labor as they have to take an entire day to remove the transmission to replace the seal. I talked with two service techs (separately) about whether I should be concerned and trade in the vehicle. But both said that either one of these repairs could have happened to anyone at any time and that I should not think it is an indicator of other problems to come. There are a few design downsides to be aware of: 1) The 4 cylinder engine is under-powered when you load the vehicle with people and luggage. Highway mileage on the interstate (75-80mph) + hill country + wind + rooftop cargo carrier reduces the mileage to 22mpg. Even without the cargo carrier, the same conditions reduce mileage to 24mpg. I WISH Toyota would have never dropped their 6 cylinder option. This vehicle needs 6 cylinders to be a good interstate highway travel vehicle. 2) The headrest design is crazy bad! It is too far forward and causes neck and shoulder tension. But for this problem I found a safe solution. Remove the headrest, turn it around backwards (which now makes it a bit too far from your head), and then purchase a headrest pad from http://www.addonheadrest.com/order.html. The distance to my head is now perfect (not too close, not too far), and this makes all the difference in the seating comfort. 3) A thin paint job that scratches easily--too easily. So if you have an option of getting some kind of extra paint protective coating applied on a new vehicle, get it. 4) No rear seat air vents, USB port, or power socket. For a vehicle of this size, Toyota should have included all three as does the Hyundai Santa Fe (which I also tested, but it had other issues that led me to purchase the RAV4). 5) At about 85k miles, a small and intermittent transmission rumble occurs momentarily when it is 5th or 6th gear, the rpm's are between 1500-1900 rpm, and you accelerate slightly. It's the same rumble if you've driven a manual transmission and you're driving too slow in a higher gear and try to accelerate and get a little rumble that indicates you need to downshift. The senior Toyota service tech said this can happen as friction changes over time, and unfortunately cannot be adjusted. I now tend to use Sport Mode around town which changes the shift point and mostly eliminates the rumble.
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Flyaway paint
Looking for answets, 11/15/2019
2013 Toyota RAV4 Limited 4dr SUV AWD (2.5L 4cyl 6A)
5 of 6 people found this review helpful
My once beautiful 2013 rav4 (blizzard pearl that co $$t extra)is shedding it's paint. Toyota's engineers are working on a fix😉😉🤔or are they?your true worth is when you have a problem and you CORRECT it, as durability was once a calling card for toyota. This from a disappointed toyota owner of over 30 years. Please take responsibility for a KNOWN problem
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2013 Toyota RAV4 for sale near you
3 of 41 listings
- Limited 4dr SUVMSRP: $8,999In-stock online
- XLE 4dr SUVMSRP: $13,788In-stock online
- XLE 4dr SUVMSRP: $15,998In-stock online
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Most reliable and versatile car and it loves snow
BobbyB, 12/22/2019
2013 Toyota RAV4 XLE 4dr SUV AWD (2.5L 4cyl 6A)
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
Nice comfortable small suv that serves as a mini truck. It pulls a light trailer with command. Can't beat the reliability and low cost of ownership. Still stylish and fun to drive.
Go RAV4
sharon norris, 05/04/2019
2013 Toyota RAV4 LE 4dr SUV (2.5L 4cyl 6A)
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
This SUV meets the needs of the typical SUV driver. It was priced reasonable, is very comfortable, has great space for passengers, as well as the cargo area. It is also designed to protect the passengers. I was rear-ended at a stop light. The idiot was driving at at least 35 mph. The back end crumple zone did its job and I was uninjured. The repairs were reasonable, and parts readily available. The gas mileage is very good, and I do a lot of stop/start in- town driving. I live in south Florida and the paint job still looks new. This is also the only vehicle I've owned where I could figure out all the different controls--very straight forward. Highly recommend this SUV.
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Great Car but...
Kurt Matthews, 09/15/2018
updated 03/21/2022
2013 Toyota RAV4 Limited 4dr SUV (2.5L 4cyl 6A)
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
The lighting for the flat screen display is too weak. It is unreadable in the daytime and very weak at night. The adjustment feature makes no difference. I applied anti-glare film which helps a bit. The hatchback doesn’t close properly. It goes down about six inches, beeps twice and then stops. I have to through this routine three to four times before it closes all the way. I have cleared the door memory per the owners manual but that didn’t solve the problem. I have the keyless entry and ignition feature. Do NOT lose your key chain transponder. It cost me $471 to replace. If you lose both units a new computer must be installed in the car and two new transponders made. That must cost a fortune. Read the troubleshooting chapter in the owners manual. If the transponder battery dies or the thing gets crushed you can still start the engine and run the car. If I were buying another car today I’d get another RAV without question.
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