Used 2009 Toyota Venza 4dr Wagon AWD (3.5L 6cyl 6A) Consumer Reviews
6 year owners update, costs, would buy again
Mary L, 02/29/2016
4dr Wagon AWD (3.5L 6cyl 6A)
20 of 20 people found this review helpful
Awd and tow package kill mpg. Do Replace tires w Michelins in snow--makes a big difference. The tires also are stickier than the oem, so expect mpg to drop. Don't know why anyone would buy a car this large w 4 cyl... Just replaced 1 of 4 catalytic converters $1200. Brakes last year. 105K mi. Put 28000 on in first year--Total invested $3600, including spendy tires. Still like the car, usually I'm mad by the 3rd year. Would buy another, also w tow package, except not keen on new car prices. Last year I test drove 30, yes 30,used vehicles, 40-100k mi, for offspring. Except for the Volvo, the only one that didn't vibrate, rattle, or rust was my venza. That reset my expectations for sure. The interior is large enough for grown men, the surfaces are stain repellent-so fabric still looks great, even after schlepping a dog and a 9 yo.
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2009 Toyota Venza Issues after 3 years
skyke101, 07/14/2014
4dr Wagon AWD (3.5L 6cyl 6A)
26 of 28 people found this review helpful
I bought my Toyota Venza in '11 with 32K miles on it.... It's a fully loaded V6 AWD, everything except the DVD screen. I wrote a review a couple years ago, here is the updated version... The drive is great, power and get up-n-go are awesome. Gas mileage is not the greatest, about 20-21mpg mostly city driving, but it's got almost as much room as a much larger SUV. Love the 20 inch wheels, hate buying tires for them. $1600 for 4 Michelins. Have replaced the sun visors twice now on the driver side and once on the passenger side. I've read that I'm not the only one that has problems with the sun visors. The road noise is terrible at speeds above 50m mph. It sounds as if I'm driving with a window open. I've since traded it in (Dec 30th, 2015) on a $51,000 2015 Toyota Highlander LTD platinum AWD. They have the same engine, but the Venza definitely had much more get up n go. Even thought I ordered the best stereo I could possibly get for the Highlander, the 13 speaker JBL Synthesis stereo that was in the Venza sounded much better, had alot more ooomph! The Toyota Highlander has the same issue with road noise, sounds like I'm driving with a window open, must just be an issue with Toyota engineering. Of course the dealership said that is just the way it sounds. The dealer also only offered me $9500 for a trade in on my 2009 Venza. I sold it on Craigslist for the Blue Book value, which was $14,400 (95,000 miles). It sold in two days, and the 1st person that looked at it had cash.
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Super loaded Venza 6cyl AWD is awesome, but the AC sucks
skyke101, 04/20/2012
4dr Wagon AWD (3.5L 6cyl 6A)
7 of 7 people found this review helpful
I love the way it looks, inside and out. I love the functionality of it. I REALLY love the power of the V6 with AWD, lots of get up and go!! The JBL Synthesis Stereo System is awesome! Gas mileage is pretty good, I probably average about 22, mostly city driving. The one issue I have with the Venza is the AC. It is almost as if they forgot to include a "high" option for the speed of the AC fan. It gets cold, but does not blow very good at all. I checked 5 other Venzas at the dealership, all models are exactly the same, WEAK AC! Even the new 2012 models. The salesman said that it was geared to older consumers that do not like AC blowing in their face. WHAT? $38000 for a weak AC?
Problems, problems, problems
Harold, 04/14/2010
4dr Wagon AWD (3.5L 6cyl 6A)
6 of 6 people found this review helpful
Had the car just 4 months. Been back to the dealer 4 times to get the alarm to stop going off! Dealer at first, didn't believe me. Said I was pushing buttons on the fob. Then it happened to them. Can't drive and leave the car anywhere. Horn goes off all on it's own. Driving neighbors crazy. Dealer does not know what to do
Venza Comes CLose But Is Replaceable
Bryan, 02/15/2018
4dr Wagon AWD (3.5L 6cyl 6A)
8 of 9 people found this review helpful
The good: Awesome design inside. I love that my fingers drop perfectly where the window buttons are. And I love that all 4 have the one-click-up feature so that you don't have to hold the button up or down the entire time while they move. The shifter is in the perfect position. I love the power of the V6. The back seats sits 3 very well except the middle guy will need to deal with his feet on a hump. The Bluetooth connects quickly. The stereo sound is great. I love the shape of the car, looks really classy, almost like an old 19030's Mercury. The bad and really bad: The steering column's are made of plastic and break... often... to the tune of $2500 a pop. They will last about 30-60K miles... and then another $2500 down the drain. Just awful. How could Toyota think this was OK? The interior is VERY squeaky. I can barely press my thumb against the door and it squeaks. You can press the dash in and it makes all sorts of junky sounds... what was Toyota thinking when they designed this dash? Why wasn't it made like the RAV4 which is very thick and tight? Whenever I go down my driveway and get off the curb of the sidewalk I get this awful brojken ice sound coming from the roof as the car's frame bends. I hate that. The breaks go out quickly as well as the rotors due to the massive 20 inch tires. The cabin noise is high, especially on cement highways. I have already put $4200 in cash on this car and its only a few months old. Do yourself a favor and buy a Highlander or a RAV4, trust me on this. Great car, but not for the perfectionist.
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- Technology
- Performance
- Interior
- Comfort
- Reliability