Plan B Forum

I just bought a 2019 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid LE.

I didn't really mean to get an actual NEW new car, but when I realized that some of the used vehicles I was looking at cost just about the same as this did, I said what the hell. My wife and I will be taking a 2-month (mid-August to mid-October) road trip to Alaska this year and we'd decided that neither of our 2 current cars was quite up to that sort of, or length of, a journey. This should do nicely for that, and hopefully for many many years to come.

On the down side...the Owner's Manual that came in the glovebox is 740 pages long! (Just the section on the Toyota Entune Audio infotainment system takes up 128 pages.) So I'll probably also be trying to learn how to use all the doodads for many many years to come.

You left out the most important information!


What COLOR???

My daughter's neighbor just bought a new RAV4 only a few weeks ago. It's a stand-out two tone -- white and black -- and it really pops when you see it. It appears to be a lot of car for the money -- very solid looking. Maybe I'll get a ride in it if I ask nice.

Happy motoring!

Econoline wrote:On the down side...the Owner's Manual that came in the glovebox is 740 pages long! (Just the section on the Toyota Entune Audio infotainment system takes up 128 pages.)

Some quick math ... 128 pages out of 740 total means that 17% of the book is dedicated to the 'infotainment system'.  I guess we know what Toyota considers to be — or at least what they believe the owner of the vehicle will consider to be — the most important feature of the thing, don't we?

-"BB"-

Congrats! I hope you enjoy yours as much as I absolutely love mine!! The RAV4 was recommended by several, but I was looking for something different.

(And yes, what is the color combo? Mine is “deep sea blue” with black - aka Beach Glass)

Econoline wrote:
I didn't really mean to get an actual NEW new car, but when I realized that some of the used vehicles I was looking at cost just about the same as this did,

Congrats. One of the most outdated notions is that a new car drop X% in value when you drive off the lot, if it ever made sense. If you do your shopping, like you did, you can get a reasonable price on a new car. Sure the value drops a bit the second the car becomes "used" but it doesn't keep dropping until time and mileage occur. Say you buy a new car for $20,000 and its value is $18,000 when you drive off the lot, the value is still $18,000 at 6 months and 12 months under ordinary wear. A reduction in value of $2,000 for a year of driving a nice new car is a good value! That said, I have bought my last couple of cars used at an auction buyer (lease returns mainly of luxury brands) and saved $15,000 off of cars that are a year old.

BSG & Guin -


I actually didn't have a strong preference for any color; the metallic red was one of my 2 favorites (the only color I liked better was a bright blue*) but I would've bought any color other than black or dark gray. The one I bought was a "LE" (the lowest trim level...maybe it stands for "Low End"?) which is what I wanted. The local dealer here in DeKalb happened to have this one in stock, and after doing extensive internet research I went in and presented the salesman with some printouts of the "best deal" prices I'd found; he went away to wherever it is that salesmen go and came back with an offer just a little bit more than what several sources said was the best possible price. So I took out my checkbook and wrote a check.

*

• 

Econoline wrote:

It sure has the biggest radio antenna I've ever seen on a car. Or is that the mast that's used to keep the long extension cord from getting tangled among the other cars on the street?

Anyway, it looks very nice. I've never known a RAV-4 owner who didn't really like their car. Let us know what the Hybrid's true MPG is, and report about your trip along the way.

Did they just do a design refresh on that? I was not impressed when I looked at them a little more than a year back. I think Toyota has fallen a bit flat with their designs in recent years.

Yes, they did a redesign for 2019, and among other things the mileage of the hybrid version is much improved (~40mpg). And yes MGM, I'll let y'all know my real-world mpg after I've been driving it a while.

Wow! They've come a long way. For me, however, there's a lot more car here than I could ever used.

I'm waiting for the '20-'21 KIA Forte5 which, at the moment, will be available only in Canada. I can wait.

Long Run wrote: A reduction in value of $2,000 for a year of driving a nice new car is a good value! That said, I have bought my last couple of cars used at an auction buyer (lease returns mainly of luxury brands) and saved $15,000 off of cars that are a year old.

Please explain your math. You say $2000 a year of depreciation is a good value. Yes it is, but it seems low for most cars. Then you go on to say you buy year old off lease cars for $15000 off of "new". So which is it, $2000 or $15000 in the first year? Note that many cars might have been bought for many thousands under sticker the day they left the showroom.

Check this out from an easy Google search: https://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/insuran ... reciation/

Depreciation depends on model Milagros and general “wear and tear”. Less desirable cars will commonly drop $15k in their first year while care that are popular and have a good reputation for reliability will only lose about 2-5k. Some super desirable vehicles will actually increase in value (that is almost always short term tho)

I had a beanfield there once.

Crackpot wrote:Depreciation depends on model Milagros

Yes milagros (miracles, right?) do happen.

Scooter wrote:I had a beanfield there once.

Yup, you caught it too. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095638/

This 'drop in value' idea is only a concern if you don't plan to own a car for very long. I'm still driving my 2002 Toyota Tundra. It may have gone down in resale value for the first few years but in the long run it has gone up in value to me if you consider how long it has lasted and the low cost of maintenance and lower insurance costs as time has passed AND the amount I've saved by not needing to buy another truck all these years. I figure my truck has saved me so much money that I've now saved more money than it originally cost me and I'm getting richer every day by owning it. It's like I got my truck free!!

The last new vehicle I bought, my 2004 "Dodge" Sprinter, I drove for 12 years and 420,000 miles. I do try to get my money's worth!

Have I mentioned I fucking hate autocorrect? And Joe how well a car holds value does matter even if you plan on keeping the vehicle for a while. Insurance only pays fair market value for a totaled car so if your car tanks in value and you get in a wreck you can be out a hefty sum

The workaround is to not get into car accidents where your car is totaled.