My feed
Premium

Please
or
to access all these features

Here's where users test and review products and give their feedback. If you'd like to run a product test please email [email protected].

MNHQ have commented on this thread

Product tests

MNers test-driving new Toyota RAV4: see which Route125 adventures they had and tell us which you’d like to try - £200 to be won NOW CLOSED

95 replies

KatieBMumsnet · 02/08/2013 16:04

This thread is for the 8 Mumsnetters who are taking part in the extended test-drive of the new Toyota RAV4.
Four testers and their families will also be making a video of their test drive - so look out for these on Toyota's page on Mumsnet soon.

Below are some questions for you to answer over the course of the test drive - please don't worry about answering all of them straight away, some may be more relevant after you've had the car for a week or so.

We'd like you to post updates on this thread at least twice a week - more if you'd like! We'd love to know what you and your family thought about the Toyota RAV4 as well as your stories from the Route125 adventure (or your own family adventure) you're going on and any other comments you may have.

Test-drive questions
Which model of the RAV4 are you test-driving?
What were your/your partner's first impressions of the car?
What do the children think of it?
How did you find driving a 4x4? Is it a comfortable ride? How does it differ from your usual car?
What's the boot space and legroom for passengers like?
What do you think about the features of the car? E.g Power back door, rear-view camera, cruise control etc.
Were these features what you expected the RAV4 to have or have you found any unexpected extras?
Are there any other features you'd like the car to have?
Has testing this car made you more or less likely to buy a Toyota in future?
Has testing this car changed your perception of Toyota cars at all? If so, how?
What one thing do you like best about it?
What one thing would you change about it?

Route125 adventures
We'd also like to know which Route125 adventures you and your family went on (or are planning to go on).
What did your children think of the adventure?
Were you already aware of the place you went to or was it totally new to you?
Do you think you'll be likely to try any of the other Route125 adventures or not? If so, which ones?

For those of you not taking part in the extended test drive, please take a look at the Route125 website and let us know which adventures you and your family would like to try. Have you already been on any of the adventures mentioned? If so please share your experiences with us.
If you haven't yet managed to try a Route125 adventure, why not get your family involved in one this summer! Let us know which one(s) you're going to try and come back to this thread to tell us all about it. If there isn't a suggested adventure near you what places would you recommend adding to Route125?
Please share your adventure stories on this thread. We'd also love it if you could upload any pictures of you and your family enjoying an adventure with Route125 or your own family adventure.

Everyone who shares their comments on this thread will be entered into a prize draw to win a £200 Love2Shop voucher

Thanks and good luck,

MNHQ

OP posts:
Report
Wonderstuff · 02/08/2013 16:05

?

Report
nextphase · 02/08/2013 20:42

hmmm the only flags near us we have done. I can't see my 4 and 2 year olds sitting in the car for over an hour to get to any of the other things you've put near us.
So, Toyota, suggest you let me filter by age, and let me choose a radius from where I am to start looking. Not very user family.

Report
MmeGuillotine · 03/08/2013 06:17

Just checking in to say how excited we are about doing this! We're picking up our RAV4 at 9am and taking it up to the Lake District for a fortnight. Smile Smile

That's the plan anyway - I have to do all the packing that I've been putting off first! Grin [gr

Report
ataraxia · 03/08/2013 10:32

I've walked in the trees at Kew Gardens and was impressed. I'm scared of heights but didn't feel nervous at all, even climbing up the stairs. There's also a lift reserved for wheelchairs (apparently pushchairs aren't permitted on the structure for some reason). It was a different perspective on the trees and it was also good to watch planes flying low as it's on a flight path.

Report
Blatherskite · 03/08/2013 15:03

DH has been gliding. He said it was amazing and it was really spooky how quiet it was but the view was amazing. For us on the ground, it was a little worrying watching him being fired up into the air at such a speed! We were glad when he was down safe and sound.

I can't find any activities close to us which is a bit disappointing.

We've just taken our car on a trip down to Devon and used it to visit all sort of interesting places from beaches, to cliff railways to the Tarr Steps on the way home. We did something similar up north last year, they're our favourite type of holidays. I read "Are We Nearly There Yet" by Ben Hatch and was inspired :)

Report
RavMore · 03/08/2013 20:50

We picked ours up late this afternoon from a very nice woman at the Toyota dealership.

I'm delighted that it's the 'Invincible' model so it is really high spec which has impressed the children no end.

It's a gorgeous looking car, really sleek and I like to think I was getting admiring glances, but they may have been hard stares as I pootled along barely getting above 30mph at first. This was nothing to do with the car btw, I have since established that it is very nippy.

It is such a comfortable ride. The driver's seat is entirely electronically adjustable and is a bit like sitting in a massive, supportive armchair. It has duel zone air conditioning which could really help my marriage. Every car journey I take with my husband involves me saying 'it's too cold/my feet are frozen solid...' or him saying, 'I'm melting/how can you stand this heat...'

Keyless entry, bluetooth compatible, fantastic sat nav, it plays the music from my i-phone!! and we went food shopping at had the childish thrill of opening the boot remotely.

Can't wait to drive it some more tomorrow and next week we'll be doing stage 72 of route 125.

Report
aristocat · 03/08/2013 23:07

Not a tester but there was only one R125 activity close enough to me. It was a cycle trail in Cannock Chase.

The R125 blurb said ..... Cannock Chase in Staffordshire is famous for its mountain bike trails. We're going to attempt to complete one of the technically and physically challenging man-made off-road mountain bike trails. This is no Sunday afternoon cycle - it's an extreme experience, including alarmingly named sections like Deerskull, Over the Rainbow and Rollercoaster.

We have already cycled in Cannock Chase but as a family and their description does not sound family friendly. CC has 3 leisure cycle paths and these are fantastic, suitable for all the family Smile

Report
johnnycomelurky · 04/08/2013 09:35

We picked up our Rav4 yesterday and were very impressed. Am a bit jealous if RavMore's Invincible as we have the Icon which also has a great spec but the one thing it didn't have that I really wanted yesterday was electronic seat adjustment. I'm 20 weeks pregnant and my back started to hurt after driving for 30 mins and I really wanted to adjust but couldn't while driving. I really shouldn't have started with that ad it really is fab!

Ours is a 2.2 Diesel and sounds like a diesel when initially accelerating but is pretty quiet overall. It is a big car, definitely the biggest I've ever driven but as RavMore said it is really nippy. I didn't know the city we picked it up from and kept ending up in the wrong lanes at roundabouts but found it easy to make quick changes. I felt comfortable and confident driving it quite quickly. The gear box is smooth and solid. It accelerated well on joining the motorway (a novelty for me).

Haven't used the remote boot entry but can't wait to as my car's boot is broken and requires much fiddling so will enjoy that feature immensely.

Off to do loads today so will have more to say later, I'm sure.

Report
Lilyloo · 04/08/2013 13:33

Just checking in as we are about to collect the car. Very excited and looking forward to testing it out :)

Report
RavMore · 04/08/2013 15:51

Now I feel a bit guilty johnnycomelurky!

Took mine to my (poseur's) gym today. This was an uneventful 2 mile journey, but I felt like a pretendy yummy mummy as I parked 'my' lovely car next to all of the Audi Q5s, Porsche Cayennes, BMW X5s etc. Now I just need the huge diamonds and swishy blow dry for my workouts..

The Rav I have is diesel but sounds nothing like my dh's which is redolent of an ancient tractor.

My own car has leather seats and I have to say I hate them as they get so hot they take a layer of skin off my legs in the summer and are freezing in the winter. The Rav has leather seats, but they are entirely different to mine. Much softer and they don't seem to get really hot either.

I parked it on the drive last night, dh parked in front of me. During the night an ancient apple tree fell on top of his car! Thank God it wasn't the RAV!

Report
Ravmore · 05/08/2013 19:43

Torrential rain here today.

LOVE the rain sensor windscreen wipers; they're really responsive.

Parked on the top deck of a car park today, I noticed the RAV seemed quite sluggish on the slopes. I'll put that properly to the test later this week when we tackle some hills in Devon.

Report
MmeGuillotine · 05/08/2013 20:26

Sorry about the lack of posting but we have seriously ropey Internet in the place we are staying - I'm currently using the Metro Centre's WiFi on my phone! :)

Anyway, we absolutely love our RAV4 so far. We also have the diesel Icon and are finding that it's handling everything we throw at it. In fact my husband is now getting seriously attached to it, which is fine as we were thinking about buying one anyway.

We drove up to the Lake District in it on Saturday and had a very comfortable journey. It's not massively quiet but I loved the way that the stereo synced via Bluetooth with my phone playlists and then the volume automatically went up when we accelerated.

The children think the boot open and shuts by magic by the way. I found it slightly nerve wracking at first though as I kept it worrying that it was going to spring open.

My husband is particularly enamoured with the rear parking camera - it meant he could safely park in a very tight space when we went for an epic (rainy) walk by Windermere.

The boot space is also fab. We filled up the boot of our Honda Civic but had loads of space in the Rav4 after we'd decanted it all across.

It was also very impressive today as we drove across the Pennines to Newcastle and Alnwick Castle in terrible rain. My husband got very excited driving on epic winding mountain passes in the Rav4 and said that it was actually really exhilarating.

Report
Lilyloo · 05/08/2013 21:18

We love it :) We are testing the invincible manual model.
We collected it yesterday, the dealership were really helpful and showed us around the car.

I did ask what the boot space was like as my friend previously had one and had to get rid of it when she had her son as it wouldn't fit a pushchair in. I was very pleasantly surprised as it was very big , I normally drive a touran so I am used to a very large boot.Dp and the dc were more impressed with the sensors to stop it trapping anything and the remote boot entry.

We did struggle to find the middle seat belt connecter which is concealed in the seats but we found it eventually and we're on our way. It does have two good seats in the back but the middle seat isn't great and I wouldn't be sure it could fit 3 seats across if you needed to. I will test that. I loved the leather seats and can imagine they are very practical with dc however the dc said they were slippery when we were turning corners.

Was slightly disappointed that we had to use our own sat nav to find our way home as it wasnt connected.
We loved the height when you are sat in it, you can definitely see everything but it doesn't feel to big to drive. The automatic windscreen wipers were tested straight away in the rain. We went out for some tea on the way back and I used the reverse parking camera which will take some getting used to.

Dp took it to work today and he loves it. He feels it has been made to enjoy the drive with the automatic wipers, automatic light, the keyless entry, the signals to shift gears and he was pleasantly surprised when the engine stops and starts again when you are waiting at the lights. He felt it was a really comfy and responsive drive.

I am taking it with the dc to the Trafford Centre tomorrow so will make more use of the parking again.

Ds is currently looking at the routes to pick one for Thursday.

If anyone wants me to test anything out just ask.

Report
CheeryCherry · 05/08/2013 21:59

Not a tester but I would really love the husky trek near the Yorkshire moors, it looks amazing.
Also fancy the segway driving in Dalby Forests, looks such fun! Might investigate that for my DSs birthday treat at the end of the month.
Would also fancy a RAV4!
Great website. Some great ideas.

Report
ravMore · 06/08/2013 15:44

There wasn't much diesel in our RAV when we collected it, so I have just filled up.

An eye watering £70! I'll interested to see how many miles I get on a tank.

Still loving the car. So easy to drive and manoeuvre; I feel it almost drives itself. I am getting used to the reversing camera, but it's hard to change after about 20 years of driving.

I noticed today that it has Isofix points in the back, this may be standard with all new cars now, I am not sure.

My dog refuses to get out of the car and I have to lift him. I think he finds it too high!

Report
thestylethatdecadesforgot · 06/08/2013 16:12

I really like the idea of the Segway in the forest, my DH would love that, he really wants to go on one! We have a holiday in the lakes planned in September, if I can convince him to drive across while we're most of the way there is love to book that as a surprise for him.

Ps the car looks fab and I would be interested to know if it does fit three car seats across the back please? We are planning dc3 shortly and may have to change our car to accommodate 3 car seats. Ours does fit there's but not with two using an iSofix base, which is what I would prefer.

Report
thestylethatdecadesforgot · 06/08/2013 16:13

Three, not there's, sorry!

Report
dahville · 06/08/2013 18:27

We love exploring Wales, West Wales in particular, and when the boys are a bit older we will definitely take them on a similar adventure to #9 - Horse Ride in the Hills.

For the moment we take them to the coast and walk the beach or put them in carriers and go for a hike along the cliffs.

I don't think having young children, 2 under 2 in our case, should keep you from exploring; even close to home there are adventures to be had. One of our favourites is tracking the dinosaur footprints along the Welsh Heritage Coast.

Report
Lilyloo · 06/08/2013 22:42

I only have two low booster seats and a high back booster. They all fit in with a squeeze but I doubt you would fit two isofix and another car seat as the middle seat isn't a full seat iyswim.
I am calling to my friends on Friday and she has an isofix so will look again and let you know.

Report
Lilyloo · 06/08/2013 22:44

The boot is actually huge and it pulls out to give even more space underneath, a massive selling point imo.

Report
johnnyDrivingaShinyCar · 06/08/2013 23:01

Lilyloo-I totally agree with what you said about the height giving you great visibility but somehow you don't feel like you're driving such a big vehicle. I am really starting to love it (and have name changed accordingly).

We drove to Wensleydale on Sunday and my husband drove as he used to drive there for work. He is very much not a car person but he was really enamoured with the Rav4 on the winding country roads and how much power there is on the hills. He commented on how little effort driving it was and that it was actually enjoyable! High praise as he always often hates driving.

After complaining about non-electric seats, I've got to grips with the manual controls and perfected the my driving position and am now very comfortable. Both my husband and I are finding the passenger sleep sleep-inducing.

We'd like to go somewhere exciting this weekend-any ideas for things to do with a pregnant lady and a 2.5 year old in the North East?

Report
RavMore · 06/08/2013 23:03

I agree Lilyloo, the boot appears to be huge.

We're going camping this weekend. Normally my husband's Ford Focus estate is bursting at the seams when we do this trip (it's a yearly thing), so I am interested to see how well the tent, sleeping bags, duvets, pillows, clothes bags, wetsuits, body boards, food, wine, beer & children all fit in the RAV.

Report

Don’t want to miss threads like this?

Weekly

Sign up to our weekly round up and get all the best threads sent straight to your inbox!

Log in to update your newsletter preferences.

You've subscribed!

Lilyloo · 06/08/2013 23:19

Ooh Rav would love to see how this boot fairs for the camping things, we went last weekend so didn't have chance to find out. Looking forward to some pics of that.
Johnny we have been looking at the routes 125 but struggling to find any for younger ones other than the ice cream tasting :) Think we may try the husky one in Yorkshire.

Report
Lilyloo · 06/08/2013 23:25

Are you anywhere near the puffin one that looks good fun for the little ones? Although still liking the ice cream tasting ;)

Report
MmeGuillotine · 07/08/2013 11:04

We're still very much enjoying our RAV. It's brilliant on all the winding Lake District roads although the sat nav never seems to recognise anywhere we're trying to get to and gives us much amusement with the way she pronounces 'destination'.

I'm also finding the boot slightly unnerving - it's huge but also high up and flat, which is great if you need to perch muddy small children on it to change their boots but scary if you've bought bottles of gin and your husband has a habit of pressing the auto boot opening button without checking that nothing has rolled towards the door! Wink [wi

We have two booster seats in the back and although we couldn't fit another one in we did squeeze an adult friend in the middle for the trip from Newcastle to Alnwick. She seemed pretty comfortable, so that was a great improvement on our Civic! :)

Report
Please create an account

To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.