@VDCdriver
Though I agree with your general assessment that Awd cars are less capable in extreme going, I feel I need to correct your general assessment of the lock button in the RAV and almost all Awd vehicles made today except the Subaru and CRV. RAV 4 from it’s inception has always used a Torsen ( torque sensitive) center differential, which like a Subaru ( though it uses a variety of differnt approaches) is always engaged. It is calibrated more for economy with a bias to the front wheels with the Awd always engaged and the torque shift occurring as needed to either front, rear or equal bias continually, though not as efficiently as the Subaru.
The lock button added in 2006 models and the same used today in the newest, does not engage the Awd…it is always engaged. It does LOCK the center differential so that front and rear axles each get 50 % torque. This makes it better in really tough going. The lock kicks out at higher speeds to avoid center diff damage when driving faster on tarred roads. But, the Awd is always engaged ! I have had one for a long time…and I drive in Awd all the time without engaging any buttons as does a couple of my friends except or deep snow or mud. For some reason, a few non RAV owners have gotten this idea and have never read a RAV manual. It explains it all.
Pick ups like the Tacoma and Nissan are locked at 50% when you shift into 4 wd making them less functional on tarred roads with intermittent snow cover but better in tough going for the biggest reasons. That is, they have a full frame and a low range which gives you an entire new set of gears in a much lower ratio for true off road and heavy towing at very low speeds. Because these trucks are nominally rwd with full frames, higher ground clearance and HD suspension, that makes them better for towing and off road but no where need as good for higher speed on road traveling in slippery conditions. There, full time Awd cars like Subaru, RAV and CRV excel.
In 4 wd jargon, Awd is technically differnt then part time 4 wd which is found more in truck based vehicles.
Some SUVs like mine and @MikeInNH older 4runners have everything. Rwd, Awd, lock partime 4 wd and low gear ratios in both of the Awd/lock4 wd modes. That makes them an especially complicated drivetrain and why the newer 4 Runners have gone to part time and Awd with locks in differnt models rather then combine everything in one.
If you are engaging the lock button on a RAV, at every stop light, you are potentially causing excessive wear and possible damage to your friends car. RAV Awd system is not as refined as the Subaru, but most because of the motor orientation and functions very well without pushing any buttons. Toyota knows a thing or two about Awd and 4 wd. They have had it in cars and/or trucks long before Subaru was just a thought in this neck of the woods
Dag, I think the Rav4 AWD system has changed. Here’s a description of the current system:
"All-wheel drive is standard on all trim levels and has what Toyota calls Dynamic Torque Control AWD. It uses the various vehicle sensors (speed, steering angle and speed, throttle angle and yaw rate) to automatically control how much torque is sent to the rear wheels. Torque is transferred when slip is detected (as with the 2012 RAV4) but also steering input and cornering forces indicate that torque transfer would improve “overall agility and driving performance.”
With all-wheel drive, Sport mode starts torque transfer from the moment the steering wheel is turned, adjusting automatically to a 90:10 front/rear torque distribution to reduce the load on the front tires which, says Toyota, helps improve handling. If understeer is detected, the system transfers even more torque to the rear wheels."
Thanks dag, I stand corrected on the RAV’s AWD system.
I will have to tell my friend, as I am just doing what he told me to do.
I guess that I have been spoiled by the…altogether superior…system on my Subaru.
@texases
Yes, over time, the performance of all, Awd systems has improved with sensors and computer control to more quickly react to the situation. Toyota added a few more sensors and more powerful software to make it closer to the Subaru which has a lot innate advantages. One being the dedicated flat four with front to back orientation. The half axles in cross mounted motors have always been a problem with Awd. But, though Subaru has a better responds and feel, the motor mounting makes the over hang trouble some. The RAVs and CRVs can handle rough roads and deep snow better then Outbacks for that reason. Everyone makes choices and functionally, Subaru still has the best Awd system around for shear over the road, not off road performance for the money. Toyota got that and instead if designing their own rwd small sports car, had Subaru do it with them…saves money and time.
In talking with a Toyota rep., he feels it’s just a matter of time before the interest Toyota has in Subaru, grows into controlling shares. It can’t be all bad. Maybe they can solve the head gasket problem. ;=) He hasn’t been wrong feeding me stories yet.
@VDCdriver
Just tell him to buy a Forester to eliminate the need for that button ! Next time you drive the RAV, just floor it in snow and you will feel the rear wheels spin without the button it needs to go as well as the Forester.
@dagosa–Actually he did want to buy a Forester, due to the extremely positive experiences that I had with all of my Subarus!
However, the test drive killed it for the Forester. My friend is short, and the electric seat in the Forester just did not elevate him sufficiently to give him the view that he wanted. Meanwhile, I was dying a thousand deaths in the passenger seat of the Forester, due to the lack of lumbar support in the passenger seat. After just a 20 minute test drive, my lower back was in spasm!
When he told me at the end of the test drive that the driver’s seat ruled out the Forester for him, I breathed a sigh of relief because I was starting to dread having to be a passenger in his car if he bought the Forester.
He also–briefly–considered a CR-V, but his not-totally-positive experiences with his 2001 Accord had soured him to some extent on Hondas. So, he settled on the RAV, which has proven to be a reasonably reliable car. [Not as reliable as my Outback, but…reasonably reliable.] ;-))
If the OP is able to buy a teardrop trailer that he or she can stand up in, the OP must be a little person. Usually, those two things (tear drop trailer and being able to stand up inside) are mutually exclusive. I’ve never seen a teardrop trailer in which an average sized person can stand up.
@isa, do not buy a tow vehicle until you know what kind of trailer you are going to buy.
@isa You are going the WRONG WAY by looking for a RAV4. If you only toured the USA and Canada (excluding Alaska) and stayed on paved roads, I would say “maybe”. You have NO IDEA about road conditions in Central and South America. I’ve travelled and worked there. I would hate for your adventure to abruptly end somewhere in Central America and having to sell the vehicle and trailer for next to nothing and flying home.
The crew cab compact pickup with a 6 cylinder engine fits the bill.
Nissan is very big in Latin America, at least as big as Toyota. Ubiquitous in those parts of the world are the Toyota and Nissan small pickups and the SUVs related to them. That relationship is a little more distant for American vehicles than it used to be, with many of the SUVs now built on unibody platforms even though they still look truckish. It saves weight and improves gas mileage. So be sure what you buy here is similar to the Latin American vehicles if you think they made need work done down there. Generally, those truck based utes will be excellent tow vehicles, too.
@VDC So, he settled on the RAV, which has proven to be a reasonably reliable car. [Not as reliable as my Outback, but…reasonably reliable.]
owners of these cars in general get pretty spoiled. Like, my Rav needed a new battery at eight years and my 4Runner started like it was summer two days ago at -6 degrees with it’s ten year old original battery. So my 4Runner is more reliable and I’ll never buy a RAV. When I have to replace the battery in my 4Runner, I will then diss that too. ;=) Then I gotta hate both of them.