Overview & Reviews

A more powerful four-cylinder engine, a restyled grille and bumpers and the adoption of active headrests for the front seats mark the changes for the 2009 Toyota RAV4.

• Superb power and fuel economy from optional V6, balanced ride and handling, roomy second-row seating, low cargo floor, solid build quality, high crash test scores.

• Interior has a budget feel, side-hinged rear gate impedes curbside loading, driver seat a tight fit for tall drivers.

User Reviews:

Showing 11 through 20 of 120.00

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  Excellent value for money and dependable - 2009 Toyota RAV4
  By Venkatesh Sridharan - April 29 - 6:10 am

  After a quite a bit of research and test driving five vehicles in this class, I choose to buy the fully loaded four cylinder RAV4 Ltd. After driving almost two years and 28,000 miles, I am glad that I bought this vehicle. RAV4 is smooth driving, very responsive, fuel efficient (28 mpg) and almost comfortable. Four cylinder engine is sufficient for highway driving and it feels powerful enough to pass other vehicles. I miss V6 only in cities at stop signal. I4 is bit sluggish in initial pickup. Exterior design is stylish and trendy. But, interior feels cheap. There is no hand-rest and seats are not comfortable for long distance drive. Road noise is annoying while driving on bridges.

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  Great SUV - 2009 Toyota RAV4
  By Chuck from NY - April 26 - 10:30 am

  Purchased this used with 12K miles on it & couldnt be happier. Perfect size for our needs.

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  Best Small SUV for Power and Mileage - 2009 Toyota RAV4
  By James G in Michigan - November 26 - 8:33 am

  After looking at Ford Edge and other products the quality could not compare to Toyota. The performance, handling with 23mpg for a V-6 is outstanding. I have towed 1500 lbs. of rock with a trailer and it was like nothing was there. I owned a 95 Nissan Pathfinder 17mpg before this and what a great replacement. I do not need the ground clearance like I had before because this is mainly for traveling cross-country. I have packed 350 lbs of dirt in the back with no problems. I purchased this RAV4 to keep for the next 10 years and I believe it will service me well. I received more incentives than any of the other dealerships had to offer before cash for clunkers came out. Plus a military discount.

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  Fits its purpose well - 2009 Toyota RAV4
  By iisrael1 - November 23 - 11:26 am

  Its exhilarating driving this car as the acceleration is great for a 4 cylinder engine. It gets great gas mileage on the highway-about 35 mpg averaging about 25-26mpg with mixed driving. The car is a little noisy on the highway but with music on its not noticeable. The interior could be better but for a base model its pretty good when compared to the forester or the CRV. Also not to mention the brawlik exterior look if gotten in black.

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  Great bang for the buck - 2009 Toyota RAV4
  By Rick - July 14 - 8:46 pm

  Traded my 06 I4 for this trucklet. What an improvement! Rides and drives great. 25+ mpg highway, 22+ mpg city. Im tall so the drivers side leg room was a bit cramped until I modified the seat track and gave myself 4 more inches of leg room. Holds an amazing amount of cargo even with the rear seats up. Removed the roof cross rails and mpg went up 1+ mpg. I use 16" dedicated snow tires in the winter, handles great. No issues with transmission whine, road noise, etc. No accelerator pedal trouble but had the recall done. Tip-in used to be touchy/quirky but with the mod, its smooth as glass. Dealership service has been A++ Not a $60k vehicle, but for >30K, Im not complaining. Will buy again.

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  Fun to drive but too noisy - 2009 Toyota RAV4
  By SUV lover - May 17 - 9:10 am

  This new SUV is indeed fun to drive. I couldnt wait each day to drive it. 4 cycler engine still has enough power making acceleration sharp. So, everything is good except for one thing: too noisy when accelerating. I found the noise is not coming from engine but from poor insulation or design of exhaust system. I recommend the manufacture should recall to replace this noisy system with quite one. I feel strongly that once this noise issue is solved, the RAV4 4X4 base model can be the best selling SUV in the world and people will love it even more. Sincerely hope the manufacturer will listen to our voices.

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  Tough to beat - 2009 Toyota RAV4
  By montzterman - April 17 - 12:33 am

  When I bought this vehicle I knew that the V6 gave it a lot of power. Wow, was I surprised the first time I passed another car on the highway! The Rav4 has scary fast power! With the sport suspension the Rav4 handles great also. Dont even think about buying the under-powered competitors.

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  A Great Choice - 2009 Toyota RAV4
  By John - April 13 - 10:26 am

  We needed a vehicle with a large enough rear seat for a child seat and an infant seat and easy to get the kids in and out of. This RAV-4 is the perfect choice. This vehicle seems small on the outside, but it has unbelievable space inside. The cargo area (without 3rd row seats) is huge and the 2 storage bins under the floor are a bonus. Rear seats truly fold flat unlike many others. This one is a V6 Limited with all options except navigation. This thing is very fast and the fuel economy is pretty amazing. We get 24-25mpg on local driving and weve seen 32 mpg on the road. A very versatile vehicle for an active family.

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  In love with my car - 2009 Toyota RAV4
  By CJK - December 27 - 6:06 am

  My husband researched all SUVs in this size range & the Rav4 seemed to come out tops in most areas. With 2 small kids we were truly looking for a used Pilot or Highlander (for 3rd row). But with my 05 Forester lease coming due we ran out of time finding what we wanted in our price range. So I decided on a 3 yr lease of a Rav4 Limited and I AM SO HAPPY! Ive only had it for 3 days but at least at this point I could totally see myself buying it at the end of the lease. Its comfortable, roomy, handles wonderfully, and is lovely to look at. Went with Pyrite Mica color with gray leather & love it. I was concerned about comfort but with the pwr & lumber its great. Average 24 mpg so far.

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  Bought in November 08 - 2009 Toyota RAV4
  By CalBears - December 15 - 3:03 am

  Car is great, much different than what you would expect when you hear Rav4. Toyota has really refined the vehicle. I have the vehicle with the Leather and Sport appearance package. This package takes the spare tire on the back away and includes run flat tires instead (Looks much better than the other models and new for 2009).