Sad Goodbye

[thennen]

Well, today was a semi-sad day. I traded my 2001 SR5 4Runner (completely stock) on a 2013 RAV4 XLE AWD. After 265,000 miles, the Ohio road salt had eaten away at the frame so badly that it was beyond repair. The 40-mile drive to the dealership was quite unnerving, as the truck had gotten squirrelly due to at least one broken weld, and I had to make continual steering corrections on the highway. I actually didn't know a weld had broken until the guy at the dealership showed me. I'm not sure what the piece is called, but the "traction bar" mounts to it. Several posts about this on the forum. The vehicle will be scrapped eventually. Darn thing runs like silk, too, and has a 1-year-old OEM exhaust from the front cat all the way back, which had been replaced under warranty due to the original exhaust being cut off and stolen. Dealer pricing was $1600, but covered by insurance.

I have my 2019 TRDOR, so I'm still a 4Runner guy. The RAV4 will be my wife's DD. It actually drives very nicely - I can see why it was the sales leader in the U.S. And full-time AWD will suit her driving better in adverse road conditions. I'll return to driving my 2006 Scion xA daily, and stop loading commuter miles on my Runner.

Anyone have experience with 2013-2018 RAV4? Good experience, I hope?

 

[dogtail]

Yeah sad, too many lost to rust posts on this forum. Very very very simple preventive maintenance, 30 minutes or 60 minutes if done twice per year is all it takes to keep rust from killing these rigs.
350K+ on my rust belt chassis, black, solid and rust free.

 

[LittleCaesar]

My aunt loved her 2010 Rav 4 with the V6. Loved it to 300,000+ miles. I had a neighbor with a 2017 4cyl RAV 4. She missed her 2004 4cyl Highlander greatly in comparison. My friend’s mom test drove a 2019 and almost got run off the road. Bought a turbocharged CRV instead.

Enjoy.

 

[thennen]

Yeah sad, too many lost to rust posts on this forum. Very very very simple preventive maintenance, 30 minutes or 60 minutes if done twice per year is all it takes to keep rust from killing these rigs.
350K+ on my rust belt chassis, black, solid and rust free.

Yeah, if only I'd known better when I bought it in 2005. Yours looks great!

 

[jgue467]

Bummer. Rest in Peace.

Better keep up with the new stuff in that rusty area.

Thank-God I live in Texas and Cali! :Cowboy:

 

[thennen]

My aunt loved her 2010 Rav 4 with the V6. Loved it to 300,000+ miles. I had a neighbor with a 2017 4cyl RAV 4. She missed her 2004 4cyl Highlander greatly in comparison. My friend’s mom test drove a 2019 and almost got run off the road. Bought a turbocharged CRV instead.

Enjoy.

I wouldn't want a turbo for longevity reasons. This RAV has 180HP, plenty for me. I can't think that her 2004 Highlander with 160HP was any faster. I've been in much slower vehicles. If she almost got run off the road, it wasn't due to poor acceleration.

 

[SilverRidgeRunner1]

Sad day for sure with the rust, I've been seeing tons of parts car that come from the rest belt down south its kinda interesting

 

[thennen]

Sad day for sure with the rust, I've been seeing tons of parts car that come from the rest belt down south its kinda interesting

Is that your 4R stuck on that bollard by the gas pump? If so, how?

 

[SilverRidgeRunner1]

Is that your 4R stuck on that bollard by the gas pump? If so, how?

That is what my rig looks like yes, but the pix isn't my ride I thought it was a funny so I used it.

 

[dogtail]

I had to learn by having rust damage happen to me on a previous rig, as most of us have had that opt for hardcore rust prevention. Good luck on the new rig, you'll need to do some rust PM on the new 4runner if you want to keep from getting nasty rusty. Coat it like a glazed doughnut.
Heres my write up on what I do, although you can choose from a few different methods of effective rust prevention.
SEASONAL RUST PROOFING using WD-40 only

 

[thennen]

I had to learn by having rust damage happen to me on a previous rig, as most of us have had that opt for hardcore rust prevention. Good luck on the new rig, you'll need to do some rust PM on the new 4runner if you want to keep from getting nasty rusty. Coat it like a glazed doughnut.
Heres my write up on what I do, although you can choose from a few different methods of effective rust prevention.
SEASONAL RUST PROOFING using WD-40 only

Thanks for the info. My 2019 will be seeing more rest time, so I may need to get a paint sprayer and try this. Your results speak for themselves.

 

[Mr. Goodkat]

Sucks you had to retire it but better sooner than later before you got in an accident.

I live in the rust belt but my 2000 I picked up last September spent almost all of it's life in Colorado. Before winter I got a healthy coat of Fluid Film underneath and I have the 32" wand I stick right in the frame rails and crossmembers. Every two weeks I gave it another light coating of WD40 underneath and it kept any new rust from forming. Wolfgang's Deep Gloss Sealant 3.0 did a great job protecting the pain and I was impressed. I have natural white and it hardly had any rust specs on it while still having a nice gloss finish.