Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!

Toyota RAV4 Real World MPG

1356

Comments

  • ces1938ces1938 Member Posts: 61
    I have a 2006 Toyota Rav 4 with a 4 cyl. engine, and 4 speed automatic transmission front wheel drive only...I usually get 18 to 20 mpg in the city and 24 to 25 mpg highway driving at the speed limit or less.... long ways from the advertised fuel economy huh? what a disappointment..
  • drohrerdrohrer Member Posts: 37
    We have a 2006 RAV4 4WD I4 with 23,000 miles on it. We're visiting the in-laws this week. On our trip east we averaged 28.21 mpg on the freeway travelling at 70-75 mph. On one stretch (through Ohio) we did just over 30.1 mpg for 213 miles of the journey. (That's hand calculated over 850+ miles using the fuel shut off as "full".)

    My wife usually gets about 27 mpg around home.
  • wuzzasailorwuzzasailor Member Posts: 19
    miles on it now, mostly up and down the Kansas turnpike, worst, bucking a 35-45 mph wind was around 22, best has been 28+ with the tailwind. I like listening to the radio so most is windows up and AC on, speeds 70+, The cruise control is to keep me from getting tickets!
  • stevem685stevem685 Member Posts: 4
    06' Rav4 Sport 4x4 with the V6 - 23-24 is average. On a long highway trip it'll get 28 tops.
  • porschecarreraporschecarrera Member Posts: 5
    '07 RAV4 4wd V6 Limited with tube steps under 6,000 miles. I'm only getting 19 - 20 in city driving in LA. Best mileage was around 24 - 26 on a highway trip between LA and San Francisco.
  • keyser2keyser2 Member Posts: 25
    Great vehicle!

    Total miles: 935

    Fuel used (reg & midgrade): 35.83

    Average miles per gallon: 26.09

    Suburban and urban driving
  • ces1938ces1938 Member Posts: 61
    I really hate to say this but I do NOT believe you keyser2, I think you are pulling our leg on this kind of milage, you know we are serious about this....and I don't think you are... :(
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Edmunds says the EPA Mileage Estimates for the FWD 2007 RAV4 (2.4L 4cyl 4A) is 24 mpg / 30 mpg. (link)

    Looks like you can do a mile or two better Keyser. ;)
  • keyser2keyser2 Member Posts: 25
    What possible motivation do I have to lie? You see the numbers, is my math wrong? Maybe you don't know how to drive conservatively.
  • ces1938ces1938 Member Posts: 61
    Sorry keyser2, it was the statements of drohrer that I had a hard time believing, check out his statements...."We have a 2006 RAV4 4WD I4 with 23,000 miles on it. We're visiting the in-laws this week. On our trip east we averaged 28.21 mpg on the freeway travelling at 70-75 mph. On one stretch (through Ohio) we did just over 30.1 mpg for 213 miles of the journey. (That's hand calculated over 850+ miles using the fuel shut off as "full".)

    My wife usually gets about 27 mpg around home." check it out...[ and than check the mpg other people are getting on their Rav4... I apologize again... charles
  • drohrerdrohrer Member Posts: 37
    ces1938,

    You can believe what you want, I'm just telling you what I put in the vehicle. My wife usually does better than 27 mpg around home. (She's too cautious a driver and we live in the boonies.)

    Try these numbers. I still have the slips and milages to prove them if you want.

    we just drove out west camping last week. Me, my wife and my daughter and all our gear. (the back end was full, but nothing outside on top or back) Part of the time I had a niece or nephew with us. We put on 3056 miles up to our last fill. i put in 115.38 gallons of gas. The way I figure it that comes out to 26.48 mpg.

    I think that's not too bad considering we ran between 75 and 80 mph out west and crossed a variety of mountains. Even though we were camping, that didn't really include any off road stuff.

    2006 RAV4 Ltd 4cyl 4-WD (now at about 27,200 miles)

    jdrohrer
  • ces1938ces1938 Member Posts: 61
    ok drohrer, sorry I brought it up, one thing about it you get better MPG than any other Rav4 owners that are writing to this blog.. so your certainly lucky with the car you got... guess I would not think so much about it but I sold a 2002 Honda minivan so I would get better gas millage, "gas was $3.29 a gallon and going up so I felt I needed some thing that would get the better mpg, WRONG, the Rav4 is no better and perhaps worse than the 4200 lb. minavan with the 240 HP V6, guess you could say I am pretty ticked over it.... so good luck with your SUV, you lucky dog... :)
  • pulgopulgo Member Posts: 400
    I don't believe luck has much to do with it.

    He is just a better (at getting outstanding fuel mileage), smarter, more patient driver than most.
  • drohrerdrohrer Member Posts: 37
    I read some over on another forum, Rav 4 world. There seem to be people over there doing quite a bit better than me.

    I will admit that the 30.13mpg stretch in Ohio was with fair tailwind on the way out east.

    I have been very happy with the mileage. last year we went out west and only got about 25.5.

    No hard feelings. (but maybe I am a lucky dog!)

    jdrohrer
  • cbmortoncbmorton Member Posts: 252
    You're not alone in getting good mileage out of the RAV4. Most owners seem to be pleased with its fuel economy. As I've posted previously in this thread, upper 20's on the highway (even better if I make an effort to drive carefully) are no problem for my V6.
  • drohrerdrohrer Member Posts: 37
    i must admit that when I see some of the numbers people are getting with the V6 I wish we had waited. On the other hand, it's not like I need more power...

    Oh well, like I said, we're very happy with it.

    jdrohrer
  • rstibbettsrstibbetts Member Posts: 5
    07 4WD V6 28.8 MPG on the HWY with light A/C lightly loaded. Getting about 23-25 mpg overall.

    Also find that towing my 2500 lb boat cuts mileage by at least 40%.
  • gpurkgpurk Member Posts: 13
    Is this a 2006 or 2007?

    My 2006 4wd V-6 is only getting about 23 mpg on highway and 20 mpg combination.

    Like the vehicle other than the mpg.
  • gpurkgpurk Member Posts: 13
    Oh! Sorry! I see it is a 2007.

    Are the 07's doing better on mpg's compared to 06's?
  • sidious6688sidious6688 Member Posts: 80
    I have a 4x4 v6 sport, average 25.8 overall after 1400 miles. Its about a 50-50 split between around town and highway driving. I think the reason 4 cylinders don't get the mileage the owners might hope for is that they have a 4 speed transmission, the 6 cylibders have 5. The 4's still get better mileage than the 6s, but not by enough to matter much in my opinion.
  • ces1938ces1938 Member Posts: 61
    Yes drohrer, I certainly believe you are right about the 4 speed transmission, other than the difference in aerodynamics my 2005 Camry with 4 cyl and 5 speed transmission will avg all most 30 mpg with no problem, and the car out weighs the Rav by about a 100 lbs...I would be happy if my Rav average gas mileage did as well as yours , but it does not, I blame it on the transmission and the cruse control with no doubt, I sold my 2002 Honda minivan and bought the Rav to get better gas mileage and I will be darn if the Rav gets worse mileage, the van out weighed it by almost 1000 lbs and had a 240 h.p. V6 engine... GRRRRRR
    Charles
  • lirlir Member Posts: 81
    I thought the MPG was revised to 23-29...Still seems like the range is huge, even with the same kind of vehicle. I get 21, but I've seen people getting a lot more. Doesn't the 2006 get the same as the 2007?
  • gilvkonagilvkona Member Posts: 31
    I have a 2006 2WD. My average driving is mostly around town and about 30-40% on the interstate. I average about 24 mpg. If I do a little more highway driving, I get about 25 to 26 mpg. The worst I have ever done is 22mpg when it was almost all around town. I have driven it cross country and on mostly highway trips. On those jaunts, I get 29-30 mpg at 70-75 mph and the A/C at full blast. Also, I have luggage for 2 plus a 70lb dog. The best I ever did was a long mildly downhill route from AZ to somewhere in UT. The A/C was off, I had the cruise control on, and I did the speed limit or less which was 55mph. I got 32mpg.
  • gpurkgpurk Member Posts: 13
    We also purchased our 2006 RAV V-6 4X4 for hopefully better mileage. We had a 1999 V-6 Toyota Mini Van that was getting about 20 mpg and the RAV is only getting about that. Best was 24 mpg on all highway.
  • gerardgerard Member Posts: 4
    I have a problem i parked my veh on flat surface and when i went to take out the key i was not able to remove from the ignition i tried turning the steering wheel and shift selecter on console but to no avail , has anyone had this problem, i used to have a problem where wheel(steering) would lock up once in awhile but i could move it and it would then allow me to start or shift. any info would be appreciated
    jerry
  • mexateckmexateck Member Posts: 9
    I have a 2007 V6 4wd, and I'm not pleased with this vehicle at all. Now granted I live in California with its awful, watered down fuel, I've been completely let down by the Rav4 on the highway. With my speed set at 70mph, which is the limit here in so-cal, I've managed at best 22mpg, with my city averages down in the teens. One time I managed only 206 miles to an entire tank of gas with mixed driving. I only have 7300 miles on this thing and I bought it back in March. I'm truly disappointed with the performance of this thing considering the stereotypical claims that Toyota gets great gas mileage and is extremely reliable. :mad:
  • jeaniei1111jeaniei1111 Member Posts: 1
    I bought my Rav4 a month ago and though I love it, the mileage is nothing that it's supposed to be. I am getting about 21mpg at the most and I'm not happy about that. I just called the service dept at the dealer where I purchased it and was told that you cannot go by the EPA estimates....ummmmm, yes I can. It's wayyyy off and not ok. He said that unless you live where there are no hills, with no A/C on and don't go over 55 mph, you won't get the 24-30 mpg that they claim.
    Well, I had a Highlander for 6 years and the estimated 18-23 was exactly right so how can this be so off? Something is not right here at all.
  • dtowndtown Member Posts: 20
    2007 Toyota RAV4 2WD
    DISCLAIMER:
    Average user estimates are based on data from Your MPG users rather than official sources. Since the source data cannot be verified, neither DOE nor EPA guarantees the accuracy of these estimates.

    6 Cylinder, 3.5 Liter, Automatic (5 speed)
    We have revised the 1985-2007 EPA MPG estimates to make them comparable to EPA's new 2008 MPG estimates! Click to learn more about EPA's new MPG estimates.

    Number of Vehicles: 2
    Average User MPG: 22.2
    Range: 21 - 24 MPG
    Updated On: 09/17/2007



    Average MPG State Driving Conditions Estimate
    Last Updated
    Stop & Go Highway

    1 23.6 TX 09/15/2007
    2 20.9 GA 50% 50% 08/24/2007
  • mexateckmexateck Member Posts: 9
    Well considering that disclaimer and the fact that I've owned two Hondas that actually performed better than their claimed fuel mileage averages, I guess I have a great excuse to return to the big H huh?
  • gunga64gunga64 Member Posts: 271
    I dont believe AC drops MPG that much at all if any. I have run my cars with AC off and gotten exactly the same MPG. As far as hills living in florida I dont have to worry.
  • ces1938ces1938 Member Posts: 61
    I agree with gunga64, I have driven cars with A/C for nearly 50 years and other than back years ago when they had the old piston type air conditioners I have never seen the A/C lower the mpg, in fact there have been tests that show on the highway with the A/C off and the windows down the mpg was worse... I think the problem that causes our lousy mpg is two things, the four speed trans. and the lousy cruse control..my Camry has a 4 cyl, five speed trans. and cruse control and will get 30 mpg on the highway under any driving conditions.. what it boils down to, is Toyota screwed up big time with our Rav 4 and we are paying for it... GRRR :lemon:
  • tidestertidester Member Posts: 10,059
    Our tests back that up: We Test the Tips

    tidester, host
    SUVs and Smart Shopper
  • typesixtypesix Member Posts: 321
    Well, my former 4 cyl 89 Camry with auto tranny got 40 mpg on highway with no AC and 36 mpg with AC on, verified on many trips at speeds of 60-65 mph. Consumer reports states that their testing on a sample of vehicles indicates a 10 percent penalty with AC on. Yes, windows up with AC on may save compared to windows down and no AC, but if you really want to see if AC eats gas test with windows up with no AC and then windows up with AC. Of course windows up with no AC in hot weather is not desirable.
  • ces1938ces1938 Member Posts: 61
    I had a 96 Camry and I have a 2005 Camry all four cyl and automatic, they both would easily get 30 mpg plus, but I never could tell the difference with or with out A/C, and usually around here with the turnpike driving the speed usually is 75 to 80 mph, speed limit is 75 mph here in Oklahoma on the turnpikes.... but boy this Rav 4 with auto and 4 cyl sucks... Charles
  • brotzfrogbrotzfrog Member Posts: 1
    I don't mean to be rude but I don't see how anyone would buy a four wheel drive SUV four cylinder or not and expect to get similiar gas to a sedan. The SUV weighs more and has more drag applied to it because of the taller driving position.

    Also and I am not sure if anyone has mentioned this but I do not believe the gas tank of the rav4 is 15.9 gallons. I have run my own down past empty a few times and upon refilling I haven't needed more then 14 to 14.5 gallons. I also use a tool called scanguage II which works like a standard car trip computer and have proven to be very accurate ( only a few percentage points off at most compared to paper calculations) and my mileage is consistently in the low to mid 20's for an average. Consumer reports gives a rating of 22 mpg combined driving of the v6 and i concur. Now this is based on standard driving. Hills and other things will decrease mpg. Just look closely on those window stickers they give a range of mpg for city and highway and just display the best numbers in large bold print. I think if u reasses u will find that the gas mileage is right where it should be
  • ces1938ces1938 Member Posts: 61
    The Rav 4 and the Camry's weight the is same except for only a few pounds, I believe it said the Camry's weight was around 7 lbs heavier with the same equipment... You are right about the drag tho, the SUV has more, that was one reason they rated the Camry's mph higher...I don't have a V6 or a 4X4 or I would not be unhappy with the mpg...I was going by what they told me it would get, my Honda mini van beats the Rav and it had a big V6 and weighed 4100 to the Rav' 3300... don't make sense does it...Charles
  • typesixtypesix Member Posts: 321
    Don't understand your response as it doesn't address AC topic.
  • tidestertidester Member Posts: 10,059
    I don't see how anyone would buy a four wheel drive SUV four cylinder or not and expect to get similiar gas to a sedan.

    I don't think anyone is suggesting that you should get the same mileage in an SUV as you would get in a sedan. Many people do like to compare their mileage with what others get and try to improve their mileage.

    tidester, host
    SUVs and Smart Shopper
  • ces1938ces1938 Member Posts: 61
    Reference messg. 139, I didn't say anything about the A/C because I can not tell any difference using or not using the air conditioner, to me since the rotary compressors on A/C' they just don't take much power away from the engine as the piston compressors..again to me the A/C is irrelevant to fuel economy...I just se :lemon: :lemon: :shades: t mine where I want it and never turn it off, if it is cold than the heater kicks in and the A/C does not work unless the heater is set on defrost...
  • kurt451kurt451 Member Posts: 4
    I was getting around 24-25 highway mpg until it was mentioned to me to use the cruise control. I comute 70 freeway miles per day and I try to keep it under 70mph and I now get 27mpg with my Rav4 6 cylinder.
  • robertsmxrobertsmx Member Posts: 5,525
    Had a unique opportunity to drive two different trims this weekend. The onward journey (one-way rental) was in a 2007 Rav4 Limited/4WD (15K miles), and I got 23.8 mpg with 90% freeway driving.

    The return was in a friend's brand new Rav4 Limited/2WD (63 miles at the start of the trip). This one returned 24.9 mpg with 90% highway driving. I drove it with the idea to allow proper break-in (kept speed around 65 mph, minimal braking).
  • verdi942verdi942 Member Posts: 304
    I used 8.5 gallons of Toyota's full tank to go 225 miles for a 26 mpg average. That was equal amounts of Jersey suburban errands, parkway cruising @ 60mph and Manhattan traffic, taking things VERY easy with the new car.
  • pathtomaxpathtomax Member Posts: 215
    I know a lot of people comment about the MPG they are achieving on their RAV. Do any models actually have a trip computer?
  • cbmortoncbmorton Member Posts: 252
    Not in North America (overseas models are available with one). But you can buy a small device like the Scangauge that plugs into the OBDII port and performs all the same functions as a trip computer, and more.
  • ces1938ces1938 Member Posts: 61
    Hey what the heck is a "Scangauge" or a "OBDll" I think you went over my head with that one guy, ha,ha... :cry:
  • strommerstrommer Member Posts: 1
    I have a 06 Rav4 Sport 4x4 and have the same issue with my gas mileage. I consistantly average 22mpg which is way off the sticker amount. So, you're not the only one with this issue. It's making me think about looking elsewhere too.
  • robertsmxrobertsmx Member Posts: 5,525
    Or you can calculate. :)
  • verdi942verdi942 Member Posts: 304
    Took my third tankful into maximum Manhattan traffic; went 150 miles on 6.5 gallons [including 100 miles of parkway driving] for a 23 mpg average. Not good enough, but I'm hopeful a straight run to Montauk coming up soon will give better results.
  • robertsmxrobertsmx Member Posts: 5,525
    If you drove quite a bit in serious traffic, 23 mpg on AWD doesn't sound too bad.
  • verdi942verdi942 Member Posts: 304
    I'm seeing 60mph @ 2200rpm in top gear on my '07 4cyl RAV4 AWD. It seems about right, but I can't find any specs about this anywhere. Does anyone know? Thanks.
Sign In or Register to comment.

Helpful Tools

Most popular vehicles