I bought a 1999 Rav4 for my wife about 6 months ago (over her serious objections)and now I can't get her to trade cars with me at all. I drive a new Cadillac Seville!

I consider this vehicle a great shlepmobile. Plenty of room in the back for groceries and/or my Greyhound who loves the room and who doesn't have to slide off the back seat like he used to in other cars when you have to come to a sudden stop.

4 cylinders gives us plenty of pep and nearly 25mpg around town, which considering the price of gas nowadays is a blessing. The RAV4 and the Honda are at the moment,are the only SUV's built on passenger, not truck bodies, and the handling is crisp.

A couple of drawbacks are the interior noise and the air conditioning which, believe it not, is too cold. Even in our Florida dog days of summer I need to run the a/c at a slightly warmer temperature. Of course this also is a positive as it cools down the car fast.

This RAV4 is fun to drive! You sit high up and can see the road well. We don't use it off-road or anything, but when I go to Home Depot or the grocery store, I never have any trouble fitting everything in. Moreover, the height is just right so you don't have to bend over to put in packages, nor do you have to swing a door up like in a station wagon.

For a small car it has lots of room. We love it!