My wife and I purchased our first RAV4 in December of 97. We were looking for a 4 wheel drive vehicle that my wife could use to drive to work. We live in Southern NH and she was concerned about foul weather. The last two vehicles we owned were Toyota products and naturally were were drawn to the same Dealership because of brand satisfaction.
We have found the RAV4 to be an extremely reliable vehicle so much so that we put 48,000 miles on the first one that we lease with absolutely no repair costs, not even tires. Probably the only concern that we have with the vehicle is the size when it comes to carrying 4 adults, the riders int the back are somewhat uncomfortable, however our kids are adults now and
it is rare for us to have more than two in the vehicle. All other aspects of the vehicle were outstanding including gas milage,handling,comfort for the front seat passengers,repairs. In fact we enjoyed the rav4 so much we leased another in October of 99.