Today’s Nice Price or No Dice RAV4 represents the first generation of a model that would become Toyota’s top-selling car in the U.S. Let’s find out whether this nicely kept old-school “cute-ute” is priced to sell on its own.
Ford and General Motors got into the coupe/pickup market in the 1950s with, respectively, the Ranchero and El Camino. It took nearly three decades for Chrysler’s bevy of brands to enter this market with the econobox-based Dodge Rampage and carbon copy Plymouth Scamp. Today, all of these models have been discontinued, and while Mopar does sell a coupe/pickup model in South and Central American markets in the form of the Fiat-based Ram 700, that hasn’t made it to the U.S. outside of tourist excursions. Still, as last Friday’s 2008 Dodge “Recharger” pickup proved, there’s more than one way to scratch that car-with-a-bed itch. At $19,777, however, that was an itch that few of you were scratching. That price tag resulted in a 78 percent No Dice loss, offering evidence that maybe Mopar is right in keeping the car/pickup Ram out of our hands.
Do you want to know what we do have a metric shit-ton of to choose from for driving excursions? That’s right, compact crossovers. Like the Ubiquitous Japanese Car (UJC) of the 1980s and ’90s, the cooking cutter compact crossover is the de rigueur offering for any and all car makers wanting to move the metal here in the States.
One of the earliest of these is Toyota’s RAV4, which first hit the U.S. market in 1996 and quickly became a runaway success. Today, it represents Toyota’s top-selling model, with Toyota moving one-third more RAVs than its next best-seller, the Camry. It’s a similar case with the other Japanese manufacturers, with Honda moving more CR-Vs than Civics and Nissan selling more Rogues than… well, whatever else it is that Nissan sells.
This 1996 Toyota RAV4 exemplifies where it all started, and it’s easy to see why these became popular. Giving the people what they want, the RAV4 offers a tall seating position and a reasonably roomy cabin. That’s wrapped in exterior dimensions compact enough to fit in almost any garage or slot in the door-ding farms that these days pass as parking lots.
There’s a lot of Corolla under the RAV4, including a 120-horsepower 2.0-liter inline-four and, in this car’s case, a four-speed automatic transmission. These were available with 4WD, via a system shared with the Celica Alltrac, but this edition is saved that added weight and complexity by being the simpler FWD. That should help with the mileage as well.
Another benefit of this being an older RAV4 is the jazzy interior upholstery which looks like it was chosen by someone who gave a damn about fun and fashion and not the mordantly monotone look of most interiors these days. That’s matched with a cute, wanna-pinch-its-cheeks exterior style that’s also a lot more fun-looking than anything Toyota is building at present.
According to the ad, this RAV4 comes with a clean title and a modest 121,758 ticks on its bedpost. The metallic green paint also looks to be in excellent shape—something noteworthy for any Japanese car of this era with a multi-stage coat. The factory alloys present nicely as well, as do all the plastic pieces—of which there are a lot.
That funky fabric in the cabin shows no significant wear, and the model is modern enough to carry two airbags and the convenience of power windows, mirrors, and locks. There’s also A/C, cruise control, and an aftermarket AM/FM/CD Pioneer stereo.
The ad doesn’t provide any information about the car’s mechanical condition, but, c’mon, it’s a ’90s Toyota, and they tend to be damn near indestructible. The ad does note that this is a two-owner car and that it has an accident-free history. The asking price is $5,880.
What’s your take on this RAV4 and that $5,880 asking? Does that feel like a deal to get into some old-school Toyota quality? Or is that too much to join the crossover cult, no matter how cute the car might be?
You decide!
CarGurus, out of Newport Beach, California, or go here if the ad disappears.
H/T to Bill Lyons for the hookup!
Help me out with NPOND. Hit me up via email and send me a fixed-price tip. Remember to include your Kinja handle.