Used Car - Toyota vs VW

A used current generation rav4 will cost as much as a new rav4 pretty much. I would (and did) just buy a new rav4.

You can buy a few year old Tiguan with 50K miles for half the cost of a new Rav4. In that same price range you can buy a 10 year old Rav4 with 150K miles.

The whole premise of this thread is flawed without knowing max budget.
 
I rented a 2023 Tiguan and a 2019 RAV4 non-hybrid. The Tiguan felt underpowered and didn’t get great mileage. The RAV4 got excellent mileage despite being a larger car and it had more usable power. The power difference was definitely noticeable 0-60; it felt like roughly 1-1.5 seconds slower on the VW.

I also own a 2020 RAV4 hybrid now and have not had to do any work on it; I’m at 98K miles. I’d personally lean toward the Toyotas and if you can afford it, get the hybrid. They are more powerful, quieter, smoother, get better mileage, and overall maintenance is significantly cheaper than on the non-hybrid. To put it in perspective, I’ll be due for new brake pads at roughly 350-400K at the vehicles usage rate.
Interesting view on “size”. Our 2018 Tiguan feels way bigger and open vs the cramped 2022 RAV4 prime we were considering. I am surprised a RAV4 is as small as it is.

Power is lower on Tiguan for sure however we manage okay highway mileage.
 
No contest! TOH-YOH-TAH! Unless you hate yourself or your wife and you want to drain your bank account after the warranty expires then by all mean get the Vee-Dub-Yah!
Someone has to tell us owners of VW Tiguan exactly when that happens.
So, please, enlighten us.
 
VW's downside is maintenance cost. Full disclosure, I think they look nice. I wouldn't own one unless I had no other choice. Hands down, Toyota all day long.
My 2018 Tiguan owned since new with 185k has little issues and maintenance has been similar to a Toyota except plugs which are every 40k miles.

My wife loved the Tiguan and nothing else so same situation. Tiguan turned out to be more reliable in first 180k then sisters 2010 RAV4 with steering issue and AWD issue in first 155k. Both repairs were $1500+/each.

My point is not buy VW however VW is not as unreliable as people think and conversely Toyota is not as reliable or bullet proof as people make it out to be .
 
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If you plan on selling the car within 4 years/10k miles per year, whatever you both agree to like.

If you plan on keeping this car over mile 80,000+, Toyota.

Unless you two really like the VW for your own reasons and won't bat an eye if a $1,000 bill came out of the blue.
 
If you plan on selling the car within 4 years/10k miles per year, whatever you both agree to like.

If you plan on keeping this car over mile 80,000+, Toyota.

Unless you two really like the VW for your own reasons and won't bat an eye if a $1,000 bill came out of the blue.
What would be that $1,000 bill out of the blue?
 
What would be that $1,000 bill out of the blue?
Probably an oil change, rotate, and flat repair at the dealer?

A co-worker just had a leaking water pump on her diesel Jetta. The dealer replaced the water pump, timing belt, and repaired several other issues she mentioned (that I don’t specifically recall) and the bill was around 5k…I’m positive that had this been a Toyota, with a timing belt, that it most certainly would have been less expensive.
 
Probably an oil change, rotate, and flat repair at the dealer?

A co-worker just had a leaking water pump on her diesel Jetta. The dealer replaced the water pump, timing belt, and repaired several other issues she mentioned (that I don’t specifically recall) and the bill was around 5k…I’m positive that had this been a Toyota, with a timing belt, that it most certainly would have been less expensive.
Depends. For example, on VW you get door hinges that never bend. On Toyota hinges cost you $5,200 (ask me how I know).
And no, timing belt change with water pump is not $5k at the dealer. It is like for any other vehicle with timing chain. What else she had to do, IDK. But, what do I know, I only had 20+ VW TDI vehicles as part of my business fleet.
 
Probably an oil change, rotate, and flat repair at the dealer?

A co-worker just had a leaking water pump on her diesel Jetta. The dealer replaced the water pump, timing belt, and repaired several other issues she mentioned (that I don’t specifically recall) and the bill was around 5k…I’m positive that had this been a Toyota, with a timing belt, that it most certainly would have been less expensive.
The last diesel Jetta was 2014 - so she paid $5K for repairs to a 10+ year old car? Without knowing exactly what the "other issues" were, it doesn't really say much. Lots of dealers will sell plug change and some wallet flushes like injector cleaner or whatever, and it be $1000+.

My Toyota dealer wanted $800 for both air filters, an alignment, a battery and headlight fluid while the car was still in warranty. I declined of course. Still can't find the headlight fluid dipstick though?
 
The last diesel Jetta was 2014 - so she paid $5K for repairs to a 10+ year old car? Without knowing exactly what the "other issues" were, it doesn't really say much. Lots of dealers will sell plug change and some wallet flushes like injector cleaner or whatever, and it be $1000+.

My Toyota dealer wanted $800 for both air filters, an alignment, a battery and headlight fluid while the car was still in warranty. I declined of course. Still can't find the headlight fluid dipstick though?
Car is a 2015, I just asked her again what all was repaired. She said timing belt, water pump, oil change, fuel filter, transmission service, and a sensor they broke during the service. I believe the belt and pump alone were around 3500+. It only has around 90k miles on it and she plans to keep it forever I guess? I don’t think I ever paid 5k, for service related items, for the 4Runner, Tundra, or Camry we’ve owned collectively. That was the point I was trying to convey. But at the end of the day it’s all about manufacturer partiality and what issues one is willing to tolerate from said brand.
 
Car is a 2015, I just asked her again what all was repaired. She said timing belt, water pump, oil change, fuel filter, transmission service, and a sensor they broke during the service. I believe the belt and pump alone were around 3500+. It only has around 90k miles on it and she plans to keep it forever I guess? I don’t think I ever paid 5k, for service related items, for the 4Runner, Tundra, or Camry we’ve owned collectively. That was the point I was trying to convey. But at the end of the day it’s all about manufacturer partiality and what issues one is willing to tolerate from said brand.
I would say they seriously overcharged her. My buddy has 2015 Jetta Wagon with stick and TDI, $1450 for timing belt and water pump at the dealer.
It depends on the dealers. When I had VW CC, DSG service was $245 to $700, depending on dealer.
So, there is that. Dealers will overcharged if the can and sell you snake oil. It is known that VW dealers try to sell BG coolant flush which is responsible for heater core clogging. They tried to sell me when they had recall on water pump on my Tiguan.
I also have a neighbor who shelled out around $4,000 for plugs, coils, filters and front suspension on Toyota Sienna. She took it after I told her that I could hear her suspension like 100ft away when she is coming home. So, if you neglect any vehicle it will cost, a lot.

But, it should be understood that Tiguan has timing chain.
 
My two VWs have been essentially trouble free. The Passat had to have the dipstick tube replaced as it loosened up. I have just over 100,000 combined miles on these with care-free driving. My next vehicle will be a Tiguan gasser.
No water pumps replaced yet? VW's eat water pumps like Hyundai/Kia eat engines.
 
Depends. For example, on VW you get door hinges that never bend. On Toyota hinges cost you $5,200 (ask me how I know).
And no, timing belt change with water pump is not $5k at the dealer. It is like for any other vehicle with timing chain. What else she had to do, IDK. But, what do I know, I only had 20+ VW TDI vehicles as part of my business fleet.
how did you manage to pay 5,2k for them?
 
Depreciation on the VW is much higher as well as the cost of repairs and fuel. Long term, the Toyota costs far less to own.
Buying used depreciation is the whole point - buying something much cheaper than new. Depreciation in this instance is your friend.

I would be interested in a long term ownership cost of a 5 year old VW vs 5 year old Toyota of comparative class. With the VW your probably starting $10K to the good up front. Include the time value of money whether financing or not?
 
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