Toyota Previa 2.4i GS
Performance
Practicality
Reliability
Toyota Previa 2.4i GS
User Reviews
Performance
Practicality
Reliability
Value For Money
The Toyota Previa Is The Best Load Carrier We Have
The Toyota Previa is the best load carrier we have ever had both to drive and to transport loads. - but the apparent 2nd failure of an electronic and expensive module worries me.
Performance
Practicality
Reliability
Value For Money
I Bought A Toyota Previa New 12 Months Ago It Has
I Bought a Toyota Previa new 12 months ago it has now done 6500 miles. No problems at all. Fitted with air-con and cruise it's a real pleasure to drive. My wife has a Lexus GS300 and when I could jump in to either I use the Previa! Annual mpg = 21.5 with an average mix of motorway and town. Replaced a 1994 Previa with this one and it now has all the safety features (which is the only reason I changed). We have no kids but go out frequently with 4 or 6 friends. Fully loaded everyone travels in comfort (rear air-con separately adjusted by passengers). If carrying suitcases can only use 6 seats as not enough space for 8 plus bags. Easily keeps up with traffic even when fully laden with good strong braking action. Highly recommended to others in our situation. Forget that rubbish Ford Galaxy or the Chrysler Voyager - this is the one to get.
Performance
Practicality
Reliability
Value For Money
Drives Well In All Areas, Takes 8 People And Lugga
Drives well in all areas, takes 8 people and luggage in comfort, good driving position, auto takes the effort out of driving (though looking back I would have liked cruise control included). Climate control and excellent suspension mean that we have got rid of car sickness (so far anyway) which had been an almost constant problem previously with our children.
Citroen's C8 2.2HDi is more fun and economical (and expensive) but severely restricted headroom means kids only in the back and there is not so much luggage or leg room.
Summary : The Previa is an excellent car, unbeatable if you want 8 seats, looks good and seems to retain its value better than most - but those two lap belts are a constant irritation!
Hi - back after 3 years of ownership. The year was 2002 (being registered in November 2002). So what has gone wrong - nothing! Any new niggles - no. The 2 lap belts and the rather low overall mpg (24-26) remain irritations - the first more so because of the new seatbelt laws, the second probably unfairly as we do a fair amount of short runs to school, shopping etc and to be fair it does get up to mid 30's on motorway runs. The only other cost has been for the three annual services and two front tyres. What has improved though is engine performance (noticably around the 10,000 mile mark). The auto box can be a bit sluggish to change gear and overtaking sometimes needs some prior preparation but once a lower gear has been obtained, the manoeuvre is completed quite rapidly for such a big car. Motorway driving is a doddle.
The interior remains virtually unmarked which is astonishing (5 kids plus 1 dog). I suppose I could moan about the fact that the rear benches don't fold flat into the car floor seats and therefore space isn't as cavernous for load carrying as it could be but as has been said before, it makes a decent bed!
All in all , this has been a superb car for our large family and is thoroughly recommended. I can't see us selling until something better comes along - and that hasn't happened yet.
From my own experience I can confirm that this generation of Toyota people carriers are amongst the most versatile and comfortable available, with room for people AND luggage. But I don´t recommend the (grey import) Lucida/Estima 2.2 TD. Although nice to drive (the reduced width makes them easier in town) the engine is extremely prone to cylinder head failures, usually through overheating. Cost me 2200 Sterling to have a reconditioned head fitted by Toyota dealer only weeks after I bought mine (in 2001). The Specialist dealer I bought it from claimed he had had a heart attack and gone out of business! (he hadn't) leaving me to foot the bill.
We have a Previa and its brill.I agree with the last comment about the 2 lap belts.We have 5 children,the youngest is 8 months old so in a child seat(which only needs a lap belt);but we have major concerns for when she is older and needs a proper 3-point belt for safety.We may have to buy a different car,Landcruiser?
Please Toyota,make a Prev with safe seat belts for all 8 people!
I owned a 1997 Toyota Lucida Estima (previa import). This was a 2.2Td and was the best car I've ever owned. The advantage on this model over the new model (Post 2000) is that the 8 seat configuration is more flexible . The rear seats are split in the middle and can be hinged on to their sides and tied up which creates a mammoth vacuum of space. Alternatively if you recline the middle and back seats flat you can get a 3 foot by 6 foot single bed (base and mattress) in the back. How many other people carriers can you do that in. Also unlike other people carriers you actually have luggage room in the boot for suitcases . I have holidayed with 4 adults and 3 kids and we got all our luggage in without a roof rack. Only thing to watch is make sure the cambelt has been changed (1t 60,000 miles) as it costs about £300 to replace.
addressed my points of concern...but citroen more expensive than toyota...wheres that then?
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