A tale of Toyota’s many affordable options

As a college student, I don’t have a lot (ahem, or any) money to spend on a car.  But, as I am on the verge of graduating and with job interviews and the rest of my life spread out on the horizon, I needed to make a smart investment in a car.  I did my research and have punched some numbers and decided that Toyota seems to offer the best value as far as standard features, safety, and durability.   Classic Toyota has always been a car dealership with a wide selection so naturally, I headed to Waukegan for the test drives.

My parents had been driving a Toyota Camry for the last decade or so and when it was time to buy a new car, they of course chose to go with another Toyota.  This time decided to downsize and drove away with a Waukegan 2010 Prius. For as much as I love the Prius, it’s still a little out of my price range.  For my budget and my purposes, I intitally had my eye on the 2010 Toyota Yaris.  With my research in tow, I headed to my local Toyota Kenosha dealer, where I was then faced with one of the more difficult decisions of buying a new car.  Color. 

After a few hours of discussions, swayed decisions, test drives, and color comparison, my salesman was still patient and helpful.   Toyota has always had reliable, long lasting cars so the decision began to complicate itself.  So many choices!

I was curious about the a small SUV that got great gas mileage so I looked at the Toyota Rav4. The Rav4 has become bigger in recent years and provides more outstanding features that allow it to be an even more useful vehicle.  The RAV4 seats five and has an available third-row seat, but if you don’t want to use it the third-row that folds flat into the cargo floor, that increases its capacity to seven. The RAV4 is a four-door, compact sport utility vehicle. All Rav4 models are available with either a new, more powerful 2.5-liter, 179-hp inline-4 and four-speed automatic transmission or a 3.5-liter, 269-hp V6 and five-speed automatic transmission. All models are available with front-wheel or full-time all-wheel drive. Standard on all Rav4 models is an anti-theft system and front active headrests.  The Rav4 has had some cosmetic changes as well. The Toyota RAV4 has a new four-cylinder engine and a modified grille and front bumper, as well as redesigned tail lamps.

This proved to be a very difficult decision, but in the end, I chose a black 2010 RAV4.  Not that I didn’t love the Yaris, but it is almost November and I had my snowboard in mind and the RAV4 was the perfect fit for all my summer and winter outdoor gear.  Now all I have to do is finish my resume and pray for snow….