mmarshall

No. it appears to be in a different class from the Highlander/RX. The RX is a true, car-based SUV. The Venza is more like the Subaru Outback, Volvo XC70, or Audi All-Road.....a slightly raised passenger-car-based wagon, though its styling differs a little from what WOULD be just a Camry wagon..

mmarshall

Thanks.

As to "better" AWD, There probably isn't much difference between the Sienna's and Venza's AWD....they appear to come from more or less the same drivetrain and hardware. The Sienna uses a somewhat tweaked vesion of the same 3.5L V6.....an excellent and refined V6, BTW. The Venza, as you note, would probaby get better mileage than the Sienns because it is lighter and more aerodynamic....but the difference would be small.

If you want cargo room, keep the Sienna. There is simply no comparison in cargo space. The Venza is smaller, lower, and has a slanted-forward rear roofline (as I mentioned in the review) that cuts into still more cargo space. The Venza's cargo area, despite some nice remote features, is poorly-finished. As far as reconfiguring the seating, it is easy in the Venza....no problem.

Just a guess, but I think that the road-noise problem with AWD models may be due to a combination of the tire tread used and the scoop-out-out spaces in the chassis needed to accomodate fold-down seats and the extra AWD hardware underneath. That leaves not only thinner places in the chassis underneath, but less room for sound-proofing insulation as well. This was a noted problem a few years ago with the clever "Stow-and-Go" seats in the Dodge/Chrysler minivans. The deep-folding mechanisms for both second and third-row seats that gave you that nice, perfectly flat floor, with little effort, also took up a lot of space in the chasis where insulation would normally go. That is also why AWD was not available with the Stow-and-Go package.....there wasn't room enough under the chassis for both.
Last, with AWD, you of course have more differentials, driveshafts, and universal joints.....all, of course, with the potential to make some noise.

DASHOCKER

iTrader: (2)

Nice review Marshall.. The brake feel on the Venza can be attributed to the use of plastic pistons in the disc brake calipers. No joke, that is what you will find if you ever have to do a brake job on the twin-pistion Venza front calipers..

eyezack87

iTrader: (4)

Yeah, I was quite sad when the workers said that to me

Well, sports car or not, it really did handle around the track pretty well. I kept taking turns at like 30-40 and absolutely nothing. No chirping from the tires or anything. I was expecting to run into cones and stuff too.

I would buy this car IF I did not have the RX. They are quite similar according to my method of driving

mmarshall

Was your test car a 4-cylinder AWD? If so, that may have been a function of the relatively lightweight engine and the rather sophisticated design of the Venza's AWD system, which feeds torque to each individual wheel somewhat like the more complex Acura SH-AWD system. With a simple FWD model, you probably would have knocked some of the cones down. If you did that with a FWD model, and still didn't knock any cones down, then you're a pretty good driver.



I agree. I think Lexus should do a version of it....I made that clear in the review.

mmarshall

Thanks.

PLASTIC brake pistons? With the kind of temperatures that front brakes generate under load?

That had better be some GOOD plastic.

plex

iTrader: (11)

Good Review, I finally saw one in person a few days ago, they look really nice.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

Saw one on the road and will see it a lot, as it's at a relatives neighbor's home.

Looks decent, specs are decent, this is in Toyota's sweet spot.

Not exciting, but fairly good looking, quite functional, and quite refined.

mmarshall

Thanks.

As you note, not bad styling overall, but don't you think the grille/headlights are a little geeky?

mmarshall

I think it will appeal to a lot of women who carry kids around and shop frequently in bad weather....see my response to PhilipMSPT.

Yep. This is something that Toyota should have done a long time ago (I'm not just being a Monday morning quarterback.....I've said that for a long time).....and we're STILL waiting for Honda to come up with a similiar vehicle, based on the Accord.

eyezack87

iTrader: (4)

It was the FWD model I think. It acted pretty much the exact same as all of my FWD cars. I guess me pushing my cars to the limit actually helped me on the course haha! I'm a good driver

pagemaster

I disagree. The jury is still out on whether the Venza will be a success.

I would rather see Toyota pour a ton of cash into developing a awesome next gen Avalon that the Venza

mmarshall

Sorry, but I (respectfully) have to disagree with your disagreement. The jury IS out on competitive vehicles like the Outback.....has been for years. Toyota and Honda have not sold vehicles like this before simply because they have not PRODUCED them, despite a clear demand for them.....Subaru, in contrast has. You can't sell what you don't make.

Now, of course, it may turn out that the Venza indeed doesn't sell.....nothing is cast in stone. But if so, it will not be from lack of demand. Many people today, because of the banking crisis, simply cannot get the credit and loans they need, even for cars they want. But that is not the car's fault. And history has shown that there is a large demand for carlike, crossover, AWD vehicles that don't drive and steer like SUVs, even car-based SUVs. Hence the success of the Outback and Volvo's XC70.....slightly raised, AWD wagons.

pagemaster

I came finally came across a Venza today. It was a bare bones model. I am suprised it is already out in Canada. I always thought Toyota released new models in February.

Anyways....The Venza is a crossover. Period. It is not exactly a wagon and it is not exactly a SUV.

I am not so sure about this. The Venza IMO is D.O.A.

This is the type of vehicle that simple fills voids when the demand for Toyota's is out of control. I haven't seen this type of crazy demand for years. Something tells me that Toyota knows that the Venza is not tracking very well. Also, the ground clearance is an issue and Toyota is trying to make sure it comes off as a car.

With that being said. The exterior quality is excellent. Very large rims and premium Michelin Tires. The front looks pretty decent. Reminds of the build quality of Toyota's from early to mid 2005.

The brown exterior colour was horrendous. I believe it was sunset bronze. It has to be the worst colour I have ever seen for a production car.

I didn't get into the interior. But it does look very well built and fit and finish look superb. Looks like Toyota is starting to take their interiors serious again.

I8ABMR

Thanks for another great write up. I remeber seing the Venza at the LA auto show. I was impressed and pleased with it in every aspect of the interior, passenger space, and safety