Have you seen the Toyota Venza commercial?

[bradze]

yup, i considered a venza because toyotas are great, but way overpriced. i made the right decision but should've gotten limited trim and maybe the 3.6

[Carlvr87]

Toyota's WERE great vehicles. My friend bought a 2010 Corolla S and he complained about the car wanting to go left or right, so I figured it needed an alignment(this was at 250 miles). I drove the car and it was actually pretty scary. The car wanted to go left or right even when you had both hands on the wheel holding it as straight as could be. The dealer said they'd do him a favor and "buy the car back if he bought another toyota". He leased a 2011 Camry LE. That car was a quality nightmare with panel gaps and the dash coming up. Toyota wanted nothing to do with it.

He lost some money but went out and got himself a 2011 Elantra and hasn't looked back since. I agree that toyota's were great cars especially in early 90's-2006, but since then quality has really gone down.

[pgh]

Originally Posted by foxrider68

Wait Toyota owns 20% of Subaru and they are publicly claiming they're not good?

I think it is more like 16 or 17 percent and Toyota's strengths are a quiet ride and quality workmanship. I will agree with the quietness but quality is something they have lost pre 2005. They are making some headway in this area though

[chilanzar]

Went to toyota a while ago and looked at the Venza as an Alternative to an Outback.. The 4 cylinder FWD Venza has much worse MPG than the AWD Outback and it cost MUCH more for the same equipment. You could not touch anything for 25k other than a stripped model Venza FWD. You can get a 4 cylinder AWD model however it is much slower even the base Venza with AWD ends up costing the price of a base limited Outback

[Pool Runner]

Originally Posted by foxrider68

Wait Toyota owns 20% of Subaru and they are publicly claiming they're not good?

Yeah, no kidding. I thought Legacy's & Camry's come down the same assyl-line? If the Venza is Camry-based I would think they make them alongside the Outback/ Legacy too?

I breifly looked at the Venza before getting my '11 Outback aswell, I actually think the Venza looks better, but the deal breaker was questionable AWD ability and lower ground-clearance than the Outback.

[rockthebeef]

I considered a Venza, but I'm 100% happy with my decision to get an Outback. I choose not to spend more than $30k on a vehicle, so I was obviously looking at a base model Venza or an OB 2.5i Premium. Two of my 'must haves' were a standard double DIN sized stereo for ease of upgrading, and it had to have the interior space like a proper mid-sized wagon. I like the Venza's exterior styling as I think it's quite nice looking. The interior is nice, but the dash mounted shifter was too minivanish for me. Plus it was only available in light gray or beige inside. I think they now finally offer a black interior for 2013.

Two of the more stereotypical Outback owner things I like to do is mountain bike and camp. On the other hand I do love cars that look aggressive on the road, and if I had gone with a Venza, it would be lowered and made into a 100% street vehicle. The Outback just fit my needs better. I've never had anything with a boxer motor or AWD before either. In the end, I chose to go with inner beauty.

Plus, 19 and 20" tires for a Venza are expensive! I think the better fuel economy and cheaper tires make the OB a winner.

I was looking at:

• Outback
• Venza
• Jetta Sportwagen
• Used A4 Avant
• Used 328 wagon

The Audi and Bimmer were never serious contenders, but I've always liked them. The higher cost of maintenance was enough to steer me away, and a stereo swap looks like a nightmare on those things. I was also worried that the Jetta would be in the shop a little too much.

I like driving a $26k OB, especially since a loaded one can be $40k nowadays. It's analogous to owning the smallest house on the block (which I do). It gets you in the club, but saves money and helps your resale value. Plus I personally chose my upgrades a la carte via the afermarket or online OEM dealers. Working on my car keeps my hands busy so I don't get into too much trouble.

PS, I was searching for that Venza commercial online but couldn't find it. I did however find a Brazillian Toyota commercial where the whole thing focuses on a woman's chest wearing a white T-shirt as she drove with the A/C on. You get to see her, *ahem* "change" as the temperature went down. The commercial was touting the standard A/C on Toyotas.

Please excuse me, ladies of the forum...

[mcbrew]

Originally Posted by foxrider68

Wait Toyota owns 20% of Subaru and they are publicly claiming they're not good?

I haven't seen the ad yet, but it sounds like they are trying to say that it is "just as good" as an Outback. Doesn't sound like they are saying anything bad about the Outback, except maybe the styling. Having said that, I think the Outback looks better than the Venza... But that's just my opinion.

The sad thing is that they are saying it is just as good as a CHEAPER car! It would be like a Mercedes commercial saying that they are just as good as a Lexus. Sad times for Toyota.

The Venza is an oddball. They are trying to go too far upscale. The Outback seems like such a better deal. I'd think that if someone was in the market for an AWD wagon and had too much money to be seen in an Outback, they'd probably be heading for a Volvo or Audi dealership. The Venza doesn't even come standard with AWD... It's an afterthought.

[chilanzar]

Originally Posted by Harvey

I test drove a Venza before ordering my Outback, which is to be my 5th Subaru.
It was higher up and roomier. It was not as comfortable and the visability was not so good. The sales force was high pressure. When the sales person could not get me interested enough she walked me into the manager's office. When left alone for a few minutes I walked out.

we sat in one, and contrary to your impression, it semed to us smaller inside than the OB. The back seat seemed smaller and so was cargo area, probably because of 2 bumpouts(not the wheel wells) and sloped roofline. On paper the interior volume is stated to be bigger,. but that may be unusable volume like 1" extra head room (not like OB is lacking in that area) or behind those bumpouts but you cannot put as much actual cargo there.

[mcbrew]

Lol... The 4 cylinder Venza is only rated to tow 1,000 pounds. I'm sure it has a better tow rating in other countries, but I guess they're not using that as a selling point here in the US like Subaru does (who actually shows Outbacks towing trailers in their commercials!).

The V6 has a decent tow rating... Actually a little higher than the 3.6R's US rating.

[DrSteve]

My wife has a V6 Venza AWD. When we were looking, it was between the OB and Venza. The interior size is very similar, but the Toyota interior materials and nav were much nicer. She uses it as the family hauler and its been a great car. Only downside is the mileage never gets above 18 mpg combined. It's a nice ride, but now that it's time for me to get a new car, I'll be getting a '13 OB for my $$.