Have you seen the Toyota Venza commercial?

[awd-gg]

Originally Posted by Pool Runner

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?

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Toyota subcontract SUbaru Plant in indiana to assemble Camry's in the past. not 100% they still do it now....
but CAmry and legacy share nothing....the same with VEnza and Outback

[Euchre]

I just looked at pics of the Venza...
That has more 'style'?
I can't believe Bradze didn't explode about the big chrome bass mouth on that thing. Didn't we figure out most people don't like chrome anymore, and modern designers largely don't know how to apply it?

[Manik1770]

I'll agree with you there Euchre.

Our friends have a Venza and everytime I see them driving I always tell my wife that it looks awfully like a minivan from the outside.
I think it has a lot to do with the sloped angle of hood to windshield - one straight line. I know it doesn't look like a minivan on the inside and I did take a look at them early this year when i first started car shopping, but quickly steered towards the Outback. Excited to be getting our first Subaru in a month and I have a feeling I'll be hooked for a while.

Originally Posted by Euchre

I just looked at pics of the Venza...
That has more 'style'?
I can't believe Bradze didn't explode about the big chrome bass mouth on that thing. Didn't we figure out most people don't like chrome anymore, and modern designers largely don't know how to apply it?

[slidog]

Ha ha, right when I saw that I was thinking Subaru!

[Startiger]

I couple things stand out to me the advertising of the Venza.

1. All of the TV commercials for it seam to be targeting the older demographic. All the ones I have seen feature retired couples out having fun. They are pushing for the baby boomers. Compare that to Subie commercials that tend to target young adults or family demographics.

While I know that is one of the largest and fastest growing populations in the US, they typically are not the type to buy cars a lot. They buy cars for long term use. Whereas younger people tend to buy more cars and keep them a shorter period of time.

2. Are the radio commercials really kind of an underhanded way of boosting Subie sales? By saying that the Vensa AWD is almost as good as the Subaru, then that means that Subaru is still the better of the two?



I had a 2001 Corolla. I twas a love hate car. The car was boring and had mediocre performance. However, it was also rock solid and wouldn't die, so I didn't have an excuse to get rid of it until we were expecting our second child and ran into car seat issues with both it and the OB. I love my Fusion WAY more than that Corolla.

We considered a Vensa when we were looking at a Corolla replacement. The front seats seamed kinda small because of the high center console. the 4 cylinder was sluggish and in the end it was way too expensive. For the price of a base model Vensa, you could get a OB limited.

MSRP pricing on 2013 models: Base Vensa with I-4 and AWD: $30,710, Outback Limited H4: $29,870,

Add to that some really bad experiences with the local dealership, turned me off of a Toyota. When I moved to the area, I went there to get a front plate mounting bracket, they harassed me because I wanted to buy parts for a car I didn't buy there. I was not at all sad when they went out of business early this year.

[upflying]

I considered a Venza but it's just a raised Camry. At least the OB is based on the the more credible Legacy.
Venza was also too expensive.

[4wheeldog]

I did not even consider the Venza because we live in the mountains, and it snows. My neighbor has a Venza. We both have 300'+ driveways with steep sections. I have watched him get the Venza stuck several times. (It is AWD). I bought a Subaru because you see them and 4wd Toyotas when things are really bad. My Subie has not been tested by a winter yet......But I will be disappointed if it doesn't get up the driveway like my 4runner has always managed to.......

[chilanzar]

Originally Posted by mcbrew

Lol... The 4 cylinder Venza is only rated to tow 1,000 pounds.

That was a coniseration too. our old 2001 OB 4 cyl have been used for towing quite a bit. and expect that to continue. The U-haul smaller size trailer alone weighs like 600+ lbs. so that leaves no real towing capacity with venza 4 cyl. Of course many people never tow, but we do.

[Bobaru]

When I was shopping (before getting my 2010 OB 3.6R Limited, in October of 2009), the other vehicles I looked at most were the Venza (6 cyl), the Nissan Murano, and the Ford Edge. I also gave brief thought to the Audi Q5. The Honda Crosstour wasn't out yet, and the Volvo XC60 was JUST coming out, so I gave these at least a "paper look".

Obviously some of these are a fair amount more money, but I'm usually not car-shopping with a real narrow price range in mind - I look at "what am I getting for my money", sometimes over a broad range of prices.

In the case of the Venza, I liked the exterior looks a lot. The interior is nice, but with a few weird things. Despite not offering much more (if any) additional usable space, the Venza just felt bigger. I thought the ride was harsher, but at the same time the handling felt more sluggish. The engine seemed nice enough.

In the end, the Venza seemed that it's roots were more minivan than SUV, and the Outback had a better vibe to it. I'm totally happy with my selection, even if the Outback's styling is perhaps quirkier than the others....

[Thai]

I rules out Venza early because the rear seat window sill is very high...rear seat passengers feel like they are sitting in a tub. My kids would not see anything! The ride with the big rims are kinda stiff too. Besides those two issues (and possibly the ineffective AWD), I like Venza.