2002 Toyota RAV4 EV - All Electric, Eco-Friendly, Zero Emission SUV - $29,500.00

Some front end damage:


"Salvage" suggests it might have been through something bad then repaired?
"Salvage" tends to be sold "as-is" (buyer be careful).

What does 'Salvage' actually mean?

The site says as-is, no warranty (bottom left... faint) but is that just because it's dented and an unusual car so the dealer is stepping back or are there known technical problems that make the car too expensive to repair?

At $30k though they're thinking someone might. Wish I had the spare cash to fix it up; let's hope it doesn't die.

Salvage title, I assume

Salvage typically means that there was an accident of some kind, the owner reported it to the insurance company, and the insurance company deemed the repair costs to outweigh the value of the machine. In my experience, insurance companies almost always grossly over-estimate the repair costs, and vehicles with lots of potential either go to the wrecking yard or get salvage titles.

"Salvaged" vehicles can supposedly be repaired and returned to a legally-drivable status. I've heard the process is tedious and requires some degree of inspection depending on the state, etc., etc.

If a salvage car is not hit too hard and you fix them up right, they can be cheap and work very well. But it is hard to sell; everybody's afraid that it wasn't fixed right. And of course you lose the warranty, but that doesn't matter as this car is out of warranty anyway.

In my state (WA) you just schedule and appointment with the state patrol, bring the car in, they look at it for about a half an hour and look at receipts, and then give you a certificate so you can get a new title for it (which will be marked "SALVAGE"). You can't drive it on the public roads until you do this.

The hood should be easy to replace; I think it's the same as an ICE RAV4's. The bumper, I think, is unique. I hope that's all the damge it has, but it's hard to be sure from the pictures. I'd look especially hard at the grill--that's where the charge port is. You don't want THAT to be broken. Speaking of which, does it come with a charger? They are about $2000, when you can find one.

They are nice cars (we have a 2003) and that's really low miles. But you'll want to borrow a Toyota diagnosis tool (or a RAV4Info unit) and check the voltage and resistance of the batteries before you buy it.

For more info, visit Darell's Electric Vehicle Page and click on "RAV4". That's got a bunch of good info and links, including this one to the discussion group archives, which have a lot of details on how to check the battery condition: RAV4-EV Info Page.

The Bonnet is standard RAV4 ice 1995 to 1999, and the bumper is just a painted version of the late 1997 facelift to 1999 model (at least it is in the UK) The bonnet slam panel that holds the bonnet catch looks the same as the RAV4 ice 1995 to 1999. (I have a 1998 RAV4 ice and the 1999 EV but with front wing normal and fast charge ports and nothing in the front grill) Hope this helps.