Anybody with a Toyota RAV4 or Chevy Equinox? Would you recommend them to others?

[sunny & the 5 egg layers]

Hello.

Recently we were involved in an auto accident and are now in search for a new vehicle. We are looking for a small to midsize SUV that is reliable and has good safety rating as well as comfort and plenty of leg room for the whole family to take day trips in.

We were looking at the Toyota RAV4 and like what they have to offer. However, I read about them online and it seems that some report trouble with the accelerater engaging randomly, which is obviously a big hazard.
Is this a malfunction that has been fixed in most vehicles, or is this a reaccuring problem with Toyotas? Also, I heard about some years having excessive oil consumption.
Perhaps a Toyota owner can shed some light on this for me.

We've never owned a Toyota (we've always had Chevys with the occasional ford). But I hear that they are relatively good cars with little to no costly problems. I hear that their rear seats recline as well, which is certainly an added bonus when taking road trips.

We were also looking at the Chevy Equinox. We owned a '95 Chevy Blazer and drove it for many years before the Fuel Sensor gave us trouble and the car would no longer run for long periods of time. I read about similar problems with the Equinox, which leads me to believe this may be a reaccuring problem with Chevy SUVs.

I understand that every car is prone to mechanical problems eventually. I'm just doing my best to find the best fit for our family. Hopefully a vehicle that doesn't have any major headaches that would leave it stranded in shops for weeks on end.

Thanks for all and any advice.

 

[GertrudeLover01]

I have a 2011 Chevy Equinox LT AWD with 107,000 miles on it and I like it a lot. It had a major hiccup at about 100,000 but it never had a problem before or after that. I simply cannot remember what was wrong or what we had to replace but the transmission went into something the auto shop called "safe mode" or something like that. Basically it would not go over 40, then a minute later 30, then 20, etc. If I turned it off then waited several hours, it could be driven but it could randomly happen again. It went to the shop and ended up costing a couple thousand dollars to fix. That is the only issue I've ever had and I do not know if it is typical of the Equinox.
This car is fantastic on ice and snow. I drove in the middle of a snowstorm in it with ice already on the ground and it did not skid a bit. It also does great in rain and mud. The acceleration is a bit slower than the other vehicles I have, but it can tow a great deal for a compact SUV. Overall, this car is great. I'd probably give it 4/5 stars and hope to have it for a while.