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Interior roof material?

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Discussion starter · #1 ·
I am wondering what kind of material Toyota uses in the roof of the new RAV4. To elaborate:

1) Cheaper cars usually have a leatherette kinda material on the interior of the roof. You can clean it easily with a damp cloth. Examples: 1997 Honda Accord LX (US Model).

2) My 2001 RAV4L (no sunroof) had a rough material on the roof. I cannot describe what the material looks like (but hopefully all of you know what I am talking about). If I had to explain it, I'd say you take a cotton roll and simply glue chunks of it on the roof and then you flatten (or compress) it in with a roller of some kind.

3) Expensive or higher grade cars have a soft, cloth-like material on the roof. The cloth looks like it has a sponge beneath it. It is very smooth and soft and you can pinch it with a finger. Examples: Lexus, VW Jetta, BMWs, Japanese assembeled Toyota Camry (Pakistan Model).

What kinda material does Toyota use? Can someone please post closeup pictures?
 
#3 ·
Yes, it is a cheaper material. My wife and I have been very disappointed with the interior materials. Our 1996 Chevy S10 has better materials for the interior roof and seats. Just because we want a small SUV for good gas mileage and ease of driving, doesn't mean we want a "cheap" vehicle. Toyota should do better for Limited owners who are willing to pay for better materials.
 
#5 ·
macdatatech said:
Yes, it is a cheaper material. My wife and I have been very disappointed with the interior materials. Our 1996 Chevy S10 has better materials for the interior roof and seats. Just because we want a small SUV for good gas mileage and ease of driving, doesn't mean we want a "cheap" vehicle. Toyota should do better for Limited owners who are willing to pay for better materials.
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I'm sorry, that's utter crap. I had a 2000 S-10 Blazer, and the interior of my RAV4 is FAR superior in materials and seating.
 
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#6 ·
I really like my RAV but some materials are less than stellar including the thin paint.

Also as some others have said some common sense details were left out like auto headlights and locks.
 
#7 ·
Janos said:
I really like my RAV but some materials are less than stellar including the thin paint.

Also as some others have said some common sense details were left out like auto headlights and locks.
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have not noticed the paint is thin...........as with the auto head lights and locks if i wanted them i would have realized the veh came w/out them originaly and bought something else when i was looking for a new car.............especialy w/ some considering this misfortune such a safety issue..............
 
#9 ·
mongo said:
I suspect most of us bought our RAVs because they're solid, reliable, economical and sporty. But they're not perfect and it's okay to wish for some improvements in materials and features.
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i see no problem in wishing for improvments, though when you have some here that want to start screaming "safety issue" due to a lack of device or placement of devices is ascenine...........they should have put more time into researching the veh before purchasing, then to start screaming garbage about something they should have realized in the 1st place..........
 
#10 ·
Sorry, I didn't hear anyone screaming about safety issues, but I haven't spent enough time on this site to read between the lines. Someone seemed to be wishing for auto-on headlights, which I agree would be nice in a perfect world.

I believe the original intent of this thread was to comment about interior surface material, specifically the roof liner. Again, I agree that the interior surfaces leave something to be desired, but in the end, I still bought the vehicle for reasons already mentioned. If someone in Toyota management hears our comments and incorporates these changes in a future RAV, then we'll have reasons to replace our machines later.
 
#11 ·
mongo said:
Sorry, I didn't hear anyone screaming about safety issues, but I haven't spent enough time on this site to read between the lines. Someone seemed to be wishing for auto-on headlights, which I agree would be nice in a perfect world.

I believe the original intent of this thread was to comment about interior surface material, specifically the roof liner. Again, I agree that the interior surfaces leave something to be desired, but in the end, I still bought the vehicle for reasons already mentioned. If someone in Toyota management hears our comments and incorporates these changes in a future RAV, then we'll have reasons to replace our machines later.
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again......the complaints go on and on........toyota managment is thinking cost and profit..........look at your corvette, do you not think chevy has heard over and over about the less than desired interior material...........they have and owners have been screaming for ever..........will anything ever come of it, no..........
 
#12 ·
You're right! Some people do complain about the Vette interior materials. I am definitely not one of them. Many of the complainers are reviewers who want to compare it to Ferrari, Maseratti and Aston Martin - machines with comparable performance, but much larger price tags.

I believe GM has listened, however, and the interior of the C6 is the best yet. I honestly don't know if Toyota pays any attention to this or other internet forums, but I know GM does. The Corvette forum I belong to has nearly 60,000 members and over 750,000 posts. That feels significant to me and if I were selling cars, I'd be listening to that market.

Therefore, I think it makes sense for us to mention our concerns and hope that someone cares. If not Toyota, then maybe a third party who will help us customize our rides, like the PilotPads guy who makes the non-skid liners. Good stuff!
 
Discussion starter · #13 ·
salmankhilji74 said:
I am wondering what kind of material Toyota uses in the roof of the new RAV4. To elaborate:

1) Cheaper cars usually have a leatherette kinda material on the interior of the roof. You can clean it easily with a damp cloth. Examples: 1997 Honda Accord LX (US Model).
Click to expand...
I really liked the vinyl materials Honda used on their headliners. Interestingly, customer feedback (I used to work for Honda) was saying that most consumers preferred a softer material, and said they thought the fabric style of headliner was more upscale looking. After changing to the fabric headliner, Honda realized a considerable savings per vehicle, which they viewed as a win/win, for the customer and themselves. The fabric headliner is actually inferior to the current product.
 
#14 ·
Headliner fabric is foam backed non-woven needle punched polyester or polypropylene. I am not sure of the substrates construction. Would need to look at an exposed edge (cross section) but I suspect it could be polystyrene or a wood based polyethylene impregnated product.
 
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