Overview of the Toyota Tarago
The original, 1980s Toyota Tarago - known as the Space Cruiser in Japan - was simply a van with extra seats and windows, but became a dedicated, all-new people-mover from 1990.
That model was famous for its egg-shape styling, though the latest model's wedge-style design has more in common with the original.
While there have been several generations of the Tarago, the latest iteration has been going since 2006.
TOYOTA TARAGO GENERATIONS (SINCE 2000)
2000-2006
2006 on
RUNNING COSTS
Fuel Consumption
2.4L 4-cylinder: 8.9 to 9.5 litres per 100km
3.5L V6: 10.2 to 10.3 litres per 100km
= Highly economical.
= Good economy.
= Average fuel use.
= Heavy consumption.
Servicing
Every 10,000km or six months, whichever is sooner. Each service currently costs from about $180. Toyota Tarago parts and accessoriescan be found on Gumtree.
SIMILAR MODELS TO TOYOTA TARAGO
Kia Carnival
Honda Odyssey
Hyundai iLoad
Volkswagen Multivan
WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR: TOYOTA TARAGO (2006 ON)
As with any people-mover, the first thing to check is that the interior has not been trashed by kids, dogs, prams and mountain bikes.
Make sure all the electricals work and that things like the power-window switches aren't full of melted ice-cream or biscuit crumbs.
Mechanically, the biggest potential glitch is an example with the 2.4-litre engine that is consuming oil.
This has been a bit of a theme globally for this engine, and it often starts around the 100,00km mark and will gradually get worse. The problem is in the piston-and-ring assemblies and it usually requires a full engine rebuild to sort.
So be very wary of any Tarago that hits the second-hand market with 100,000 or 120,000km showing on the odometer. A compression and leak-down test, performed by a qualified service centre, should provide the answers you're looking for.
