‘I’ll prove it’: Nissan dealership shows even this Toyota, the No. 1-selling car in America, sounds like a ‘tiny lawnmower.’ Here’s why that’s an issue
A Nissan dealership employee defended the engine noise of the soon-to-be-released 2025 Kicks. After showing the car off in a TikTok video, commenters criticized the sound its engine made.
However, the Puyallup Nissan (@puyallupnissan) worker argued that all modern car engines sound like this. To prove it, he cracked open a Toyota 2024 RAV4 hood with the engine running.
While he thought the video, which accrued 26,000 views, was enough to evince his point, other TikTokers weren't so sure.
All the same?
"All the engines sound like this," a text overlay reads at the beginning of Puyallup Nissan's TikTok video. He discusses a problem he says every single engine modern engine suffers from.
"I don't think a lot of you've opened the hood of a modern car. Because they all sound like that," he says after briefly showing a comment on screen that prompted his video response. It seems the other TikToker responded to a car's engine noise in a previous clip. They wrote that the car "sounds like a tiny lawnmower."
The Puyallup Nissan rep demonstrates that multiple manufacturers make cars that sound like this.
"I'll prove it with this 2024 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid that someone traded in last week," he says.
He says the customer handed over the Toyota so they could upgrade "to a brand new Nissan." You may wonder why anyone would do such a thing, considering how much higher Toyota ranks in reliability. However, that's not the point of the TikToker's video.
@puyallupnissan Replying to @Wolf_Bro #toyotarav4 #nissankicks #rav4hybrid #enginenoise ♬ original sound - Puyallup Nissan
A quiet purr
The dealership employee walks around the lot until he finds the RAV4 in question. He opens the door to the white 2024 XLE model and pops the hood. Next, his video quickly cuts to the car's hood open while he makes his way back to the vehicle to hit the push-to-start button. However, one commenter remarked that this move was unnecessary, referencing newer Toyotas' remote start feature.
"Did you know NEW toyota have remote start press lock twice then hold," they penned.
Once inside the vehicle, he dishes out some facts on it before going into the experiment. "For reference, it's got 5,400 hundred miles," he says.
After powering up, he gives the car a few beats "for the regular engine to turn on."
"All right, let's fire it up," he says as he cracks the driver's door open and makes his way to the RAV4's open hood. He wastes no time stating that the engine noise emitting from the Toyota is identical to the Nissan he previously posted.
"Similar noise as the car I showed you yesterday," he says.
After letting the engine run for quite some time, the TikToker seemed satisfied his hypothesis was confirmed. "So no different even in a beloved Toyota Rav 4," he states before closing the hood and shutting off the car.
Inferior interior?
The Pullayup Nissan salesperson unsurprisingly favors the cabins of Nissan's offerings when compared to Toyota's. While he states that he does "admire" the '24 RAV4, he does state that "the car yesterday had way better technology."
It doesn't seem like many consumers are dissuaded by the RAV4's interior, however. That's because the Puyallup Nissan salesperson mentions that it's "the number one selling car in America in this class." The RAV4 is indeed the top-selling crossover SUV in the country according to KBB and Edmunds. In 2024, it's only been bested by the Chevy Silverado and Ford F series.
After exiting the vehicle, the TikToker says, yet again, that the engine makes the same noise as the Nissan he recently showed off. The most recent engine showcase video uploaded to his account appears to be one about the 2025 Nissan Kicks. He posted two videos about the Kicks—one that focused on the interior.
For under $30,000, customers can enjoy a bird's eye view 360-degree camera and a massive panoramic sunroof. The touchscreen display is expansive and looks akin, dimensions-wise, to something you'd see in a newer Genesis vehicle. The vehicle also rocks a Bose sound system and a two-tone paint job. This same design language seems to extend to the car's seats, which sport a grey and red design.
What about the engine?
One commenter pointed out that just by virtue of the RAV4's engine design it's different than the Nissan's.
"Toyota’s engines have dual VVTI meaning it has direct & port injection. That loud sound is the direct injection essentially clean in your engine. Turns off in a few minutes…. Not like a Nissan!" one said.
The TikToker replied that "Nissans have even better engineering," but numerous TikTokers disagreed with this claim.
"Dude. I like a lot of Nissans but we gotta be realistic here about what we’re saying. I understand it’s your brand," they conceded.
However, the commenter wrote Nissan's reputation is tarnished among consumers. "Nissan's engineering is the reason people are scared to buy it now let’s be real," they penned.
Someone else bluntly stated, "I’d trust John Wayne Gacey to watch my 13yo son more than I’d trust a Nissan CVT transmission to make it to 100k miles."
End of an era?
At least one user, however, referenced the bad press Toyota's been receiving lately. The target? Transmissions in 2024 Tacoma and Tundra miles purportedly failed to even clear 1,000 miles in some instances.
The Drive penned, "Toyota is having a rough year. The brand with a reputation for incredible reliability just announced that it’s replacing roughly 102,000 Tundra and Lexus LX engines that are prone to failure. Unfortunately, it doesn’t end there, as new 2024 Tacoma owners began reporting transmission failures in June, often with fewer than 1,000 miles on their odometers."
The outlet stated that complaints about these models keep coming in. The same Nissan devotee wrote that there's been a role reversal in terms of quality between the two Japanese manufacturers as of late. "Because Toyota is Nissan and Nissan is Toyota these days."
Just don't try saying that to this mechanic. Or this one, either.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Toyota, Nissan, and Puyallup Nissan via email for further comment.
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