Toyota powers up the RAV4

Tuesday, 2 July 2019

**TOYOTA RAV4 LIMITED

Base price:** $44,990 (2WD)/$48,990 (Hybrid)

Powertrain and performance: 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol, 127kW/203Nm, continuously variable transmission, FWD, Combined economy 6.0 litres per 100km (2WD), 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol hybrid, 131kW/221Nm (163kW total system output), continuously variable transmission, AWD, Combined economy 4.8 litres per 100km (Hybrid)

Vital statistics: 4600mm long, 1685mm high, 2690mm wheelbase, luggage capacity 580 litres (2WD)/542 litres (Hybrid), 19-inch alloy wheels with 235/55 tyres (2WD)/18-inch alloy wheels with 225/60 tyres (Hybrid).

We like: New one is a good looking thing. Excellent interior and brilliant seats. Hybrid is impressively frugal.

The FWD Limited gets a bit more boot space, courtesy of a space saver spare wheel.

We don't like: CVT in the FWD model. It is getting rather big now.

Okay, so a week in the hybrid version of the new Toyota RAV4 followed by a week in the 2.0-litre FWD version. Both top-spec Limited models, just $4,000 apart in price (you pay a premium for the hybrid).

Both Limited models share the same quality interior, with some excellent seats.

From this I had two things I wanted to know: does the hybrid use 30 per cent less fuel like Toyota claims its hybrids do? And, like the Corolla, is the hybrid actually the more satisfying car to drive?

The hybrid models are the pick of the Corolla range. This is something I never really thought I would say - at least, not with a straight face - but it is true. More satisfying in its power delivery, the hybrid drivetrain puts its torque down lower and makes it more accessible in normal driving, meaning you don't need to thrash it to get the best out of it, aiding both fuel economy and sanity, as it minimises the effect of the continuously variable transmission on the engine.

They get the same level of equipment, but the 2.0-litre Limited sits on bigger wheels.

The 2.0-litre engine is good in the Corolla, but with more weight to pull around in the RAV4 it shows its limits.

* New Zealand's most popular type of new vehicle

* The most, and least, fuel-efficient new cars in New Zealand**

Bigger and with an all-new look, the RAV4 moves closer to Highlander territory.

Toyota's addition of a 'launch gear' or a physical first gear that 'changes up' to the CVT after 40km/h also drastically minimises the irritating flaring of a conventional CVT.

While the 2.0-litre FWD RAV4 is essentially the same as the equivalent Corolla, with both also sitting on Toyota's new TNGA platform that is also shared with the Prius, C-HR and Camry, the RAV4 gets a new hybrid set up that includes a 2.5-litre petrol engine and two electric motors, one of which is on the rear axle.

So, same spec, quite different drivetrains and $4k difference. Is it worth the extra for the hybrid?

Oh hell yes.

The Limited model shares the top spec step with the new Adventure model in the RAV4 line up, with a high level of standard equipment across them all.

The Limited comes standard with goodies like a premium JBL audio system with an 8-inch infotainment touchscreen (no Apple CarPlay or Android Auto yet though), embedded satellite navigation with SUNA live traffic info, the full Toyota Safety Sense driver assist package, a panoramic reversing camera, leather accented heated seats (10 way electrically adjustable on the driver's side), wireless phone charging, dual zone climate control and lots more.

Differences between the two? Other than the powertrain, minimal: the 2WD rides on larger alloys (19-inches versus the hybrid's 18s) and gets a full length panoramic sunroof, while the hybrid has to make do with a smaller opening at the front, but also gets a full size spare (the 2WD gets a spacesaver), although this compromises boot space by 38 litres.

The hybrid can also tow more - 1,500kg on a braked trailer, compared to the 2WD model's meagre 800kg.

But where the hybrid really wins is exactly where Toyota claims it would, as well as where I hoped it would - it uses way less fuel and it is better to drive.

For my two weeks with them I drove both in the same, real world fashion - mainly around town, commuting to work, with some open road stretches. I never expected to see Toyota's claimed combined figures (6.8L/100km for the 2WD and 4.0L/100km for the hybrid) and, of course, I didn't.

But I did very much see that claimed 30 per cent advantage for the hybrid. A week in the 2.0-litre FWD Limited with mainly urban motoring saw it use fuel at a rate of 9.8L/100km, while a week in the 2.5-litre AWD hybrid with the same driving saw it use fuel at a rate of 6.7L/100km, or just over 30 per cent less.

Combine this frugality with the fact that the larger engine AWD car is far more satisfying to drive and that $4,000 difference becomes almost negligible.

Both Limiteds have deeply impressive ride quality, with the hybrid having the handling edge, although they are both family SUVs, so don't expect a sports car sharpness. Both, however, are more than capable of being hustled along a winding ride in a wonderfully unfussed and flowing fashion.

The 2.0-litre FWD Limited is undoubtedly in possession of a CVT, with a tendency for the usual unpleasant flaring under heavy acceleration and a slight coarseness to the engine up in the revs that is amplified by the transmissions need to keep it up in that uncomfortable zone. Around town, however, it is smooth and largely unobtrusive, although the engine does betray a lack of power from a standing start.

No such worries for the hybrid, however, with strong, solid torque available down low thanks to the electric motor (which also provides a surprising amount of electric-only running). This presence of torque lower in the revs (3,600rpm versus the 2.0-litre's 4,500rpm) - and that aforementioned trick first gear combined with the CVT that the hybrid gets - means that progress is far less thrashy and held high in the revs in the hybrid, making it a far more pleasant experience all round.

While the 2.0-litre FWD Limited is a perfectly fine thing, with the same comfortable, quality interior and high level of equipment, the extra refinement and drivability that the AWD hybrid drivertrain brings to the RAV4 equation makes it more than worth the $4,000 extra by itself. The fact that you will use 30 per cent less fuel is almost just a bonus.

A hybrid RAV4 has been a long time coming, but it certainly seems to have been worth the wait.