If someone asks me to recommend a good family car, I answer "Toyota RAV4". User-friendly, easy to drive, reliable and big enough for a family. No one will come back later and claim that I was wrong.
Improved hybrid solution
Those of us who like to drive have probably not exactly praised Toyota's hybrid drivetrain and CVT transmission over the 20 years it has been produced. But now Toyota has finally started to get a turn on its hybrid solutions. The new Corolla and C-HR provide excellent consumption figures without spoiling the driving pleasure. The RAV4 has received 3 engines, 2 at the front and 1 at the rear. The four-wheel solution is called e-Four and is controlled by the rear electric motor being switched on when needed – electronically. No additional shafts, couplings and linings.
Saved the day
I actually got to test the four-wheel solution. While looking for a "location" for a photoshoot in rough terrain, one front wheel ended up halfway in a wet ditch. It was heading further down. With my heart in my throat, I straightened the wheels and put the car in reverse - calmly ... If the wheel had started to spin, I would have been sold. Fortunately, I could feel how the electric motor grabbed the rear wheel and slowly and silently pulled us up without any problems.
The four-wheel drive system requires electricity
Luckily I didn't run out of power. I wonder how hybrid four-wheel solutions with an electric auxiliary motor work when the batteries are empty of power. Purely theoretical, then. Under normal conditions, you rarely need to engage the rear wheels and rarely for more than a few seconds at a time. It doesn't take much to save the day.
Popular family car
There is no doubt that the SUVs have taken shares from the station wagon market. The typical family car is undoubtedly an SUV, such as the Toyota RAV4. I borrowed "mine" through one of the car sharing services. I have followed and seen that the RAV4 cars are rarely inside. This summer, everyone is going on holiday in Norway. It was so close that I managed to hijack a RAV4 between two week-long leases.
Place
The space conditions in the compartment are very good. The back seat accommodates 3 adults, where the middle passenger can also sit comfortably. Plenty of space for rear-facing child seats. The luggage compartment is 580 liters with an intermediate plate that ensures threshold-free loading. It is good to have a living room. The boot in the RAV4 is larger than in the Audi Q5 (both diesel and hybrid), as well as the Volvo XC60 and Honda CR-V. It is not bad considering that there is an electric motor under the luggage.
look and feel
"No more boring cars!" the president of Toyota has stated. I like Toyota's new style. The RAV4 looks good – much better than all its predecessors combined. I also like the interior. The front seats are wide and comfortable. They are actually a bit reminiscent of the seats in Volvo. The interior, on the other hand, is not quite Volvo - but still alright. The user interface is intuitive. Anyone can get in, set the radio channel and drive away. At first I found a fairly low sitting position with some distance to the steering wheel. It worked fine, but after a while I felt more comfortable sitting a little higher and closer to the steering wheel. With the flanks of the hood in my field of vision, and my arm on the center armrest, I almost had the feeling of driving a Range Rover.
On the road
Three different driving modes can be selected. Eco, Normal and Sport. I drove on Normal all the time, except for short periods when I was testing the other choices. I see no point in choosing anything other than Normal.
The control
The steering is speed-sensitive. I thought the steering feel was best on quiet country roads. As the steering resistance increased on the motorway, some of the feeling with the road grip also disappeared. At parking speed, the steering is ultra-light and insensitive.
The soundscape
The soundscape consists of road hiss in a slightly annoying tone. It could have been more muted. You hardly hear the engine - but when you do, it produces a pleasant - slightly rough - sound reminiscent of a V6 engine.
The hybrid solution and the CVT transmission
The hybrid solution no longer sends the revs of the engine into the clouds like the previous generation could do. It still happens that the gearbox drops the revs higher than I like, but not more than I can live with. I guess that's part of the hybrid concept. Maybe it is needed to charge the batteries occasionally? Otherwise, the batteries are supplied with energy during normal braking, and a little when you let off the gas. By manually downshifting on downhill slopes, the car brakes on the petrol engine without charging.
The suspension
Soft in the suspension, I thought on my way out of the parking garage. But it seems that the soft part of the suspension only happens early in the suspension travel to catch small bumps. When the chassis was subjected to greater forces, it proved taut enough to provide good traction. The RAV4 feels heavy and confident on the road.
consumption
I started the trip by driving from Løren to Skedsmovollen to refuel the car. There is a motorway all the way. With frequent lane changes, varying speeds and a slightly heavy pedal, consumption ended up at 0,57 liters per mile. I think it's a fairly realistic consumption - plus, minus. Plus in case of load and strain on the air conditioning. Minus for a quieter driving style. I continued my journey along quieter country roads with a few stops along the way. After 80 km, the average consumption ended at 0,44 liters per mile for the entire trip in total. This is good for a large family car with over 200 horses.
Security
Euro NCAP
The Toytota RAV was tested in 2019. The report states that the side airbags were obstructed by parts from the interior so that they did not provide maximum protection in the event of side pillar collisions. The result for head injuries in side collisions was therefore downgraded from "Good" to "Adequate". There were otherwise no particular critical remarks about the tests.
Read the full report from Euro NCAP here
The world of technology's moose test
As known introduced Teknikens world in its day the term "moose test". It's an evasive maneuver at highway speed. The Toyota RAV4 was "failed" in the moose test when the RAV4 was tested in 2019. The car barely managed 68 km/h with a super-skilled driver behind the wheel. Other cars, such as the Nissan Qashqai, covered 84 km/h. The criticism against Toyota is that the anti-skid system does not reduce the speed sufficiently. Toyota stated in January this year that it has upgraded the anti-skid system for the RAV4, - not only to pass the moose test, but also because the system did not react quickly enough at highway speeds. The new system has not yet been tested in any production model and it is uncertain whether Toyota will upgrade previous cars. Let me also add that I found the RAV4 to be far more stable on the road than the Qashqai.
Conclusion
The fact that I previously recommended the RAV4 to families with children does not mean that I liked the model myself. I do that now, because of the new hybrid solution and the tough look. Therefore, I will continue to recommend the RAV4, preferably with four-wheel drive.
All-wheel drive can save your day 🙂
Facts about the Toyota RAV4 AWD-i
Weights and Measures
Length, width, height: 460 / 186 / 169 cm
Wheelbase: 269 cm
Net weight without driver: 1645 kg (vehicle license)
Max trailer weight with brakes: 1650 kg
– without brakes: 750 kg
Max trailer weight: 3875 kg
Engines
Engine 1: 2,5 four-cylinder front-mounted petrol engine. VVT-iE, Dynamic Force (A25A-FXS) 178 HP, torque 221 Nm between 3600-5200 revs.
Motor 2: Front-mounted electric motor of 120 HP, torque 202 Nm constant.
Motor 3: Rear-mounted electric motor of 54 HP, torque 121 Nm constant.
Total power: 222 HP
Transmission: e-CVT AWD-i (continuously variable automatic)
Four-wheel drive system: e-Four. Main features on the front wheels and rear wheels which are connected electronically from the rear-mounted electric motor.
Tires
Bridgestone Alenza 225/60R18 H
Performances
Top speed: 180 km/h
0-100: 8,1 seconds
consumption
Mixed (NEDC): 0,45 l/mile
Combined (WLTP): 0,57 l/mile
Own measurement (19 km motorway): 0,57 l/mile
Own measurement (80 km mixed): 0,44 l/mile
Prices
483 (Style Hybrid AWD)
7 (paint addition white pearl / black)
About the car
Country of manufacture: Takaoka, Japan
Registered: July 2019
Mileage: 16248
Km driven: 80
Sources: Carriage cards, toyota.no
Owner: Hertz Car pool
The car is rented via Hertz Car pool
Pictures of the Toyota RAV4
All images can be viewed in large format by clicking on them.
See
Hey
I just bought a used Toyota Rav 4 (2019mod) hybrid and am experiencing some weird and annoying clicking noises when I press the brake pedal. Have you experienced something like this with your car?
Mr. Zoltan