5th Generation Toyota RAV4 Master Thread

[F1 Silver Arrows]

The RAV4 PHEV does the same. Nothing in this segment comes close to it. The only thing dragging it down is the ridiculous price.

Fair enough, but I feel like the current RAV4 loses out on a lot of things, especially in terms of refinement compared to the 3rd gen.

 

[Flagship1]

Fair enough, but I feel like the current RAV4 loses out on a lot of things, especially in terms of refinement compared to the 3rd gen.

Rav4 is a home run if all you want from a vehicle is that it blends in to the background of your life, a sort of reliable appliance. If you are used to more refined vehicles, stepping into this regularly when i have one as a rental i get let down hard. The materials screams dreary, hard plastic or rubberized textures everywhere, the infotainment is tiny, MID is small. While im not a fan of Kia or Hyundai, even there rental specials exude a little bit more effort on the inside.

I know im complaining here and that i should be less demanding, but it would nice if the next generation tried to introduce a little bit of excitement on the interior.

 

[Sulu]

https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/comparison-test/a15131015/top-suvs-2010/

I don't know how I got to this article, but I did, and I thought I should share it along with some of my thoughts. Here's a comparison test of the RAV4 in a class of 8 compact crossovers in 2010. We all knew that the 3rd generation RAV4 was pretty well-received, especially the V6 model, but going through this article shows that Toyota can absolutely wipe the floor with everyone else and make them look like total amateurs.

When I was going through the article, it really made me think about the times where Toyota really knocked it out of the park. Look at the highlights that C&D gave the RAV4, and the high praises it received.

Tested was the RAV4 V6 in the Limited trim. It was the most powerful, the most fuel efficient, the best handling, the best driving, most handsome, and the best feeling car inside and out. This car literally curb stomped the competition and put out jaw-dropping numbers. The next time I saw a proper replication like this was recently when the Grand Highlander Platinum with the Hybrid MAX powerplant became a star overnight and annihilated its competition in all the same ways that 2010 RAV4 did. But, other than their GR cars, and cars like the Corolla, Camry, and Prius, it's not commonplace for the Toyota lineup.

I remember the days when Toyota (and Lexus) would deliberately make moves to purposely blow the competition out of the water and make them look like total amateurs. Want more proof? Just look at how they talked about the CR-V, which is a darling for so many people and compare that to the RAV4 in the review.

I think about the times where Toyota and Lexus did this again, and they did it in numerous occasions. There's way too many examples to cite, but now seeing Toyota being complacent with Lexus and not giving Lexus the autonomy it really deserves, it's a huge fall from grace.

I have not read the article so I must ask if the authors ever mention that "Toyotas are boring". What I remember from that time was that most (if not all) mainline auto critics felt obligated to state that all Toyota vehicles were absolutely boring.

 

[qtb007]

Fair enough, but I feel like the current RAV4 loses out on a lot of things, especially in terms of refinement compared to the 3rd gen.

Dude, you are wearing rose colored glasses. My mom has a '10 Rav4 Limited V6 that she has owned since new -- now with 240k miles. I had a '14 Limited for a couple years before a sleepy driver took it out. My mom also has an '18 Limited that she's also owned since new (why 2 Ravs at the same time, I'll never know). I've put tons of miles on the current gen in both hybrid and conventional. The interior on the '10 is probably a low point in Toyota interiors. It's chintzy with hard plastic everywhere. Ergo was insane with the silly 3 rotor button setup for auto climate control. Gas mileage was below 25mpg almost all the time. The 4th gen was a massive improvement in interior. The AR was fine with the 6AT as far as performance and was at least able to get 30 on a road trip. The A25 with the hybrid in the 5th gen is an absolute sweetheart, though. It is super smooth, accelerates almost as well as the V6 anytime I'm not gunning it from a dig. I regularly get over 35mpg out of it. I don't care for the A25 with the 8AT, but I'll take the A25 with hybrid over the 2GR every day of the week and 2x on Sunday. The 5th gen interior is also far better built and has a better layout (feels wider inside and more airy).