2023 Toyota Rav4 Prime Owner's Manual

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Toyota RAV4 – The fifth generation (XA50) crossover debuted in March 2018 at the New York Auto Show. The production car is modeled after the 2017 Toyota FT-AC concept and is based on the TNGA K modular architecture, variants of which were also used in the construction of the Toyota Camry (XV70), Toyota C-HR and the Prius family of hybrids.

Competitors of Toyota RAV4:

Honda CR-V
Volkswagen Tiguan
Mitsubishi Outlander
Nissan X-Trail
Kia Sportage
Hyundai Tucson

The design of the new RAV4 has become stricter and more solid, and there is no trace of the former smoothness of the lines – the car seems to be cut from a single piece of metal, and only then decorated with plastic and chrome elements. With a length of 4,600 mm, the fifth generation RAV4 is 5 mm shorter than the restyled RAV4 of the previous generation. At the same time, it has shorter front and rear overhangs, and the overall width and wheelbase have increased by 10 and 30 mm, respectively. Due to this, the cabin became more spacious, and the trunk was more capacious (580 liters under the curtain instead of the former 547 liters).

With the new TNGA K platform, the torsional rigidity of the Toyota RAV4 body has increased by 57%. The fuel tank is now located in front of the rear axle, so its load is evenly distributed between the wheels. The track has become wider and the ground clearance has increased by 13 mm to 190 mm in the hybrid version and 195 mm in the petrol versions, while the seat attachment points are located lower than before, so that the seating height in relation to the road remains the same. The chassis configuration has also been preserved: McPherson struts are installed in the front, and multi-lever suspension in the rear. The main change was a new steering mechanism with an electric power amplifier on the rail instead of the former mechanism on the shaft, which promises a driver’s character of the car.

The interior configuration of the new RAV4 shares common features with the Toyota Camry. However, there was also a place for original solutions, such as, for example, the central console, which visually moves into the frame of the multimedia system display. The front panel and door cards are covered with textured soft-touch material, and instead of the “towel” lever, an electronic parking brake key has appeared next to the transmission selector. The automatic transmission selector itself has also changed — the new one is more compact than the old one and moves in a straight line. The instrument panel consists of a color display on which the speedometer and on-board computer readings are drawn, and two windows with traditional arrow indicators of the fuel level, temperature, tachometer or an indicator of the operating modes of the hybrid installation.

In the second row, “RAV4” became more spacious in the shoulders (+40 mm) and more free space for the legs, and ventilation deflectors appeared at the end of the central tunnel. Finally, the Japanese increased the opening angle of the rear doors to make it easier to install a child seat. The backrest of the second row folds in a 60/40 ratio and forms a flat floor.

For Europe, Toyota has prepared gasoline and hybrid versions of the Toyota RAV4 of the fifth generation, with front or all-wheel drive. The base engine – a 2.0-liter naturally aspirated M20A-FKS (173 hp, 203 Nm) – is combined with a 6-speed “mechanics” and a variator. The gasoline version received a new dynamic system of permanent all-wheel drive Dynamic Torque Vectoring, in which the rear wheels have individual multi-disc clutches, due to which traction vector control is implemented. As Toyota explained, this technological innovation makes it easier to overcome off-road obstacles.

Hybrid versions are equipped with a 2.5-liter A25A-FXS gasoline engine, one (on a front-wheel drive car) or two (on all-wheel drive) electric motors, a nickel-metal hydride battery and a planetary transmission. The peak output of the electrified installation is 218 or 222 hp, for mono- and all-wheel drive versions, respectively. The crossover also has the Multi-Terrain Select system, which changes the anti-skid electronics settings depending on the selected type of surface under the wheels, and the Trail Mode driving mode with an imitation of locking the front differential.

Toyota RAV4 is produced in Japan.

Overall dimensions of Toyota RAV4 (Toyota RAV4)
length: 4600 mm, width: 1855 mm, height: 1685 mm, clearance: 195 mm, base: 2690 mm

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