2016 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid Car – Yet another Hybrid from Toyota

Toyota is going to add yet another hybrid car in its lineup that has already full with lots of them. After Camry, Avalon, Highlander, Prius c, Prius, Prius v, Prius Plug-in the auto maker is going to add launch 2016 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid which is going to be unveiled at 2015 New York Auto Show. If you are not satisfied with the numerous selections of hybrid cars from this Japanese carmaker then you could wait a bit and you could buy Rav4.

Bigger Highlander hybrid was launched in 2006 but electrified version of RAV4 was missed till date but no more. Further details about the car would come to light after its debut at New York Auto Show next week. It is very likely that powertrain would be borrowed from Lexus NX. NX hybrid carries CVT automatic transmission with 4-cylinder 2.5ltr engine. The engine teams up with 2 electric motors and a hydride battery (nickel-metal).

The power output of the car is 194hp for both front and all wheel drive. The all wheel drive is going to have an extra electric motor that is going to drive its rear wheels.

It is more likely that the hybrid system for this car would not be as efficient as Prius so a careful handling of the car might be required to save fuel while driving. RAV4 Hybrid does not has real threat from competitions but would have to face stiff competition from small crossovers which are fuel efficient and buyers might not be very interested to pay extra for just riding some extra miles.

RAV4 was redesigned in 2012 so it would be interesting to see if any external changes happen for the hybrid version. Toyota is going to launch hybrid version for all its cars one by one.

The hybrid cars are great for the environment and Toyota is doing a great job in bringing harmony between machine and nature. But with the advancement of technology for electric cars, only time will tell if these hybrid cars would be hot in future.

2016 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid Coming To New York

Next week the world’s biggest automakers will descend on the Big Apple for the New York International Auto Show (NYIAS). Among the many anticipated new debuts will be the 2016 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid, which the Japanese automaker teased with the above photo.

Besides the photo though, Toyota isn’t dropping any hints about the RAV4 Hybrid, and this will be the first time the brand offers a hybrid version of the popular compact crossover. The only hybrid “utility” vehicle with a Toyota badge at the moment is the seven-passenger, $50,000 Highlander Hybrid, and while our review found that it delivered great fuel economy for a big SUV, it’s priced way beyond what most people can afford.

Toyota did build the RAV4 EV briefly in a partnership with Tesla, though it was only available in California as a compliance car (albeit one with a small but devoted following). However, the Lexus 300h shares the same chassis as the RAV4, and it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch for the 2.5 liter engine and Synergy Hybrid system to make the jump into a cheaper Toyota. That could boost the RAV4 to up to 35 MPG, though there’s also a chance an all-new hybrid drivetrain could find its way under the hood.

We’ll find out a week from today!