As the owner of a 2021 RAV4 XLE gas model I must say that this is one of the best and fairest reviews that has been on RU-vid since the 5th generation came out in 2019. Personally I love the sound of that raucous Dynamic Force engine as it revs up through the gears.
Thanks Anthony for watching and the kind comments. There is always a lot that falls on the cutting room floor during edits and one comment cut was how much I liked the confidence that 2.5 provides. Just mash it and go! No worries about it breaking, no worries about a turbo ready to blow, and great mileage on top of all of that. That XLE is the sweet spot. There is a reason these are basically Toyota printing money for themselves. Again thanks and all the best.
Thanks for watching and sharing your experiences. Completely agree, the engine has great linear throttle and acceleration, and great efficiency. You really have to rev it out before becoming noticeable. Congrats on a great car that will last forever.
“Engine is loud and raucous” - the noise only rises if accelerating. Personally, having driven a 5MT most of my life, I like to hear the engine at acceleration. You know what it’s doing. Doesn’t bother me a bit. In fact I find an engine that you can’t hear, bothersome. Hey great review btw! Thanks!👍
Thanks for watching and commenting. I may have come across too hard on the engine noise but there is beauty and responsiveness in these non-turbo engines and they don’t sound like sewing machines like the direct injected turbos out there. And Toyota nails it with fuel economy and longevity with little maintenance. The more cars I drive the more I admire the non hybrid RAV4. And 98% of the time you are never flooring it like I was in the video.
Road trips in eco mode will get you roughly 32 mpg. City driving in eco mode will get you about 28 mpg. The more expensive models come with an ice/snow drive setting. You know what we call it on the LE? If you guessed "eco mode" you'd be right. Hard to break traction when you tell the transmission to drive like grandma. "Why would I get the LE when the XLE is only a few thousand more?" Because some of those auto features get switched off. Some of us don't want a sun roof. The blindspot mirror lights bother some people. You can add fog lights to the LE, they give you an extra spot for the dash switch to go in. "But it doesn't have power seats." Neither did my 2005 model. "But it doesn't have push start." Neither did my 2005 model. The LE has automatic high beams and that's already NASA to me, so I feel like it's really more of a preference whether you want the LE or XLE. You're getting a Toyota either way. Forgot to mention too about the lane assist feature. There's a camera behind your rear view mirror. What it does is track the lines on the road and find the center. It is an assist* feature, not an autopilot. It does not steer well on sharp turns and the bobbing left to right is caused by wind. It's trying to correct itself, but it can't read the oncoming wind, it's reading your input to the steering wheel.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences, especially the fuel mileage numbers. At BTTD, we are big fans of base models. You make valid points folks should consider when shopping in this crazy car market.
Thought I'd update. The MPG I mentioned above was estimated on a full tank where the average range calculator was reset, then checked after an approximate 200 mile drive where the vehicle was in eco mode and utilized the cruise control radar for majority of the drive. The average was 32 MPG when you're simply cruising along and not driving like you just watched Fast n the Furious and listening to Night Lovell. Per trip is different. Where the best I've seen (when I was paying attention) was 36 MPG. The average* in city was 28 MPG, because you're accelerating more frequently, and the 2020 base model does not have auto engine idle shutt-off. Which I'm glad it doesn't, because I prefer engine longevity. Idling with the engine running counts against your MPG. So you could've had 27-28mpg, but because you sat in the driveway eating lunch for half an hour, the trip mpg will read much lower, like 7mpg. Consider this when getting a lot of city driving and thinking you're getting low MPG. Unless you're trying to win a drag race at every stop light, you're actually getting decent gas mileage. You just have to maintain a majority high MPG for it to reflect on the average, where the trip mpg will be much higher.
Great review. I'm very satisfied with my 2022 Rav LE AWD. Personally I'd rather be mildly disappointed with a few minor issues paying 29K than being very disappointed with something while paying 44K. I love the key ignition with no expensive battery to fail in a couple yrs like with the push button, or the car theft issues. Just wish it had the old hand or foot E brake and No eng stop/start on the AWD. Otherwise it's a great value and reliable vehicle.
Thanks Gary. Great points. In this day and age we need more lower cost base models. All the bells and whistles are nice but not with gas prices and dealer mark ups.
While Toyota could have made it quieter, I don’t drive around with the accelerator nailed to the floor so the noisey engine isn’t the big deal reviewers complain about. I like the sound when I do get on it.
Thanks for watching and commenting. And you are absolutely right. The RAV4 is such a great vehicle that we are all really grasping to find something to grouse about. Because you have to grouse about something. 😉. Toyota did though do a better job of isolating this exact drive train in the Camry. With direct and port fuel injection, and being naturally aspirated and reliable, this is one of the great engines available today.
Great Review. Glad to hear that the drive has improved. I am trying to decide between the Hybrid Rav4 and Venza once the chip shortage stuff gets better.
Thanks for watching and commenting. Yes, I really tried to get the transmission to weird out but it was pretty solid overall. The hybrid is stellar. The Venza starts with more content and is a great and cheaper alternative to the Lexus equivalent.
Thanks for watching and the kind comments. The LE isn’t bad and you made a good choice. If I had to complain over one missing option the XLE has is the keyless smart key and push button start. And that is just because I have got used to my daily driver having that feature so it’s hard to go back and get that key fob out. But just an annoyance. I have a fondness for base trim levels.
I have 21 RAV4 le in the red color I’m surprised it’s drives really well it’s my first Toyota! It has more space than the Buick encore that I had before
Push-button start = easier for thieves to steal your RAV4, but with a key it is much harder to steal so I'd rather have the LE with a key and avoid waking up to find my RAV4 stolen.
Thanks for watching. The typical hot wire depends on access to the high current solenoid the key turn provides. But not an expert at this. Thanks for commenting. Plus it gives you a nice place to put your key! All the best and happy motoring.
Excellent Mike. I was probably a little too hard on the RAV4 engine isolation as I do enjoy driving Rav4s. I was just in a Camry and it’s amazing how much more attention Toyota pays to isolating that same drivetrain. But that 2.5 is an excellent engine that will last forever. Thanks again for watching and commenting.
Nice review! Funny thing though, as a mechanic, this is the second review of a vehicle where a reviewer has referred to a fuel injected, non turbo engine as “naturally aspirated”. Naturally aspirated engines are carbureted. I know you really mean non turbo, but it just bugs me and sounds uneducated. I know I sound like a grumpy old man. Lol!
Hi Ben, thanks for watching and commenting. I will check into that, as I thought any engine being fed by outside ambient pressure, not forced with higher pressure (turbo or supercharger), is 'naturally aspirated'. I haven't thought about carburetors for quite some time. Naturally aspirated, makes no distinction I think, on how the fuel is mixed with air....but I will check it out to make sure I am using correct terminology.
@@BeyondTheTestDrive yes, when a patient aspirates, it means that the patient got fluid in their lungs. Same is true for engines. Naturally aspirated means that the flow of air naturally brings the fuel up from the carb bowl. Fuel injection is the controlled injection of fuel metered by sensors. Although, now that I’m looking it up, it seems that they’ve changed the definition or updated it to include air induction as well. Keep on keepin on. Man am I really feeling my age now! Lol!
Definitely a better value and for 2024 it is significantly improved. But not as large as the RAV4. You would need to go to the Sportage as that is the RAV4 competitor. Thanks for watching and commenting.
Thanks for watching and for the question. One of my favorite things about the RAV4 is just how well the suspension is tuned to handle and absorb bumps but also give you a comfortable ride. A little more sporty and firmer of a ride then the older RAV-4. You will feel the bumps though but the suspension has lots of compliance and soaks them up. Very impressive by Toyota.
Thanks Spencer for watching and commenting. Hmmm. As this was not my car I did not check any of the fluid levels. Do you know if that tank in Toyotas is primarily an overflow?. I had an old Camry and as long as fluid reached the radiator cap when cold our Toyota mechanic told us not to worry. Again, thanks for watching.
I would say it’s quieter than both of those. The RAV4 is fairly quiet except when under full acceleration. The cross trek and Prius engines make themselves known even under modest acceleration. Road noise and wind noise is not too bad in the RAV4 and the Cross Trek. Thanks for the question.
@@BeyondTheTestDrive SUPER helpful! Thanks so much! I have a 2014 Prius and would like to replace it with something that has some towing capacity and mild off-road abilities. But I’m gonna miss the mpgs!!!
@middler goodluck. There is the RAV4 hybrid but the prices are fairly high. Since you mentioned the Cross Trek, and depending on how much towing and off-roading, don’t over look the Corolla Cross. We would expect a hybrid version of that one fairly soon. Keep in touch and let us know what you get.
