Toyota thinks the new RAV4 can do it all, but can it really?
Toyota just unveiled the new RAV4, and there are a few noteworthy changes to the compact SUV’s formula. Most notably, the RAV4 is a hybrid-only lineup now, with improved electric range and fast-charging for the PHEVs. But Toyota also seems to think that the little SUV can appeal to just about anyone, from the rugged, outdoorsy buyer to the Gazoo Racing fan.
The new RAV4 gets a modern, boxy look and an all-hybrid lineup– but Toyota thinks its best-selling SUV can do sporty, too
The RAV4 has been Toyota’s best seller in the United States for some time now. However, the RAV4 pulled off the seemingly impossible last year, outselling the Ford F-150 and dethroning the Blue Oval’s claim to the best-selling vehicle in the United States for the first time in over 40 years. Now, Toyota is refreshing its popular compact SUV with a hybrid-only lineup, industry-indicative angular styling, and horsepower figures you’d expect to find in a muscle car.
It’s part of Toyota’s shift to focus on its already dominating presence in the hybrid vehicle market. The Japanese brand has already turned its most popular car, the Camry, into a hybrid-only affair. It makes sense that the brand would do the same with the new RAV4. At the bottom of the lineup, the base models pack a 226-horsepower 2.5L four-cylinder engine sending power to the front wheels in conjunction with the marque’s fifth-generation hybrid system.
Adding all-wheel drive to the mix bumps output by 10 horsepower. Then there’s the plug-in hybrid variant, which now produces 320 horsepower, more than a V8-powered S197 Ford Mustang Bullitt. It’s muscle car might in a RAV4 PHEV. These are indeed strange times.
If you thought that was wild enough, Toyota clearly believes there’s a RAV4 for just about everyone. The brand broke the RAV4 into three categories for 2026: Core, Rugged, and Sport. The Rugged category includes the RAV4 Woodland, a carry-over from the previous generation. Don’t think Jeep Wrangler, though. It’s standard AWD, all-terrain tires, and little aesthetic features to make the Woodland look a bit more Yeti-ish than its siblings.
But Toyota also thinks the new RAV4 is taut and athletic enough to join the fraternity of Gazoo Racing-badged vehicles in the brand’s lineup, like the GR Corolla. Part of the new vehicle unveiling included the new 2026 Toyota RAV4 GR Sport. The GR model gets a Gazoo Racing-tuned suspension setup and summer tires on 20-inch wheels.
