Review: How The New 44 MPG 2026 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid Avoids Ruining The World’s Best-Seller

When you’re young, surprises are frequently exciting. Making honor roll, getting into your first-pick college, that first promotion, big life moments. However, once you start to have responsibilities, the seesaw of surprise tends to tilt towards aggravation. The heart palpitation-causing surprise meeting with your boss, the nasal shock of your child forgetting a sandwich in their backpack all year, that mole being more than just a mole. Sometimes it’s just nice not having to deal with extra surprises, and that’s where the 2026 Toyota RAV4 comes in.

It’s arguably the most important new car all year, which is interesting because it’s not groundbreaking when it comes to speed or power or chassis architecture. It’s important because the old RAV4 was the best-selling car in the world last year, per the analysts at JATO Dynamics. Those are some huge shoes to fill, and to take this best-seller up a notch, Toyota’s going all-in on hybridization. Prepare yourselves, you’re about to see these Rav4s everywhere.

[Full disclosure: I drove out to Niagara-on-the-Lake to drive the new RAV4, and Toyota put me up in a charming hotel, took me on a tour of the Woodstock assembly plant, and scheduled a couple of dinners at some of the region’s notable vineyards.] 

The Basics

Engine: 2.5-liter naturally-aspirated Atkinson-cycle twin-cam inline-four.

Battery Pack: 248-volt 1.1 kWh lithium-ion battery pack.

Transmission: Twin-motor/generator eCVT with planetary gearset.

Drive: Front-wheel-drive or through-the-road all-wheel-drive with an electric motor on the rear axle.

Output: 226 horsepower on front-wheel-drive models, 236 horsepower on all-wheel-drive models.

Fuel Economy: 48 MPG city, 42 MPG highway, 44 MPG combined for front-wheel-drive models; 46 MPG city, 40 MPG highway, 44 MPG combined (5.1 L/100km city, 5.9 L/100km highway, 5.4 L/100km combined) for entry-level AWD models; 41 MPG city, 36 MPG highway, 39 MPG combined (5.7 L/100km city, 6.5 L/100km highway, 6.0 L/100km combined) for the Woodlands with the chunky tires.

Base Price: TBA

Why Does It Exist?

Just like how non-crab crustaceans keep evolving into crabs, the default family car continues to trend towards a tall, reasonably sized crossovery-thing because it just works for the highest number of people. You can throw an IKEA haul in the back, pick the kids up from school, pull a small trailer to the dump, you name it, without much in the way of compromise. When it comes to compact crossovers that simply carry about the business of transportation, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the RAV4 is the most popular name in the genre. It was early on the scene, and between Toyota’s reputation for reliability and the real efficiency of hybrid models, you’re looking at the obvious choice for a new family car from Louisiana to Lyon.

How Does It Look?

While the new RAV4 shares about 40 percent of its parts content with the old RAV4, you really wouldn’t know if you put the two crossovers side-by-side. Even looking beyond the standard front end seemingly designed to terrorize people with trypophobia, the new car goes boxier, with a more upright greenhouse and flatter hood. Find the grille detestable? Well, the Woodland Edition and the plug-in-only GR Sport get more conventional front ends, but of course, they’re going to cost a chunk of change more than an LE. Still, don’t those taillights look great? Fine vertical finned elements are rather distinctive these days.

Depending on trim, you can get the new RAV4 in subdued blues or a glorious red, but I find myself particularly fascinated by the hypnotically suburban, barely-beige notes of Brown Sugar Metallic. It has a tinge of pre-recession to it without being the visual equivalent of trying to sneakily unwrap a Werther’s Original. Then again, maybe it’s too subtle. To summarize a long story, I had to make a quick Home Depot run while actively on a press event, and ended up walking right past the new RAV4 in the parking lot. I guess that’s the ubiquity test passed.

What About The Interior?

Millions of people buy compact crossovers because of their spaciousness, and on that front, the new Toyota RAV4 is unlikely to disappoint. It has space for humans, space for 37.8 cu.-ft. of thousand island dressing with the rear seats up, and space for all the trinkets that come with raising a family. We’re talking two tiers of trays in the center stack and a wide shelf above the glovebox, but the big party piece is a sort-of Missy Elliott armrest. You can put that thing down, flip it, and reverse it to turn it into a shallow tray for gorging on Taco Bell. Actually, the whole piece is even removable in case you carry a small-but-tall bag and don’t want it flopping about in the footwell like a carp in a jon boat.

However, after some real time in the driver’s seat of the new RAV4, I’ve realized I’d trade my kingdom for some foam. The center console bulges out where it meets the dashboard, and while I’m not especially tall at five-foot-ten, my left knee found itself firmly up against some mighty hard plastic. It probably wouldn’t seem like a big deal on a 30-minute test drive around the block at your local dealership, but it gets to you after an hour in the saddle — you know, the point at which you start to notice the little touches.

While many competitors cover their inner window frames with black plastic, the RAV4 still shows a bit of body-color inner door stamping. Likewise, you still sit a bit close to the headliner in the new RAV4, even with the rather flat driver’s seat at its lowest setting. Come to think of it, the Honda CR-V Hybrid, Hyundai Tucson Hybrid, and Kia Sportage Hybrid all seem to just be made of nicer stuff on the inside, too. Then again, some people don’t buy RAV4s for an affordable premium experience. They buy them because of the reliable efficiency under the hood.

How Does It Drive?

Of course, the big story with the 2026 Toyota RAV4 is that, like the new Camry, every single variant is a hybrid, a sort of powertrain that’s really the best solution for most people right now because it requires zero changes in driving habits. You don’t have to plug it in, you don’t have to learn what a kilowatt-hour is, you don’t have to decide whether you like one-pedal driving, you just go about your business and get sensational fuel economy. In a mid-range XLE model, I averaged 5.5 L/100km or 42.7 MPG without even trying, and all the credit goes to the new fifth-generation hybrid drive system.

There’s still a 2.5-liter naturally aspirated inline-four under the hood, and the available eAWD is more of a get-through-a-snow-drift solution than a get-up-the-trail one, but everything’s just more efficient thanks to lighter, smaller, more powerful high-voltage components. Out on the road, this updated hybrid powertrain is more subdued than the old one, more eager to glide along on electric power alone.

That being said, aside from huge efficiency and a impressive towing capacity of up to 3,500 pounds, we’re talking a game of inches when it comes to improving the driving experience. It seems slightly quieter on the freeway than the old car, although tire noise over small bumps is still a slap of a drum rather than a gentle ahem. The ride’s slightly better sorted than in the old RAV4, although not as supple as in a Subaru Forester Hybrid or as taut as in a Hyundai Tucson Hybrid. The blended brake pedal — which mixes electric regenerative braking with friction braking — feels a bit more natural than before, but don’t expect a transformative experience. Alright, so the knobbly tires on the Woodland Edition seem to give it a bit of a freeway wander, but other than that? You’ll know exactly what you’re going to get with this new RAV4’s driving experience.

Does It Have The Electronic Stuff I Want?

Beyond the all-hybrid lineup, the big draw of the 2026 Toyota RAV4 is a huge leap forward in cabin tech. Even the base model gets a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster with fairly deep ties to a new infotainment system displayed on a standard 10.5-inch touchscreen. Top trims embiggen that latter number to 12.9 inches, but frankly, you don’t need it. Between generous screen real estate and big tiles on the homescreen, this latest infotainment system is the most user-friendly one we’ve seen from Toyota so far. Sure, I do wish that the heated seat controls were physical buttons, but  at least they’re permanently docked at the bottom of the screen.

Speaking of screens, Toyota’s gone with a hoodless digital gauge cluster, and I’m not sure if the image quality is quite there for the application. Without a bit of overhanging plastic, the instruments can wash out slightly in direct sunlight, but the configurability really hits the spot. Plus, if you’re on Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, you can see the Waze map displayed behind the steering wheel. As for other noteworthy gadgets, you can option a RAV4 up with dual wireless phone chargers, 45-watt USB-C charging ports, and ventilated front seats. Even if you don’t splash the cash on extras, a new active safety suite with a built-in dashcam that can automatically record video. However, perhaps the coolest bit of tech is a gizmo in the radar cruise control system that tells you what sort of aerodynamic advantage you’re getting by following the vehicle in front and optimizes following distance to safely make the most out of a windbreak. It’s draft-o-matic!

Three Things To Know About The New Toyota RAV4:

1. Every model’s now either a regular hybrid or a plug-in hybrid.
2. It still comes with a temporary spare tire, and the non-plug-in model even has enough space under the cargo area false floor to securely hide the cargo cover that everyone throws on a shelf in the garage.
3. If you’re tall, you’re really going to want to test-fit the new RAV4 before you buy it.

Does The 2026 Toyota RAV4 Fulfil Its Purpose?

The 2026 Toyota RAV4 is exactly what you’d expect to a whelming degree. Nothing alarming, nothing surprising, just a more modern, more user-friendly, more electrified evolution of the compact crossover seen on just about every block, all around the world. In fact, the only real unknown is pricing. In America, it’ll start in the low $30,000s, while the ballpark base price in Canada is likely not too far off from what the current RAV4 costs, but Toyota hasn’t released specific figures yet.

Sure. The Honda CR-V Hybrid is made of nicer materials, the Subaru Forester Hybrid feels airier and has a mechanical all-wheel-drive system (check out our comparison coming in a few hours!), the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid and Kia Sportage Hybrid are more fashion-forward inside and out, but if you’re shopping for a RAV4, you’ll probably buy a RAV4. Good thing, then, that the new one’s even better at its job than the old one. I probably wouldn’t upgrade from the old one to the new one as it isn’t a huge leap forward, but if you’re coming from a model that’s eight, ten, even fifteen years old, you’re likely going to like the 2026 RAV4. Mission accomplished.

What’s The Punctum Of The 2026 Toyota RAV4?

Meet the new electrified boss, comfortably about 40 percent the same as the old boss.

Top graphic image: Thomas Hundal