Hybrid sales push Toyota RAV4 to top spot

It’s taken 26 long years, but the Toyota RAV4 can finally claim to be Australia’s favourite car, topping the nation's overall sales chart in July.

Perhaps more surprising is that more than 80 per cent of the 4309 mid-size SUVs that found Aussie homes last month were petrol-electric hybrids.

The RAV4’s shock July win came as a result of pent-up customer orders, resulting in waiting lists of up to 10 months, that were finally served by increased imports.

The fact that traditional league leaders, the Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger, were in short supply following delayed production and bumper June sales also helped.

The Toyota RAV4 is currently the pin-up boy for mid-size hybrid SUVs and, although Toyota admits it's unlikely to see such a high proportion of hybrid RAV4s sold in future months, hybrid versions account for more than 60 per cent of sales of the popular SUV so far this year.

Toyota RAV4: What you need to know

A petrol-electric hybrid system is offered in every model grade in the RAV4 range, in both 2WD and AWD layouts, and in most cases commands a price premium of $2500 over regular petrol variants.

The 2.5-litre petrol-electric powertrain generates a healthy 160kW of power (163kW with AWD) and is very fuel efficient at 4.8L/100km. Our testing puts the figure closer to 5.3L/100km, which is still low for an SUV of this size.

Toyota’s fleet-wide hybrid sales for the year stand at around 24 per cent -- almost one in four vehicles sold -- but the large amount of hybrid RAV4 sales last month pushed the overall hybrid mix to more than 40 per cent in July.

While it’s unlikely the RAV4 will be Australia's top-selling car for the entire year – that title likely to remain with the Toyota HiLux ute for a fifth consecutive year – it represents a milestone for SUVs and potentially hybrids in Australia.

SUV sales accounted for more than 50 per cent of all vehicles sold in Australia in July, a first for the Aussie auto market.

VIDEO: Toyota RAV4 hybrid v Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV

Many of the Toyota RAV4’s medium SUV rivals will become available with hybrid power in future, with the next Hyundai Tucson and Nissan X-TRAIL both set to offer petrol-electric powertrains from the first half of 2021 and 2022 respectively.

Toyota’s Australia sales and marketing chief, Sean Hanley, said: “I’m not surprised that other car companies are suddenly realising that hybrids are a credible, practical, affordable solution”.

And he added that the RAV4 was unlikely to be dethroned as Australia’s most popular SUV any time soon.

“We believe the RAV4 will hold its ground in this competitive segment and we know the extensive experience we have with hybrids over the last two decades will also hold us in good stead with our customers,” said Hanley.

While the Japanese brand is doing a roaring trade with hybrids and spruiking its green image, the Australian market leader also continues to to sell more diesel vehicles than any other auto brand in Australia.

More than a quarter of a million of them are currently embroiled in a class-action lawsuit concerning a diesel particulate filter fault that allegedly causes some HiLux, Prado and Fortuner models to lose power and/or belch out large plumes of smoke.

According to the ABC, some HiLux owners were issued fines due to their smokey exhaust emissions.

And while some brands are shifting towards plug-in hybrid or fully-electric vehicles, Toyota is sticking to its tried-and-tested hybrid tech for now.

“The fact is electrification is here, but it will come in all sort of different forms,” Toyota Australia’s sales boss told carsales recently.

“The market will ultimately determine what is that best source, and I think Toyota will be at the forefront largely because of the investment and vision Toyota had 20 years ago.”