More new RAV4 details

More details of Toyota’s fourth-generation RAV4 have emerged ahead of its world debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November.

Due for release in Australia in the first quarter of next year, the redesigned compact crossover range is likely to open here for the first time with a front-wheel drive model powered by a 2.0-litre petrol engine available with both six-speed manual and continuously variable automatic (CVT) transmissions.

Aimed directly at circa-$25,000 front-drive 2.0-litre small SUVs like the Hyundai ix35, Jeep Compass and Patriot, Mitsubishi ASX and Nissan Dualis, the first CVT-equipped RAV4 should replace the cheapest version of Toyota’s existing RAV4 line-up.

The current RAV4 range opens at $28,990 with the 2WD CV variant, which is powered by a 2.4-litre petrol engine matched with both five-speed manual and four-speed auto gearboxes.

However, motoring.com.au understands a 2WD 2.5-litre version of the next RAV4 will only be matched with a six-speed automatic transmission and won’t be made available to South East Asian markets including Australia, forcing Toyota Australia to downsize its entry-level 2WD RAV to a 2.0-litre model with manual and CVT transmissions.

Like the rest of the new RAV4 range, the 2.0-litre 3ZR-powered 2WD entry model will return better fuel consumption than the model it replaces, while mainstream 2.5-litre all-wheel drive petrol versions of the new RAV4 should also bring increased engine performance of around 135kW/235Nm – up from the current 2.4’s 125kW/224Nm outputs.

The outgoing 2.4 2WD – launched here in April 2010 - returns 9.1L/100km as a five-speed manual and 9.6L/100km in four-speed auto guise, making it much less efficient than the most frugal new compact SUVs, including Mazda’s CX-5.

Powered by a 2.0-litre petrol four, the cheapest CX-5 2WD Maxx manual ($27,800) consumes just 6.4L/100km, while the 2.2-litre diesel-powered CX-5 consumes as little as 5.7L/100km.

As we’ve reported, the new RAV4 will also be available with diesel power for the first time in Australia, and motoring.com.au has now learned that diesel power is almost certain to be available from the new RAV4’s launch early next year, giving Toyota Australia full coverage of the booming compact SUV sector it once dominated.

Whether the oil-burning RAV matches the CX-5 diesel’s economy remains to be seen. But official Toyota documents from Japan reveal the next RAV4 will become available in Europe with both carryover 2.0-litre and 2.2-litre turbo-diesel engines.

While it’s unclear which diesel will be sold here – or whether Europe’s larger diesel engine will be BMW-sourced - the 2.0-litre will be matched only with a six-speed manual transmission, while the 2.2 will be made available with both six-speed manual and conventional (torque converter-type) automatic transmissions.

That makes the first RAV4 diesel highly likely to be available here only in high-spec AWD auto-only form – a strategy that would mirror Mazda’s with the CX-5.

The same six-speed manual and auto transmissions will be matched with the volume-selling AWD 2.5 petrol variants, replacing the current all-2.4-litre model’s outdated five-speed manual and four-speed auto transmissions, and effectively mirroring the Camry’s petrol powertrain line-up.

Unlike the Australian-made Camry, however, the new RAV4 (which will continue to be imported from Japan) will not be available with petrol-electric hybrid power – at least not in Australia for the foreseeable future.

While Toyota’s next-generation 2013 Kluger hybrid will remain off-limits to Australians because it will not be built in right-hand drive guise, motoring.com.au understands the first RAV4 hybrid has so far been earmarked only for the US, Europe and selected Asian markets.

Powered by the same 2AR 2.5-litre petrol-electric drive system seen in the Camry Hybrid, the RAV4 Hybrid – codenamed 411A - will be offered in AWD form in Taiwan, Japan, North America and Europe from 2014, while Japanese buyers will also have access to a 2WD version – also paired exclusively with a CVT.

Also unlikely to be seen in local showrooms is a replacement for the slow-selling RAV4 V6, which joined the nearly-seven-year-old MkIII RAV4 range here in November 2007.

As we reported last month, the Mk4 RAV will wear far more aggressive sheetmetal and is expected to be larger in all key dimensions except height, at about 4500mm long, 1815mm wide and 1660mm high.

With a smaller grille, wider stance, ‘faster’ windscreen and a more pronounced wedge shape, the new RAV will bear a more striking family resemblance to the new Corolla/Auris hatch, which will make its world debut at the Paris Motor Show in September.

Despite riding on the same 2660mm wheelbase, the new RAV4 is expected to offer more rear legroom, thanks to a larger 890mm ‘couple’ distance between the front and rear seats.

As we’ve reported, the next RAV4 will no longer be produced in two wheelbases. Currently, Australia receives a long-wheelbase five-seat version of the seven-seat model sold in the US, while a short-wheelbase RAV4 is also produced in Japan for Europe and New Zealand. Australia’s new RAV4 will continue to come from Japan in LWB five-seat-only guise.

New-to RAV4 features are expected to include automatic climate-control air-conditioning, a digital video entertainment system and metal interior highlights, with the global options list also likely to comprise powered front seats, sunroof and shift paddles.

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