Next RAV4 just six months away

Toyota’s next-generation RAV4 will make its world debut at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November, before going on sale in Australia for the first time with diesel power early next year, motoring.com.au has learned.

Although the Japanese giant is yet to formally announce the first-ever RAV4 diesel – or the all-new compact SUV’s global premiere at LA – Toyota Australia has confirmed the new model will go on sale here in the first quarter of 2013, and that a diesel engine is almost certain to replace the existing petrol V6 in the range.

“We’ve got to have a diesel,” Toyota Corporate Manager Product Planning Greg Gardner told motoring.com.au, adding: “But we certainly don’t need a V6.”

Mr Gardner confirmed a full range of new RAV models will be introduced here by March, but said the next RAV4 will no longer be produced with 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.

Motoring.com.au understands Australia’s new RAV4 will continue to come from Japan in long-wheelbase five-seat-only guise

And, while the all-AWD 3.5-litre V6 version will be discontinued due to lack of demand, a bigger new 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine (pictured) from Toyota’s latest Camry will replace the outgoing model’s 125kW/224Nm 2.4-litre petrol four, while a 2.0-litre turbodiesel will join the Australian range for the first time.

It is not clear whether the latter will be a Toyota engine or the same new BMW-sourced oil-burner that is destined for Europe’s next-generation Corolla hatch, which itself will make its world debut as the new Auris at the Paris Motor Show in September, before going on sale here in late October.

However, the RAV’s new diesel engine – which will finally see Toyota’s volume-selling compact SUV join the majority of its mainstream rivals in offering a compression ignition engine - is likely to match the torque output of the current 201kW/333Nm V6, while bettering its 10.5L/100km combined fuel consumption.

Also unclear is what transmissions the new RAV’s four-cylinder petrol and diesel engines will come with, but latest betting is on six-speed manual and automatic transmissions for both engines, although there are rumours a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) could be seen for the first time in petrol versions of both the RAV4 and Corolla.

Either way, the new transmissions and engines will combine to deliver better fuel consumption than the outgoing RAV4 2.4, which is available with five-speed manual and outdated four-speed automatic gearboxes that return a respective 9.1 and 9.6L/100km. Newer rivals like Mazda’s CX-5 return as little as 6.4L/100km (petrol) and 5.7L/100km (diesel).

The all-electric RAV4 EV launched recently in North America will remain a US-only model, but Toyota is developing a hybrid version of the next RAV4, powered by a version of the Camry’s 2.5-litre petrol-electric Hybrid Synergy Drive system. However, how far away from Australian showrooms – or if it arrives here at all – remains to be seen.

The current RAV4 was revealed in 2006 before being introduced here in 2007. Despite being five years old here, sales are up more than 20 per cent with almost 6000 sold so far this year, placing it second only to Nissan’s X-Trail in the sub-$60,000 mid-size SUV segment.

Like its perennially popular predecessor, the new RAV4 will face increased competition from other new compact SUVs in the Subaru XV, Peugeot 4008, Citroen C4 Aircross and CX-5 – which is already threatening to overtake both the RAV4 and X-Trail in terms of sales - as well as other upcoming new models like Honda’s CR-V and the Mitsubishi Outlander.

The next RAV4 has been spied testing in the US in recent months, revealing it will be much lower, wider, sleeker and more wedge-shaped than the compact five-door wagon it replaces.

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