Toyota RAV4 CV 2WD 2010 Review

Toyota RAV4 CV 2WD

Road Test

RRP: $30,990 (manufacturer's list price, excluding on-road costs and dealer delivery)
Options fitted to test car (not included in above price): Nil
Crash rating: Four stars (ANCAP)
Fuel: 91 RON ULP
Claimed fuel economy (L/100km): 9.1
CO2 emissions (g/km): 214
Also consider: Hyundai ix35 Active, Mazda CX-7 Classic, Nissan Dualis

Overall rating: 2.5/5.0
Engine/Drivetrain/Chassis: 2.5/5.0
Price, Packaging and Practicality: 2.5/5.0
Safety: 2.5/5.0
Behind the wheel: 2.5/5.0
X-factor: 2.5/5.0

About our ratings

Toyota's RAV4 2WD CV came to the Carsales Network with the optional automatic transmission that's likely to be the leading choice among buyers of this offroad-challenged SUV. It's a four-speed box, so it lacks the extra ratio of the standard manual transmission -- and thus consumes more juice and takes longer to get places.

It's $2000 more expensive than the manual variant and will cost more to run over the longer term. So the question remains: how many buyers would save themselves money and enjoy greater driving satisfaction by staying with the manual? Not many, we reckon.

The CV is the base model in the range and the added cost of the automatic transmission takes the price of the vehicle up to $30,990. For an extra $1000 on top of that, you could select Hyundai's mid-range ix35 Elite -- with a 2.4 litre engine also, but with two extra ratios in its standard automatic transmission.

The Hyundai also provides drive to all four wheels, slightly stronger engine output and more features. It consequently looks harder to justify buying the Toyota, unless the badge means more than Hyundai's.

With just two wheels driven, this is one RAV4 you won't be taking offroad -- not by any means. Nor will those who buy this kind of vehicle worry overmuch about lack of traction or easily provoked wheelspin -- because they probably won't be driving the vehicle that hard in the first place. We will say this however: the 4x2 RAV broke traction but continued to provide enough drive turning across traffic on a damp road, thanks to its traction and stability control systems.

Furthermore, there was no axle tramp, despite the engine working pretty hard through the automatic transmission. While the engine is typically Toyota-refined and quiet, it's also as torque-rich across the rev range as a petrol compact SUV engine would need to be.

The engine does become strident at around 5500rpm and can also be detected rumbling away at highway speeds, although the tyres and some wind noise contribute as well. It's actually a promising sort of powerplant for its output, but it doesn't feel especially lively because it's hampered by that four-speed automatic transmission.

There's no sequential shift facility, you're stuck with an archaic gated shift and nil else to swap cogs. This is a pretty slow way of doing so too.

While the transmission is reasonably smooth in its gear changing, it's slow and unresponsive to driver input and the ratios -- combined with the final drive ratio -- are so far apart they might as well be the federal government and the opposition discussing a new tax. It's the transmission that fundamentally lets down the RAV4x2, which would otherwise be a pretty good machine for the money.

Off the straight and narrow, the RAV's steering proved to be well weighted, but like a few compact SUVs, didn't provide that much feedback. Turn-in was better and in handling terms the RAV4 coped well for a compact SUV with only the front wheels driven.

On a wet night it managed to catch everything thrown at it without much in the way of torque steer. Toyota has worked out how to get the most out of the MacPherson struts up the front, it seems. All in all, grip (both in a straight line and around corners) impressed more than expected.

The RAV4x2's ride was firm but well controlled. It's definitely not what you would call supple. Taking into account the car's reasonable dynamic prowess, the ride/handling balance represented a good choice on the part of Toyota's suspension engineers.

There was a little bit of give in the tyres over smaller irregularities in the road and the suspension would soak up heavier bumps at lower speeds. This is why the writer feels that the ride is a fitting calibration to match the car's handling and roadholding. For ride comfort it will meet the needs of most drivers who don't live on heavily corrugated, unsealed roads.

As a vehicle that will spend a lot of its time operating in the suburbs, the RAV4 is practical rather than especially well appointed or soothing. Some prospective buyers may be put off immediately by the pungent chemical smell that greets you the moment you open the doors of the RAV4. It's one of the strongest (and less pleasant) aromas we've experienced in a recently-tested new car. After a while you do adjust to it.

But it takes longer again to adjust to the Toyota's hard-surface plastics, which reinforce the ‘base model’ feel of this car. In compensation though, the doors close with Toyota's usual sense of solidity and security, without needing a good hard slam.

The driver's seat was comfortable and enveloping, other than a base that seemed a bit short for those of average height. As with other Toyotas, the RAV4x2's steering wheel rim is thinner than some will want.

Seated in the rear, adult occupants will be impressed by the level of leg and headroom. There's something to be said for the RAV's growth spurt over the years since it was first introduced to the local market. Yet there is something not quite right about the rear seat. Despite the adult-level accommodation, the backrest of the seat is quite low and the headrests at their lowest adjustment pressed against this writer's back -- not even reaching the base of the neck.

Yes, you can adjust them up, but we're struck by the strange choice of kid-size seats in adult-size space.

The H-point in the Toyota is good, but feels just a bit higher than in the ix35 and it may be a climb up into the cabin for those of shorter stature.

In the luggage compartment, Toyota, that doyen of sensible thinking, could learn something from Mazda -- when it comes to release latches for the folding rear seat. Mazda invented the idea, after all. In the Toyota, restoring the rear seat(s) to the upright position can become a two-handed affair, because the seats recline and there's no memory for the seat to return to its previous position.

While other SUVs have lights in the headlining or along the sides of the luggage compartment, the only light to illuminate the luggage compartment in the RAV4x2 is one in the swing-open tailgate. This light doesn't shine directly into the luggage compartment while you have the tailgate open -- which is when you want the light to shine directly where the luggage is. What it does do instead is it blinds one eye from the side, effectively stuffing up one's night vision.

We're reaching the point where we will need to seek reverse-parking sensor rehab, since we're addicted to this type of technology. The RAV4 in this variant doesn't feature it, but to the Toyota's credit, it's quite easy to back and the field of vision is acceptably good -- fore and aft.

The audio system for the front-drive RAV4 comes with an auxiliary input jack and a separate USB connection, which strongly intimates that Toyota is feeling the pressure from companies the likes of Hyundai. This type of audio system has been a signature feature in Hyundais for years. Still, it's a bonus for Toyota buyers.

We're not convinced the readout in the RAV4's centre fascia is up to snuff. It looks like a touch screen but it isn't and you wouldn't say the HVAC or audio controls are especially intuitive to use. Much like the Hyundai ix35 we drove recently, there's an element of the HVAC controls in particular looking scattered here and there at random. At least they're clearly labelled once you locate them.

There's a lot to like about the RAV4 CV 2WD and specific points of criticism are not what you would call deal breakers. For some shoppers they might pose significant factors in not buying the Toyota, whereas others will overlook them.

But as noted in our intro there is one particular aspect of the car that remains hard to ignore -- the miserly ratioed automatic transmission. With Mazda's CX-7 offering five speeds and the ix35 featuring six, Toyota really must move with the times.

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