Toyota has been sticking its hybrid systems into the Camry, Highlander, and Prius, and now it might finally be sticking them into the popular RAV4 compact SUV. Koei Saga, Toyota's managing officer of hybrid system development, was quoted as calling for a RAV4 Hybrid to be offered in China "as soon as possible" during an industry conference in Shanghai on environmentally friendly vehicles. Saga did not elaborate on his position.
Currently, the pool of vehicles classified as hybrid small SUVs is small. The Ford Escape Hybrid, which offers EPA-estimated mpg figures of 34 city/31 highway, sits atop the group, which also includes the Escape's twin, the Mercury Mariner Hybrid, and the Saturn Vue Hybrid. The current Saturn Vue Hybrid serves up 25 mpg in the city and 32 mpg on the highway, while the Vue 2-Mode Hybrid is expected to be more efficient. However, due to GM's ongoing bankruptcy concerns, the 2-Mode Hybrid does not have a clear path to the showroom as budgeting constraints have severely impacted GM.
With the Toyota Highlander midsize SUV already offering fuel-economy ratings of 27 city/25 highway, the future RAV4 Hybrid could potentially offer ratings greater than the Ford Escape Hybrid's 34 city/31 highway. Toyota is currently utilizing its third-generation hybrid system, and is planning on introducing 10 new hybrid vehicles globally by 2012.
Although the RAV4 hasn't featured a hybrid model in its lineup, it is no stranger to alternative power. Approximately 1500 all-electric RAV4s were built from 1997 to 2003, which offered a top speed of 80 mph and a range of nearly 100 miles. The full recharge time was 5 hours, and the MSRP at the time was $42,000. Although 1500 RAV4 EVs were built, only about 328 were sold, with the remaining vehicles being destroyed as they came off their leases. Today, a used RAV4 EV can fetch in excess of $70,000.