00:00toyota is in a bit of a pickle its hybrid fleet isn't enough to keep the emissions in check
00:04and proper evs aren't the japanese car makers strong suit just yet that leaves plug-in hybrids
00:11and fortunately toyota makes some good ones but is it still worth checking out the outgoing
00:16generation of the rav4 ph ev let's find out i compared the toyota rav4 ph ev against the
00:23mg hs phcv channel members can watch this review early and with no ads
00:59so
01:12launched in late 2018 the toyota rav4 xa50 was given a quiet facelift somewhere along the way one of the
01:18more visible changes was the introduction of the gr sport trim allegedly it has a stiffer
01:24suspension than the standard model and it looks kinda sorta more sporty whatever has anything else
01:30changed the time it takes to open the tailgate dropped from about 10 seconds before the facelift
01:36to about one mississippi two mississippi three mississippi four mississippi five mississippi six
01:42mississippi six seconds so i sped up the tailgate mechanism for the premiere of the lexus nx a few
01:48years ago and it was so much bragged about that they created a video comparing the new and the
01:53old versions the rav4 is now practically a lexus at least in this respect
02:01in the ph ev the floor is slightly higher than in the regular hybrid rav4
02:05and the floor cannot be dropped to a lower position also it's not double-sided like in the
02:11hev there's also a 220 volt socket the ph ev boot has 520 instead of 580 liters the cargo cover
02:20fits
02:20under the floor and if you really apply yourself you can also fit the charging cables down there
02:26speaking of charging the fuel filler cap remains on the left side and on the right side is the
02:33charging socket although the rav4 phdv accepts up to seven kilowatts it's a single phase charger so
02:40depending on where you live you may not have such output at home so you'll have to charge at about
02:45two kilowatts which will take seven to eight hours the rear seat is the same the doors still cover the
02:53sills there is still plenty of legroom and headroom there are still two usb ports air conditioning vents
03:00the backrest angle is adjustable there is an armrest with cup holders and door pockets
03:07there are isofx anchor points on the side rear seats and there is still no ski hatch the backrest
03:13still splits 40 60. a small tunnel still runs through the middle two things changed in the cockpit
03:21first of all it's the instrument cluster it's now fully digital and resembles that in other recent
03:26toyota models second there is a new old infotainment system meaning it's newer than in the pre-facelift
03:34model and older than what toyota currently installs in new models a completely new infotainment system
03:39will debut in the recently shown sixth generation of the rav4 which will probably debut in europe around
03:46early 2026. other than that the current rav4 has one of the best design cockpits which no one has ruined
03:54yet all essential features are controlled with large physical buttons and knobs the center screen is
04:00mainly used to display android auto unfortunately only wired too bad because the wireless charger
04:06actually works to connect android auto you still need a usba cable for fast charging their usbc ports
04:12under the armrest the armrest storage is large as is the glove box also the door pockets are spacious
04:20cap holders are quite large as well next to them is a traditional gearshift lever as well as some
04:26buttons and a knob related to drive modes more about them in a moment let's go
04:48we start by turning off isa actually it's impossible you can only turn off traffic sign recognition
04:55completely and that requires 10 clicks with two buttons on the steering wheel at least they're
05:01physical i hope that in the new rav4 toyota will finally figure out how to disable it in a single
05:07move
05:08other safety features work fine
05:15by default the car starts in electric mode as long as there is enough charge in the 18 kilowatt hour
05:20traction battery that's gross i think because i managed to put about 15 kilowatt hours in it when
05:26the computer claimed it was empty to answer your question what happens when the battery runs out
05:31there is always some energy left probably about two or three kilowatt hours and this buffer is used
05:37for regular hybrid mode where the combustion engine and the electric motor work in tandem to maximize efficiency
05:46so if you didn't charge the car from a socket the fuel consumption would be around five six liters per
05:53100
05:54kilometers in the city and probably around eight liters on the highway assuming you have a heavy right
06:00foot and if you charge the car then in the current weather which is low 20 something degrees celsius
06:06during the day the promised electric range of 75 kilometers is easily achievable
06:16a few years ago in winter i drove the rav4 ph ev rebadged as the suzuki across in the cold
06:23i managed
06:24to achieve high 80 something kilometers in electric mode and what if i step on it and i'm in electric
06:30mode won't the cold start negatively affect the combustion engine the hybrid powertrain is designed
06:36to handle this besides if it's very cold the combustion engine may start from time to time to warm up
06:42just in case speaking of fast driving the rav4 ph ev can go up to about 140 kilometers per hour
06:52in electric
06:53mode then the combustion engine starts but at first only to reduce electricity consumption the engine starts
07:00propelling the front wheels directly only when the main part of the traction battery runs out or if i switch
07:09from electric to hybrid mode complicated not at all you don't think about it on daily basis you
07:16just drive the car by the way this thing has sufficient oomph in electric mode for city driving
07:22in electric mode the time from 0 to 100 kilometers per hour is about nine seconds in normal and sport
07:28modes i achieved just under six seconds and toyota claims this thing will do 0 to 100 kilometers per hour
07:34in six seconds flat
07:39rav4 ph ev has 306 horsepower 185 horsepower from the internal combustion engine 182 from the front electric motor and
07:4952
07:50from the rear electric motor somehow all this amounts to 306 horsepower rav4 ph ev can tow up to 1
07:58.5 tons
08:02what about handling it's average you don't buy a rav4 expecting excitement on your commute however this
08:11press car seems to have rather used up brakes i recall the suzuki across having much more stopping power
08:22soundproofing is fine visibility is okay the 360 camera helps maneuvering there's also a virtual rearview
08:30mirror which is useful when you're driving loaded up to the roof or with tall passengers in the back
08:36and since this is an all-wheel drive car let's do my diagonal approach test like lexus ph evs also
08:43toyota
08:44ph ev copes fine with traction control on however turning it off causes the awdi system to lose its
08:51characteristics so when in doubt do not turn traction control off and use trail mode
09:09prices of the toyota rav4 started forty thousand nine hundred ninety euro for the basic hybrid
09:13front wheel drive model ph evs started fifty two thousand seven hundred ninety euro this test example
09:19is a gr sport ph ev with options it costs sixty five thousand four hundred and twenty euro
09:29so what's the alternative stellantis premium or chinese i do not recommend the latter premium depends
09:36on what financing deal you can get and chinese well that's a topic for another episode and there's always
09:43the new generation rav4 coming soon and what do you think about the toyota rav4 do you own the current
09:48generation maybe a ph ev what's your experience with it let me know in the comment section below
09:55if you like my sarcastic down-to-earth and possibly mildly amusing car reviews join me every friday 3 pm
10:03central european time and don't forget to subscribe and like this video as it helps me with the youtube
10:09algorithm thanks for watching and i will see you in the next one
