Test Drive: 5 Things To Know About the 2012 Rav4 EV

Image via Complex Original

Toyota partnered with California-based EV company Tesla to develop the RAV4 EV. Bringing two almost polar opposite corporate ideologies together on one project is one thing when it comes to streetwear, but it is something completely different when it comes to cars. The aftermath of Toyota's decades of experience of mass producing cars and Tesla's against-the-grain approach is an EV designed completely in America with masculine lines, exceptional range, and surprising performance (The RAV4 EV shares nearly the exact same powertrain featured on the Tesla luxury sedan Model S).

Toyota plans to roll out 2,600 RAV EV's over the next three model years. The catch is that they will only be sold in select California dealerships. According to Toyota, Cali's Zero emission vehicle mandate is not the sole reason that they are going hard in the paint on the West Coast with this vehicle. Considering they already own 69% of the hybrid market, it is not surprising that they are attempting to step up their presence in the EV market as well. At $49,800 MSRP (just under $40,000 with incentives), Toyota knows the pool for initial potential buyers is small, but they say there are already 2,000 customers who have requested more info on the RAV4 EV.

The T&T team did not cut any corners taking the popular RAV4 V6 and converting it to an EV. Due to the huge Lithium-Ion battery, the EV weighs about 330-650 pounds more than the V6, but in a lot of ways, it looks better now than ever before. The 5th wheel is gone from the back (lessening the vehicle's overall weight), and there are new telematics, meters and an electric HVAC system.

The performance is the true draw here. Driving in Normal Mode is rather mundane (218 lb-ft torque), but the RAV EV's Sport Mode (273 lb-ft torque) provides improved power, speed, and handling to the point where you can forget you are driving an EV. Top speed in Sport Mode is 100mph and the 154hp engine goes from 0-60 in 6.9 seconds. Most people who will purchase an EV are not really tripping off of power, so Toyota has also added a co-op region brake tuning system that converts kinetic energy to electrical energy in order to recharge vehicle battery.

Things can get sketchy with the EPA's range calculations, but even by EPA standards, RAV4 EV exceeds the 100-mile mark. The vehicle we drove had 153 miles left on the charge and after pushing it up and down PCH in Sport and Normal Mode for about 45 minutes, the mileage stayed pretty much true to form (Toyota claims that there is no mileage difference in theory when driving in sport or normal mode).

Toyota created an E-FAST fleet of 6 vehicles, driven by their engineers over a 9-week period to test how the range worked in real world situations. Of the 295 trips that the fleet took, many of them were in the 130-145 mile range. It takes six hours to fully charge when using the suggested Level 2 charger.

For nearly $50,000 one would expect plush materials and leather interior, but considering most of the RAV4 EV's manufacturing costs probably went towards mechanics, we really can't be mad at the underwhelming plastics and fabric seats. When you get past that, you are in store for a truly next level tech experience in the form of Toyota's first full touch screen system. IntelliTouch capacitive touch screen, featured on both the 8-inch navigation screen and climate control panel (which can be used with gloves on as well) features split screen nav, Entune and EV applications, EV drive information and settings, SiriusXM Satellite Radio, AM/FM radio, Bluetooth streaming audio, and USB port with iPod connectivity.

Entune in itself is very impressive. It allows EV owners to use their smartphone to remotely control many facets of the EV experience including charge readings, setting charge times, climate control and actual charging. The app will also include access to several popular sites like iHeartRadio, Pandora and OpenTable. Perhaps the best Entune feature is the vehicle finder. It's main intention is to help locate your car amongst the massive sea of cars called mall parking lots, but the Entune is just as handy, if car thieves started jacking EV's.