As Ford Authority reported last week, the Ford Escape is on track to live on into the 2026 model year, though it may be an abbreviated one before the small crossover is discontinued for good, as has long been rumored. On the flip side, one of the Escape’s rivals – the Toyota RAV4 – continues to enjoy tremendous success, not only topping its particular segment in terms of sales, but also, all individual models sold in the U.S. in 2024, according to one report. Now, that same ultra-popular crossover has been treated to a full redesign in the form of the just-revealed 2026 Toyota RAV4.
The all-new, sixth-generation 2026 Toyota RAV4 has received a brand new exterior design with unique treatments depending on trim, and in that regard, there are a bunch of them within three groups – Core includes the LE, XLE, and Limited, while Rugged consists of the off-road-focused Woodland trim, and Sport gets the SE, XSE, plus the brand new GR Sport, which is equipped with more aggressive suspension tuning and appearances, 20-inch wheels, and the PHEV powertrain as standard.
Speaking of powertrains, the 2026 Toyota RAV4 has ditched pure ICE power in favor of either a 2.5-liter inline-four gas engine/two electric motor combo hybrid sending 226 horsepower to the front wheels, or the same setup that gets 236 horsepower driving all four wheels with a third electric motor. Customers can also opt for a plug-in hybrid on more than one trim, which generates 320 horsepower and gets 50 miles of all-electric driving range.
The interior of the 2026 Toyota RAV4 has been treated to a redo as well, giving it a more simplistic look and layout with more screens and fewer buttons compared to the outgoing model – even the HVAC controls have migrated to the screen, which is sure to create some controversy. Regardless, Toyota hasn’t yet released pricing for the all-new RAV4, but we should learn more as we get closer to its on-sale date, currently slated for late 2025.
Comments
Ugly, too much exterior plastic cladding, ugly front end too.
It may look ugly in your opinion however it will continue to be a top seller. Toyota can do anything they want and people will line up to buy whatever is offered…..GM used to be like that.
yup fugly