Toyota fully redesigned the RAV4 and RAV4 Hybrid for the 2019 model year. Revamped interior and exterior styling, a slightly stronger powertrain (previous was fully sufficient), and class-leading fuel economy. The 2019 RAV4 Hybrid comes with either a 7- or 8-inch infotainment display, up from the 6.1- or 7-inch variants in the 2018 model. A built-in Wi-Fi hot spot, made their RAV4 Hybrid debut for 2019. It allows using regular tablet as navigator. The standard Toyota Safety Sense package now includes traffic sign recognition and automatic lane tracing assist, while rear cross traffic braking is available for the first time.
It was named it a finalist for US news 2019 Best Compact SUV for Families award and has very good predicted reliability rating. The RAV4 Hybrid boasts swift acceleration.
All-wheel drive is standard in the 2019 RAV4 Hybrid. This model has a better braking distance then 2016 RAV4 hybrid.
The 2019 RAV4 Hybrid gets on average 41 mpg in mixed driving (50% highway 50% in the city). Pure highway can be as high as 42 mpg.
LE is the most the most attractive price/performance ratio. Model with Blind spot monitor (BSM $ 590) and floor mats is around $30200 which corresponds to 2016 RAV4 XLE price. While LE has a high price tag for a compact SUV its standard all-wheel drive and standard safety tech makes it a good value in the current market, although is you need cheaper base model Honda CR-V can be bought for around $24K.
If you drive long distance (say over 12K miles a year) then the RAV4 Hybrid's fuel efficiency makes it a compelling alternative to the gas-only Toyota RAV4. Please note that the hybrid variant costs just $1K or so then the RAV4 AWD. The RAV4 Hybrid is also has more important features included in base trim than rival hybrid SUVs like the Nissan Rogue Hybrid
You lose quite a lot of features in 2019 LE in comparison with 2018 RAV4 XLE ( with convinience package) which has the same or even lower price ($29-31K new, $22-25K certified pre-owed with low mileage) according to KBB
- Ability to regulate speed of intermittent wiper mode. This is a blunder. This is the first vicke with MSRP over 30K that I drive that does not have this feature.
- Packing obstacles sensors
- Fog lights. Which offer slightly improved visibility in difficult driving conditions. they work only with low beam.
- Headlights control sensor; automatic switching off and on of lights. This is "must have" feature for vehicles over 30K that for some reason is absent in LE.
- Proximity keyless entry and start. Nice to have but not a game changer.
- Moon roof (I do not need like it anyway)
- Leather covered wheel. Nice to have but not a game changer.
- Better looking alloy wheels in XLE. Nice to have but not a game changer.
- Power lift to cargo door. I actually resented it -- it is too slow.
- Initial high power/blast mode for ventilation is present only in XLE. Nice to have feature which is really convenient/important in a very hot days. but you can simply open 4 doors for a couple of minutes and then start air conditioning.
- Smaller and less convenient buttons for ventilation control in LE. Yes they are both smaller and less convinient.
- No satellite radio (but LE has built-in Wi-Fi which is even better)
- Much worse, primitive construction of rear seats headrests (no incline mode). To improve visibility I usually remove them and then lost them ;-)
- Cruse control buttons are now on the steering wheel not on a separate handle like most driver get used to. Old habits die hard...
Fog lights and packing obstacle detection absent on LE and present on older XLE are useful safety features that definitely have a safety value.
Initial high power/blast mode for ventilation is another feature missing in 2019 LE which makes a substantial difference in hot days.
RCTA (Rear Cross Traffic alert) work in both models.
What you gain
- Better fuel economy (41 vs 31-24)
- Adaption cruse control now works till speed zero not to speed 20 as in older model. -SET establishes current speed as the limit. Also after you cancel it you can restore previous reading by pressing +RES. It is disabled after only after full stop. Pressing +RES re-enable it if the vehicle in front start moving within 3 sec.
- More powerful line keeping assist mode. To the extent that if you keep the hand on the wheeel it turns it automatically. This is an interesting feeling when it operated this way.
- Flat floor for trunk (in previous model battery created an non even floor, which was a nuisance.
- Theoretically 2019 model have lightly better acceleration as the new drivetrain has higher horsepower is 219. But for drives who previously had driven 2016-2018 model this is not noticeable, as the acceleration of the previous model proved to be more then adequate.
- Parking brake now is automatic. There is no a separate lever that you need to lift for it.
- Power liftgate for the back door was too slow on 2016 model and annoyed me. The manual lift in 2019 model is quicker and to me more convinient to operate.
- EV mode which allows to move the vehicle out of the packing lot absolutely silently (among other things)
NOTE: BSM and RCTA function can be enabled/disabled on the "settings" screen of the central 4.2" multi-information display (see pages 282-283 of the manual)
Shortcomings
- Small lettering on display. Much worse then on 2016 XLE model. Look crumbled and badly designed.
- Two small controls for ventilation. No initial high power mode
- Limited warranty: Toyota covers the RAV4 Hybrid with a three-year/36,000-mile basic warranty and a five-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty. The SUV’s hybrid components are backed by an eight-year/100,000-mile warranty.
Lease Deals:
$229 per month for 36 months with $2999.00 due at signing on RAV4 Hybrid. (Expires: 07/08/19)