Rav4 Prime: 2 years in, 5 likes and 5 dislikes!

Hey y’all! Well, we have come upon two years with our absolutely wonderful Rav4 Prime and since we’ve never done a video specifically on the Rav, I figured we’d dive in and talk all about how our two years with this amazing car!

CHAPTERS
00:00 Intro & Chapter listing
01:15 LIKES
01:31 #1 The best value Toyota PHEV
04:14 #2 A prodigious power maker
07:20 #3 A peaceful power maker
10:14 #4 An amazing all distance cruiser
12:51 #5 All you need is an outlet.
15:30 DISLIKES
15:42 #1 The Prime got pricey
18:28 #2 Nearing the end of its lifecycle
20:23 #3 Macan speed, Rav engineering
22:11 #4 Sometimes bigger is better
24:28 #5 It HAS to be all about the numbers
26:59 Final thoughts & DRIVING ONE LAST 2GR V6 to end the year!

[kurtkaufman]

The best review of this car that I've seen, and the most honest about its benefits and drawbacks. Thank you very much!

[woodsmith]

3 years in. Mechanically, solid. Charges to 59 miles. Retired, so gotta burn gas every so often cause we hardly ever take longer trips. On gas, great mileage and still peppy. Dislikes; I’m over 6 feet, so gotta bend plenty. And Toyota’s electronics are kinda iffy. Not really user friendly. And instrumentation could be illuminated better.

[hsaphoto]

Josh, this is one of the best R4P review I've seen !!! Good work 👌 Not the typical car tester 1 week trial run that wants to keep the company on his good side type of video. Real experience and real "be careful" portion at the end. You just gained a new follower !!

[stevenscott]

I absolutely love your videos. Very well put together with lots of helpful/insightful information. Thank you once again. ❤

[jackiedel]

Great video - as usual. Your videos are the BEST! Rav 4 gets pricey quickly

[Lordoftheflatbush]

I prefer to buy cars which are at the end of the lifecycle as it ensures reliability. Just ordered the 2023 RAV4 PHEV full spec.

[SFzip]

Thank you for providing a wealth of information and for provoking thoughtful insights about the likes and dislikes you've experienced over two years of ownership. Happy holidays!

[TEQLC]

As always, awesome video! Your format, (the way you present the information) is so good. 😎

[howardparker]

Collecting my RAV4 plug in next week. Cannot wait. Few cars are perfect but this for us really fits the bill.

[DetailPro]

One of the best videos I’ve seen. The editing, the information, the format, and etc. it’s perfect.

[lendalatwood]

We got lucky up here in canada. Just wandered on the local toyota dealership and found a 2024 Rav4 Prime XSE sitting on thier lot at the end of their day. Someone canceled thier order and it had just arrived! They let us take it out for a drive and we loved it. Kept it out for a couple days to try it out on our highway drive and it worked out we can drive our 60 km round trip to town and home on EV mode usually. We paid the MRSP minus $8, 000 rebates and saved a lot in fuel since. This review helped us with our decision A LOT seeing its less biased than others. Our only concern is how much EV range we may lose in the winter here on the southern coast of Nova Scotia. Either way no regrets so far. One dislike we have is the auto hi beam headlights. Often doesnt notice oncoming cars and dimming them manually with auto dimming on still frustrates us. 😂

[pbear]

They handle pretty well too after you get rid of the stock tires. I love the General Altimax RT45s.

[Bmrlife]

You did a good job. I just got a 2024 XSE and I completely match your "You should but if" list. Gotta love the immediate lease buyout option with the $6500 credit.

[kurtburkhardt]

A great review about the Rav4 Prime. Glad it has worked out for you. We are an older couple so mostly just the 2 of us. We bought a 2023 Rav4 Hybrid for our daughter to replace the old Escape Hybrid we had for 14 years and 178, 000 miles. At the time we paid 4000 over list and had to buy a Limited as it was the only one available. We just purchased a 2024 Rav4 XLE Prime for my wife. "Only" paid list price for it this time as we weren't in a hurry. Probably won't get any tax incentives though (still trying). We will sell our 2012 Fusion Hybrid 116, 000 miles once the paperwork and licensing clears. Bought out of state, no Primes in the Chicago market anywhere near list price even if you can find one. I would say that is the biggest drawback to the Hybrids or Primes. This vehicle should be more available and $10, 000 cheaper. We love the Prime and our daughter has driven hers to Utah and back twice. Wonderful road cars. I know the new model is coming out, but we don't care. I would rather buy one that has had years of upgrades and tweaks to make it better than buy the first year that isn't proven. Have been waiting to replace our 2014 4Runner with the new turbo hybrid model, but they keep pushing it back. Still won't buy the first year, so I guess we will have to wait until 2026. Toyota's are great, if they keep this sales model going they will lose their loyal customers as there are other makes that are a better value...

[christye]

Thank you for the info! I have been on a waiting list for 2 years for my Prime and I am supposed to pick up my XSE Friday. There are like no incentives left and I know we will be paying big $$$ for it. I am justifying this cost in a couple ways. 1. I am in my 40's and this will be my 3rd car... I have been driving my Corolla for 16 years. So this RAV4 could very well be my last car, or second to last should I be so lucky to live that long. 2. And this is the thing I find MOST important but no one really talks about... it is the most flexible and future proof vehicle on the road. With climate change and wars and political unrest... should gas prices surge or gas even become hard to get... we have the EV to get us around. Should a major climate event take out the power grid for days at a time we can use the gas to get us around. And they make fold out solar charging pads for roof tops... should both become unavailable. So the uncertainty that lies before us during this time is the HUGE reason I decide on the prime and I will be forking out major $$$ in a couple days.

[callummacleod]

Thanks for this review. I'm 3 months in to owning a 2023 R4P XSE and mostly loving it. I fully agree with your all about the numbers point. Especially don't buy any plug-in if you can't charge at home. I traded up from a 2018 base Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, mainly for the added towing capacity, double the EV range, more power, spare tire, and adaptive cruise. Also enjoying the no hands power lift gate, 360° cameras, heads up display, power driver seat presets, efficient heat pump, better gas mileage, bigger gas tank, and more fun to drive.

[pmhnic]

We have a 2021 SE and love it. We’re seniors so carrying around more than the two of us isn’t an issue. The 48 mile EV range covers 95% of our driving so we can go months without needing to get gas. So far it has been very reliable (oil, brakes and tires). They have gotten pricey. We were thinking about trading the 2021 for a new model but the 2024’s are $49K. We paid $33K-$35K (can’t remember exactly) and got a tax write off back in 2021 when we purchased the SE. Economic, fun to drive, a lot of features (drive assist, lane change warnings, rear camera, Bluetooth connectivity, etc.).

[joannwhite]

Another great review. I remember the Rav 4 was a featured vehicle at an auto show before Covid . I see quite a few on the road jet setting around. We have a RX 450h that is not a plug in. I feel car reviews should be done by people that have actually owned the vehicle, however there are so many out there that are so biased. Also, I recently debated someone who watched Motor Week on PBS that featured the Grand Highlander, about Toyota vehicles. He drives a BMW, he stated he would never spend $50, 000.00 for a Toyota. Different strokes for different folks. There are a lot of Toyota haters.

[josiprajic_]

August 2021 is when I purchased my SE Prime. No dealer mark up. 10k back come taxes. The value today of my vehicle 2.5 years later is still higher than my out the door price after tax credits.

[DavidBelitsky]

Thanks for the review. I’ve been researching this car for months but your review was the only one to comment about acceleration ability in ev mode. The car should be good for us - 45 miles - no problem.