Toyota redesigns America's top-selling RAV4 SUV
America's favorite car is getting a major facelift . After months of cryptic teasers and close-up shots that revealed little more than headlights and body lines, Toyota has finally pulled the cover off the redesigned RAV4. Next year's RAV4 ditches gas-only entirely, going all-in on hybrids and plug-in hybrids. Aesthetically, it sports a chunkier, more upright stance that gives the compact SUV a more menacing vibe — and early impressions are positive.
'There's a RAV4 for everyone's taste,' Robby DeGraff, a product and consumer insights expert at AutoPacific, told DailyMail.com. 'The sixth-gen RAV4's boxier shape rewards consumers with a much bigger, wider appearance.' Toyota's new plug-in system cranks out up to 320 horsepower — an 18 hp increase over the outgoing model — and now delivers an estimated 50 miles of all-electric range.
It also brings DC fast-charging to the table, which juices the battery from 10 to 80 percent in about 30 minutes. The plug-in charging speed is not impressive: other EVs can reach the same levels in shorter periods of time with much larger batteries. But hybridizing the RAV4 felt like an obvious choice for the brand. Toyota has been relaunching several best-selling cars, like the Camry, as an all-hybrid lineup.
Toyota's hybrid system adds a boost of electric torque during low-end speeds and optimizes fuel efficiency on the highway. The engineneering allows drivers to enjoy enhanced driving dynamics and less pain at the gas pump. Toyota has not released pricing or mileage estimates yet. But scuttlebutt around the release is estimating a base-price in the mid $30,000s and top-end models fetching a little less than $50,000.
Expect Toyota to make hundreds of thousands of copies at its battery and assembly plant in Kentucky. US-based production will make the popular SUV less susceptible to President Donald Trump's 25 percent automotive tariffs. For those prices, Toyota can expect the RAV4 to virtually print money for the corporation.
The Japanese brand shocked the automotive world last year, outpacing the Ford F-150 as America's best-selling vehicle with 475,193 units sold from American dealerships. The 2026 model year also introduces a trio of new spec options: core, rugged, and sport, each tailored to a different kind of SUV owner. Drivers can opt for the LE, XLE, and Limited trims and upgrade to ventilated seats, a bigger infotainment display, and 20-inch wheels.
The rugged models are off-roading focused. Toyota slaps on its recently-released Woodland badge onto the tougher model. Toyota also surprised with an athletic GR model. Tuned by Toyota's Gazoo Racing division, the GR SPORT gets a unique suspension setup, sharper steering, summer tires, and aggressive styling including wing-type spoilers. Previously, GR models were exclusive to Toyota's more enthusiast-focused models , like the Corolla Hatch.
But now, the division is making its mass-market debut. 'It's worth applauding Toyota on ensuring each of the new RAV4 trims have their own unique design, from the outdoorsy Woodland to the boy-racer GR Sport,' DeGraff added. Shoppers on social media have also been supporting the car's latest design. 'These are gonna keep selling like hotcakes,' one gearhead commented on Reddit.
'It looks handsome and the interior has a mix of traditional buttons and screens. They haven't messed it up like so many manufacturers do with redesigns.' Recently, Toyota has been on a tear with new model announcements. The car company unveiled its new C-HR: the diminutive SUV is making its American reintroduction, three years after it was pulled form the market.
This time, it's reappearing as a $35,000 EV with a 300-mile range. The company also redesigned the bZ4X, its only current mass-market battery-operated car. Next year's design smooths out some of the EV's funky angles and improves on the battery's efficiency. It also simplifies the name to just bZ.
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