Glendal's Favorite Reviews: Toyota RAV4 vs Honda CR-V

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2019-06-29 11:00

Hybrid powertrains are a popular electrification choice, so we’re testing the new Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V SUVs that use the technology

Despite the world looking for ways to deal with the imminent threat of catastrophic climate change, more and more buyers are choosing SUVs as their family cars. These models emit more CO2 and use more fuel than a smaller hatchback equivalent, because they’re generally larger and heavier.

While high-end manufacturers such as Jaguar and Audi are launching pure-electric SUV models, those cars will be out of most buyers’ price range.

• Best hybrid cars on sale

Here are two brand new models that are much more affordable, and yet both offer the benefits of electrification with hybrid powertrains: the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid and the Honda CR-V Hybrid.

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These are conventional hybrid models, so the batteries are charged using the engine (as well as through regenerative braking), rather than being plugged in. That means they’re more likely to fit into your life without the need for a driveway to top up at home, or a workplace car park with a charger. You simply fill up at a fuel station as with any other petrol vehicle.

This is the first time that we’ve tested either of these newcomers, so we’ll find out which SUV offers the best combination of running costs, practicality and comfort. The winner here will need to offer all of those things to work with family life, plus offer the level of standard equipment and in-car technology buyers demand.

Toyota RAV4

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Model:	Toyota RAV4 2.5 Hybrid 2WD Excel
Price:	£33,915
Engine:	2.5-litre 4cyl petrol plus electric motor, 215bhp
0-60mph:	7.8 seconds
Test economy:	47.3mpg/10.4mpl
CO2:	105g/km
Annual road tax:	£135

Toyota’s RAV4 has been around since 1994, but that version used combustion engines only. Later models had both ICE and hybrid powertrains, but this new edition is hybrid only. In front-wheel-drive Excel form, as tested here, it costs from £33,915.

Design & engineering

Toyota and Honda measure the output of their powertrains differently. The former publishes a total output (here it’s 215bhp), while the latter lists separate figures for the engine and electric motor (143bhp and 181bhp respectively in the CR-V). However, it’s not as simple as adding the Honda’s numbers together to compare the cars. For example, the RAV4’s combustion engine develops 176bhp and its motor produces 118bhp, yet the quoted total output is 215bhp.

It uses a 2.5-litre four-cylinder engine with its electric motor and, like all other Toyota hybrids, it sends power to the wheels via a CVT automatic transmission (which doesn’t have gears as such, and instead moves between ratios continuously). That’s slightly different to the Honda’s system, which mainly uses the electric motor for power, with occasional help from the engine.

The RAV4 sits on the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) platform, a set-up designed to integrate electrification at its core, alongside improvements to body rigidity and lightness. It’s also used to build the Japanese firm’s C-HR, Corolla and Prius models, and here it features MacPherson struts at the front and double wishbones at the rear.

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Interior build quality is good, and leather seats come as standard, but there are still a few cheap-looking materials around the cabin. The display screen, aside from being a bit of a pain to use , looks a bit awkward on top of the dash. Still, the cabin is quite similar to the Honda’s in terms of build and material quality.Both models are very well equipped, too, with the RAV4 featuring adaptive cruise control, heated leather seats, LED lights, a powered tailgate and satellite navigation among its list of standard kit.

Driving

Toyota’s RAV4 follows a similar recipe to the marque’s other hybrid models, so it’s no surprise that it drives similarly to other models based on the TNGA platform. The electric motor means that driving around town is relaxing, because the car relies on battery power at low speed. It’s almost silent in traffic, and the engine only kicks in when you pick up the pace. The 2.5-litre petrol isn’t as hushed as the 1.8-litre unit in the Corolla and Prius models, but its noise is kept to the background for the most part, just like the engine in the CR-V.

If you require faster acceleration and put your foot down, the CVT gearbox sends the revs soaring to maximise power, and it’s here that the engine becomes a bit noisy and unpleasant. Yet the RAV4 is more responsive than the Honda in this situation, and the revs quickly drop as you get up to speed.

The Toyota was a little slower from 0-60mph in our tests than its rival, taking 7.8 seconds to the Honda’s 7.5 seconds, but both SUVs went from 30-70mph in 6.8 seconds. This replicates a more common everyday driving situation, and it shows how evenly matched these two cars are. They also both accelerated from 30-50mph and 50-70mph within 0.2 seconds of each other, so there’s no noticeable advantage in performance.

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It’s a similar story when it comes to ride comfort and handling, because the Toyota and Honda are pretty evenly matched in this area. The CR-V is a little bit more comfortable over rough roads, but the RAV4 is slightly more settled at speed. The main reason to choose the RAV4 over the CR-V behind the wheel is because its driving position is more comfortable; neither model is a driver’s car, because these heavy cars roll into corners and have numb steering.

Practicality

Bilky batteries usually mean hybrids are less practical than their combustion-engined counterparts, but these two big SUVs still have plenty of space in the back. The boxy Toyota has the edge here, with 580 litres in its boot. That’s over 80 litres more than the CR-V’s 497 litres.

There’s more than enough leg and headroom in the back for even tall adults to sit comfortably, because the Toyota’s rear seatbacks are quite reclined. Few people will complain about the space inside, though, and while the cubbies in the RAV4 are a little smaller than the Honda’s, there’s still plenty of space to store anything and everything a family might need.

Ownership

Both models are exceptionally well equipped for safety kit, with AEB, lane-keep assist, blind-spot warning, reversing cameras, adaptive cruise control and parking sensors fitted as standard. The Toyota has one extra airbag, which helped it to score slightly higher in its Euro NCAP crash test, although both cars were awarded five stars for safety overall.

Toyota’s five-year, 100,000-mile warranty is among the best of any car manufacturer and beats the three-year cover on its rival, although Honda offers an extra 24 months of breakdown cover.

Running costs

Hybrids are great for company car drivers due to their low CO2 emissions, which translate to lower tax bills. The RAV4’s 105g/km figure puts it in the 25 per cent Benefit-in-Kind (BiK) bracket, so higher-rate earners will pay £3,372 a year in tax. The CR-V’s higher emissions of 120g/km put it in the 28 per cent BiK category, so the tax contribution rises to £3,792.

Testers’ notes: “There are four-wheel-drive versions of both cars available, but we’d stick to the front-wheel-drive models that we tested, because they’re cheaper to buy and run than their AWD siblings.”

Honda CR-V

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Model:	Honda CR-V Hybrid 2WD eCVT SR
Price:	£34,070
Engine:	2.0-litre 4cyl petrol plus electric motor, N/A
0-60mph:	7.5 seconds
Test economy:	45.4mpg/10.0mpl
CO2:	120g/km
Annual road tax:	£135

The Honda CR-V is also available with a 1.5-litre petrol engine, unlike its hybrid-only rival here. We’re testing a Hybrid 2WD model in SR specification, which costs from £34,070, making it slightly more expensive than the Toyota.