4 cylinder in the garage.. miss my Limited V6,

[SixPackABS]

More power for a Highlander V6 jeez, our RAV4 V6 can beat it hands down. RAV4 V6 has a great weight to power ratio.

2010 Rav4 V6 AWD vs Honda - YouTube

RAV4 V6 vs Turbocharged BMW - YouTube

[sooperedd]

We are more likely to see a Hybrid RAV4, which I am hoping for, then a V6 RAV4.

I would trade my Prius for Hybrid RAV4 ASAP.

CAFE standards are ratcheting up and it seems the trend is smaller, DI Turbocharged engines. Toyota has yet to go that way, deciding to invest heavily into Hybrid technology. The jury is still out on the longevity of DI Turbocharged engines. Ford, right now, is all in on them. They have come a long way but time will tell if they will have the durability of typical engines. This may be why Toyota has not embraced them, because of reliability. They run harder and at higher RPMs and will likely not last as long.

Those of us with our V6 RAV4s can tell you how low the RPMs are at even 75 MPH. I think around 2500. The V6 engine should be able to go 300,000 miles with proper care.

The new RAV4 is already built to accommodate Toyota's hybrid system.
The 2.5L engine is already mated to the Hybrid version of the Camry, Avalon and Highlander, so I would expect the RAV4 to be next.

My Prius has already been more more reliable than my RAV4 and reliability is Toyota's entire image.

[Bombadil]

Toyota is in the final stage of development on several Direct Injection (DI) engines. Primarily a 2.5L DI which may find its way into hybrids, and a 2.0L turbo-charged DI, which may well replace the 3.5L V-6 in the Camry and perhaps be offered on the RAV4. They expect to begin offering them on some of their USA vehicles in 2014. Don't know if the RAV4 will get the DI engine in 2014 or 2015. You may see a small bump in horsepower and likely will see a 10% or so increase in MPG.

[Bombadil]

AUTOS: Toyota Turns To Turbochargers

[molina67]

It seems like a lot of car manufacturers are going away from V6, I guess to appeal to fuel economy individuals. I will sacrafice a little MPG for a little extra HPs... Although the vehicle I traded in was a 4 banger but it also had a turbo so It gave me good MPGs and about 274 HPs... OH well.. now the hunt for the next car begins... LOL

[DVS]

Originally Posted by sooperedd

We are more likely to see a Hybrid RAV4, which I am hoping for, then a V6 RAV4.[snip]

I sadly agree with that. I find it extremely unlikely the RAV4 will ever see more than 4 cylinders again. Ever. But I think we'd be noticeably more likely to see a turbo 4-cylinder RAV4 than a hybrid RAV4. This would be needed to allow Toyota to also directly compete with offerings from Ford, Subaru, etc., and they could sell that at a MUCH lower cost than an AWD hybrid system. Cost and MPG are all that count any more, particularly for this new 4.4 target audience.

My understanding is that most turbos require premium gas (cost more to fill up), but there have been improvements in designs which may allow regular unleaded to work ok. If Toyota makes a turbo petrol engine, it will be interesting to see what they come up with and what the requirements are. I'd think that with turbo there's more to go wrong than with a naturally aspirated engine. Aren't turbo engines usually louder, too?

Re: Direct Injected engines vs. port injected engines --my understanding is that in DI engines there is a fairly high potential for carbon buildup causing problems. Maybe Toyota is behind the curve on those to ensure they've conquered those problems before going to market? That does sound very Toyota-like.

I'm very thankful that I get my power from a simpler, naturally aspirated, port-injected, quieter(?) and in summary proven engine. It sure seems less likely to have problems than other potential new designs. I'll take a little less MPG for my power over being broken down on the side of the road any day. Cheap insurance.

Here are some thoughts I had on the likelihood, or rather lack thereof, of a hybrid RAV4 (3rd paragraph):

http://www.rav4world.com/forums/125-...ml#post1000505

I rather doubt we'll see a hybrid RAV4 - at least any time soon - but hope to be surprised. More choices are always better. Another reason we may not see one that had not occurred to me when I wrote that is that Ford already tried a hybrid version of the Escape, and they eventually stopped selling it as recently as the 2012 model. I don't know why...price too high for that market segment? MPG just not there to justify the cost? Maybe future CAFE regs will be stiffer and turn that back around again someday, or hybrid technology may improve or be less expensive to implement.

On a positive note, I think within a couple of years we'll see more - and likely better - powertrain options for future 4.4s than the lone "option" (in the US) the 2013 has to offer. That would be very good.

[Larryny]

Speaking of unreliable brands, Jeep is bringing back the Cherokee name. I will come out as a 2014 and rumor has it will have a V6 engine.

[veliksam]

Originally Posted by Larryny

Speaking of unreliable brands, Jeep is bringing back the Cherokee name. I will come out as a 2014 and rumor has it will have a V6 engine.

That's not a surprise, Ford has a V6 that produces 305hp so I'm sure jeep could pull it off.

Sent from my HTC One X+

[molina67]

Originally Posted by Bombadil

AUTOS: Toyota Turns To Turbochargers

Guess I'll be putting off my car shopping until 2014 to see what comes out.

[mhcoss]

Originally Posted by DVS

I'd say odds are pretty good that Toyota won't come out with a noticeably more powerful engine for the 4.4 RAV4, likely ever, as with this new car they're catering to the Soccer Mom crowd (read: Honda CR-V target market).

If they do come out with a more powerful engine for the RAV4, you can be darn sure it'll be a turbo-charged 4-cylinder, like everyone else ('cause in this segment that's how Toyota rolls, dig?).

But they'll probably wait for Honda to do it first, and it seems unlikely to me that Honda would go in that direction.

It's a huge shame that the two most reliable brands on the planet have chosen to severely restrict the "utility" aspect of the Compact SUV, and have turned them into nothing more than station wagons.

As Toyota says, if you want/need more power and utility, you'll have to shell out several thousand more dollars for the Highlander. Either that, or go for a less reliable brand.

Not exactly great choices.

Getting pretty old of hearing all the whiners about the new 4.4 rav-4. I just bought one and bought it because its a reliable 4wd that can get me and my gear up the mountain.

Toyota had to make some trade offs... more interior factory gear or a v6 that hardly anyone buys. I'm glad they made the decision they did.