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Question About RAV4 Hybrid MPG & Real-World Experience

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derekkk00

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Discussion starter · #1 · (Edited)
Hey everyone,

I’m considering buying a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid (non-Prime) and wanted to hear from actual owners about real-world MPG and overall driving experience. Toyota advertises 40 MPG combined, but I know real mileage depends on driving style, weather, and terrain.

For those who own one:

What MPG are you averaging in city and highway driving?
Does cold weather or AC usage affect fuel economy significantly?
How does it handle long road trips? Any battery drain issues or comfort concerns?
Any reliability issues or things to watch out for?
I plan to use it for daily commuting (~50% city, 50% highway) and occasional road trips. Also, how’s the AWD performance in snow or rain?

Would love to hear your thoughts before making a final decision! Any tips or insights would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

With Regards,

DerekMulesoft
 
#3 ·
derekkk00 said:
Hey everyone,

I’m considering buying a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid (non-Prime) and wanted to hear from actual owners about real-world MPG and overall driving experience. Toyota advertises 40 MPG combined, but I know real mileage depends on driving style, weather, and terrain.

For those who own one:

What MPG are you averaging in city and highway driving?
Does cold weather or AC usage affect fuel economy significantly?
How does it handle long road trips? Any battery drain issues or comfort concerns?
Any reliability issues or things to watch out for?
I plan to use it for daily commuting (~50% city, 50% highway) and occasional road trips. Also, how’s the AWD performance in snow or rain?

Would love to hear your thoughts before making a final decision! Any tips or insights would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

With Regards,
Derek Theler
Click to expand...
We have a 2020 with 110,000 km on it and 2024 with 6,000 km. both are driven 90% highway/ 10% city in temperatures varying from +30 to -25 degC. Average fuel consumption has been approximately 6.6 km/100km since new for the 2020. Obviously mileage drops in winter but more than makes up for it in summer. Best mileage is obtained in warmest weather with AC running so this appears to have very little affect on fuel mileage. No issues or comfort concerns on long road trips. 0 problems with vehicle, still on original pads and rotors which is unusual as we live in an area where copious amounts of road salt is used. AWD system is much better than our previous CRV and appears to be comparable to our previous Forester. Just returned from a 1200 km round towing a 1000lb trailer through rain, snow generally shitty east coast winter weather, gas mileage tanked but rav4 handled it like a champ!
 
#4 ·
derekkk00 said:
What MPG are you averaging in city and highway driving?
Does cold weather or AC usage affect fuel economy significantly?
How does it handle long road trips? Any battery drain issues or comfort concerns?
Any reliability issues or things to watch out for?
I plan to use it for daily commuting (~50% city, 50% highway) and occasional road trips. Also, how’s the AWD performance in snow or rain?
Click to expand...
'21 XLE Premium hybrid here.

1. In summer, I get about 42 to 43 MPG. I have gotten as much as 45 to 47. (You do need to learn to drive a hybrid differently to get those MPG).
2. The MPG goes down significantly in the winter, about 34 to 36 MPG.
3. Summer AC use doesn't seem to affect the MPG very much. My best gas mileage has been in southern Utah and northern Arizona (112 degrees). The biggest affect on gas mileage is speed. Anything over about 60 MPH tanks the gas mileage.
4. Excellent on long road trips. I'm known for driving all over the country. I go to Southern Utah every summer, California to see my son every year or two, east coast every couple years. Great road car.
5. Battery? Which battery, the HV battery or the 12 volt battery? No problems at all with the HV battery (Lithium in my trim level). My 12 volt was loosing capacity, so I replaced it at about the 3 1/2 year point.
6. Snow performance depends significantly on what tires are on the car. My OEM tires, Michelin Primacy A/S, were right down terrible in the snow/ice. So I replaced them a year ago with 3 peak snow rated Pirelli Scorpion WeatherActive which are light years better in the snow.
7. Most of the early teething problems have been ironed out (DCM reset software, roof rail leaks, rear motor cable corrosion). The current year should be quite reliable.
 
#5 ·
derekkk00 said:
Hey everyone,

I’m considering buying a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid (non-Prime) and wanted to hear from actual owners about real-world MPG and overall driving experience. Toyota advertises 40 MPG combined, but I know real mileage depends on driving style, weather, and terrain.

For those who own one:

What MPG are you averaging in city and highway driving?
Does cold weather or AC usage affect fuel economy significantly?
How does it handle long road trips? Any battery drain issues or comfort concerns?
Any reliability issues or things to watch out for?
I plan to use it for daily commuting (~50% city, 50% highway) and occasional road trips. Also, how’s the AWD performance in snow or rain?

Would love to hear your thoughts before making a final decision! Any tips or insights would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

With Regards,
Derek Theler
Click to expand...
I have an 11 month old 2024 RAV4 Cruiser hybrid with 10600 kms on it. Most of my drives are 5 - 40km round trips around suburban Melbourne, Australia, where our coldest winter mornings are 0-3C and our hottest summer days get up to around 40C.

With just 2 of us it's a fantastic vehicle for our needs - daily commutes and occasional road trips. No issues with it at all so far.

To get the best fuel consumption out of the hybrid system you will need to drive it fairly conservatively by coasting and using the regenerative braking as much as possible to keep the battery above minimum charge so that you can use it as much as possible to drive the wheels instead of the engine.

If minimising fuel consumption is a high priority you can set up the Multi Information Display infront of the driver to something like this below which displays the instantaneous, trip and average fuel consumption since the last refuel.

In the 11 months so far I have been able to consistently get 4.9 - 5.1 litres/100km (~47 mpg) between refuels but we don't experience the extreme cold weather some other parts of the world have.

Anyway, watch/read as many reputable reviews you can find to help you make an informed decision on your purchase.

Image
 
#6 ·
Welcome to the forum. I average 35 MPG and that's without trying to drive efficiently. When trying I've gotten higher numbers of 40-45 MPG.

It handles road trips very well. My only complaint is there's a pretty noticeable amount of wind noise when I'm traveling 70+ mph. The engine also makes a lot of noise when I pass people on the highway.

I don't have any issues with the seats, They're not the softest but they're comfortable.

No battery issues, sometimes I sit in the car for 1-2 hours while I'm waiting for family members. I just leave the car on, it turns on every 15 mins or so and doesn't use up much gas. In non-hybrid cars I would put it into accessory mode to not waste gas.

The OEM tires are not good in the snow. No issues in rain. With good tires, it drives well in snow.

It's a good car, i don't think you can go wrong with it. I would definitely recommend it.
The worst things I would say about my rav4 is I feel like it has numb handling, too much wind noise, and a boring interior. All those flaws are pretty minor in the grand scheme of things.
 
#7 ·
I got my 2024 RAV4 in October 2023. I now have 80k miles. I use my car for Uber and daily driver.

The best I have gotten in a day of driving uber is 51 mpg.

Typically I can expect 47 mpg driving around town.

Family trips…37mpg

Family trips with a cargo carrier on top (won’t do that again) 30mpg or less.
 
#8 ·
My experience with my 2024 Hybrid RAV4 Limited is similar. Summer getting over 40mpg in the city, which is easily twice what my 2008 RAV4 Limited got. Winter in the mid-30s. Mostly city driving, but I avoid the stop-and-go situations where possible, and also avoid the city expressways. Only a couple highway trips, and it seems to be mid-30s which is still 8-10mpg better than the 2008 one.

The effect of cold in winter - even NC winter - is noticeable. The ICE kicks in shortly after I start the car. Even with AC on it won't kick on until I accelerate on the road.

FWIW - one hot summer night I was picking up a friend but went to the wrong building entrance. So hot I kept the AC on. It ran for over 15 minutes before the ICE started. I've also hit 60+ MPG travelling the 7 miles from my beer place in the evening - 2 miles on 30mph road (slight downhill), the rest 45mph. I do everything I can to keep the EV running without affecting other drivers.
 
#10 ·
2023 Woodland Edition Hybrid, summer time without thinking about MPG, I get the spec'd 38 MPG. If I try, I get lower 40s, depending on driving situations. Winter, without focusing on MPG I get lower 30s. If I turn the heater off, MPG shoots up.

Winter MPG (northern climates) will be lower. Part of that is gas/ethanol blend. Part of that is the extra time to warm the engine. But in my experience, the biggest impact to MPG is the heater.
 
#11 · (Edited)
derekkk00 said:
Hey everyone,

I’m considering buying a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid (non-Prime) and wanted to hear from actual owners about real-world MPG and overall driving experience. Toyota advertises 40 MPG combined, but I know real mileage depends on driving style, weather, and terrain.

For those who own one:

What MPG are you averaging in city and highway driving?
Does cold weather or AC usage affect fuel economy significantly?
How does it handle long road trips? Any battery drain issues or comfort concerns?
Any reliability issues or things to watch out for?
I plan to use it for daily commuting (~50% city, 50% highway) and occasional road trips. Also, how’s the AWD performance in snow or rain?

Would love to hear your thoughts before making a final decision! Any tips or insights would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

With Regards,

DerekMulesoft
Click to expand...
I've had my XLE Hybrid for about a year now. Here are some stats for you
  • I keep my tires at around 36 PSI cold, average at least 44-45 MPG on shorter commutes in town
  • Longer Drives along the east coast out here (250 miles or more), averaging 42 MPG.
  • Quirks: There are some quirks which you will learn about the Hybrid system, and usually when you are braking over a small bump or pothole. Regenerative braking kind of hiccups towards physical braking and totally normal.
  • No reliability issues that I have had on the 2024. I do my own oil changes and basic Maintenance / Tire rotations.
  • I have noticed a small amount of loss with MPG's in very cold weather. Take into account your Tire Pressure also lowers in this situation, You may be using Heat in the cabin, heated seats (If equipped), Heated steering etc.....overall I noticed in the very cold weather of about 25 degrees my MPG's lowered to around 38 mpg's but still was able to inch my way back to 40
  • AWD is great. I leave the car in Econ Mode most if not all the time and if hydroplaning or any slippage is detected it will automatically engage. Sometimes in the Rain your AWD will just kick in and you can see it in the visualizer for the ICE / Battery

I come from a Honda CRV background and I have no regrets with the RAV 4 Hybrid. Also a great group of people online here to talk to and share any concerns with. You cant go wrong with this car as a daily commuter. When I upgraded to this car, Immediately doubled my MPG. My CRV was averaging 19 MPG on an ICE 2.2 Liter engine. The RAV is a 2.5 Liter with Hybrid and Immediately I was in the 44 MPG range. You can push it more once you understand how to drive conservatively with the gas pedal and keep it on the EV mode. If you want to toss caution to the wind and just enjoy more of the ICE, Sport Mode can be fun, especially climbing hills etc.

Good Luck !!
 
#12 ·
derekkk00 said:
Hey everyone,

I’m considering buying a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid (non-Prime) and wanted to hear from actual owners about real-world MPG and overall driving experience. Toyota advertises 40 MPG combined, but I know real mileage depends on driving style, weather, and terrain.

For those who own one:

What MPG are you averaging in city and highway driving?
Does cold weather or AC usage affect fuel economy significantly?
How does it handle long road trips? Any battery drain issues or comfort concerns?
Any reliability issues or things to watch out for?
I plan to use it for daily commuting (~50% city, 50% highway) and occasional road trips. Also, how’s the AWD performance in snow or rain?

Would love to hear your thoughts before making a final decision! Any tips or insights would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

With Regards,

DerekMulesoft
Click to expand...
Anywhere from 37-42 MPG are very acceptable figures. I get about 40, occasional long journeys and round the suburbs where I live as in day to day driving.
Also try not to buy the vehicle solely for that reason.

Mine is the spec Toyota RAV4 Hybrid. Am extremely happy with it.

ill be ordering the new generation one later this year.
 
#13 ·
derekkk00 said:
Hey everyone,

I’m considering buying a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid (non-Prime) and wanted to hear from actual owners about real-world MPG and overall driving experience. Toyota advertises 40 MPG combined, but I know real mileage depends on driving style, weather, and terrain.

For those who own one:

What MPG are you averaging in city and highway driving?
Does cold weather or AC usage affect fuel economy significantly?
How does it handle long road trips? Any battery drain issues or comfort concerns?
Any reliability issues or things to watch out for?
I plan to use it for daily commuting (~50% city, 50% highway) and occasional road trips. Also, how’s the AWD performance in snow or rain?

Would love to hear your thoughts before making a final decision! Any tips or insights would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

With Regards,

DerekMulesoft
Click to expand...
Hi Derek. We bought a rav4 xle hybrid in January. Only have a bit over 700 miles. In colorado & temps have been in the 30s & 40s. Driving about 50/50 split highway/city driving. As of today our mileage is 44.3 mpg. It started out around 36 mpg but increased. We drive about 65 mph or so highway. We read a lot b4 buying. I always coast down hill & the car maintains speed. I also use cruise control if the road permits with active lane & lane assist activated. Being a bit older now I don't smash the gas pedal on take off & coast into stop lights & such. It doesn't affect the enjoyment we get from driving the car. The Rav4 seems to get a lot of heat from a noisy ride. It's not that bad as some have reported. It's a smooth ride. Hadv an audi a4 quattro b4 & in I feel the ride is a bit smoother. Have the weather package & convenience package. So no doubt we drive conservatively but the car has plenty of pep when needed. It actually surprised me. We love the car.. Hope this helps. Good luck.
 
#14 ·
Toyota RAV4 Hybrid MPG - Actual MPG from 262 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid owners will give you a look at what many cars with many drivers in many climates and terrain and driving styles have gotten in MPG. Keep in mind that some of the entries have been erroneous in terms of being the current version of the platform. And some are entering just for bragging rights. I always lop off the top 5% and bottom 5% and end up getting 35 to 41 MPG averages. Mine is somewhere in the 38+ MPG area over 40k miles and hundreds of fill-ups.

And lower in winter and with aggressive tires and don't dive a darn driving styles..
 
#16 ·
We got our 22 Limited last April with 22k miles. We now have just over 38k.

During that time, we’ve averaged about 43 mpg. Best mileage in the warmest months, and a drop to the high 30’s from late November until recently.

The seats are comfortable for a couple of hours, but my sciatica compels me to use a foam cushion and take breaks on long trips. I don‘t need that for trips around town.

I wish the heated & ventilated seats generated more heat & more ventilation. The heated seats in the RAV4 can’t compete with the heat generated in my 2015 Camry XSE.

My wife loves it, and I like it. It’s been reliable to this point, and is very easy to drive and operate.

Steven
 
#18 ·
IMHO, it's nearly impossible to compare mileage numbers without considering the outside temperature. Of course, other major factors are tires (snow vs. all weather), driving style, and physical attachments to the car, like roof racks. In my experience, outside temps make the biggest difference.

I'm not tracking mileage formally, but my general observations are as follows, for my 2023 Hybrid. When temps run between mid-20s to mid-30s (farenheit) my mileage can be around 32-33, or so. This is in the winter running snow tires. If the temp jumps up the the 35-45 range, my mileage quickly jumps to 38 or so, and that is still running snow tires. In the summer (with stock tires), my mileage runs in the low to mid 40s, but I've never reached 46 mpg. I do not have a garage. My snow tires are Blizzak. Please not the I'm quoting all these figures off the top of my head, but they are very close and definitely represent the reality I'm experiencing.
 
#19 ·
redronidaho said:
IMHO, it's nearly impossible to compare mileage numbers without considering the outside temperature. Of course, other major factors are tires (snow vs. all weather), driving style, and physical attachments to the car, like roof racks. In my experience, outside temps make the biggest difference.

I'm not tracking mileage formally, but my general observations are as follows, for my 2023 Hybrid. When temps run between mid-20s to mid-30s (farenheit) my mileage can be around 32-33, or so. This is in the winter running snow tires. If the temp jumps up the the 35-45 range, my mileage quickly jumps to 38 or so, and that is still running snow tires. In the summer (with stock tires), my mileage runs in the low to mid 40s, but I've never reached 46 mpg. I do not have a garage. My snow tires are Blizzak. Please not the I'm quoting all these figures off the top of my head, but they are very close and definitely represent the reality I'm experiencing.
Click to expand...

Yes, climate clearly plays an important part in fuel consumption.

I always reset the Total Average when I fill up. Below is my average fuel consumption between refuellings since early October last year-our spring and summer where minimum temperatures are around 10-15C and maximums 35-40C during those 6 months.

But I also drive fairly conservatively aiming to minimise fuel consumption on every trip. After all, that's why I got the RAV4 hybrid in the first place.

In our winter months where minimum temperatures are around 0-7C and maximums around 12-18C, I get very similar fuel consumption as the warmer months, again with fairly conservative driving.

I have been averaging 4.9-5.1 Litres/100 kms (~46 mpg) in the last 12 months since I got my 2024 rav4 hybrid.

Image
 
#20 ·
Outside affects the mileage in both ways. In the summer with perfect driving I'm up to 46mpg. In the winter I'm down to 32mpg. In the "polar vortex" it can be down to 28mpg.

Cablegate is the only reliability concern but it's expensive. Don't buy a used one unless the service history shows it being replaced with the 2024 cable. It's free to get it replaced if it's under 100,000 miles but super expensive if it dies after that.

I'm tall and I always have issues with headroom (tall torso). I got the model without the sunroof because you get 2 to 3 more inches of headroom. It's good but not perfect, I removed the rearview mirror so I had unobstructed vision at intersections. Note though that I often have this issue with most cars so I'm probably a bit of an outlier.

The seats in the LE trim level are particularly hard and I would avoid them. All other models are ok but not great. I found this to be the case with all small suv's I tried though. The more expensive highlander comes with more comfortable seats. But as long as you are above the LE trim (I have an XLE) the seats are ok.
 
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