Although the RAV4 is a passenger car underneath it all, Toyota did a nice job of
creating a sport-utility feel inside the airy, efficiently designed interior.
As noted, the seating position is higher than you'd find in a sedan--something most
sport-utility drivers like--and the front seats are sporty buckets, with good lateral
support.
There's also plenty of front seat legroom in both RAV4 body styles, as well as lots of
headroom. And the rear seatback can be fully reclined or flopped forward, to expand
cargo volume, which is easy to get at, thanks to the hinged rear tailgate. Grab the
latch and it swings open like a door.
The combination of the relatively high seats and the short, sloping hood provides
excellent forward visibility, while the extensive glass area pretty much eliminates
the blind spots you find in a lot of other sport-utilities.
The sporty theme is reinforced by the rest of the RAV4's interior, which is purposeful
without being stark.
It's got the right stuff--cupholders, several places to stow small items like
sunglasses and cassettes, standard analog instruments, well located controls that are
generally easy to use.
And it's got the kind of safety features you'd associate with a passenger car: Dual
airbags, side impact protection, adjustable upper seatbelt anchors for the front seats
and the option ($590) of 4-wheel ABS.
Although the RAV4 isn't available with a soft top, you can add sunshine and fresh air
to the driving experience with the sunroof option ($600)--or, to be accurate, make that
sunroofs; there are two of them, mounted in tandem, like the Previa minivan (dual
sunroofs are available on the 2-door model only).
Fun-to-drive is a trait we usually associate with cars that pin you against the
seatback when you tramp on the throttle and knife through a slalom like Deion Sanders
heading for the bank.
The RAV4 doesn't do those things. It's not going to make anyone forget the Mazda
Miata. Nevertheless, it delivers peppy acceleration, it's light on its feet and it has
exceptionally precise steering. The all-wheel drive system provides excellent grip on
slick pavement, and it doesn't miss a step when the pavement comes to an end.
A locking center differential lends extra scratch for gooey going--just press a button
in the middle of the dashboard--and there's adequate ground clearance for rough
terrain: 7.5 in. for the 4-door, 7.7 in the 2-door version.
That's a smidge more ground clearance than you get in an Explorer, and it's what you
want when you're picking your way over rocks or traversing deep ruts or slogging
through mud bogs.
We called the acceleration peppy, which requires some amplification. The RAV4 competes
in an arena where get-up-and-go is largely conspicuous by its absence. With the
standard 5-speed manual transmission, the 120-hp 4-cyl. engine will tow the RAV4 to 60
mph in about 10 seconds.
That's not exactly nosebleed territory, and things slow down even more with the
optional 4-speed automatic transmission (available only on 4-door models). But it's
quicker than most sport-utilities, and the RAV4's fuel economy is very good. We
averaged a shade over 22 mpg during our test driving, which included everything from
blasting down dirt roads to high speed interstate cruising.
The interior begins getting a tad noisy at speeds above, say, 60 mph, and acceleration
gets leisurely at higher speeds, particularly in 5th gear.
To be fair on this latter point, the RAV4's gearing is aimed at good performance at
lower speeds. But passing on two-lane highways definitely requires a downshift to 4th
gear, plus a good stretch of straight road.
The manual transmission shifter is another soft spot. It's a bit vague, and getting
reverse to engage sometimes requires coaxing.