Off Topic Rav4 Prime XSE

[Unobtanium]

So is your new Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE made in Japan?
Yes. I only buy Japanese vehicles (not just in name).
Can you feel the difference between RAV4’s electrical-based rear wheel drive and CX-5’s mechanical-based rear wheel drive in AWD system?
Yes, the CX5 when going up my 27% grade hill will have little "micro slips" that I can feel in the steering wheel, as well as hear. The Prime does not have this at all. It is just PLANTED. The read-out on the dash shows more power going to the rear than the front, 100% of the time I am on the hill, not "reactively".
Which options do you get? Premium Package? Prime XSE Weather Package? Premium Audio?
XSE/Weather. I would have LOVED to get XSE/AUDIO/Weather, but alas, with Prime, you get what you get, because you have to get what is available, and Primes are STOOPID hard to get.
Do you need new wiring in the garage to charge the RAV4 PHEV?
I chose to replace the GCFI at the head of the daisy-chain wiring, as well as install a surge-protector outlet to plug into. My Prime XSE non Premium uses a 120V wall-socket. You could run the cord into your livingroom for all it cares.
Have you tried the full EV mode, and how many miles can it go?
I tend to mix and match. I am trying to break in the ICE engine, so have not done a 100% pure EV commute yet, but I'd say 30-40 miles in my terrain and driving style. I feel like Toyota was dead honest with their 42mi estimate, thus far. Last time I charged up, I think it said I had a 38-40mi range or something.
I’m waiting for new Lexus NX Prime coming into the US market as wife has always wanted a Lexus. Or at least a Toyota Venza unfortunately it only has hybrid without plug-in.

The Lexus 450h+ is what you want. Prime drivetrain, Lexus tech, etc.

The biggest differences I have found vs. the CX5: Cornering is FLAT. Suspension is like a CX5 taken to 11. The build quality and "solidness" is 9/10 if the CX5 was 10/10. I think it may BE a 10/10, if my rear cargo-mat wasn't slapping over bumps, lol! They are very comparable. Acceleration is INSTANT. Telepathic fast. You press, she go. NO shifting. NO lag. Just GO! NOW! The isolation from road vibration, even with stiffer suspension, is excellent! IT feels so calm while my CX5, across 3 sets of tires, always jittered a bit like the tires were never REALLY balanced. Very nervous car. I took it in multiple times. OEM tires, and 2 sets of LX25's. Also though, the steering on the RAV is super numb. Like video-game before built-in haptic feedback numb. You need to listen to your tires for feedback, which the CC2's give EXCELLENT feedback audibly as to the condition of grip. The seats...oh wow. Amazing. Bolstered! Padded but yet firm! This is literally the best seat. I'd put it in a Corvette. I'd put it in a RAV. It's just the best ever, lol. Side bolsters that remind you of Recaros, and firm but ample padding. It's just a great seat!

Also, this wild man on YouTube took his Prime to the Sedona raceway 2 weeks ago, lol!
Motortrend got a 14.1 sec @ 98.7 mph. While this guy didn't do as well, it sure is nice to see that they seem like the same car, instead of how my CX5 was doing 0-60 in around 6.7-7 seconds, and magazines all had it at like 6.1. Also, he ran it in EV/HV AUTO mode instead of HV mode. HV/Sport is where you want to run it. I am curious how much difference it would have made.

Rav4 Prime Auto EV/HV Mode 14.226s 1/4 Mile Run @ Sonoma Raceway Wednesday Night Drags

Not impressed by the EV mode 1/4 mile time we unleash the 302 horses using the Auto EV/HV mode on the Rav4 Prime.

www.youtube.com

 

[Sig cx-5]

No, they literally only fit the Q5 and Dodge Journey, lol. Noone with a Q5 is buying those junk tires, and I don't think people who own a Dodge Journey buy tires all at once, usually just as they blow out, lmao!

You know how many people lease their Q5's? When they turn them in, they need to have a certain tread depth. You could have easily made $400 selling them. I was given a $200 credit for the OEM tires with 18k miles, that they pulled off my 2013 Lexus a few years ago.

Also, not just those vehicles used them. 235/55R19

 

[Unobtanium]

You know how many people lease their Q5's? When they turn them in, they need to have a certain tread depth. You could have easily made $400 selling them. I was given a $200 credit for the OEM tires with 18k miles, that they pulled off my 2013 Lexus a few years ago.

Also, not just those vehicles used them. 235/55R19

Fair, I didn't want to ship them or muck with it locally.

 

[Sig cx-5]

How tall are you? I was intrigued with the Prime when it was first announced, but I see it's not a good fit for taller people. I'm 6'4", so this may be off my list when I look for the CX-5's replacement.

Review

 

[yrwei52]

How tall are you? I was intrigued with the Prime when it was first announced, but I see it's not a good fit for taller people. I'm 6'4", so this may be off my list when I look for the CX-5's replacement.

Review

Yes, although RAV4 seems to have bigger interior than CX-5, but I’ve read reviews that it’d be unconformable for the tall driver like you.

An known issue on RAV4 is roof water leak from those holes under the flush factory mounted rubber roof rails. These holes are covered only by some plastic tabs on the rails, eventually they’ll be aged due to the heat and start leaking water.

 

[Unobtanium]

How tall are you? I was intrigued with the Prime when it was first announced, but I see it's not a good fit for taller people. I'm 6'4", so this may be off my list when I look for the CX-5's replacement.

Review

5'10.75" to be super precise.

 

[yrwei52]

⋯ I bought Toyota warranty 10/125K for $2350. That was a $500 mark-up. I was content with that and even suggested it (They wanted 2850, I told him I'd let him make some money, but that was too much, cut your profit to $500 and I'll buy it, I told them. They did.).

If I’d buy an extended warranty, I’d only get one from the manufacture directly. But I wouldn’t want one if I was buying a Toyota. The only time I bought an extended warranty was for my 1998 Honda CR-V, $2,000 for 7-year / 100,000-mile bumper-to-bumper from Honda, But the money was wasted.

 

[yrwei52]

5'10.75" to be super precise.

Haha ⋯

 

[concept]

That is an excellent writeup!
Consumer Reports rates the CX5 with an overall score of 83, whereas the Prime is close at 79.
Road test scores are better for the Prime at 85 but CR rated the non-turbo CX5 at 78. Gas mileage, of course is not even close but Mazda snags a "Much better than average reliability" rating. The Prime is rated as only average in this regard.

In the 2-row category, The Prime comes in 6th place with the Subaru Outback taking first with an overall score of 86. Road test is an excellent 91.

The CX5 is placed in a different group in which the Forester places first and the CX5 in second.

 

[Unobtanium]

Yes, although RAV4 seems to have bigger interior than CX-5, but I’ve read reviews that it’d be unconformable for the tall driver like you.

An known issue on RAV4 is roof water leak from those holes under the flush factory mounted rubber roof rails. These holes are covered only by some plastic tabs on the rails, eventually they’ll be aged due to the heat and start leaking water.

Yes/No. The RAV4 initially came (2019-2020 models) with very thin gaskets around the clips on the rail. These could allow water ingress. Pictured here, is them:

You can see that they are smol. Wek. Worthless. This complaint was addressed by Toyota, and you can see they now have a proper gasket. These are stronk! Thicker than a truckstop pickle!

Thus you can see, the issue is not unaddressed, and Toyota has made meaningful fixes. This is part of why I love Toyota as a brand, and always have. It's just now that they've made something I want to drive (other than the MKIV). Toyota's image actually matters to them. A lot. Bigtime. When they had issues with white cars, they fixed the formulation, and then issued a retroactive paint recall, whereupon they re-painted over 10 year's worth of production vehicles if they manifested the flaw. This is the kind of stuff that makes Toyota the company they are, and why I chose to go with them instead of waiting for the new CX50.

 

[sm1ke]

Most manufacturers make meaningful fixes or adjustments as needed. For example, in your case of the power folding mirror failures, eventually a TSB was released with instructions for the tech to replace the motor with a different one. Then there was the recall addressing the HLA failures, where they updated some software. There was also the brake dragging issue, which was eventually fixed with revised calipers.

Toyota is indeed a great company, with a well-earned reputation. But they aren't perfect - no manufacturer is. My dad's Highlander was/is an absolute pile of junk that just sits in the garage wasting space, and he took care of it very well. Not your typical Toyota experience, but it does happen.

Anyway, I for one am glad you found a vehicle you like. Keep us posted on your ownership experience!

 

[Unobtanium]

Most manufacturers make meaningful fixes or adjustments as needed. For example, in your case of the power folding mirror failures, eventually a TSB was released with instructions for the tech to replace the motor with a different one. Then there was the recall addressing the HLA failures, where they updated some software. There was also the brake dragging issue, which was eventually fixed with revised calipers.

Toyota is indeed a great company, with a well-earned reputation. But they aren't perfect - no manufacturer is. My dad's Highlander was/is an absolute pile of junk that just sits in the garage wasting space, and he took care of it very well. Not your typical Toyota experience, but it does happen.

Anyway, I for one am glad you found a vehicle you like. Keep us posted on your ownership experience!

When did the mirror motor TSB come out? My last replacement pair was back in 2020, mid year I think or something.

 

[sm1ke]

When did the mirror motor TSB come out? My last replacement pair was back in 2020, mid year I think or something.

I think it was Feb 2020. If that's correct, then your dealer should have installed the revised mirror motors after the first mirror motor replacements (pre-TSB) failed. I emphasize the word "should", because you never know with dealers, they may have just pulled some pre-TSB motors from a parts bin instead of checking to see if a TSB was available. I think it may list the mirror motor part number on the invoice if you have it, but at this point, I wouldn't even bother lol. Not your problem anymore!

 

[yrwei52]

When did the mirror motor TSB come out? My last replacement pair was back in 2020, mid year I think or something.

When I learned a power folding mirrors can last 28 years on an Isuzu Trooper, I really have to wonder the ability of Mazds making a reliable product? Or Mazda is just not interested in choosing a good vender to make reliable power folding mirrors for them?

It is interesting there are so many failures of this part. I have them on my 9 year old GX 460 and my father has them on his 1993 Isuzu Trooper (28 years old) and they still work and have never been replaced.

 

[sm1ke]

When I learned a power folding mirrors can last 28 years on an Isuzu Trooper, I really have to wonder the ability of Mazds making a reliable product? Or Mazda is just not interested in choosing a good vender to make reliable power folding mirrors for them?

We'll have to see if the revised power folding mirrors are any more reliable than the pre-TSB mirrors. I'm sure there are owners out there with mirrors that are working perfectly fine, but you'll never hear about them because they have nothing to complain about. But this topic (power folding mirrors) has it's own thread, so back to the thread topic please.

 

[Unobtanium]

 

[Unobtanium]

 

[Unobtanium]

 

[Unobtanium]

My CX5 0-80...

CX5 turbo, 0-80 93 octane

www.youtube.com

Prime 0-80

Prime 0-80

www.youtube.com

Prime 0-60

Prime 0-60

www.youtube.com

In short, the RAV4 Prime will tear the CX5 turbo up like a soggy dinner roll in a straight away. In corners, the CX5 has better feedback, but I can take them at the same speed or faster in the Prime as the CX5, before the tires complain to the point t hat I let up. The Prime is just more "numb" about it.


I will also note, that the RAV4 Prime does 0-60 in 5.75 seconds in my hands. EXACTLY what one expects of it (the battery was down a to about 1/4 charge) I think if the battery were fully charged, I would have tied the 5.4 and 5.5 magazines were getting. The CX5 on the other hand, always managed 0-60 in around 7 flat for me. Way off the magazine numbers. Always was mad about that. This performs exactly as expected.

 

[sm1ke]

My CX5 0-80...

CX5 turbo, 0-80 93 octane

www.youtube.com

Prime 0-80

Prime 0-80

www.youtube.com

Prime 0-60

Prime 0-60

www.youtube.com

In short, the RAV4 Prime will tear the CX5 turbo up like a soggy dinner roll in a straight away. In corners, the CX5 has better feedback, but I can take them at the same speed or faster in the Prime as the CX5, before the tires complain to the point t hat I let up. The Prime is just more "numb" about it.


I will also note, that the RAV4 Prime does 0-60 in 5.75 seconds in my hands. EXACTLY what one expects of it (the battery was down a to about 1/4 charge) I think if the battery were fully charged, I would have tied the 5.4 and 5.5 magazines were getting. The CX5 on the other hand, always managed 0-60 in around 7 flat for me. Way off the magazine numbers. Always was mad about that. This performs exactly as expected.

Thanks for posting.