2024 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE AWD Review

This week I bring you the #1 selling SUV in America, in its plug-in hybrid form. This is the 2024 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE - the top trim in a delightfully uncomplicated two-trim lineup. 

This isn't my first time behind the wheel of the RAV4 Prime.  In fact, this marks my third review since it debuted in 2021.   I was super impressed then and three years later, I still am.  Despite the fact that more plug-ins have come to market since, the RAV4 Prime still stands out from the pack. Not just for its performance and overall versatility,  but also its mainstream affordability, and of course, Toyota's well-known hybrid excellence.   

Exterior

Toyota loves Supersonic Red on the RAV4 Prime, I know this as this is my third Prime review, and once again it wears the red hue paired with a metallic black roof.  It does look terrific, so I understand Toyota's penchant for the two-tone color combo. The XSE rides on 19-inch sport alloy wheels. 

Standard Prime features include black roof rails, a black diamond-patterned bar front grille, dual chrome tipped exhaust, a silver painted lower front spoiler and LED daytime running lights along with taillights. The XSE adds vertical LED accent lights, black-painted heated outside mirrors, red-painted shock absorbers and color-keyed exterior elements.

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Powertrain

A carryover from 2023, the 2024 RAV4 Prime is one of Toyota's fastest vehicles with an automaker cited 0 to 60 time of 5.5 seconds. As you can imagine, off-the-line acceleration is impressively quick!  

The Prime, equipped with standard all-wheel drive,  delivers 302-horses from an enhanced 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine paired with two electric motors.  That's a substantial boost over the 219-horsepower RAV4 hybrid. 

Also a quick note regarding the Prius Prime if you're comparing the two models.  The RAV4 also has it beat - as the Prius plug-in delivers 220-horses.

EV Range/Charging

If you stay close to home, the Prime's 42-mile EV range will likely appeal.  Though unlike when I reviewed the 2022 RAV4 Prime, EV range is now surpassed by the new Toyota Prius Prime with its 44-mile range. 

Using its standard 6.6kW onboard charger, you're looking at roughly 2.5 hours to charge the battery fully when you use Level 2 charging. (This is NOT plugging into your house outlet, that's Level 1. )

Interior

Clearly the RAV4's interior strikes a chord with buyers. While not luxurious, it's nice, well-designed, roomy and comfortable.  It's cabin design leans more toward the rugged truck-like side in terms of hardware, as opposed to say the Mazda CX-30 or Nissan Rogue.    By more rugged I mean the RAV4 is equipped with bulkier hardware and switchgear like large grab handles on the doors, large rubber climate control dials and a large gear shifter. I do wish the interior door handles had more heft to them.

The dash is extremely soft-touch and you'll find a mix of soft-touch and plastic on the door panels. The XSE features a red-accented black interior. A premium package nets unique, comfortable SofTex-trimmed, side-bolstered seats with well-done red stitching and piping. The driver's seat is 8-way power adjustable - the passenger seat is optionally 4-way power.  Three-way heated and ventilated front seats are also part of an optional package.

The XSE is equipped with a heated and leather-trimmed steering wheel along with a 12.3-inch color digital driver display with great graphics, especially for the safety and drive mode info.

A wider center console hosts a beefier leather gear shift knob, cupholders and other controls, along with a wireless charger. The black hardware on the console and elsewhere isn't fancy.  But the drive mode button that changes colors is cool.

The 2024 Prime XSE is equipped with Toyota's 10.5-inch multimedia display. I'm a big fan of Toyota's new multimedia system overall.  It offers great graphics, screen resolution and navigation along with a nice tablet keyboard. 

Voice recognition worked great. I love how you can use the phrase "Hey, Toyota" to ask questions. Though response time did lag.  The multimedia system is compatible with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The XSE is equipped with a great 11-speaker JBL premium sound system.   On the tech front you get four USB-Cs and a USB. On the subject of the backup camera, I'd love to see Toyota increase the resolution and adjust its placement for a fully unobstructed side view. Plus when it rained rained water droplets were an issue.

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One of my favorite cabin features is hands down the optional panoramic sunroof, available only on the XSE.

A cushiony reclining second-row is roomy and offers passengers a drop-down center console with cupholders.  While it's stadium seating, headroom is still ok. There are nice soft touch seat back pockets. The 60/40 rear split seats make it easy to access the cargo area from inside.  My tester's optional premium package adds a kick sensor lift gate that works great. It opens up to an impressive cargo area (33.5 cubic feet of rear cargo volume). There's also a cargo mat, cargo tonneau cover and a spare tire.

Ride and Drive

You don't get to be the #1 selling SUV in America without delivering great ride quality.  The Prime's plug-in factor adds an electrified-induced acceleration and smoothness that gives it an edge over the standard gas-model. The suspension feels great and braking is as you'd expect, confident.  Drive modes include Sport, Eco, Normal, EV, HV, Auto EV/HV, Charge and Trail. The XSE offers great visibility and has slightly more ground clearance along with a larger turning radius over the based SE.    

Safety

The 2024 RAV4 lineup awaits an upgrade to Toyota 3.0. It's equipped with TSS 2.5+ which includes a long list of excellent safety features that work well. The RAV4 lineup is also additionally equipped with Blind Spot Monitor and Rear Cross Traffic Alert. This XSE is also equipped with an optional 10-inch color head up display included in a Premium package.

Options

Options include the weather package ($375), the special paint color ($425), the Premium Package ($2,585), Carpet Floor Mats/Cargo Mat ($309),  Rear Bumper Applique ($69), Wheel Lock ($65), Fog Light Accent ($175), and Roof Rack Cross Bars ($315). 

What You'll Pay

As the most powerful RAV4 in the lineup,  you'll pay more for the Prime than other models.  For a quick reference, as equipped, this model MSRPs for just shy of $53,000, that's roughly $10K more than the 2023 RAV4 TRD Off-Road  I've reviewed.

Verdict

The RAV4 Prime is a mainstream hybrid that takes things to the next level with its plug-in powertrain.  It adds amazing performance that makes this practical, ruggedly stylish SUV anything but boring.

1. What I liked most:   Performance. Two-toned looks.  Updated Toyota Multimedia System.
2. What I would change:  Add some heft to the interior door handles. Improve backup camera resolution/location.
3. MSRP:  Base price: $47,310; as equipped $52,978.
   
   
4. Fuel Economy:  38 combined MPG gas-only/ 94 combined MPGe.
5. Odometer reading when tested:  988 miles.
6. Weight: 4,300 pounds.
7. Spare Tire:  Temporary compact spare.
8. Length-Width-Height: 180.9” long/73" wide/67.2” high.
9. Fuel Tank Capacity:  14.5 with filler on the driver's side.
10. Official Color:   Supersonic Red/Midnight Black Metallic Roof.
11. Towing Capacity:  2,500 pounds.

12. 2024 RAV4 Prime  in a few words:   A smooth operator with quick acceleration that takes the RAV4 to the next level.

13. Warranty:  120 months/150,000 miles Hybrid battery warranty;  36 months/36,000 miles Basic warranty; 60 months/unlimited miles Corrosion Perforation Warranty; 96 months/100,000 miles Hybrid System warranty; 60 months/60,000 miles Powertrain warranty. 

14. Final Assembly Location:  Obu, Aichi, Japan
15. Manufacturer's website:  Toyota