2018 Toyota RAV4 Adventure Preview
CARS.COM
Competes with: Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Mazda CX-5
Looks like: Someone stole the RAV4’s lunch from the work fridge and now it’s angry
Drivetrain: 176-horsepower, 2.5-liter four-cylinder, 170 pounds-feet of torque; six-speed automatic; front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive
Hits Dealerships: September 2017
At the 2017 Chicago Auto Show, Toyota is introducing a new trim level of its popular compact crossover SUV, the RAV4 Adventure.
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Toyota says that the RAV4 Adventure is inspired by an “active lifestyle,” and it gets styling and mechanical updates in that vein including additional ride height and extra body cladding all around.
Exterior
The updates to the RAV4 Adventure aim to make it look more rugged, with larger fender flares and lower body guards in metallic silver on all four sides of the exterior. It also has black body cladding that runs around the bottom of the whole vehicle, similar to the RAV4 SE but thickened so it becomes more pronounced.
Other exterior bits and pieces are also finished in black to make them more aggressive, including the headlight bezels and roof racks. A wide black stripe has been added to the hood and 18-inch, five-spoke alloy wheels with a black finish are standard.
Interior
Inside, the changes to the RAV4 Adventure are subtler. There is a leather wrapped shift knob and some of the interior panels have been swapped out, but that’s about it. There are, however, a few practical additions that back up the Adventure name: A 120-volt household outlet has been added to the cargo area, and all-weather floor and cargo mats protect the upholstery.
Toyota is also adding a new Cold Weather Package for 2018 that will be available on a few RAV4 trims in addition to the Adventure. The package adds heated power fabric front seats, a heated steering wheel and a wiper deicer.
Under the Hood
The RAV4 Adventure keeps the same engine and transmission combination as the other RAV4 models, a 176-hp, 2.5-liter four-cylinder that makes 170 pounds-feet of torque and is mated to a six-speed automatic. It will be offered in FWD or AWD configurations.
Both configurations add the Tow Prep Package standard, which includes an upgraded radiator and supplemental oil and transmission fluid coolers. The suspension also has a higher ride height for better ground clearance when going off-road.
Safety
In addition to the standard Toyota Safety Sense, the RAV4 Adventure also adds standard trailer sway control and hill-start assist control. TSS-P includes a pre-collision system with pedestrian detection and automatic braking, lane departure alert, automatic high beams and adaptive cruise control, giving the RAV4 Adventure a pretty comprehensive suite of safety technology.
The 2018 RAV4 Adventure will roll into dealerships this September.
