Used 2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime Consumer Reviews
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RAV4 Prime XSE: Great car but less than expected
pfk93, 11/10/2021
2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE 4dr SUV AWD (2.5L 4cyl gas/electric plug-in hybrid CVT)
16 of 19 people found this review helpful
I bought this car for it's plug-in battery giving 42 miles (more than any other plug-in I found) hoping that the cost for electricity would be less than cost of gas. What I found, after careful measurement was that 1) Cost of electricity in my home was $.024/Kw (that included all the "other" fess in my bill 2) Cost of recharging the car was equivalent to buying gas at $3.18/gallon and car getting 35 MPG (which is less than rated MPG) CONCLUSION) Do not get EV if you're just expecting to save money on gas although if gas keeps going up the EV may have an advantage. Have had car for two weeks and have yet to go into gas mode. All of my trips have been less than 40 miles so I'm pure electric so far. That's due to the 42 mile batter which is almost twice that of all the other plug-in hybrids I've seen. Although I was considering adding faster charger I' still undecided as plugging it in to 110 outlet when I get home allows it to be recharged by next day. Other than gas=EV, the car is great. Very different riding while running on battery -- no engine noise. Car has almost all the bells and whistles you want with exception of hands-off driving. Seats are comfortable, lane departure gives steering wheel vibration which is better then the beeping in my old Highlander. Missing: I like to keep some change in the car but the RAV4 has no "ash tray" or other place to put change.
Wish the tech on the SE was upgradable
Will, 03/30/2021
updated 10/05/2021
2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime SE 4dr SUV AWD (2.5L 4cyl gas/electric plug-in hybrid CVT)
36 of 45 people found this review helpful
Switched from a 2017 fusion energi to the 2021 rav4 prime SE and felt like I was going backwards in time as far as tech is concerned, app is horrible no key pad entry. It has something wrong where it will lock the doors and you can not unlock them with out using the manual key about once a week I’ve found that the hatch will open and I have to crawl in to unlock the doors. Horrible noise on cold starts. Seats with out memory. Manual steering wheel adjustments. No heads up display. Wait listed for 6 months to get this and wish I would have held out for the xse. Now the pro’s: great ground clearance, average mpg so far is 65mpg with 40 mile commute and charging at both home and work. Off road capabilities are decent
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2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime for sale near you
3 of 22 listings
- XSE Plug-In Hybrid 4dr SUVMSRP: $29,350441 mi away
- XSE Plug-In Hybrid 4dr SUVMSRP: $39,059430 mi away
- XSE Plug-In Hybrid 4dr SUVMSRP: $36,963428 mi away
See all 22 listings
Some great features but a lack of design thought
Brain, 12/25/2020
updated 07/03/2023
2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE 4dr SUV AWD (2.5L 4cyl gas/electric plug-in hybrid CVT)
92 of 118 people found this review helpful
Update after 2 years: Two troublefree years. A lot of money saved charging at home. The kids want me to switch out our Volvo (which is great too) for a plug in 7 seater. Still wish Toyota improved certain interior design elements (learn from Honda) and made their vehicles a little more fun to drive. Update after 1 year: Absolutely love it. Filled gas twice in nearly 6k miles. Superb pickup, quiet operation and generally very comfortable. Sure I could do with additional amenities like power folding side mirrors etc but this car is truly worth the money. Original review 42 miles EV range plus 0-60 in less than 6 seconds are truly exceptional but the designers left a lot out and I will focus on those. A lot of body roll - this is a fast car but not a sporty one (steering is just numb and no fun at all). Storage is not as well designed as the CRV. Pricing is very high (40k+ for a base model with cloth seats and 50k fully loaded) which means the government incentive is basically going to Toyota and not the consumer. Subtract 7500 to get your true cost which is still overpriced. I got the fully loaded XSE but no parking sensors (other trims) on a car which most people will park in the garage and likely use in city driving with parallel parking - and it only comes with the fully loaded 50k option. Why? Finally some genius decided to put the charging port on the rear right rather than the front left. Most outlets are on the front when you pull into the garage and a driver now would have to walk around the car to the back right, unplug and walk back to the front left to get into the drivers seat. Repeat this in the evening. Super annoying if you do it on a daily basis in a cramped garage. Seat comfort is alright but the heated and cooled seats work well. Heated steering wheel is only for the partial steering wheel around 3 and 9. 6 and 12 area are not heated. Over 2k miles, I have been getting around 50 in summer and 42 in winter EV range which is great. Still haven’t filled gas but am at half tank with a few long trips where I appear to have averaged over 40 in hybrid mode. Overall a great value but Toyota should have made some options such as parking sensors, cooled seats etc options on lower trims, made the steering more engaging and given sports mode the full electric kick of a Tesla.
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First Plug-in electric SUV
Mr Gadget, 10/06/2021
updated 10/11/2022
2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE 4dr SUV AWD (2.5L 4cyl gas/electric plug-in hybrid CVT)
8 of 9 people found this review helpful
Could not be happier with the car. Gas at 8/Gallon, do not care. Peppy, powerful, spacious and a fuel sipper. This is my 4th EV / Plugin EV after 2011 Leaf, 2015 CMAX Energi, 2017 Prius Prime. Purchase Exp - Dealers Wanted anywhere from 4K to 10K over MSRP. Difficult to find one on the Lot (Although I found mine since the previous purchaser Backed out / did not qualify for the loan). Ride : Peppy little Car, Firm and comfortable ride. Tons of power, Excellent breaking. Excellent steering feel. Amazing EV Range (42+ Miles) and even better EV + Gas range (600+ Miles). I have seen 60 Miles of EV only range in LA traffic a couple of times. Build Quality : Fine so far Creature comforts : Heated / Cooled Ventilated front seats, heated back seats Heated steering wheel, Blind spot monitoring, Lane keep assist and forward collision mitigation, rain sensing wipers, 12 speaker JBL audio is excellent. Did I mention Spare tire? (un heard of now a days, thank you toyota) Cons : Cost (for a RAV), Not a big fan of dual tone color for XSE (stands out in the crowd though) 6 Months in. Love the car. Performance has been unbelievable. Wifey thinks that her V8 Merc is slow. The Car had not been to a gas station in months now. Replaced my interior lights to LED (common grip for 2021 RAV's).
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Just getting to know it…
R. MacL, 08/30/2021
updated 04/18/2022
2021 Toyota RAV4 Prime XSE 4dr SUV AWD (2.5L 4cyl gas/electric plug-in hybrid CVT)
18 of 23 people found this review helpful
Just purchased this vehicle. Somewhat disoriented considering the outrageous mark-ups some dealers demanded, AND the extent to which Edmunds is complicit with the less scrupulous dealers in misleading consumers. I really want to trust Edmunds, but after doing extensive research during the purchase process, I am stunned at how Edmunds enables bait-and-switch schemes…and how they are sort of defiant about it. Edmunds published prices are NOT validated; in fact, they are misleading…don’t rely on them; call around on your own — you will quickly begin to separate the sleazy dealers from the from the credible ones. The Rav4 Prime XSE is nice, powerful, large. Not a lot of vehicles like it, and given the remarkable drive train, it sits in a very special category. I’m glad I went through what I went through to get it. But it does not rise to the level of being so special that a $10K, $5K, or even $1K premium over MSRP is warranted—get a Tesla instead… I have encountered a few rattles; passenger head rest when raised and passenger seat unoccupied (simply lower it), passenger seat belt when not used rattles against plastic. Other than that, the vehicle is a solid brick. Awesome sensation when it is accelerating silently in EV mode. It is tough to get into; the seats are high (even in their lowest position) and the roof is low, so you gotta squeeze in while bending your neck into unnatural contortions. Out of curiosity, I compared specifications with other similar vehicle and RAV4 is short on front head room. Some common tech is missing, ie: proximity alerts when backing up or parking, the Ap is not very well thought-out, the EV meter is expressed in percentages-of-full charge (rather than range expressed in distance/miles), WiFi hot spot is a promoted feature but what you get is a 3-month trial period with AT&T, and an option to purchase the service thereafter. Driving is a real pleasure, though the short wheel base doesn’t do the vehicle justice. The transition between electric and gas is almost imperceptible. Still getting to know the car, but…definitely NOT worth the premium some dealers demand (one which I came across was demanding sticker + $29,995! $77K! 😂 — PS don’t shop for this vehicle in Oakland CA!). Looking forward to this vehicle growing on me and performing in a way that justifies higher ratings. UPDATE: I’ve had my Rav 4 Prime XSE for 6 months and have driven 6000 miles. Sorry, but I can not recommend this vehicle. As the current darling of the ‘new’ generation of sporty, active, earthy car-buying ‘set,’ the R4P (as they call it) falls short on many fronts; value primarily, overall engineering, and fine-tuning. With so many capable electric vehicles hitting the market, the Rav4 Prime may seem like a safe investment, when in fact it lacks fundamental technology, engineering, and benefits so many buyers are seeking. Given the hefty mark-ups that have become a part of the entry ticket to drive this dinosaur, buyers are better off ignoring the popularity contest and move-on to vehicles more advanced, more appropriate for our time. From a mathematical perspective, I could sell my car tomorrow for $10k more than I bought it, and be rolling around in a much better engineered and capable and clean vehicle. That is my current plan. The ergonomics are crappy and I never feel comfortable in it…nobody does. It’s clumsy. The interior tech is only mediocre, Bluetooth transitions are not consistent, spotty. Interior comes in black…or black…or black; not too comfy in California heat. With gas prices as high as they are (and carbon concentrations in the atmosphere as high as they are), there is little justification for buying a vehicle burdened with the weight and drag of an ICE engine.
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