Skip to main content
4.6

Toyota RAV4

Starts at:
$23,680
Choose Trim
Compare trims
FWD 4dr LE (Natl) AWD 4dr LE (Natl) FWD 4dr XLE (Natl) AWD 4dr XLE (Natl) FWD 4dr Limited (Natl) AWD 4dr Limited (Natl) Shop options
New 2015 Toyota RAV4
Choose trim
Compare trims
FWD 4dr LE (Natl) AWD 4dr LE (Natl) FWD 4dr XLE (Natl) AWD 4dr XLE (Natl) FWD 4dr Limited (Natl) AWD 4dr Limited (Natl) Shop options
Shop Cars.com
Browse new cars & save your favorites
Dealers near you
Find & contact a dealership near you
no listings

We're not finding any listings in your area.
Change your location or shop Cars.com to see more!

Change location

Your message was sent. You'll receive a response shortly.

Key specifications

Highlights
1,500 lbs
Towing Capacity
Regular Unleaded I-4
Engine Type
24 City / 31 Hwy
MPG
176 hp
Horsepower
Engine
2.5 L/152
Displacement
172 @ 4100
SAE Net Torque @ RPM
176 @ 6000
SAE Net Horsepower @ RPM
Regular Unleaded I-4
Engine Type
Suspension
Double Wishbone
Suspension Type - Rear
Strut
Suspension Type - Front
Double Wishbone
Suspension Type - Rear (Cont.)
Strut
Suspension Type - Front (Cont.)
Weight & Capacity
150 lbs
Dead Weight Hitch - Max Tongue Wt.
3,435 lbs
Base Curb Weight
1,500 lbs
Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Trailer Wt.
16 gal
Fuel Tank Capacity, Approx
Safety
Standard
Backup Camera
Standard
Stability Control
Entertainment
Standard
Bluetooth®
Electrical
N/A
Maximum Alternator Capacity (amps)
550
Cold Cranking Amps @ 0° F (Primary)
Brakes
Yes
Disc - Front (Yes or )
11 in
Rear Brake Rotor Diam x Thickness
11 in
Front Brake Rotor Diam x Thickness
4-Wheel
Brake ABS System

Notable features

Four-cylinder only
Six-speed automatic transmission
FWD or AWD
Seats five
Standard backup camera

Engine

2.5 L/152 Displacement
172 @ 4100 SAE Net Torque @ RPM
176 @ 6000 SAE Net Horsepower @ RPM
Regular Unleaded I-4 Engine Type

Suspension

Double Wishbone Suspension Type - Rear
Strut Suspension Type - Front
Double Wishbone Suspension Type - Rear (Cont.)
Strut Suspension Type - Front (Cont.)

Weight & Capacity

150 lbs Dead Weight Hitch - Max Tongue Wt.
3,435 lbs Base Curb Weight
1,500 lbs Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Trailer Wt.
16 gal Fuel Tank Capacity, Approx
150 lbs Wt Distributing Hitch - Max Tongue Wt.
N/A Curb Weight - Rear
1,500 lbs Dead Weight Hitch - Max Trailer Wt.
0 lbs Total Option Weight
N/A Curb Weight - Front
1,500 lbs Maximum Trailering Capacity
N/A Aux Fuel Tank Capacity, Approx
N/A Curb Weight
N/A Maximum Payload Capacity

Safety

Standard Backup Camera
Standard Stability Control

Entertainment

Standard Bluetooth®

Electrical

N/A Maximum Alternator Capacity (amps)
550 Cold Cranking Amps @ 0° F (Primary)

Brakes

Yes Disc - Front (Yes or )
11 in Rear Brake Rotor Diam x Thickness
11 in Front Brake Rotor Diam x Thickness
4-Wheel Brake ABS System
N/A Brake ABS System (Second Line)
Yes Disc - Rear (Yes or )
4-Wheel Disc Brake Type
N/A Drum - Rear (Yes or )

Photo & video gallery

2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4 2015 Toyota RAV4

Factory warranties

New car program benefits

Basic
3 years / 36,000 miles
Corrosion
5 years
Powertrain
5 years / 60,000 miles
Maintenance
2 years / 25,000 miles
Roadside Assistance
2 years

Certified Pre-Owned program benefits

Age / mileage
7 years / less than 85,000 miles
Basic
12 months / 12, 000 miles
Dealer certification
160- or 174-point inspections

The good & the bad

The good

Efficient four-cylinder
Roomy cargo area
More standard features
Programmable-height liftgate on Limited

The bad

Non-sliding backseat
Complicated seat folding
Too much hard plastic in the cabin
Firm backseat
Center rear seating position narrow and uncomfortable

Consumer reviews

4.6 / 5
Based on 362 reviews
Write a review
Comfort 4.5
Interior 4.4
Performance 4.5
Value 4.5
Exterior 4.7
Reliability 4.7

Most recent

A lot of the other reviews go over build quality,

A lot of the other reviews go over build quality, features, comfort, etc.. Briefly I will say after being in this car for almost 9 years: the car (especially the XLE/sport model) is on the stiffer side and can be harsh. The upside is that it feels incredibly planted and there is minimal body roll. It is easy fun to take on windy roads with the "Sport" setting, which further tightens the ride. Road noise is not the best. Wind and tire noise is om the louder side. Materials are nothing super premium in the XLE, but the interior is built like a tank and has held up well. No electrical issues. The engine and transmission are fantastic. The small 4 cylinder makes the car sporty with 187 HP and it is also silent. It has a pleasant sound when accelarating and you hardly hear it. The transmission is a 6 speed, but is overall good. Smooth shifting in both sport and city driving. Reliability-wise this car has been absolutely fantastic. The car has been lazily maintained and is currently at 220,000 miles. It still drives and shifts very smoothly. This car is a sportier crossover. It is a good choice for somebody who wants more sport compared to say a CRV. It is and has been proven to be reliable though.
  • Does recommend this car
Comfort 3.0
Interior 4.0
Performance 5.0
Value 5.0
Exterior 4.0
Reliability 5.0
5 people out of 5 found this review helpful. Did you?
Yes No

MY Rav4

Bought car in 2017 with 6000 miles, only changed battery at 40000 miles,good on gas,lots of room,I would buy this Rav4 again new thank you
  • Purchased a Used car
  • Used for Transporting family
  • Does recommend this car
Comfort 5.0
Interior 5.0
Performance 5.0
Value 5.0
Exterior 5.0
Reliability 5.0
13 people out of 13 found this review helpful. Did you?
Yes No
Photo of Kristin Varela

2015 Toyota RAV4 review: Our expert's take

By Kristin Varela

The 2015 Toyota RAV4 is a little like the jeans and T-shirt you wear every day; they get the job done, but just a little extra effort would take it from yawn to yay.

The Toyota RAV4 is one of the original compact SUVs — arguably the first car-based SUV, or crossover. Over the years, it’s become an icon of practical people upsizing from practical sedans, like the Toyota Camry. The RAV4 is an interesting animal, though, in that its upper trim levels manage to incorporate all the individual features you’d want — and might even consider upscale. It just seems to be missing a little … something. Some joie de vivre, an unknown X factor, that mysterious thing that makes you return date number one’s call but ignore date number two’s. There’s nothing inherently wrong with it; it just doesn’t get you all twitterpated on the inside.

If you don’t want to go out with the RAV4 for a second coffee date, plan an online speed-dating session with the Hyundai Tucson or Kia Sportage here.

For 2015, there are only a few minor changes to the RAV4, the most important being an optional programmable-height power liftgate. Compare it with last year’s model here.

The Toyota RAV4 comes with either front-wheel or all-wheel drive in three trim levels: LE, XLE and Limited. I drove an AWD Limited. Compare AWD versions of all three trims here.

Exterior & Styling
Is there anything distinguishable about any of the cars in this class? They all look essentially the same — cute and sporty. They all more or less function the same; the proof, as they say, is in the pudding. In this case, the pudding is all the tiny, seemingly trite individual details that add up to create either a positive or negative daily life experience inside the car.

How It Drives
A RAV4 with its 2.5-liter four-cylinder and AWD gets an EPA-estimated mileage of 22/29/25 mpg city/highway/combined. This bumps up ever so slightly to 26 mpg combined in the front-drive RAV4. Any shoppers who have yearned for higher mileage from a RAV4 will get their wish in fall 2015 in the form of the 2016 RAV4 Hybrid, the first gas-electric option in this model’s history.

On the highway, the Toyota RAV4 has a tinny sound to it and a too-light feel that resulted in my passengers noticing all the vibrations from the grooved pavement where I live. Perhaps some additional focus on insulating from road noise would help.

While I wouldn’t really characterize the RAV4 as fun to drive on shorter trips around town, it’s effective enough in terms of both acceleration and braking to get you where you need to go.

Sure, it has a Sport mode in addition to an Eco one, but in a world of turbocharged compact SUVs, the RAV4 won’t be your go-to for a joyride; it’s more of a practical daily companion. It’s the flats you wear to work, not the super-fun heels you lug around in a tote bag to change into for after-work drinks. And, hey, everybody needs a pair of comfortable shoes.

Interior
There’s a definite attempt at niceness inside the Toyota RAV4; the Limited trim I drove had leatherlike SofTex seat upholstery, soft-touch door panel inserts and a leather-like panel on the dashboard with contrast stitching. The faux carbon-fiber trim pieces made out of a stamped plastic material, however, sadly cheapen the effect.

The optional heated seats up front (standard on the Limited trim) have high and low settings and can warm up your tush in short order on cold days.

Between the driver and front passenger, there are two cupholders as well as a shallow open tray and triangular storage area that worked well for stashing my phone, lip balm and toll transponder. Narrow pockets in the front two doors give you another option for storing odds and ends, but they’re not large enough to fit a water bottle or travel coffee cup.

In the back, my kids had access to storage pockets on the backs of the front seats as well as small in-door bottleholders. Two of them were happy enough sitting back there, but with the addition of the third daughter (my girls are 10, 12 and 14) this car fell from grace in our family. The center rear seating position is quite narrow and the center seat belt extends down from the roof. That means it must first be buckled down to tether the shoulder belt to the seat before you can buckle it normally. The space between that tether point and the other side of the buckle, though, is quite narrow, requiring a child to sit essentially perched with the edge of each cheek jammed into the tiny space between the buckles. If this weren’t already uncomfortable enough, once the other two get in all three will be fighting for lateral space just to fish out the seat belts and buckles from the tight gap in between their hips. For my girls, this rigmarole happened every … single … time … they … got … in.

After a frigid sledding trip with the kids crammed into the backseat in bulky snow gear, they further complained (loudly) that there were no air vents anywhere in the back to quickly pipe hot air onto them. At least the backseat reclines, so they were able to adjust the seatbacks to the most comfortable angle for them.

Not that we needed it during the arctic blast that accompanied our week in the Toyota RAV4, but this car does in fact have a moonroof in XLE and Limited versions. It is, however, above the front seats only. Apparently I’ve become spoiled with the panoramic moonroofs or dual front/back moonroofs that are increasingly common (and something I associate with more modern engineering feats).

Remote keyless entry is standard on the RAV4, and my Limited test car also came equipped with push-button start, an eight-way power driver’s seat with memory and a $499 remote-start option.

Ergonomics & Electronics
A 6.1-inch touch-screen Entune system is standard in the Toyota RAV4. While the screen’s menus are relatively self-explanatory and easy to navigate, some of the onscreen buttons are quite small and narrow, making it hard to pinpoint and press exactly what you want to, even for tiny fingers like mine.

It was very quick and easy to pair my iPhone with the Bluetooth hands-free phone and streaming audio system. Because I don’t have an Entune account, I wasn’t able to test out the full suite of apps included in the RAV4 Limited, such as Bing, iHeart Radio and movietickets.com, though I did like the real-time traffic and weather info. However, I suspect most people will find it quicker and easier to obtain all this information from their smartphone — as I did while waiting in the carpool lane — than it would be to navigate through the car’s touch-screen system.

Cargo & Storage
The 38.4 cubic feet of cargo space behind the RAV4’s backseat was enough for my daughter to climb in and rest after a particularly exhausting sledding day before our other girls were ready to call it quits. Folding the rear seats flat expands the cargo space to 73.4 cubic feet. This amount of space is more on target with the Hyundai Santa Fe Sport (35.4 behind the seats and 71.5 with the seats folded), than with the Hyundai Tucson (25.7 and 55.8) and Kia Sportage (26.1 and 54.6 cubic feet).

Safety
Unfortunately, RAV4s manufactured for the 2015 model year received different crash-test ratings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. A manufacturing change that began in November 2014 raised the overall crash-test rating from four to five out of five stars. To find the later release, as it’s termed by NHTSA, check the plaque on the driver’s doorjamb that begins with “MFD. BY: TOYOTA MOTOR MANUFACTURING,” followed by a location and date. Make sure it reads 11/14 or later.

The Toyota RAV4 is also an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Top Safety Pick, having received the institute’s highest rating of good (on a scale of poor, marginal, acceptable and good) in side and small- and moderate-overlap frontal crash tests, along with tests of its roof strength, head restraints and seats.

A backup camera with onscreen guides displayed on the 6.1-inch screen is standard on the RAV4. A $725 Technology Package on my Limited test car also included helpful blind spot monitors, rear cross-traffic alert (which watches behind and to the sides of the vehicle and alerts you to any cars approaching that you may not see), lane departure warning and automatic-high-beam headlights.

An important active-safety feature the RAV4 lacks is forward-collision warning, which is making its way down into other affordable vehicles, including roughly a half-dozen direct competitors like the Honda CR-V and Subaru Forester. Toyota announced in April at the 2015 New York International Auto Show that the 2016 RAV4 Hybrid would be the first Toyota model to offer this feature in an unusually affordable suite of safety features.

Families installing child-safety seats in the RAV4 might struggle a bit with the Latch anchors buried deeply within the seat bight. Installing a child-safety seat behind the driver’s seat may also render the center rear seat useless, as the car seat will extend over the top of the center seat belt’s anchor point. Check out our Car Seat Check of the 2014 RAV4 here.

See all the Toyota RAV4’s standard safety features here.

Value in Its Class
The Toyota RAV4 has evolved quite drastically since its inception in 1996 and most certainly has a massive following of brand-loyal fans. However, the dawn of other small SUVs birthed from more nimble (namely Korean) manufacturers threatens not so much the Toyota RAV4’s long-term survival, but rather the pool of potential new buyers. Millennials new to the compact body type SUV scene will be less impressed by the brand their parents drive and more wooed by upscale and modern-feeling amenities.

email  

 

Read more

The 2015 Toyota RAV4 is a little like the jeans and T-shirt you wear every day; they get the job done, but just a little extra effort would take it from yawn to yay.

The Toyota RAV4 is one of the original compact SUVs — arguably the first car-based SUV, or crossover. Over the years, it’s become an icon of practical people upsizing from practical sedans, like the Toyota Camry. The RAV4 is an interesting animal, though, in that its upper trim levels manage to incorporate all the individual features you’d want — and might even consider upscale. It just seems to be missing a little … something. Some joie de vivre, an unknown X factor, that mysterious thing that makes you return date number one’s call but ignore date number two’s. There’s nothing inherently wrong with it; it just doesn’t get you all twitterpated on the inside.

If you don’t want to go out with the RAV4 for a second coffee date, plan an online speed-dating session with the Hyundai Tucson or Kia Sportage here.

For 2015, there are only a few minor changes to the RAV4, the most important being an optional programmable-height power liftgate. Compare it with last year’s model here.

The Toyota RAV4 comes with either front-wheel or all-wheel drive in three trim levels: LE, XLE and Limited. I drove an AWD Limited. Compare AWD versions of all three trims here.

Exterior & Styling
Is there anything distinguishable about any of the cars in this class? They all look essentially the same — cute and sporty. They all more or less function the same; the proof, as they say, is in the pudding. In this case, the pudding is all the tiny, seemingly trite individual details that add up to create either a positive or negative daily life experience inside the car.

How It Drives
A RAV4 with its 2.5-liter four-cylinder and AWD gets an EPA-estimated mileage of 22/29/25 mpg city/highway/combined. This bumps up ever so slightly to 26 mpg combined in the front-drive RAV4. Any shoppers who have yearned for higher mileage from a RAV4 will get their wish in fall 2015 in the form of the 2016 RAV4 Hybrid, the first gas-electric option in this model’s history.

On the highway, the Toyota RAV4 has a tinny sound to it and a too-light feel that resulted in my passengers noticing all the vibrations from the grooved pavement where I live. Perhaps some additional focus on insulating from road noise would help.

While I wouldn’t really characterize the RAV4 as fun to drive on shorter trips around town, it’s effective enough in terms of both acceleration and braking to get you where you need to go.

Sure, it has a Sport mode in addition to an Eco one, but in a world of turbocharged compact SUVs, the RAV4 won’t be your go-to for a joyride; it’s more of a practical daily companion. It’s the flats you wear to work, not the super-fun heels you lug around in a tote bag to change into for after-work drinks. And, hey, everybody needs a pair of comfortable shoes.

Interior
There’s a definite attempt at niceness inside the Toyota RAV4; the Limited trim I drove had leatherlike SofTex seat upholstery, soft-touch door panel inserts and a leather-like panel on the dashboard with contrast stitching. The faux carbon-fiber trim pieces made out of a stamped plastic material, however, sadly cheapen the effect.

The optional heated seats up front (standard on the Limited trim) have high and low settings and can warm up your tush in short order on cold days.

Between the driver and front passenger, there are two cupholders as well as a shallow open tray and triangular storage area that worked well for stashing my phone, lip balm and toll transponder. Narrow pockets in the front two doors give you another option for storing odds and ends, but they’re not large enough to fit a water bottle or travel coffee cup.

In the back, my kids had access to storage pockets on the backs of the front seats as well as small in-door bottleholders. Two of them were happy enough sitting back there, but with the addition of the third daughter (my girls are 10, 12 and 14) this car fell from grace in our family. The center rear seating position is quite narrow and the center seat belt extends down from the roof. That means it must first be buckled down to tether the shoulder belt to the seat before you can buckle it normally. The space between that tether point and the other side of the buckle, though, is quite narrow, requiring a child to sit essentially perched with the edge of each cheek jammed into the tiny space between the buckles. If this weren’t already uncomfortable enough, once the other two get in all three will be fighting for lateral space just to fish out the seat belts and buckles from the tight gap in between their hips. For my girls, this rigmarole happened every … single … time … they … got … in.

After a frigid sledding trip with the kids crammed into the backseat in bulky snow gear, they further complained (loudly) that there were no air vents anywhere in the back to quickly pipe hot air onto them. At least the backseat reclines, so they were able to adjust the seatbacks to the most comfortable angle for them.

Not that we needed it during the arctic blast that accompanied our week in the Toyota RAV4, but this car does in fact have a moonroof in XLE and Limited versions. It is, however, above the front seats only. Apparently I’ve become spoiled with the panoramic moonroofs or dual front/back moonroofs that are increasingly common (and something I associate with more modern engineering feats).

Remote keyless entry is standard on the RAV4, and my Limited test car also came equipped with push-button start, an eight-way power driver’s seat with memory and a $499 remote-start option.

Ergonomics & Electronics
A 6.1-inch touch-screen Entune system is standard in the Toyota RAV4. While the screen’s menus are relatively self-explanatory and easy to navigate, some of the onscreen buttons are quite small and narrow, making it hard to pinpoint and press exactly what you want to, even for tiny fingers like mine.

It was very quick and easy to pair my iPhone with the Bluetooth hands-free phone and streaming audio system. Because I don’t have an Entune account, I wasn’t able to test out the full suite of apps included in the RAV4 Limited, such as Bing, iHeart Radio and movietickets.com, though I did like the real-time traffic and weather info. However, I suspect most people will find it quicker and easier to obtain all this information from their smartphone — as I did while waiting in the carpool lane — than it would be to navigate through the car’s touch-screen system.

Cargo & Storage
The 38.4 cubic feet of cargo space behind the RAV4’s backseat was enough for my daughter to climb in and rest after a particularly exhausting sledding day before our other girls were ready to call it quits. Folding the rear seats flat expands the cargo space to 73.4 cubic feet. This amount of space is more on target with the Hyundai Santa Fe Sport (35.4 behind the seats and 71.5 with the seats folded), than with the Hyundai Tucson (25.7 and 55.8) and Kia Sportage (26.1 and 54.6 cubic feet).

Safety
Unfortunately, RAV4s manufactured for the 2015 model year received different crash-test ratings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. A manufacturing change that began in November 2014 raised the overall crash-test rating from four to five out of five stars. To find the later release, as it’s termed by NHTSA, check the plaque on the driver’s doorjamb that begins with “MFD. BY: TOYOTA MOTOR MANUFACTURING,” followed by a location and date. Make sure it reads 11/14 or later.

The Toyota RAV4 is also an Insurance Institute for Highway Safety Top Safety Pick, having received the institute’s highest rating of good (on a scale of poor, marginal, acceptable and good) in side and small- and moderate-overlap frontal crash tests, along with tests of its roof strength, head restraints and seats.

A backup camera with onscreen guides displayed on the 6.1-inch screen is standard on the RAV4. A $725 Technology Package on my Limited test car also included helpful blind spot monitors, rear cross-traffic alert (which watches behind and to the sides of the vehicle and alerts you to any cars approaching that you may not see), lane departure warning and automatic-high-beam headlights.

An important active-safety feature the RAV4 lacks is forward-collision warning, which is making its way down into other affordable vehicles, including roughly a half-dozen direct competitors like the Honda CR-V and Subaru Forester. Toyota announced in April at the 2015 New York International Auto Show that the 2016 RAV4 Hybrid would be the first Toyota model to offer this feature in an unusually affordable suite of safety features.

Families installing child-safety seats in the RAV4 might struggle a bit with the Latch anchors buried deeply within the seat bight. Installing a child-safety seat behind the driver’s seat may also render the center rear seat useless, as the car seat will extend over the top of the center seat belt’s anchor point. Check out our Car Seat Check of the 2014 RAV4 here.

See all the Toyota RAV4’s standard safety features here.

Value in Its Class
The Toyota RAV4 has evolved quite drastically since its inception in 1996 and most certainly has a massive following of brand-loyal fans. However, the dawn of other small SUVs birthed from more nimble (namely Korean) manufacturers threatens not so much the Toyota RAV4’s long-term survival, but rather the pool of potential new buyers. Millennials new to the compact body type SUV scene will be less impressed by the brand their parents drive and more wooed by upscale and modern-feeling amenities.

email  

 

Read more

Safety review

Based on the 2015 Toyota RAV4 base trim
NHTSA crash test and rollover ratings, scored out of 5.
Overall rating
4/5
Combined side rating front seat
5/5
Combined side rating rear seat
5/5
Frontal barrier crash rating driver
4/5
Frontal barrier crash rating passenger
3/5
Overall frontal barrier crash rating
4/5
Overall side crash rating
5/5
Rollover rating
4/5
Side barrier rating
5/5
Side barrier rating driver
5/5
Side barrier rating passenger rear seat
5/5
Side pole rating driver front seat
4/5
17.4%
Risk of rollover
Side barrier rating driver
5/5
Side barrier rating passenger rear seat
5/5
Side pole rating driver front seat
4/5
17.4%
Risk of rollover

Latest news from cars.com

See all news

Toyota dealers near you

You might also like

$24,250
Compare
Compare
Compare

Toyota RAV4 history

Your list was successfully saved.
Your comparisons
 
 
 
 
Save list Compare