The 2023 Toyota RAV4 is a ho-hum hybrid

2023 Kia Niro PHEV SX Touring vs. 2023 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid: Small but spacious ways to save on fuel.

This week: Toyota RAV4.

Price: The top-of-the-line Limited model starts at $38,530, and a base LE at $30,525.

The plug-in Prime version starts at $43,090, so that’s something to compare to the Niro PHEV, price-wise.

Conventional wisdom: Car and Driver likes that it’s “quicker than the non-hybrid RAV4,” and that “desirable infotainment features are standard,” plus its “roomy cabin,” but not its “strictly average road manners” or that the “base model is spartan, top PHEV model pricing gets steep.”

Marketer’s pitch: “Get ready to expand your territory.”

Reality: It’s so “not bad” that it’s … not good.

What’s new: The RAV4 Hybrid gets a new Woodland edition for the 2023, but that was not available for testing.

And this is not to be confused with the RAV4 Prime, which has a plug-in hybrid system. The more traditional RAV4 Hybrid relies simply on a battery and motor when the engine is not needed, and recaptures some energy through regenerative braking to boost fuel economy.

Competition: Besides the Niro, there’s the Kia Sportage, Hyundai Tucson, Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, and Toyota Venza, among hybrid SUVs.

Fuel economy: The RAV4 Hybrid has a small appetite. The vehicle averaged 37.6 mpg, which is where it began when I received it and where it stayed while I drove it. (Toyota seems pretty adept at trip computers. The Sturgis Family Sienna has averaged 19.6 mpg the entire nine years I’ve owned it.)

I never got reliable numbers from the Niro — it was a plug-in and I stayed close to home — but we’ll figure it edges out the RAV4 slightly.

Up to speed: The RAV4 Hybrid sips the fuel but still moves people expeditiously. It’s powered by a 2.5-liter, four-cylinder engine plus a 244-volt electric motor. Together they provide 219 horsepower.

It takes 7.3 seconds to get to 60 mph, exactly as fast as the Kia Niro.

Shifty: Hybrids don’t usually shift, and neither do Toyotas. So a Toyota hybrid with a continuously variable transmission has scant chance of offering gear control, and the RAV4 lives down to the expectation.

Unlike the front-wheel-drive Niro, the RAV4 Hybrid is all-wheel-drive-only.

On the road: And lack of shifting is not the only way Toyota saps the joy from the RAV4. Its road manners are also less than lively.

Sure, the vehicle provided a nice ride all around, but fun on the curves was not its raison d’être. And I’d taken it on a long trip up north, so the vehicle had plenty of chances to prove me wrong. We’ll call this even between the two models as well.

Driver’s Seat: With all that seat time, I can confirm that the RAV4 offers fairly good comfort up front. The seats are spacious, but bolster is not its strong suit.

The gauges sit in the corners, and can be hard to spy through the steering wheel. Fortunately, a digital speedometer rides in the center.

On the bright side, it’s easy to arrange the seat and get lined up with the pedals.

The RAV4 has many controls tucked away on the left side of the wheel, including the wheel heater, and I never saw it until I went looking. And I still miss the old-time Toyota cruise control stalk, which might make more room on the steering wheel for other features. Slight advantage, Niro.

Friends and stuff: The rear seat is not quite as comfortable as the front. It’s a flat bench seat that doesn’t provide great support or comfort. Legroom, foot room, and headroom were all pretty good, though, according to tall Sturgis Kid 4.0.

Cargo space is 37.5 cubic feet behind the rear seat and 69.8 with the seats folded, far larger than the Niro.

Play some tunes: The stereo sound is as humdrum as the rest of the RAV4. Music is not really enhanced by the JBL system, garnering about a B+ in Mr. Driver’s Seat’s estimation. The Niro wins here.

Control of the system is pretty simple — a dial for tuning and a big touchscreen for everything else. Bass, treble, and other adjustments are hidden deep within the tools menu, requiring a scroll down and taking too much attention from the driving.

Keeping warm and cool: The RAV4 HVAC seemed able to withstand a stretch of 90-plus temperatures easily enough. Dials control the temperature while buttons handle the other functions. A small display makes it easy to see what you’re doing.

Night shift: The RAV4 lights seemed to provide fairly good illumination, but only up to a certain height. At one point while following an SUV up a hill, I could see the other vehicle’s lights and bumper clearly, but the rear window was pretty much invisible.

The interior light is bright and quite large, but somehow doesn’t seem to interfere with driving.

Where it’s built: Georgetown, Ky.

How it’s built: Consumer Reports predicts the RAV4 Hybrid reliability to be a 4 out of 5.

In the end: It would be hard to sacrifice a nice radio and fun driving for the RAV4, but all-wheel drive is kind of a must these days.

Among the competitors, the Venza has always been a favorite, for comfort, smoothness, and even a good infotainment system.