Spy photos of the new Toyota RAV4

Although its last facelift considerably delayed its aging, it is high time the mid-size crossover from Toyota got an authentic generation change. The Japanese brand has sent the first test units out onto the road, heavily camouflaged as is customary, and the first spy photographs have not been long in coming.

Fortunately, even the dense panels covering the spotted unit cannot prevent us from making out the lines that will characterize the new RAV4. Although the concept and structure will remain as they have been so far, since it was already a success in itself, the design will undergo the modernization it needed. Starting with the front, the elements that make it up at the top will all border the hood, forming a single unit.

The grille and logo will extend across the width in a way that is very reminiscent of the new Toyota Avalon and Camry sold in North America. It would be one of the very few times, then, that American models from this manufacturer serve as aesthetic inspiration for a global product. The grilles of the front bumper are moved to a central position and the mirrors increase in size.

Apart from its main dimensions remaining the same, the rear, like the front, will also have little in common with the previous version of the RAV4. Its taillights will be much larger and horizontal, with some of them even sitting on the boot lid. In fact, they also recall those of the current Camry. The rear bumper, on the other hand, will be smaller so that the loading opening gains width.

There is still little information about the engines, except that it may retain some of the four-cylinder options it already had before. For the electric variant, we will have to keep waiting on this side of the Atlantic. Since the spied unit is European, it would not be entirely unlikely to expect its presentation at the Paris Motor Show in October, although an additional sure bet will be in Los Angeles in November.

Source | Car & Driver