If you want more power and performance from the Toyota RAV4, you need to voice your desires. Regarding the possibility of a complete GR RAV4 model, a report from Drive cited Toyota chief engineer Yoshinori Futonagane, as he said, “There are no official plans at the moment, but you know, the only bits that are missing is a corporate appreciation of the market demand and the potential wow factor.”
“If people started making a noise and saying, ‘Yeah, we want a 2.4-liter turbo,’ it might end up on the agenda,” he continued. The engineer went on to explain that a powertrain of that size can actually fit in the engine bay of the current-generation RAV4.
While it is not sold in the Philippines, a more powerful RAV4 does technically exist in the plug-in hybrid GR Sport version. It is currently sold in the United States, equipped with a 2.5-liter engine and a 22.7kWh battery. Power is rated at a healthy 320hp, along with a fully electric driving range of 84km.
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For context, the locally available hybrid RAV4 also uses a 2.5-liter mill, but power tops out at 236hp. Meanwhile, Toyota Motor Philippines already has a comprehensive performance lineup with the GR 86, GR Yaris, and the GR Corolla.
For now, the GR RAV4 remains a fever dream. Even Yoshinori said that the GR Sport configuration is plenty powerful—after all, it can hit 100kph in just 5.6sec. The hybrid RAV4 is no slouch either, but a legitimate performance-focused model would definitely be interesting. Perhaps one day, this dream will turn into reality.
