New York show: Toyota teases next RAV4

TOYOTA will reveal its all-new RAV4 medium SUV at the New York motor show late this month ahead of its arrival in Australia in 2019.

A single shaded teaser image released by Toyota today shows the RAV4 in profile, seemingly revealing a more squared-off grille than the current model.

The rear end looks to have retained the rear spoiler and bulbous tail-lights from the old model, while scoring a more angled upper tailgate.

No other concrete details – such as powertrains and specification levels – have been announced to date, but the new model will almost certainly be built on the Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA) platform that so far has spawned vehicles such as the one-size smaller C-HR compact SUV and Prius hybrid small car.

The new RAV4 might also benefit from Toyota’s just-announced new generation four-cylinder petrol engine that the Japanese giant claims is the most thermally efficient production engine in the world.

The current RAV4 has a choice of three powertrains – a 2.0-litre and 2.5-litre petrol four-cylinder, and 2.2-litre turbo-diesel four-pot – with a mix of manual and automatic transmissions, and front and all-wheel-drive.

Buyers can expect the new RAV4 to be offered with a hybrid powertrain at some point in its life, in accordance with Toyota Australia’s plan to offer eight hybrid models by 2020.

A current-generation RAV4 hybrid is offered in other markets. This employs the same mild-hybrid 2.5-litre petrol engine/continuously variable transmission (CVT) set-up as the Camry hybrid.

Toyota is also aiming to offer range-wide electrification – including across the Lexus brand – by 2025.

Other powertrain options include full-EV, plug-in hybrid, and the hydrogen fuel-cell set-up found on the Mirai sedan.

The RAV4 has long been a strong seller for Toyota, finishing 2017 as the third best-selling medium SUV with 21,077 units, behind the Mazda CX-5 (25,831) and Hyundai Tucson (23,828).

It ended up as Toyota’s fourth best-seller behind the industry-leading HiLux (47,093), Corolla hatch (37,353) and Camry mid-sizer (23,620).

In the first two months of 2018, the RAV4 has tallied 3621 new registrations, a 16.1 per cent spike over 2017 and enough to place it second in the segment behind the CX-5 (4343).