RAV4

2012 Toyota RAV4 EV first drive: The electric SUV stands alone

When I took the wheel of the Toyota RAV4 EV during an event in Los Angeles, two things stuck out: a Prius shifter on the console and the all-digital instrument cluster. Clearly, this SUV would not be a typical RAV4. That feeling was accentuated when pushing the start button produced a silent system check, the car booting up, as opposed to the crank of an internal combustion engine.

The exterior of the RAV4 EV also offered a few clues to the nature of its drivetrain, not least of which were the EV and Electric logos on all sides. By comparison, the lack of a large front grille seemed almost subtle.

One cue that few would notice without a spec sheet was the LED low-beam headlights, tucked away in their casings next to standard projector high beams. Toyota made a smart move here, reducing energy usage of the low beams, while reducing costs on the high beams, which get less use.

Click here to read the rest of the 2012 Toyota RAV4 EV first drive. … Read more

Toyota unwraps Tesla-powered RAV4 EV

Toyota showed off its RAV4 EV, the electric version of the RAV4 compact SUV, as a concept about a year and half ago at the 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show. The wraps came off the production version of this new electric car this week, showing some speedy automobile development indeed.

More impressive is that the deal between Toyota and Tesla to develop the electric RAV4, on the heels of Toyota's decision to sell Tesla its NUMMI auto manufacturing plant, came less than two years ago. This is a car with a completely different drivetrain than that of the car on which it is based. Most model updates take longer to put into production.… Read more

Samsung Galaxy S III knows your voice

In today's show, it's time to teach your phone new tricks, get creeped out about privacy settings, and tag up the office:

Samsung unveiled it's newest Galaxy smartphone, the Galaxy S III, and it's got some serious specs that could challenge the iPhone. It's fast, with a quad-core processor, and will be loaded with latest version of Android (Ice Cream Sandwich). But the most notable highlights are new photo and voice command features. The phone will first roll out to Europe within the month, and eventually make it's way to the U.S. this … Read more

Toyota RAV4 EV to make public debut next week

Toyota will officially unveil the RAV4 EV next week, an all-electric SUV that could be an important indicator of electric vehicles sales overall.

The company earlier this week sent out a notice that it will debut the RAV4 EV on Monday May 7 at the International Electric Vehicle Symposium (EVS26) in Los Angeles, an important conference for EVs.

Toyota has shown off concept RAV4 EVs already, but important details such as price and availability have not yet been disclosed.

The all-electric SUV is the fruit of a partnership between Toyota and Tesla Motors, which is supplying the electric powertrain for … Read more

Toyota to build electric SUV in Canada

Toyota Motor will build its first electric vehicle produced outside Japan in the Canadian province of Ontario as part of a multimillion-dollar public-private project announced in July.

The automaker will build the vehicle--an electric version of the RAV4 SUV--at its plant in Woodstock, Ontario, the Canadian government said in a release today.

Toyota plans to invest as much as C$545 million ($558 million) in the overall project. Known as Operation Green Light, the plan includes upgrades at other Toyota plants in Ontario, the country's industrial heartland.

The Canadian government will chip in C$70.84 million toward C$… Read more

Car Tech Live 225: We shred the 2012 Nissan GT-R (podcast)

A Toyota Rav 4 with the heart of a Tesla; AAA can now bring you a gallon of watts; Toyota turns car windows into the Romper Room mirror; and we drive the, well, yeah, Nissan GT-R. No big deal.

Subscribe with iTunes (audio) Subscribe with iTunes (video) Subscribe with RSS (audio) Subscribe with RSS (video) EPISODE 225 SHOW NOTES

• CNET drives the revised 2012 Nissan GT-R Premium

• Electric RAV 4 finally on the way

• 2012 Nissan Leaf gets a price bump, sold in more states

• CNET ordains the best overall economical green car...

• Toyota's Window to the World is ideal for weird voyeurism… Read more

Tesla sees $100 million from electric RAV4 deal

Tesla Motors today said that it has signed an agreement worth $100 million to supply electric power train equipment to Toyota.

In a regulatory filing, Tesla said that it will supply the battery, charging system, inverter, motor, and related software to power Toyota's planned electric version of its RAV4. Toyota plans to sell the small SUV to both consumer and residential customers next year.

Toyota took a $50 million stake in Tesla last year and signed an agreement to use Tesla's electric power train in the electric RAV4. In Tesla's filing, it said production of the electric … Read more

Car Tech Live 194: LA Auto Show special edition (podcast)

Special LA Auto Show wrap-up edition! We check out the Porsche Cayman R, Toyota RAV4 EV, Nissan Murano Cross Cabriolet, and electric Volvo C30.

Subscribe with iTunes (audio) Subscribe with iTunes (video) Subscribe with RSS (audio) Subscribe with RSS (video) EPISODE 194 SHOW NOTES

• CNET's LA Auto Show coverage special section

• CNET's LOL cars gallery!

Toyota and Tesla's RAV4 EV is only the first step

Tesla got a great deal on the NUMMI plant in its deal with Toyota this year, but what does Toyota get out of it? At the 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show, Toyota let us know, pulling the wraps off of its RAV4 EV Concept powered by Tesla. However, the EV wasn't the production-bound model that many were expecting. Rather, what we were shown was more of a stepping stone to a more complete vehicle that may come later.

To call the RAV4 EV a glorified test mule would be understating things a bit. Then again, the concept is built … Read more