TOYOTA

Toyota/Tesla RAV4 EV: The day Toyota partnered with Tesla

For years there have been several brands that have always been on the minds of many, whether for their products, the way they do business or for what they promise, and when for some reason their paths cross, we can believe that the result will be something better than what we had seen in their respective branches. Well, that was a few years ago when Toyota and Tesla joined forces to create a Toyota RAV4 EV.

Talking about an electric RAV4 isn't a current thing with the new big electric race, although it's an idea that's been around since 1997, when Toyota first created the RAV4 EV. A version based on the combustion model, but with an electric conversion with a battery of just over 25 kWh, a range of around 160 km per charge and a top speed of 126 km/h.

These first RAV4 EVs were only available for leasing in fleets to companies, governments of some cities and for use by organizations. This 'purchase' modality was only available between 1997 and 2001, however, with a change of direction in the Japanese company, between 2002 and 2003 it was possible to put the car on sale to the general public. At that time, only 328 of these electric cars were sold, but despite that, most proved to be very durable and useful, with some examples passing 240,000 km on the odometer without suffering battery problems, an achievement for that time.

What was learned and the expectations for the future made Toyota interested in this type of alternative propulsion, but as we know, in the following years the global economic crisis and some internal problems caused the focus of many companies to change. That's why this project was shelved for some time, during which time many things changed.

Among these changes there was one company in particular that began to emerge and that laid the foundations for becoming a titan in record time, Tesla. The electric car brand managed to surprise the world with the successful launch of its Model S, which attracted everyone's attention and that's why when Toyota felt ready to resume the path of total electrification, it decided to do it hand in hand. with the most promising company in the automobile industry.

In May 2010, Toyota and Tesla announced their intentions to work together to bring back the RAV4 EV. They started with 32 prototype units with which they did all kinds of tests to see if the product would make sense and adapt to a changing world. Not to take too long, the result was more than promising, both brands saw a great opportunity and in a short time it was announced that Toyota would disburse approximately 100 million dollars for this new RAV4 EV to hit the streets.

This agreement made Toyota adapt the production line at its Woodstock, Canada plant, where combustion-powered RAV4s were already being assembled, to try to contain production costs. Likewise, Tesla personnel would now work on site to oversee the assembly and operation of the RAV4 EVs. Toyota also leveraged Tesla's expertise in this collaboration and hired the American brand to supply the engines, transmission, battery and electronics elements that would make it work.

This second generation RAV4 EV was based on the third generation RAV4 and began production for public sale in 2012. Part of the reason Toyota wanted to revive the RAV4 EV was an environmental law where in some parts of the United States they wanted to make it for car brands to lower their carbon footprint by offering new non-polluting alternatives.

This new generation of the RAV4 EV stands out for taking a single electric motor to offer front-wheel drive capable of generating 155 hp, accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 7.5 seconds, reaching 160 km/h as a top speed and offering a range of up to 165 km per charge thanks to its 42 kW battery.

For the time and the size of the vehicle, these figures were reasonable, even better than those of some small electric cars today. Unfortunately, for Toyota this RAV4 EV was not as successful as they had hoped, probably because of the price it had and the charging infrastructure that was even more limited.

In the end, the agreement between Toyota and Tesla had a 2-year extension with an option to renew to continue producing and developing electric cars, however, Toyota decided not to renew. Although there was no official statement, some point out that Toyota preferred to focus more on its hybrids and hydrogen with the Toyota Mirai, while others point out that the RAV4 EV's poor performance in the market caused these operations to freeze until all mobility. electricity matured further.

On the other hand, Tesla has continued to grow over the years and although constantly embroiled in controversy, until now remains one of the main rivals to win in electrification issues. Toyota, for its part, took until 2022 to have a mass-production electric again, but in this case collaborating with Subaru.

Autonews