ON THE ROAD – IAN LYNAS DRIVES THE TOYOTA RAV4 GR SPORT

Toyota Gazoo Racing is the motor sport division of the largest car manufacturer in the world and for sixty years Toyota has been involved in motor sport; today majoring in the World Rally Championship, Endurance Racing and the challenging Dakar Rally. Gazoo Racing gets its name from the Japanese words Gazo, which means picture or image and Gareji meaning garage. Apart from high level motor competition, Toyota has very cleverly used the name on many of its cars, perhaps the best known is the Yaris GR, a real pocket rocket.

I went to Scotland recently to get my driving hands on one of the latest vehicles to carry Gazoo Racing badges the RAV4 GR Sport plug-in. This newcomer has a styling flavour influenced by the multi-world-championship-winning Toyota Gazoo Racing with sharper looks inside and out with a high level equipment specification. Unchanged is the all-wheel drive plug-in hybrid electric powertrain which delivers a combination of high power with high efficiency. This member of the RAV4 line-up has a dual DNA: one that has strong and genuine EV capabilities and which automatically switches to hybrid electric power when the battery charge is depleted. Having owned a RAV4 of earlier vintage I certainly did enjoy the performance of the GR Sport version with maximum output for the full powertrain at 302bhp/225 kW, which is38 per cent more than the RAV4 Hybrid. Certainly I found the acceleration brisk with rest to 100kph (62mph) achieved in six seconds, that is more than two seconds faster than the hybrid AWD-i model.

Taking a loser look at the exterior of the RAV4 GR Sport, good on road presence strong style statement with black wheel arch trims, side mouldings and back door garnish and at the front there are more prominent fog light bezels with the same black G-mesh pattern as the new upper grille and a new front under-run finished in gunmetal grey. GR badging on the front grille and back door signposts the sportier grade. Completing the exterior package nineteen inch black alloy wheels which feature a double-five-spoke design with fine bright machined pinstripe detailing.

Moving to the interior; the sports front seats are finished in a tactile, suede-effect dark grey upholstery with synthetic leather bolsters and no surprise the headrests are embossed with the GR logo, while contrasts are struck with silver stitching on the seats, steering wheel, shift lever and silver trim detailing on the doors and steering wheel and the GR logo is employed yet again featured on the floor mats and steering wheel. In keeping with the rest of the Toyota family, this new addition to the RAV4 line-up benefits from the company’s latest digital information package: the Toyota Smart Connect multimedia system with a 10.5 inch high-definition display, a customisable 12.3 inch driver’s combimeter, and smartphone integration and it adopts a more comprehensive Toyota Safety Sense package of safety and driver assistance systems, including Emergency Steering Assist and an enhanced Pre-Collision System. This model also comes with power adjustment for the front seats, together with memory settings for the driver’s seat, a head-up display, paddle shifts, wireless mobile phone charger, a heated steering wheel, Blind Spot Monitor with Rear Cross Traffic Alert and a Panoramic View Monitor as standard and you can upgrade with the option of a panoramic roof or bi-tone exterior paint finish. There is more, a power tailgate, smart entry and push-button start, a reversing camera and front parking sensors. Behind the wheel for me it delivers a much sportier, satisfying drive than the others in the RAV4 range thanks to improvements to the suspension with stiffer springs and revised shock absorber settings. This results in a slightly more firm ride, yet comfort remains.

Adding GR Sport to this range from Toyota will add further to the appeal of a vehicle which recently celebrated a 30th birthday.

Ian Lynas