2019 Toyota RAV4: Doubling down on a best-seller

To say the RAV4 is a crucial product for Toyota might be underselling it. In the U.S., the 5-seat, 5-door FWD/AWD midsize SUV has become Toyota's best-selling vehicle, the nation's best-selling non-pickup truck and the best-selling vehicle in its class. The market's SUV sway is also apparent in RAV4, as its annual sales volume has doubled in the last five years, cresting 400,000 in 2017.

According to Yoshikazu Saeki, Rav4's chief engineer, his team spent the last four years working to ensure each version of the all-new 2019 RAV4 felt more confident and responded more naturally to driver input. “It sounds simple,” Saeki said, “but getting the intent of the driver to match the action of the vehicle is difficult to implement.”