Towing with rav 4 hybrid 2018

[Bamf]

Rav 4 hybrid design HEV CVT 2018 Hi we have just bought this car and we tow a caravan. We was very specific about this to the salesman and was told it would tow and be economical. Has anyone towed with this car and can advise regarding fuel economy please as I’m getting proper horror stories from a group I’m on regarding caravans ! We haven’t got a tow bar fitted yet and I’m so worried we have chosen the wrong car !!! 

[philip42h]

I don't have any towing experience so I can only comment on the numbers. The car's suitability for towing rather depends on whether you have a FWD or AWD. The braked towing capacity of the FWD is 800kg; the braked towing capacity of the AWD is 1,650kg. If your caravan is within those limits the car should tow just fine ...

[Flatcoat]

What weight caravan are you towing and can the car legally tow it? That is the first question to answer. If you want economy while towing a caravan the only answer is ‘don’t tow’ or at best go diesel. There is no such thing as economical towing unless it is a folding caravan. Out of the total costs of running a tow car and caravan getting concerned about the costs of a few mpg is only a fraction of the expenditure involved. Personally I would concentrate on whether it tows your caravan legally and comfortably for the journeys you travel. From research I did the previous generation HEV did not get great reviews for towing in the press however I also appreciate such reports can be flawed. And as for the salesman saying it would be fine….. the clue is in the job title…..! Hope your concerns are soon settled and you can enjoy your car - perhaps next time carry out the research before committing your hard earned money! 

[Flatcoat]

1 minute ago, philip42h said:

I don't have any towing experience so I can only comment on the numbers. The cars suitability for towing rather depends on whether you have a FWD or AWD. The braked towing capacity of the FWD is 800kg; the braked towing capacity of the AWD is 1,650kg. If your caravan is within those limits the car should tow just fine ...

Is that for the mk4 or mk5? They look like the figures for the latter. 

[philip42h]

Just now, Flatcoat said:

Is that for the mk4 or mk5? They look like the figures for the latter. 

I've quoted figures for a 2018 4.4 ... 😉

Not surprisingly, the 4.5 isn't that much different! 🙂

[Bamf]

5 hours ago, philip42h said:

I don't have any towing experience so I can only comment on the numbers. The car's suitability for towing rather depends on whether you have a FWD or AWD. The braked towing capacity of the FWD is 800kg; the braked towing capacity of the AWD is 1,650kg. If your caravan is within those limits the car should tow just fine ...

 

5 hours ago, Flatcoat said:

What weight caravan are you towing and can the car legally tow it? That is the first question to answer. If you want economy while towing a caravan the only answer is ‘don’t tow’ or at best go diesel. There is no such thing as economical towing unless it is a folding caravan. Out of the total costs of running a tow car and caravan getting concerned about the costs of a few mpg is only a fraction of the expenditure involved. Personally I would concentrate on whether it tows your caravan legally and comfortably for the journeys you travel. From research I did the previous generation HEV did not get great reviews for towing in the press however I also appreciate such reports can be flawed. And as for the salesman saying it would be fine….. the clue is in the job title…..! Hope your concerns are soon settled and you can enjoy your car - perhaps next time carry out the research before committing your hard earned money! 

 

[Bamf]

Hi everyone thanks for the replies . 
the caravan is a compass rambler we have had for years . Previous car was brilliant a Nissan quashki can’t spell it lol . I needed a auto so this is why we changed . 
yes I agree should have done our homework but the salesman was very good ! Sold us a dud !!! I’m just stressing so much because every one says it’s rubbish towing that the engine revs a lot and it’s thirsty I have put a pic up of the vans stats 

[philip42h]

So, did you buy a FWD or an AWD?

If it's a FWD, you bought the wrong car ...

If it's an AWD, it will happily tow 1,650kg and your van is only 1,312kg so it will handle that perfectly well (provided I've read the details / weights of the van correctly!).

Now, the ideal tow car is a large diesel with a manual gearbox - that will give loads of torque and the driver can control the revs / over-stress the engine just as the driver wants. With an automatic, the set-up of the system determines the engine revs and, on average, the engine will rev higher the the driver of a manual car might want (with or without a caravan in tow).

The eCVT transmission on a Toyota hybrid is an automatic and will optimise performance / fuel economy and, incidentally, protect the engine from abuse by the driver. If you accelerate hard, the revs will rise and the car becomes rather less silent; if you drive sensibly and 'gentle' if will be reasonably quiet, comfortable and reasonably economical.

[Bamf]

Hiya I have no idea 🤷‍♀️ how do I know which one it is fwd or awful how do I find that out Philip x

[ernieb]

FWD= Front Wheel Drive, AWD= All Wheel Drive

[Bamf]

Philip 

im going to sound like a proper tit but I have no idea ! Will it tell me on log book 

[Flatcoat]

10 minutes ago, Bamf said:

Hiya I have no idea 🤷‍♀️ how do I know which one it is fwd or awful how do I find that out Philip x

😬😲 oh, hopefully the badging tells you….. 

[Bamf]

Hi guys still have no idea lol the Badge just says rav 4 hybrid 

[philip42h]

33 minutes ago, Bamf said:

Philip 

im going to sound like a proper tit but I have no idea ! Will it tell me on log book 

Yes, in a slightly round about way ... the V5C gives, in section O, the Technical permissible towable mass of trailer - which, of course, you need to know anyway. O.1 gives the braked figure in kg. If that's 1650 it's an AWD and you are fine; if it's 800 ... 😞

[Bamf]

Hiya it’s ok I think !!! Will just have to try it not we !!! 

[philip42h]

1 minute ago, Bamf said:

Hiya it’s ok I think !!! Will just have to try it not we !!! 

😁 ... you should be fine. It may well be different to what you are used to, but it should 'go' perfectly well ...

[Bamf]

THANK U SO MUCH !!!!!

[Catlover]

Alison, I reckon you are feeling such relief knowing you have a vehicle that can tow your unit. The drive may feel different then before whilst towing, but I reckon you will find you have a more relaxed drive overall.

[Bamf]

Thank you ! I really am ! I don’t tow my hubby does ! Just so many bad reviews everywhere I look ! I guess it’s a give it a go but I’ve made an appointment with the salesman as I want to know everything now lol 

[Flatcoat]

It depends what you want to know….. remember his job and skill is to sell so dont assume he knows anything technical. And, given you appear to now own the car (?) that door may be shut. If you haven’t yet taken delivery you can bail out of the deal. The mk5 RAV gets good towing reviews from actual caravanners. I have never seen a mk4 hybrid towing, diesels yes. This forum is a good source of info as are those such as Caravan Talk. You may need to adjust the nose weight from your previous set-up (I suspect it is lower than the Quashkow). As for towing with an auto you will love it, I would never ever willingly go back to manual for towing.

[Bamf]

Hiya I have a few niggles with the car so want them sorted! We got the car 30 oct so yea ! 
im interested in what mpg he reckons we will get with towing !! I’ve been told on caravanners are us it’s about 18 which is not good !!! I also want to talk to them about the ev mode as it’s not as efficient as I was advised ! I’m getting 31 mpg according to the car but it’s chomping petrol n I drive like miss daisy !

[philip42h]

The manufacturer's figure is about 55 mpg - but that's an NEDC figure so best reckon no more than 80% of that, so more like 44 mpg ... under normal conditions (i.e. without towing an anchor behind you). The Honest John Real MPG Average is 41.9 mpg, so if you are seeing only 31 mpg that's not so good. That said, the only 'reliable' way to measure fuel consumption is via brim-to-brim calculations rather than relying on the onboard computer.

Fuel consumption is better in the warmer weather; worse in the winter. The hybrid is far better than an ICE about town and in stop-start conditions, and it excels when pootling along A and B roads. It does tend to drop off on high speed dashes down the motorway as you rely more on petrol power than energy recovery and electric support.

Personally, I just stick the car in Normal and drive like that. The EV range is negligible - it's just not an EV - so, unless you want to move the car around in a showroom without starting the engine, I wouldn't bother with the EV setting. That said, I'm not entirely sure which mode are on offer in the 4.4 hybrid - either way, leave it in Normal and let it do it's thing.

[Flatcoat]

1 hour ago, Bamf said:

Hiya I have a few niggles with the car so want them sorted! We got the car 30 oct so yea ! 
im interested in what mpg he reckons we will get with towing !! I’ve been told on caravanners are us it’s about 18 which is not good !!! I also want to talk to them about the ev mode as it’s not as efficient as I was advised ! I’m getting 31 mpg according to the car but it’s chomping petrol n I drive like miss daisy !

I am not sure what you will gain. What do you expect him to say? To be honest without knowing all the variables 18mpg sounds plausible. Have you had the car checked for such as binding brakes or other problems? Did it come from a Toyota dealership? What mileage has it covered? Do you live in a hilly area?