Yes, The 2019 Toyota RAV4 Is Arriving In The Philippines This February

Having its ASEAN debut a few weeks ago at the 2019 Singapore Motor Show, our guesses were indeed correct that the Philippines will be the next country to receive Toyota’s popular RAV4 compact crossover.

At this point, you already know what the RAV4 looks like from the inside out, so the reason you’re probably reading this is for you to find out what its specs may be. Well, unfortunately, we have not received that yet. What we know is that, it will be launched on February 8, 2019 through invites sent to the media, but that’s about it. So from this point, it is just pure speculation.

From here, we’ll be guessing what’s going to be under the hood. The TNGA-based RAV4 is just the second Toyota to arrive in the Philippines using the said scalable platform. In Singapore, the RAV4 is fitted with the all-new M20A-FKS 2.0 liter Dynamic-Force inline-4 engine, which features direct-injection, Dual VVT-i, and Dual VVTi-E. It utilizes a long stroke design, and a high 13:1 compression ratio. The new engine produces 170 hp and 203 Nm of torque, impressive for a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter inline-4 petrol engine. Power is sent through the front wheels via a Direct Shift CVT, which has 10-speed simulated gears and a launch gear. The launch gear is meant to assist the CVT while crawling or when launching the car from a complete stop, making the RAV4 accelerate and respond quicker off the line.

Now, in terms of the features, we’re speculating that we will not be completely far off from the Singaporean spec. As such, it might come with a 7-inch digital instrument cluster, passive entry with push button start, automated tailgate with hands-free trunk release, and a touch screen infotainment system sourced from local manufacturer AVT.

Also, the Singaporean RAV4 comes with Toyota Safety Sense, which includes Pre-Collision Detection, Full-Speed Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, and Lane Departure Warning. This comes on top of seven airbags, electronic stability control, and hill start assist. We’re speculating that Toyota Safety Sense is highly unlikely to reach the Philippines, but if ever it does, it would give Honda Sensing and Subaru EyeSight some good competition.

Now, for the price. The outgoing RAV4 retails from P1,450,000 to P2,174,000, consisting of three variants. With the Camry trimmed down to two variants, it won’t be surprising if Toyota did the same with the RAV4, and it will likely maintain its position of being one of the pricier compact crossovers out there in order to protect the Fortuner.