A sharp price position for its first plug-in hybrid is what is expected from Toyota Australia as it gears up to take on Mitsubishi, Mazda, and BYD with its RAV4 PHEV.
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Toyota Australia’s first plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) will arrive next year in the form of the 2026 RAV4 family SUV, and it is expected to be very competitively priced against its rivals.
Toyota Australia Sales and Marketing boss Sean Hanley previously told Drive that the biggest hurdle to overcome with the PHEV introduction is the price premium the powertrain technology commands over standard internal combustion engine (ICE) or hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs).
“Right now, most of our customers know ‘well, I can buy a hybrid-electric Toyota in a RAV4 for just a few grand more,” he told Drive last year, referring to the non-hybrid RAV4 models available at the time.
“A plug-in hybrid takes that quite a bit up [in price] because the technology is quite a bit more expensive. I think if you look at the competitive landscape right now, you’ll know that.
“The one [aspect of PHEV that] needs to be examined far more carefully and understood is the affordability side.
“Eventually, I think they’ll come down in price, but there is a premium for a plug-in hybrid, so we’d have to examine what that is and how that would fit into the market.”
At least two versions of the 2026 RAV4 PHEV will be offered by Toyota Australia – a 201kW front-drive version and top-spec 227kW all-wheel-drive variant offered exclusively in flagship GR Sport trim.
Both make use of a 2.5-litre petrol engine and 22.7kWh battery, with the all-electric driving range rated at up to 100km on the WLTP standard.
The most affordable is the Chinese BYD Sealion 6, which starts at $48,990 before on-road costs – or around the same price as where the new, sixth-generation and hybrid-only RAV4 line-up could open.
The Outlander PHEV opens at $57,290, which could be around where Toyota pitches its entry-level RAV4 PHEV, with Mitsubishi extending pricing out to $73,790 for its top-spec GSR variant.
As for the CX-60 PHEV, it kicks off from $63,290 and tops out at $81,490, but given the brand is positioning this model as a more upmarket alternative, the RAV4 PHEV is likely to be positioned below the Mazda.
Another point of reference is the Lexus NX, which shares the similar underpinnings as the RAV4, and its plug-in hybrid version is $12,000 more expensive than the standard hybrid.
This means depending on trim and how much the new-generation RAV4 moves up in price, the PHEV versions could be positioned between around $57,000 and $70,000.
Clearly, Toyota Australia has built a business case to finally introduce PHEV technology to local showrooms after already making the powertrain available on Prius, RAV4, and C-HR models overseas.
“The reason for that is because they are becoming, and will become even more so, a very credible alternative for Australian consumers,” Hanley said.
Sales of PHEV have surged this year, hitting 16,312 to the end of April, though largely on the back of a tax loophole that ended in March.
If Toyota Australia is betting on PHEV with its most popular model – and most popular SUV in Australia – the brand clearly sees high-volume potential, with pricing expected to reflect the appetite.
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Tung Nguyen has been in the automotive journalism industry for over a decade, cutting his teeth at various publications before finding himself at Drive in 2024. With experience in news, feature, review, and advice writing, as well as video presentation skills, Tung is a do-it-all content creator. Tung’s love of cars first started as a child watching Transformers on Saturday mornings, as well as countless hours on PlayStation’s Gran Turismo, meaning his dream car is a Nissan GT-R, with a Liberty Walk widebody kit, of course.
