2026 Toyota RAV4 First Preview: Weird Images, But Likely the Popular SUV's Next Generation
What on earth could the weird, ultra-zoomed-out drone-view image of a ... something be? Our best guess? The 2026 Toyota RAV4, the popular compact SUV that's due for a redesign sometime this year. Toyota sent out these photos—three in all, each looking like it was taken from a government Reaper drone, as if each SUV were about to be on the business end of a missile strike—with no information other than a promise that whatever's in the photos will be revealed May 20, 2025.
We know a new RAV4 is imminent, as we've spotted spy photos of the new SUV covered in camouflage and testing in the real world. The vehicle in these images, too, looks RAV4-ish. Toyota rarely takes huge steps with core, popular models, preferring instead to take careful, evolutionary steps that result in visual continuity from one vehicle generation to the next. Even from these birds-eye viewpoints, the vehicles pictured (all clearly the same, only wearing different paint colors and seemingly representing different trim levels) are about RAV4-sized. (We compared their lengths relative to nearby objects like people and lane markers.) Other than that vague guess that these are new RAV4s, we don't know much else; apparently the RAV4s can drive in snow, or on suburban streets, or on a curvy road. We'll know more May 20, while our past speculative coverage of the new RAV4 continues below:
What It Is
If you don’t know the Toyota RAV4 by now, please send us the address of the rock you live under so we can join you when we’re feeling stressed and need to block out the world. The RAV4 is Toyota’s stalwart compact two-row crossover SUV and one of the bestselling vehicles in this country, beloved for its space, fuel economy, and reliability.
Why It Matters
The RAV4 is the company’s bestselling vehicle in America; replacing it must be done with care. It’s essential to both the bottom line and the manufacturer’s image. To Toyota’s credit, it is keeping its work so quiet that no one knows what the next model will be—but we have some educated guesses.
Platform and Powertrain
Now in its fifth generation, the RAV4 is already built on the TNGA architecture, specifically the -K variant, so it doesn’t need a major overhaul like some other Toyota models received recently. In fact, that shared engineering helps provide a lot of insight. See: Camry.
Effectively the sedan version of the RAV4 these days, the Camry just got a big redo we think will apply heavily to its compact SUV sibling. The biggest change is under the hood, where Toyota killed the base engine. Now all Camrys are hybrids—either a tried-and-true front-drive setup or the newer all-wheel-drive system that mounts an additional electric motor on the rear axle with no mechanical connection to the rest of the drivetrain. You can already get either powertrain in the RAV4, badged as either the Hybrid (front-wheel drive) or the Prime plug-in hybrid (all-wheel drive). We expect the 2026 RAV4 to drop its base combustion-only engine, as well, and go all hybrid.
Although we don’t expect big mechanical changes from the engine and motors, we do think it’s possible the battery will improve. The RAV4 Prime already does 42 miles on electricity alone, according to the EPA, and the company has learned a few things about batteries since it introduced that vehicle. A new, more power-dense battery could extend the electric range even farther. It might even charge quicker if Toyota upgrades its 6.6-kW onboard charger to a more modern 7.2 kW.
The other big improvement we expect will be right in front of your face. The whole interior should get a glow-up like the Camry with more interesting materials and colors, and the dashboard will likely be the showpiece. Expect a bigger infotainment screen along with a new digital instrument cluster that can be partially customized to show different information.
Otherwise, the most obvious change will be fresh bodywork. We think it’ll be a fairly serious departure from Toyota’s current styling language based on what we’ve seen from the automaker’s recent SUV concepts. Expect a lot more straight lines and blocky, retro-futuristic styling. Underneath it, though, we think the proportions and, more important, the measurements won’t change much. The RAV4 is already an excellent package offering plenty of people and cargo room, so we don’t think Toyota will mess with a winning formula for the 2026 model.
Still, no one outside the company has seen so much as a next-gen RAV4 prototype mule yet, so the renderings you see here show our best guess at how Toyota will apply its latest design language to its most popular North American vehicle.
Estimated Price: $29,000
Expected On-Sale Date: Early 2026