Toyota Shows Distain: Even for their Own RAV4-EV

I remember gas stations, I was at one a couple of months ago.

 

And it will likely have a tow rating lower than it does in Europe. The thing to keep in mind when reading about tow ratings for cars over there is that the tongue weight of the trailers are half that of trailers in the US.

So a US regulation trailer is putting more weight onto the rear of the towing vehicle. The least problem with this is that it is more weight that needs to counted against the vehicle's payload. The other issues that could arise is that the rear end structure wasn't designed for this extra weight, and with FWD, the extra weight at the back end can reduce front end traction.

The trailer could be loaded to have a lower tongue weight, but at the European level, the combination of car and trailer has a hard speed limit of 60mph. It is a hard one because at 65mph the trailer is uncontrollably swaying back on forth, and you will soon crash.

European regs opted for towing more while American ones opted for safety.

 

The Tesla Truck is in the works, just wait and tow with a Tesla Truck!

 

All I can say is.... .... ........... ......... ... ... .. ............. I'm surprised that was filmed in Hermosa Beach instead of in Japan...

 

Source: 2016 Toyota Prius Offers Light Towing and AWD In non-US Markets

For the first time in the Toyota Prius’ 19-year history are optional towing capability and all-wheel drive, but neither of these are offered in the U.S.

While the fully revised mid-sized hybrid is essentially the same in all global markets, Toyota has tailored it to meet specific government regulations as needed in different countries, and has made choices about what consumers may want.

In the U.S., news of no “E-Four” all-wheel drive, an approximately $1,450 option available only in Japan, was published last fall, and currently, adding to the list of options not sold in the States is towing, which Toyota in the UK recently began promoting.
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Any towing capability above 0 is better than none because it means inclusion of control law, wiring, and suspension mods. Otherwise, we just drop the tie-down anchors and bolt on a receiver. Worse, Toyota loses the option of selling the engineering that is isolated to Japan and the UK.

Every company has the right to make mistakes (i.e., EV1, Ford Pinto) and live with the consequences.

Bob Wilson

 

i should be making toyota's mistakes. just the crumbs would be fine...

 

I've seen our EU and Aussi friends also bitterly complain about the poor choice of Prius variants offered.

Bob Wilson

 

You'd think they'd learn after the iQ EV, but maybe they have miraculously cut their price by half.

It's more the later. From other articles about the gen4 towing, it sounded like the hybrid system had inadequate cooling in previous models.The technical reasons for not towing are no longer in place, and they are on US versions of the car. But differing regulations for the trailer changes the forces that the car has to deal with.

The UK Aveo with the 1.4 turbo is rated for towing 500kg without trailer brakes and 1100kg with them. My Sonic is rated for 0. The cars are the same. No need to beef up the rear suspension in the UK since a 1100kg trailer there will put 55kg less weight onto the car than if the trailer was in the US. A traditional ICE car's drivetrain is more robust when it comes to towing than HSD and other hybrids. There is virtually no car in the US rated to tow.

Now they could have a rating of some type, but demand for a car that tows is low. The customers maybe brainwashed into thinking they need a truck to tow, but as long as the Corolla and Camry can't tow in the US, neither will the Prius.

 

Well there are customers outside the US for such a vehicle. https://priuschat.com/index.php?posts/2434782 Toyota has other markets to consider as well. I really don't get the need to tow with a Prius? What are persons in the US wanting to tow? Most RV's are 5th wheels in the US so you would need a full size pick up.

 

Perhaps the anti-tow crowd are thinking I would prefer:

Seriously, let's get a sense of perspective.

A home owner, I occasionally need a sheet or two of plywood, some 2x4s, or other oversized loads to keep the house up. Buying or renting a vehicle just to carry those loads home is nuts:

Strapping to the roof is equally nuts (before I got the receiver and folding trailer kit from Harbor Freight.)

I don't want or need a pickup 24x7 and sure don't want to rent one for $50 to carry $25 worth of stuff. So a light, utility trailer and tow hitch makes a lot of sense. I've also towed a 12 ft. Jon boat. This is not that hard of a problem to understand.

Bob Wilson

 

One could always "pay" for delivery instead of renting the vehicle, or borrow a neighbor's truck. Maybe this is a new category for Uber - pickup trucks swarming waiting for someone to come out of Home Depot with plywood that won't fit in their car?

 

Home depot and Storage spots in Austin already have U-Haul truck rental with low hourly or daily rates for short mileage hauls. I have and many friends have used this service.

 

And towing with a Prius is just ridiculous. I don't care what it would look like with a hitch, I would want to know what my 0 to 60 mph time is towing the max capacity and would like to know what my maximum speed would be going up a 6 % grade.

 

Research:

Bob Wilson