I currently own a 2019 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid w/around 24,000 miles mostly from long highway drives from Providence, RI to visit my folks down in Nashville, TN. It was manufactured in Canada. While it's been a decent, reliable, comfortable car I worry about dealing w/the hybrid components when they inevitably break as I intend to keep the vehicle for a wicked long time. Plus it's dead boring to drive, a soccer Mom car. I thought I'd need the extra cargo space but I'm a single guy, haven't used the extra cargo space much & I want a simpler reliable vehicle that's practical & affordable but also has a little more personality. I've been thinking about a new Mazda-30 but they're all made in Mexico. Should I suck it up & keep the boring RAV or go for the Mazda?
The hybrid system in the RAV4 has been around for a while, specifically in the Toyota Harrier in Japan. It’s good. Probably the best hybrid of that class you can get.
I have seen previous-gen Prius go over 300k+ miles and still running strong. Toyota Hybrid is reliable and it's gonna be even more as battery technology improves.
get rid of the Toyota only if the fact that every time you start the car it turns on, takes you where you want to go without trouble, and not needing to visit the mechanic frequently is considered boring for you. otherwise I would never think of getting rid of a Toyota.
The RAV4 Hybrid should be good to at least 150,000-200,000 miles before spending $$$ on battery and other hybrid system components. If you intend to keep well past 200,000 miles this was not the right vehicle (hybrid) to begin with, and I’d think about something else.
Keep the Toyota.
I honestly can relate what you're talking about, I've also been driving a boring Hybrid SUV (Kia Niro) and am also getting really tired from it being too smooth and a bit slow - just doesn't have the character, causes zero excitement, and doesn't have any driving experience.
I'd avoid the CX-30 if you're looking for a driving experience - it just doesn't have it. from my experience it also just doesn't handle that well, it has plenty understeer and 0-60 in about 9.5-10 seconds is kind of meh...
In the US for some reason there aren't any small SUVs with character like there are in Europe (Ford Puma ST, Peugeot 2008, VW T-Roc Cabriolet, Kia Stonic, Citroën Cactus, DS3 Crossback, Toyota Yaris Cross,...)
I would keep the RAV4, it's probably the best SUV with the most reliable Hybrid technology - probably more reliable than most petrol powered cars. The Hybrid systems on these usually last about 10-15 years, or 150k miles, but they're a total absolute nightmare to repair when something does go wrong, so the most I'd recommend is just getting one with the conventional engine and 8 speed automatic (but I wouldn't recommend getting one that's in a worse condition than your own - IMO, it's just not worth it0
If you really want a driving experience and don't mind sacrificing all the practicality, you can get a Toyota 86 / Subaru BRZ for the roughly the same price of a CX-30 - and those are proper cars with a lot of drama.
Personally, to combat the boredom I got a cheap older Volvo C30 coupe and it's an experience (and due to the fact I got the least reliable version with the terrible dual clutch that's not even available in the US, I also have something to repair and work on)
