One of the big misconceptions in the automotive world is that Toyota lost the electric vehicle (EV) race to the likes of Tesla and Hyundai. For years, critics (the “greenies,” if we may call them that) loudly condemned the Japanese brand for dragging its feet on full electrification, pointing to the bZ4X—now called the bZ in the US—as evidence of its so-called reluctance. But the new 2026 RAV4 Plug-In Hybrid (PHEV) flips that narrative entirely. By transforming this crossover into a stealthy electric vehicle, Toyota validated every skeptical buyer and made its own dedicated electric platform look virtually redundant in the process.
Â
