After previously dropping a tidal wave of significant novelties on top of the North American car market, the Japanese automaker Toyota has now settled into making smaller ripples with the traditional new model year updates.
The company got its fans accustomed to tremendous red-carpet activity earlier this year when it launched under America's spotlight models like the all-new Prius Prime plug-in hybrid, the Corolla Cross Hybrid, an entire Corolla Nightshade family, the big Grand Highlander three-row crossover SUV, a trio of GR special editions (GR86 Trueno, GR Corolla Circuit, GR Supra 45th Anniversary), and the N400 Tacoma plus 2024 Land Cruiser superstars.
That was just mind-boggling, of course. Obviously, the brand can't hold up such intense activity without running out of steam, so recently, they slowed things down a bit with the 2024 model year introductions of major series like the GR Corolla, Camry, or the best-selling RAV4 compact crossover SUV.
Speaking of the latter, the 2024MY update boasts few changes over its predecessor, and maybe that's why the base price only went up by $200 or $250 for the hybrid version. The minute changes could be shelter for more profound preparations, right? Well, that's the opinion of the imaginative realm of digital car content creators, at least.
So, it is no wonder that the good folks over at the AutoYa info channel on YouTube have imagined the CGI looks of the upcoming 2025 model year for the best-selling RAV4 with a thorough – albeit unofficial – facelift procedure. The resident pixel master decided that on this new CGI occasion (it's not the first time they've gone for a mid-cycle refresh; their previous works are also pictured in the video embedded below), the 2025 RAV4 needs to look a lot more angular than before.
At least at the front, whereas the hypothetical rear tweaks are solely reserved for the taillights and parts of the rear bumper. The cockpit CGIs also make a quick appearance here, and, of course, the host hasn't forgotten about presenting all possible ritzy exterior colors. However, we find it hard to believe that Toyota would thoroughly update the 2025 RAV4 with a deep facelift procedure just one year before the reveal of an all-new generation.
Most likely, the Japanese company will either officially introduce a major restyling of the RAV4 and continue to sell the fifth-gen XA50 model for another couple or even three years, at least. Otherwise, they could just wait until next year to reveal the 2025 or even 2026 model year RAV4 as a completely new XA60 iteration.
So, what do you think about this potential conundrum? Should Toyota prop the great RAV4 sales with a deep facelift to ensure it rocks the bejesus out of Honda CR-V's mind (and the rest of the compact CUV sector) for a few more years? Or should they swiftly proceed to reveal an all-new generation with the latest styling, a new interior, and the best technology available?
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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