PoweredByTesla
Latest
Toyota RAV4 EV priced up at $49,800, arriving in California 'late summer'
It's been two years since we first heard of Toyota's electric vehicle plans and the company's finally ready to talk turkey on pricing. Announced at Los Angeles' Electric Vehicle Symposium yesterday, the "fully equipped" RAV4 EV will arrive before the end of the year for a few hundred shy of 50,000 bucks. The EV will reach up to 100 miles on a single charge, which can be reportedly replenished in around six hours from a 240V charger, while LED and halogen headlights are the latest design additions. The RAV4 will go up for sale in Sacramento, San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego -- if you're somewhere in California, you have a shot of getting one. Toyota's got all the details in a press release right after the break.
Toyota debuts 100 mile Tesla-powered RAV4 EV, Musk says it 'helps us with the Model S'
Toyota and Tesla have been spotted holding hands behind the school gym on numerous occasions and now, finally, the result of their long hours working together in the craft room are being shown to the world. It's the RAV4 EV, announced earlier this year and finally unveiled at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Current pre-production models are delivering 100 miles per charge but apparently still need some climate-proofing to ensure that the 2012 version will hit that range regardless of conditions. That's a big deal for a big SUV, and of course it's a big deal for Tesla, which is providing the powertrain. It's also a good news for Elon Musk, surely injecting some much-needed funding to the company and, as he says, introducing other benefits as well: We're giving Toyota a window into the entrepreneurial, Silicon Valley culture and, vice versa, we're getting a sense for the Toyota production system... I think we're learning a lot form Toyota, bidirectionally, in this process and I think that helps us with the Model S. Having access to Lexus components in the supply chain is also helpful. In other words, expect the production Model S interior to be a little less fanciful and a little more familiar.
