Toyota Teases 2016 RAV4 Hybrid Ahead Of Debut

Toyota has teased its upcoming 2016 RAV4 Hybrid SUV, something it plans to officially debut at the New York Auto Show next week. It's not much of a tease (or is especially so, depending on your perspective), showing only part of the back end where the "Limited Hybrid" emblem is placed — we don't really get a look at the SUV, then, but there are a few details to be gleaned from the relatively sparse shot, including a switch up in the tail lights design.

The New York Auto Show is on April 2, so there's only a single week of waiting left before we get to see the entire model. What we do see, however, shows tail lights that are clear rather than colored and a couple of LED light strips running through them in the back.

The rest of the design looks largely the same as what we see on the back of the 2015 RAV4 — how closely the new hybrid will stick to past versions of the car isn't known at this point, as Toyota is being particularly quiet when it comes to details.

The question at this point is where Toyota is aiming to miss with its timing for the model. Hybrid car sales have been on a decline, and the lower gas prices this year aren't helping matters. The RAV4 has been a consistently high performer for Toyota, however, particularly this year, and so it isn't surprising the auto maker is taking it up a notch.

SOURCE: Autoblog