It seems strange that the all-new Toyota RAV4 won’t be sold in our market with an all-wheel drive option. It’s in the name, for crying out loud: RAV4 stands for ‘Recreational Activity Vehicle: 4-wheel drive.’ So why is Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) limiting the configuration options to just front-wheel drive when other countries get the option of AWD?
According to TMP first vice president Cristina Arevalo, it boils down to supply and demand. She explained that “a very very small number” of customers actually purchased the 4x4 RAV4 in the past. How few, you ask? Arevalo estimates the fraction to be less than 1%.
“With this, we concluded that our customers here in the Philippines actually prefer the 4x2 as it already suits their lifestyles and their needs,” she remarked.
It seems to be a trend lately, isn’t it? Carmakers have recently been eschewing fan favorites that do poorly in sales, in favor of focusing on the units that sell. Subaru recently did the same thing with the Forester’s turbocharged options. For what it’s worth, Arevalo sounded quite firm when she said that they won’t be introducing the 4x4 RAV4 in the Philippines.
Will you miss the AWD RAV4? Let us know your thoughts below.
