Toyota has revealed a highly modified, Dakar Rally-ready concept vehicle based on its popular RAV4 at the 2024 SEMA Show, one of the world’s biggest automotive aftermarket exhibitions.
The Toyota RAV-X Concept takes Australia’s favourite SUV and adds a series of off-road focussed mods, accessories and performance upgrades to make this the most hardcore RAV4 built by the Japanese brand to date.
The high-performance mid-sized SUV outputs more than 225kW as standard from its plug-in hybrid powertrain – unavailable in Australia – which Toyota says makes it “an ideal platform for off-road performance” thanks to its low centre of gravity due to battery placement, “before being paired with a ram air intake”.
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More importantly, a string of bespoke chassis upgrades by the Toyota Service Parts and Accessories Development (SPAD) team dramatically enhances the RAV-X’s off-road capability.
These include a full 2.0-inch (51mm) suspension lift, a massive 160mm increase in track width and custom 2.5-inch internal bypass shocks at all four corners, complete with dual-speed compression damping adjustment and external reservoirs to keep oil temperatures down during extreme off-roading.
Also designed to cope with desert terrain at high speed are unique, SPAD-developed forged aluminium front lower control arms and rear upper supports.
Under-body protection comes courtesy of front and rear skid plates, a Dakar-inspired front bumper with integrated cooling ducts helps improve the approach angle, and a high-clearance dual exhaust is integrated into the rear bumper to increase the departure angle.
Bespoke fender flares with front-wheel ventilation increase air flow and the whole package rides on rally-style white 17×8.5-inch forged aluminium wheels with 265/65R17 off-road tyres, hugged by red mudflaps.
Punctuating all of this is an aggressive rear spoiler and strategic venting throughout the front fascia to relieve engine bay and front wheel-well pressure zones.
Toyota says the result is a vehicle that excels in terms of off-road capability and high-speed performance, “pushing the limits of what a small crossover can achieve”.
“The vision behind the RAV-X was to create a halo vehicle concept for the RAV4 lineup,” said SPAD senior engineering manager, Jakin Wilson.
“By leveraging the knowledge and capability from years of high-performance off-road vehicle development, the engineers created a concept that is true to the off-road enthusiast.”
While Toyota stresses that the RAV-X is a “special project prototype vehicle”, Toyota Motor North America division marketing group vice president Mike Tripp also said it is “more than just a concept”.
“RAV4 is one of our most popular and versatile vehicles; with RAV-X we’re showing an entirely new possibility of just how cool and adventurous a small crossover like this can be,” he said.
The RAV-X is just one of four concept vehicles Toyota is displaying at the 2024 SEMA Show, held over November 5-8 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
Earlier this week, Toyota uncovered the Calty Land Cruiser Rox, based on what we known in Australia as the LandCruiser Prado, but sans the SUV’s rear roof section to create a ute.
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