Toyota RAV4-EV Immune to "Bricking"
Following up on Tesla’s battery problems, we got a chance to talk to Toyota about the upcoming RAV4-EV.
Toyota has been working closely with Tesla in developing their electric crossover. We were curious to see if the issue that is now worrying owners of Tesla Roadsters will be a problem with Toyota’s vehicle as well.
Jana Hartline, Toyota’s Environmental Communications Manager, told us “the powertrain system in our RAV4-EV will feature multiple safeguards designed to avoid full depletion of battery state-of-charge.” She didn’t comment further on what those safeguards are, but it may fall in line with what other EV manufacturers do.
The issue here stemmed from Tesla Roadster that was left with its battery fully depleted for two months. Afterwards the car could not accept a charge, and required a $40,000 repair.
While it’s good to hear that Toyota’s RAV4-EV has safeguards in place, the much larger issue is whether or not this is a fate that all electric vehicles can suffer.
Sami has an unquenchable thirst for car knowledge and has been at AutoGuide for the past six years. He has a degree in journalism and media studies from the University of Guelph-Humber in Toronto and has won multiple journalism awards from the Automotive Journalist Association of Canada. Sami is also on the jury for the World Car Awards.
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