The 2021 Toyota Venza is mainly a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid with sleeker styling and a extra luxurious inside. In return for these components, it sacrifices utility, which is without doubt one of the RAV4’s stronger attributes. The Venza has 28.8 cubic-feet of cargo area behind its raised again seat versus the RAV4’s 37.5 cubic-feet. The distinction largely comes all the way down to the Venza’s chopped roofline, leading to much less area up excessive. As such, the distinction when speaking about usable area might not truly be that nice.
Let’s get away the bags and have a more in-depth look.
The Venza is on the left, RAV4 on the proper. Particularly, the latter is a TRD Off-Highway relatively than one of many Hybrid trims, however Toyota says there isn’t any distinction between them when it comes to cargo area.
To start, I stored the cargo cowl in place to see how a lot will match do you have to be unable to take away it for some cause. As in each baggage take a look at I do, I exploit two midsize curler suitcases that may must be checked in on the airport (26 inches lengthy, 16 extensive, 11 deep), two roll-aboard suitcases that simply barely match within the overhead (24L x 15W x 10D), and one smaller roll-aboard that matches simply (23L x 15W x 10D). I additionally embody my spouse’s fancy in a single day bag simply to spruce issues up a bit (21L x 12W x 12D).
All the luggage match, albeit with the flamboyant bag awkwardly on an angle and a bit squished. I additionally needed to flip the inflexible little bit of the cargo cowl’s find yourself, which is not actually an issue. After all, the luggage nonetheless ended up above the cargo cowl that means you could not truly cowl all these things with it.
In contrast, all of those baggage match neatly under the RAV4’s cargo cowl as proven under. So, it is not only a distinction in roofline right here; the RAV4’s shoulder line is larger too, or at the very least the majority of the cargo space.
Let’s now take away the cargo cowl and see what sort of distinction it makes within the 2021 Venza.
Eradicating the cargo cowl made it attainable to face the tallest baggage length-wise and nonetheless clear the hatch. Sadly, doing so fully blocks the rear view, which I attempt to keep away from in these exams.
A shorter bag may stand on one aspect, although, which is a giant cause for all the additional area left over when all the luggage are added. So what can you set in that further area?
That may be one Graco Pack ‘N Play added to the pile. That is truly higher than common for a compact SUV even when the RAV4 outdoes it as proven under by swallowing a 38-quart cooler and a duffel bag instead of the playpen. That, successfully, is the distinction between the Venza and RAV4 cargo areas.
There may be one other space of utility, nonetheless, the place the Venza is inferior to the RAV4: roof rails. My Venza take a look at automobile lacked any strategy to mount one thing to the roof (Yakima remains to be within the technique of “becoming” it to see if a “bare roof” Venza can settle for door clamps and toes attachments), however flush-mounted rails can be found. The RAV4, in contrast, affords each flush rails in addition to taller, extra versatile raised rails like these on the TRD Off-Highway.
