Compare the2023 Toyota Rav4VS 2023 MINI Countryman

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Toyota Rav4 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The MINI Countryman doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Toyota Rav4 are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The MINI Countryman doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety tests front crash prevention systems. With a score of 6 points, IIHS rates the Pre-Collision System in the Rav4 as “Superior.” The Countryman scores only 3 points and is rated only “Advanced.”

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Rav4 (except LE) offers optional Parking Assist with Automatic Braking that use rear sensors to monitor for objects to the rear and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. The Countryman doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Rav4 Limited/TRD Off-Road offers an optional Bird’s Eye View Camera to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Countryman only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

The Rav4’s optional blind spot warning system uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. The Countryman doesn’t offer a system to reveal objects in the driver’s blind spots.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Rav4’s optional rear cross-path warning system uses sensors in the rear to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. The Countryman doesn’t offer a rear cross-path warning system.

Both the Rav4 and the Countryman have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors and available all wheel drive.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Rav4 the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 53 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Countryman has not been fully tested, yet.

Toyota’s powertrain warranty covers the Rav4 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than MINI covers the Countryman. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Countryman ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 12 times as many Toyota dealers as there are MINI dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Rav4’s warranty.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the Rav4’s reliability 13 points higher than the Countryman.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than MINI vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Toyota above average in long-term dependability. With 34 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, MINI is rated lower.

The Rav4’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 69 more horsepower (203 vs. 134) and 22 lbs.-ft. more torque (184 vs. 162) than the Countryman’s standard 1.5 turbo 3-cylinder. The Rav4’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 14 more horsepower (203 vs. 189) than the Countryman S’ standard 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Toyota Rav4 is faster than the MINI Countryman turbo 3 cyl.:

On the EPA test cycle the Rav4 gets better mileage than the Countryman:

The Rav4 stops much shorter than the Countryman:

For better traction, the Rav4 XLE Premium/Adventure/Limited’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Countryman (235/55R19 vs. 225/55R17).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Rav4 is 1 inch wider in the front and 1.6 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Countryman.

The Rav4 Adventure handles at .81 G’s, while the Countryman ALL4 pulls only .79 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Rav4 Adventure executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Countryman ALL4 (27.5 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 28.3 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Rav4 LE/XLE’s turning circle is 1.3 feet tighter than the Countryman’s (36.1 feet vs. 37.4 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Rav4 LE/XLE has a 1.9 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Countryman (8.4 vs. 6.5 inches), allowing the Rav4 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Rav4 XLE Premium/Limited/Adventure/TRD Off-Road’s minimum ground clearance is 2.1 inches higher than on the Countryman (8.6 vs. 6.5 inches).

The front grille of the Rav4 Adventure/Limited/TRD Off-Road uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Countryman doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Rav4 has .6 inches more front legroom, 3 inches more front shoulder room, 1.2 inches more rear headroom, .2 inches more rear legroom and 2.4 inches more rear shoulder room than the Countryman.

The Rav4 has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Countryman with its rear seat up (37.6 vs. 17.6 cubic feet). The Rav4 has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Countryman with its rear seat folded (69.8 vs. 47.6 cubic feet).

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the Rav4. The Countryman doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

The Rav4 has a 1500 lbs. towing capacity. The Countryman has no towing capacity.

Standard Trailer Sway Control on the Rav4 uses the Vehicle Stability Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The Countryman doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

The Rav4 has a standard remote vehicle starting system, so the vehicle can be started from inside the driver's house. This allows the driver to comfortably warm up the engine before going out to the vehicle. The climate system will also automatically heat or cool the interior. The Countryman doesn’t offer a remote starting system.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Rav4 has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Countryman only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Rav4 XLE/Adventure/Limited/TRD Off-Road has standard extendable sun visors. The Countryman doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Both the Rav4 and the Countryman offer available heated front seats. The Rav4 Limited also offers optional heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Countryman.

Optional air-conditioned seats in the Rav4 (except LE/XLE/Adventure) keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Countryman doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

To keep a safe, consistent following distance, the Rav4 has a standard Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, which alters the speed of the vehicle without driver intervention. This allows the driver to use cruise control more safely without constantly having to disengage it when approaching slower traffic. The Countryman doesn’t offer an adaptive cruise control.

The Rav4 Adventure/TRD Off-Road has a 115-volt a/c outlet in the cargo area, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Countryman doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Rav4 is less expensive to operate than the Countryman because typical repairs cost much less on the Rav4 than the Countryman, including $114 less for a water pump, $336 less for a muffler, $8 less for front brake pads, $230 less for front struts and $257 less for a power steering pump.

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Toyota Rav4 and the MINI Countryman, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Toyota Rav4 outsold the MINI Countryman by over 42 to one during 2022.