Compare the2024 Toyota Rav4VS 2024 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Brakes and Stopping
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Payload and Towing
Ergonomics
Recommendations

Safety

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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 Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Toyota Rav4 has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Rav4’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Rav4 and the Atlas Cross Sport have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, 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, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the Toyota Rav4 is safer than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	Rav4	Atlas Cross Sport
	Driver
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
HIC	152	307
Neck Injury Risk	29.3%	30%
Neck Stress	306 lbs.	412 lbs.
Neck Compression	56 lbs.	59 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.4 inches	.7 inches
Neck Injury Risk	37.4%	39%
Neck Compression	95 lbs.	117 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Toyota Rav4 is safer than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport:

	Rav4	Atlas Cross Sport
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	146	208
Hip Force	508 lbs.	529 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	299	309
Spine Acceleration	36 G’s	41 G’s

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

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 71 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Atlas Cross Sport does not qualify as a “Top Safety Pick.”

Warranty

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

The Rav4’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

There are almost 2 times as many Toyota dealers as there are Volkswagen dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Rav4’s warranty.

Reliability

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 Atlas Cross Sport.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are better in initial quality than Volkswagen vehicles. With 55 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Toyota higher than Volkswagen.

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 Volkswagen 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, Volkswagen is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Volkswagen vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Toyota first in overall reliability. Volkswagen is ranked 23rd.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Rav4 gets better mileage than the Atlas Cross Sport:

			MPG
Rav4
	FWD	XLE 2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	27 city/34 hwy
		LE/Limited 2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	27 city/35 hwy
	AWD	LE 2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	27 city/34 hwy
		XLE 2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	27 city/33 hwy
		Adventure/Limited 2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	25 city/33 hwy
		TRD Off-Road 2.5 DOHC 4-cyl.	25 city/32 hwy
Atlas Cross Sport
	FWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	20 city/27 hwy
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	19 city/26 hwy

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Toyota Rav4 higher (6 out of 10) than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport (3). This means the Rav4 produces up to 23.4 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Atlas Cross Sport every 15,000 miles.

Brakes and Stopping

The Rav4 stops shorter than the Atlas Cross Sport:

	Rav4	Atlas Cross Sport
60 to 0 MPH	117 feet	126 feet	Motor Trend

Suspension and Handling

The Rav4 Adventure handles at .81 G’s, while the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion pulls only .78 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Rav4 TRD Off-Road executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion (27.1 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 27.8 seconds @ .61 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Rav4 LE/XLE’s turning circle is 3.9 feet tighter than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (36.1 feet vs. 40 feet). The Rav4 XLE Premium/Adventure/Limited/TRD Off-Road’s turning circle is 2.6 feet tighter than the Atlas Cross Sport’s (37.4 feet vs. 40 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Rav4 LE/XLE has a 2.1 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Atlas Cross Sport (8.4 vs. 6.3 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 2.3 inches higher than on the Atlas Cross Sport (8.6 vs. 6.3 inches).

Chassis

The Toyota Rav4 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 700 to 800 pounds less than the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport.

The Rav4 is 1 foot, 2.6 inches shorter than the Atlas Cross Sport 4Motion, making the Rav4 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Rav4 is 5.2 inches narrower on average than the Atlas Cross Sport, making the Rav4 easier to handle and maneuver in traffic.

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 Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

Passenger Space

The Rav4 has .1 inches more front headroom and 1.7 inches more rear headroom than the Atlas Cross Sport.

Payload and Towing

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 Atlas Cross Sport doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

The Rav4 has a higher maximum payload capacity than the Atlas Cross Sport (1240 vs. 1091 lbs.).

Ergonomics

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 Atlas Cross Sport only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

Recommendations

Consumer Reports® recommends both the Toyota Rav4 and the Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Toyota Rav4 outsold the Volkswagen Atlas by almost five to one during 2022.