Compare the2024 Ford Mustang Mach-EVS 2024 Toyota Rav4 Prime

Both the Mustang Mach-E and Rav4 Prime have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Mustang Mach-E has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Rav4 Prime’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Mustang Mach-E are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Mustang Mach-E has standard Cross Traffic Alert with Cross Traffic Braking, systems which detect vehicles approaching from the sides and can automatically apply the brakes to prevent a collision. Parking Support Brake costs extra on the Rav4 Prime XSE, and isn't offered on other Rav4 Prime models.

The Mustang Mach-E’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 Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Mustang Mach-E and the Rav4 Prime have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, 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, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras and rear cross-path warning.

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Ford Mustang Mach-E is safer than the Rav4 Prime:

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Mustang Mach-E, with its five-star roll-over rating, is 3.8% to 4.7% less likely to roll over than the Rav4 Prime, which received a four-star rating.

There are over 2 times as many Ford dealers as there are Toyota dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Mustang Mach-E’s warranty.

The Mustang Mach-E eAWD’s standard electric motors produces 23 more horsepower (325 vs. 302) than the Rav4 Prime’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid. The Mustang Mach-E ER eAWD’s standard electric motors produces 63 more horsepower (365 vs. 302) than the Rav4 Prime’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid. The Mustang Mach-E GT Performance/Rally’s standard electric motors produces 178 more horsepower (480 vs. 302) than the Rav4 Prime’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Consumer Reports the Ford Mustang Mach-E is faster than the Toyota Rav4 Prime:

On the EPA test cycle the Mustang Mach-E gets better mileage than the Rav4 Prime running its gasoline engine:

The Mustang Mach-E can travel with zero emissions on a full charge for 230 to 320 miles. The Rav4 Prime has to start its internal combustion engine after only 42 miles.

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Ford Mustang Mach-E higher (10 out of 10) than the Toyota Rav4 Prime (7). This means the Mustang Mach-E produces up to 11.8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Rav4 Prime every 15,000 miles.

For better stopping power the Mustang Mach-E’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Rav4 Prime:

The Mustang Mach-E stops much shorter than the Rav4 Prime:

For better traction, the Mustang Mach-E GT’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Rav4 Prime (245/45R20 vs. 235/55R19).

The Mustang Mach-E’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Rav4 Prime SE’s standard 60 series tires. The Mustang Mach-E GT’s tires have a lower 45 series profile than the Rav4 Prime XSE’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Mustang Mach-E has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Rav4 Prime SE. The Mustang Mach-E GT’s 20-inch wheels are larger than the 19-inch wheels on the Rav4 Prime XSE.

The Mustang Mach-E has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Rav4 Prime’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

The Mustang Mach-E offers an available driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Rav4 Prime’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The Mustang Mach-E has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Mustang Mach-E’s wheelbase is 11.6 inches longer than on the Rav4 Prime (117.5 inches vs. 105.9 inches).

The Mustang Mach-E’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (48.7% to 51.3%) than the Rav4 Prime’s (56% to 44%). This gives the Mustang Mach-E more stable handling and braking.

The Mustang Mach-E GT handles at .92 G’s, while the Rav4 Prime XSE pulls only .75 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Mustang Mach-E GT executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.7 seconds quicker than the Rav4 Prime XSE (25.9 seconds @ .7 average G’s vs. 27.6 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

The Mustang Mach-E has 2.2 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Rav4 Prime (101.1 vs. 98.9).

The Mustang Mach-E has 1.2 inches more front headroom, 2.3 inches more front legroom, 1.1 inches more front hip room, .3 inches more rear legroom and 5.5 inches more rear hip room than the Rav4 Prime.

The Mustang Mach-E uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Rav4 Prime uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The Mustang Mach-E’s optional easy entry system glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Mustang Mach-E’s exterior PIN entry system. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system, and its Safety Connect™ can’t unlock the doors if the vehicle doesn’t have cell phone reception or the driver can’t contact the service.

The Mustang Mach-E’s power window, power lock, power mirror and cruise control switches are lit from behind, making them plainly visible and easier to operate at night. The Rav4 Prime’s power window (except driver window), power lock and power mirror switches are unlit, making them difficult to find at night and operate safely.

The Mustang Mach-E’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Rav4 Prime’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Consumer Reports rated the Mustang Mach-E’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Rav4 Prime’s headlights, which were rated “Good.”

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Ford Mustang Mach-E has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the Rav4 Prime XSE offers wireless charging.

The Mustang Mach-E’s optional Active Park Assist 2.0 can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

The Mustang Mach-E is available in both rear-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Mustang Mach-E third among compact suvs in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Rav4 Prime isn’t in the top three.

A group of representative automotive journalists from North America selected the Mustang Mach-E as the 2021 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The Rav4 Prime has never been chosen.