Compare the2025 Volvo EX40VS 2024 Toyota Rav4 Prime

The EX40’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the EX40 and Rav4 Prime have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The EX40 Ultra 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.

The EX40 has a standard Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS), which use a specially designed seat to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the WHIPS allows the backrest to travel backwards to cushion the occupants and the headrests move forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. At the same time the pretensioning seatbelts fire, removing slack from the belts. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the EX40’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the EX40 has standard Cross Traffic Alert with Braking Intervention, 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 EX40’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 EX40 and the Rav4 Prime have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear 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, rear cross-path warning and available around view monitors.

The EX40 comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Rav4 Prime’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The EX40’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Rav4 Prime’s (12 vs. 5 years).

Volvo pays for scheduled maintenance on the EX40 for 2 years and 15000 miles longer than Toyota pays for maintenance for the Rav4 Prime (4/40,000 vs. 2/25000).

The EX40 Twin Motor’s optional electric motors produces 100 more horsepower (402 vs. 302) than the Rav4 Prime’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid. The EX40 Twin Motor Performance’s standard electric motors produces 134 more horsepower (436 vs. 302) than the Rav4 Prime’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid.

As tested in Motor Trend the EX40 Twin Motor electric motors is faster than the Toyota Rav4 Prime:

On the EPA test cycle the EX40 Single Motor FWD gets better mileage than the Rav4 Prime running its gasoline engine (118 city/94 hwy MPGe vs. 40 city/36 hwy).

The EX40 can travel with zero emissions on a full charge for 260 to 296 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 Volvo EX40 higher (10 out of 10) than the Toyota Rav4 Prime (7). This means the EX40 produces up to 11.8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Rav4 Prime every 15,000 miles.

For better stopping power the EX40’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Rav4 Prime:

The EX40 stops much shorter than the Rav4 Prime:

For better traction, the EX40 has larger tires than the Rav4 Prime (F:235/50R19 & R:255/45R19 vs. 225/60R18).

The EX40’s standard 235/50R19 front and 255/45R19 rear tires provide better handling because they have a lower 50 series front and 45 series rear profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Rav4 Prime SE’s standard 60 series tires. The EX40 Ultra’s 235/45R20 front and 255/40R20 rear tires have a lower 45 series front and 40 series rear profile than the Rav4 Prime XSE’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the EX40 has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Rav4 Prime SE. The EX40 Ultra’s 20-inch wheels are larger than the 19-inch wheels on the Rav4 Prime XSE.

The EX40 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 EX40 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.

The EX40 AWD handles at .84 G’s, while the Rav4 Prime XSE pulls only .75 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The EX40 AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.3 seconds quicker than the Rav4 Prime XSE (26.3 seconds @ .7 average G’s vs. 27.6 seconds @ .62 average G’s).

The EX40 is 6.1 inches shorter than the Rav4 Prime, making the EX40 easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The EX40 has .4 inches more front hip room and 6.9 inches more rear hip room than the Rav4 Prime.

A control in the cargo area automatically lowers the EX40’s optional rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

The EX40 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 EX40’s standard Keyless Entry & Drive allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the vehicle, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Smart Key System standard on the Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door. Smart Key System is not available on the Rav4 Prime XSE.

The EX40’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 EX40’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.

Heated windshield washer nozzles are optional on the EX40 to prevent washer fluid and nozzles from freezing and help continue to keep the windshield clear in sub-freezing temperatures. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer heated windshield washer nozzles.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The EX40 offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer headlight washers.

When the EX40 is put in reverse, both rearview mirrors tilt from their original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirrors into their original positions. The Rav4 Prime’s mirrors don’t automatically adjust for backing.

The EX40’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Rav4 Prime offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Volvo EX40 has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the Rav4 Prime XSE offers wireless charging.

The EX40 is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Rav4 Prime doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.