Honda CR-V Hybrid vs. Toyota RAV4 Hybrid vs. Mazda CX-50 Hybrid | Small Hybrid SUV Comparison Test

Yo, we've been spying on you. See, we know the numbers, and if you're looking for a new vehicle, chances are you're looking for something like these. These are three practical, safe, hybrid SUVs that get around 40 miles per gallon. So what have we got here? Well, you've seen it. You might even love it. It's the Toyota RAV4. This is the go-to choice. But here's the thing, you guys. It hasn't been refreshed since 2019. It's looking just a little bit dated. But you've probably got one in your neighborhood, so we really wanted to include it. And where there's a Toyota, there is always a Honda rival. I'm talking about the CR-V. Now, this got a nice little refresh in 2023, and it is a worthy rival to Toyota's stalwart segment leader. But moving on over here, this is an SUV you might not be too familiar with. This is the Mazda CX-50. It was a brand-new model in 2023, and this year we got a hybrid version. Now, we really like the gas-powered CX-50, so this hybrid might be pretty great. So here's what we're going to do. We're going to tell you all about the driving experience. We'll test the fuel economy, the cargo, the tech, the interior, and, of course, we'll talk about the value, so that you know which vehicle deserves a spot in your driveway. Now, you guys, don't look at hybrids just for efficiency, because this RAV4 hybrid, it is genuinely better to drive than its gas counterpart. I mean, it's more than a second quicker to 60 miles an hour, and it's way more responsive off the line. Those extra electrons just give you more power to be like, zoom, zoom, zoom, zoom through all of this really bad LA traffic. And y'all, it is not just quicker than the other cars in this group, it is also more efficient. And I really like all of the driver's aids that Toyota includes at standard. I mean, adaptive cruise control, lane centering, emergency braking, everything here works really well, even in dense traffic. The suspension here is tuned for a really comfortable yet controlled ride, but I have to say the worst thing about driving this RAV4 hybrid are the brakes. I mean, they just feel so, so mushy. And when you're trying to do like a really quick stop, it just doesn't inspire confidence. And that is backed up by the worst as tested braking distance between all three of these vehicles. Now, when you're just like, you know, driving around every day, it's fine, but still, it's difficult to bring this car to a very controlled stop. Oh, and the engine, yeah, it can be a little bit noisy as well. Toyota steering here is also, I mean, not great. There's not a lot of feedback. And I also feel like I have to make all these little tiny corrections to keep it straight on the road, even though I know I don't have to, that's just the feeling that it gives me. So the RAV4 hybrid is a quick, responsive and efficient SUV, but it's the details, the steering, the brakes and the engine racket. We just wish it were better. Now, things are a little different here in the CR-V. I mean, yeah, you trade a couple of MPGs compared to the Toyota, but this is a really great example of how a vehicle like this can drive. The steering here is great. It's quick and there's enough feedback so that I know what's going on there between my wheels and the pavement. The engine is responsive and it's got enough power, but the ride quality is also really nice. It never feels floaty or out of control. And Honda gives us great brakes as well. From 60 miles an hour, the CR-V stops a full 10 feet shorter than the other SUVs here. And it's really easy to bring it to a smooth, controlled stop. And if you want to talk about driver's aids, well, Honda, like Toyota, has got a lot of standard safety features. And I really like that the lane centering here is not too aggressive. I mean, it helps, but I never feel like I'm fighting for control of the vehicle. Really, the only room for improvement here is with the engine noise. I mean, when I really stomp on it to pass, I mean, it just sounds like it's working way too hard. So other than the fact that this engine just audibly protests when you romp on the gas, like, I'm really digging this CR-V. Okay, you guys remember how much we liked the engine in the RAV4? Well, we like the engine here in the CX-50 exactly the same. That's because they are exactly the same. They inked a deal with Toyota to borrow the engine and hybrid system straight out of the RAV4. But it feels a little bit out of place here in the Mazda. I mean, Mazdas are known for, like, you know, being lightweight and zoom zoom and all that, right? But the CX-50 is significantly heavier than the RAV4. So, as a result, it is nearly half a second slower to 60 than the RAV4. The steering here is purely Mazda. I mean, it is quick, it is direct, and it's heavy. Now, I really like that, but some of you may not, especially when you consider that the wheelbase of this vehicle is 4 to 5 inches longer than the other SUVs in our test, which means sometimes at slower speeds, like in parking lots, it's a little hard to maneuver. Now, the Mazda does feel a little bit better around a corner than the rest of these SUVs. This car exhibits very little body motions and not a lot of body roll. But the trade-off there is that your ride quality, it's just a little bit on the firm side. It never crosses over into being harsh, but some of you might not be your jam. Actual braking performance is in line with the Toyota, but it's much worse than the gas version of the CX-50. That's because you've got different tires and it's much, much heavier. However, they are tuned so that they're easier to modulate and coming to a smooth stop is easy breezy. So same motor as the RAV4, do we have the same noise? Yeah, we sure do. It's not the loudest, but it's not the quietest either. Now, as a package, the CX-50 delivers a similar athleticism that we've seen in the Honda CR-V, but what you buy is just going to depend on your preferences. I mean, if you like a little bit of a sportier ride, firmer handling, heavier steering, it is CX-50 all day. But the CR-V, you guys, it's just universally likable. Now, when it comes to the RAV4, sure, it's a little bit more efficient and it's quicker to 60, but on the whole, we just didn't find the driving experience quite as enjoyable. All right, after whipping these guys through the corners, we are going to give the driving trophy to the CR-V, but the CX-50, it's not far behind. Now, if for some reason you don't like any of these vehicles, well, guess what? We've got reviews of nearly everything in the segment over on Edmunds.com. All right, here I am in the CR-V and there are two things that I noticed. One is just a near perfect seating position that's super adjustable and it's really comfortable. We've got people at Edmunds that are over six feet tall and under five feet tall and like everybody can fit. It's awesome. The second thing I noticed is all of the windows. They are really big and I've got great visibility. Okay, but I always need a road soda. So here is your cup holder review. I love that they are right here very close to my hand. And when it comes to small storage, it's pretty good. I mean, this center console is a little small and the door pockets are a little small, but I like that I get this little tray. I've got a little tray for my phone in front of the gear shift and I've got this little tray here, which is perfect for the key. The CR-V's got the most rear legroom of the bunch, so it's pretty comfortable and you've got all your standard bits. I've got some vents, some USB ports, you got some cup holders, but here's what makes this rear seat stand out, y'all. Look at how wide this rear door opens. It's almost 90 degrees. It's going to be so easy to get a car seat back here. Even those rear facing ones, you're probably not even going to need to move your seat up at all. The first thing you're going to notice in the RAV4 are these absolutely gigantic rubberized HVAC controls. I mean, you could be a panda wearing mittens and you could make all of this work. And like the other vehicles in our testing today, all of these HVAC controls are physical. It's not on the screen, which means less distracted driving. Now, when it comes to smaller storage, okay, I love, love, love the fact that I've got a tray here in front of the passenger and the cup holders are nice and deep. The center console, I mean, it's a little narrow, but it's pretty deep as well. And I've got a good-sized door pocket. As for seating position, these seats are kind of mounted at waist height. So getting in and out is really easy. However, some of the taller people at Edmunds, they wish that the seat would go a little bit lower and some of our more spirited drivers, well, they wish there was a little bit more lateral support for when you go around turns. The RAV4 has this same amount of rear legroom as a CR-V. So things back here are pretty comfortable and you've got all your standard fare. You got vents, you got ports, you got cup holders, you got a cup holder on the door. No surprises here. But if car seats are your jam, here's the thing. Number one, I love the fact that you've got a little visual cue where your latch is, but the way the front seat is designed with this curve, it's probably going to interfere with the rear-facing car seat. And when you sit down in the Mazda CX-50, you are going to notice straight away the really stellar and elegant design. This is much more of a Lexus Acura feel than it is a Honda or Toyota. I mean, check this out, like this little X stitching right here. I love, I love the inserted piping on the seats. Fit, finish, materials, quality. It's all a step above what we've got here in the competition, but it's not all great. Okay. I mean, I don't like this piano black. The cup holders, I feel like they're too far away for me and the screen is way too far away, but we're going to talk about that in a second. Small storage too? Not really that great. I've got a little tray up here. This center console is pretty small, but hey, at least my door pocket's big. All right, what do you expect back here? You got vents, you got USB ports, you got cup holders, no big surprises. However, this vehicle has the least amount of legroom than all three of these cars and check out this headroom. I mean, like I'm only 5'9", and I am almost scraping the top. If you're over six feet tall, you might be a little uncomfortable. So when it comes to the interior, we love the way the Mazda looks, but if you've got kids to throw in the backseat, you're going to want to have that CR-V. However, both of those vehicles are better than the Toyota RAV4. All right, let's go back to this screen in the Mazda. There's a reason why it's so far away, and that's because it's not a touchscreen. Most of the time, the infotainment system is operated by this little rotary dial here between the seats. It's really satisfying. It's nice and clicky. It's easy to use. The sub menus and menus are easy to navigate until you get to Apple CarPlay, and that's where it all falls apart because now I can use it as a touchscreen. All right, that's cool, but I cannot use the touchscreen when I'm moving. Then I have to go back to using the rotary dial with Apple CarPlay, which is much harder to use, and then I'm just distracted all the time. You guys, it's the worst. And while wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are both standard, I've had crazy connectivity issues. Now when it comes to connectivity, I've got four USB-C ports. I've also got some wireless charging right here. This Bose stereo system sounds really good, and I can kind of sort of customize my gauge cluster, although not to the extent of the other vehicles. All in all, the tech in here is pretty good, but the Apple CarPlay is just not very well integrated. Y'all, in the CR-V, the screen, even this upgraded one, it's really small and the graphics are super dated. But the good news is that it's easy to operate. Moving over to the gauge cluster, it's pretty easy to read, but there's not a lot of customization to be had. There's four USB ports, and one of them is an old-school USB-A port. I got wireless charging. I mean, look, this tech is not fancy, but it works. It's exactly what you would expect from Honda. The RAV4 has got the largest screen of the bunch, and it also has voice recognition, but somehow it seems to be, I don't know, just like it's running an older chip. It just doesn't seem to be as responsive as some newer Toyota products. I mean, everything works well. It just kind of seems a little clunky. You know what I'm saying? You can display more information on the gauge cluster in the RAV4 than on the other two, but the menus here, just a little bit of a learning curve. Oh, and here's what really grinds my gears, is that you need to have a subscription to have all the cool features like the navigation and the voice control, and that's just, ugh! Like the other vehicles in this comparison, though, I do have a wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and I haven't had any connectivity issues. Charging here is pretty good, too. I've got a USB-A up front, some USB-Cs in the center console and in the back, and a wireless charging pad. So when it comes to the tech, these systems are all pretty easy to use. However, we're going to give it to the CR-V because it's just slightly easier to use. Now, that Mazda CX-50 over there, it's the biggest vehicle of the bunch, but it has the least amount of cargo space. Now, the RAV4 has got the most space back here and it can tow the most, but when you factor in interior storage for smaller items, each of these vehicles scores exactly the same when it comes to cargo. All right, it's finally down to value. Now, Toyota has got an advantage here, especially in the base trim. See, this base RAV4, it is much less than the base trim of a hybrid CX-50, and it's the same engine, and it's about $4,000 less than a CR-V with a hybrid engine. And compared to the gas RAV4, the hybrid's only an extra $1,650. We've also got to give Toyota bonus points for its two years of complimentary maintenance. That's right, for the first couple years, you're not going to have to worry about tire rotations or oil changes. Now, the CR-V, that is a little bit more expensive, but let me tell you why. The other two cars, for those, you can get the hybrid engine across any trim, but on the Honda, it's only available on the upper, more luxurious trim. So you're going to get more features, and that equates to a higher price floor. But once you bring the other vehicles into the mix at that same level, well, the price and the features, they're pretty comparable. Now, when it comes to the Mazda, it's somewhere in the middle. Yes, you're going to pay about $2,500 for a hybrid over a gas CX-50, but it's still about $3,000 less expensive than the top trim, the CX-50 Turbo. And once you start comparing all of these vehicles in their upper trims, the CX-50 is about the same as a RAV4, and maybe $1,000 less expensive than the CR-V. All right, we all know that value is important, and all three of these vehicles, they do provide a lot of value for the money. But if price is your deal-breaker, y'all, it's the RAV4. All right, let's get down to the nitty-gritty, shall we? Thank you so much for staying with me. This Toyota here, well, it's got the lowest price floor. It's got really good efficiency, really good driver's aids. We love all of those things, but the Toyota's motor is really loud. The back seat is small. I'm not a fan of the infotainment so much. Plus, the brakes feel mushy, and the steering is vague. When it comes to the CR-V, well, it's got an enjoyable drive. It's pretty easy to fit in your car seats. It is spacious, and the tech is very intuitive. But the hybrid's only available in the more expensive trims. The small storage is not that great, and it's not quite as efficient. The Mazda has got excellent interior design. Plus, it's got a sporty driving feel and plenty of interior storage for your smaller items. But folks might find that steering to be a little bit heavy. There's limited touchscreen functionality, and it's got the smallest cargo space of all three. All right, as you know, there can be only one, and we've added up the scores. Believe it or not, the Mazda and the Honda are both tied at 8.1, but we're going to give it to the Honda because we think the driving experience is going to be more universally acceptable to consumers. The RAV4 here, it's still up there, but it is at a 7.8. Third place, y'all. Third place. Hey, thanks so much for watching. If you would like to go down the rabbit hole on any of these vehicles, or, I don't know, any vehicle that's ever made, don't worry. We've got it all for you over there on edmunds.com. I'll see you there.