There are four Toyota RAV4-EVs (all-electric vehicles) that you will be seeing around Portland the next couple of years.  These vehicles have been generously provided to Portland State University by Toyota Motor Sales USA.  They will be used initially by PSU and its partners, Portland General Electric and the City of Portland, to promote public awareness and to document operational experience in the performance and capabilities of electric vehicles.  They will be used later in an experimental station car program with Tri-Met.

A Brief History of the Vehicles
Portland’s RAV4 EVs are an all-electric version of the popular RAV4 SUV produced by Toyota. It was sold from 1997 to 2003.

The first fleet version of the RAV4 EV became available on a limited basis in 1997. In 2001 it was possible for businesses, cities or utilities to lease one or two of these cars. Toyota then actually sold or leased 328 RAV4 EVs to the general public in 2003, at which time the program was terminated despite waiting lists of prospective customers.

The RAV4 EV closely resembles the regular internal combustion engine (ICE) version - without a tailpipe - and has a governed top speed of 78 mph with a range of 100 or so. The 95 amp-hour NiMH battery pack has  a capacity of 27 kWh charges inductively and has proven to be surprisingly durable. Some RAV4 EVs have achieved over 150,000 miles on the original battery pack. It was also one of the few vehicles with a single speed automatic transmission at that time.

Besides the batteries, controller and motor, the remaining systems in the RAV4 EV are comparable to the gas-powered RAV4, such as power brakes, power steering, airconditioning, tire wear and suspension components except for the power sources involved. The power brakes use an electric pump to provide vacuum instead of deriving vacuum from the engine manifold while the power steering and air conditioning systems use electric motors instead of mechanical energy delivered by fan belts. The passenger compartment heater is electrical.

Inquiries
Questions or inquiries should be directed to PSU’s EV program director, George Beard.