Tyler Savage on Tuesday, 20 July 2010 16:49

Tesla adds the Toyota RAV4 to its fleet of electric vehicles

The Tesla-Toyota partnership continues to grow as the companies announce that Tesla will be producing Toyota's RAV4 electric crossover-utility vehicle.  The new RAV4 will join the the Tesla Model S as the two electric vehicles to be released in 2012.

This is good news for those drivers who were fans of the RAV4 EV during the vehicles first production run in the late 1990s.  Toyota's increasing partnership with Tesla is perhaps even better news as it signals a growing presence in the EV market for both automakers.  Additionally, it allows Toyota to focus its attention on commuter cars which is likely going to be a significant portion of the consumer market.

Toyota's U.S. sales division president, Jim Lentz, said "a lot of our electric-vehicle work has been in small, commuter-type cars, because that's the direction we think most consumers will want to go."

Lentz highlighted the importance of the partnership as it gives Toyota the ability to "go in different directions at the same time."  He said that if consumers are looking for something other than commuter cars Tesla will help Toyota "have alternatives in play."

There was no announcement as to the price of the new RAV4 EV, but it will likely be an affordable option for consumers looking for the versatility of an SUV that has the benefit of a zero-emissions vehicle.