Toyota's small hybrid SUV is no longer called the 2025 RAV4 Prime, now replaced by PHEV. But should customers really care?

Toyota’s Prius had its full glow-up redesign for 2023, and now the automaker is switching up what it’s called, too. The 2025 Prius Prime will now go by a more straightforward name: the Prius Plug-in Hybrid. The same goes for the Rav4 Prime, which is now called the Rav4 Plug-in Hybrid.

The Honda CR-V Hybrid and Toyota RAV4 Hybrid consistently rank among the top hybrid SUVs in terms of sales and customer satisfaction. Both models have a long history of consumer trust, with the RAV4 Hybrid often praised for its rugged design and reliable performance, while the CR-V Hybrid is known for its spaciousness and family-friendly appeal.

For 2025, Toyota has decided to bestow its plug-in-hybrid models with a simpler naming scheme to make the different choices clearer to customers.

Toyota is moving away from calling its plug-in hybrid models Prime, instead defaulting to simply Plug-In Hybrid. The change is reflected in the 2025 model-year Prius and RAV4 models. Toyota says the ’25 RAV4 Plug-In Hybrid models are scheduled to arrive at dealerships in limited quantities before the end of the year.

The only real change Toyota made to the 2025 RAV4 is dripping the Prime name from the plug-in hybrid option—from now on it will be known as the Toyota RAV4 PHEV. Toyota says the move is aimed at clarifying powertrain hierarchy and making shopping easier for consumers.

One could argue that, under its new name, the Prius PHEV is all-new for 2025. But aside from the badge, it’s the same vehicle as the 2024 Prius Prime. The plug-in uses the same 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine as the regular Prius,

T he Prius Prime and RAV4 Prime are no more—well, at least, their names are no more. If you're looking for a plug-in hybrid Toyota, however, your search just got easier, because

The automaker believes that the new name will help consumers "more easily identify the powertrain choices" among Prius and RAV4 models