Long-Term 2025 Toyota 4Runner Update: How Efficient Is the Hybrid After 5,000 Miles?
By Brian Normile
August 28, 2025
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2025 Toyota 4Runner Hybrid TRD Off-Road Premium | Cars.com photo by Christian Lantry
When we bought a hybrid 2025 Toyota 4Runner TRD Off-Road Premium, we were intrigued by the prospect of … well, maybe not good gas mileage, but at least adequate fuel economy. If you’ve ever owned a 4Runner (I miss my 1997 Limited every day), you know that a fuel-efficient one is something of an alien concept. The all-new 2025 4Runner hybrid is EPA-rated at 23 mpg combined. How has ours performed after our first 5,000 miles of driving?
Related: More Long-Term Toyota 4Runner News
How Efficient Is the 4Runner Hybrid?
- Average calculated fuel economy: 21 mpg
- Average speed per tank: 38 mph
- Miles driven: 5,320
- Gallons of gas pumped: 253
- Total cost of fuel: $855.75
On one hand, 21 mpg from a 4Runner is excellent, relatively speaking; on the other hand, our 4Runner is a hybrid, and we were expecting closer to the EPA-estimated 23 mpg. If you’ve been following our ownership story so far, you know that a key aerodynamic piece, the front air dam, had issues staying attached. Could that have contributed? Possibly, but it’s worth noting that our second most efficient fill-up thus far — following a highway drive from Flint, Mich., to Evanston, Ill. — registered 24 mpg without the air dam attached at all. Our most efficient tank to date, at 24.7 mpg, included part of the reverse of that drive with the air dam.
The lesson here seems to be less that the air dam matters and more that the 4Runner hybrid may get closer to its 24 mpg highway EPA rating than its combined rating. In looking at our fuel-economy log, higher average speeds have tended to produce more efficient trips, though there appears to be a sweet spot at an average speed of 45 mph. Above or below that, our mileage has taken a hit.
How Did Our 5,000-Mile Service Go?
Scheduling an appointment at a nearby dealership was easy using the Toyota app, and the service itself didn’t take very long — roughly an hour and a half for a tire rotation and multipoint inspection, all at no cost to us. For our 10,000-mile scheduled service, we’ll get another tire rotation as well as an oil and filter change, per the manufacturer recommendation.
More Toyota 4Runner News From Cars.com:
- We Bought a 2025 Toyota 4Runner Hybrid, And It Wasn’t That Hard
- Is the 2025 Toyota 4Runner Good for Families?
- Leaky Moonroof, Broken Front Air Dam Send Our Long-Term 2025 Toyota 4Runner in for Service
- What Makes Our 2025 Toyota 4Runner TRD Off-Road Premium … Well, Premium?
- Shop for a 2025 Toyota 4Runner Near You
What’s Next?
Stay tuned to see how we replaced our 4Runner’s front air dam after purchasing a replacement, how it performs off-road, additional mileage updates, and deeper dives into its tech and features. We’ll also document if anything else should break.
Related Video:https://players.brightcove.net/1578086878/HyOJ1bP6_default/index.html?videoId=6372082416112
Cars.com’s Editorial department is your source for automotive news and reviews. In line with Cars.com’s long-standing ethics policy, editors and reviewers don’t accept gifts or free trips from automakers. The Editorial department is independent of Cars.com’s advertising, sales and sponsored content departments.
2026 Subaru Solterra Review: Necessary Improvements
By Brian Normile
August 25, 2025
2026 Subaru Solterra | Cars.com photo by Leslie Cunningham
Is the 2026 Subaru Solterra a Good Electric SUV?
- The redesigned Solterra is certainly much more competitive, with more power (including a new XT variant with 338 horsepower), significantly more range, improved charging capabilities and a new Tesla-style North American Charging Standard. Pretty much everything that could be improved was.
How Does the 2026 Subaru Solterra Compare With Other Electric SUVs?
- While its significant upgrades make the new Solterra much better than the first-generation model, they don’t do anything to raise the ceiling of the segment. Rather, they raise the floor. A Ford Mustang Mach-E is a bit sportier with longer available range, the Volkswagen ID.4 is more comfortable on-road, and the well-rounded Hyundai Ioniq 5 remains a leader in the class. But seeing a Solterra on the road will no longer elicit surprise — at least if it’s the new one.
Subaru announced the redesigned 2026 Solterra this year, and it impressed us when we first saw it in person. The second-generation Solterra, like the first, is the result of a joint venture between Subaru and Toyota, and it shares much of its improvements with its 2026 Toyota bZ cousin. Those include battery, efficiency, charging and interior tech updates that make the Solterra much more than just a vehicle that lets Subaru tick the “sells an electric vehicle” box. And the Solterra, unlike the bZ, comes exclusively with dual-motor all-wheel drive.
Related: Updated 2026 Subaru Solterra EV Boasts More Than 285 Miles of Range
To find out as much as I could about the 2026 Solterra’s improvements — and to give it something of a quick and dirty efficiency test — I headed to Denver to drive the new Solterra on twisty mountain roads both paved and unpaved, on highways and even on a light off-road course (per Cars.com’s ethics policy, we pay for all travel and lodging when attending such manufacturer-sponsored events).
Read on to learn how the Solterra performed.
What Are the 2026 Solterra’s Power, Range and Charging Stats?
Stats matter for EVs, though it’s never a guarantee that an EV will always deliver on its promises. But when the previous Solterra had less than 230 miles of EPA-estimated range in every configuration, a maximum power output of 215 horsepower and a maximum DC fast-charging rate of 100 kilowatts, it never even offered on-paper competitiveness. Compare those numbers to these:
2025 Ford Mustang Mach-E Premium AWD Extended Range
- 370 hp
- 300 miles of range
- 150-kW max DC fast-charging rate
2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 SEL AWD
- 320 hp
- 290 miles of range
- 235-kW max DC fast-charging rate
2025 Volkswagen ID.4 AWD Pro S
- 335 hp
- 263 miles of range
- 175-kW max DC fast-charging rate
Compared with its predecessor, the 2026 Solterra improves on every single one of these stats, with an estimated 288 (Premium) or 278 (Limited, Limited XT and Touring XT) miles of range, 233 or 338 (XT) hp, and a 150-kW DC fast-charging rate. Not one of those specs blows away the Ford, Hyundai or Volkswagen (if they exceed them at all), but at least they’re all competitive now.
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When I started driving, the Solterra Touring XT’s battery was at 100%, and it was showing 280 miles of range — slightly more than its estimated 278 miles. After 121.3 miles of extremely mixed-use driving (including heavy climate-control use, various driving modes and even an off-road course), I’d used 42% of the battery’s charge. The range estimate was now 149 miles, meaning I’d used 131 miles of range — fairly accurate, but not perfect.
I did not, however, get to test the new Solterra’s charging capabilities during my time with it. We’ll have to wait until we have one at our home offices in Chicago for a more thorough evaluation.
How Does the 2026 Subaru Solterra Drive?
1 / 212026 Subaru Solterra, rear badge | Cars.com photo by Leslie Cunningham
The Solterra’s driving experience is fairly pedestrian for an EV. I drove a Touring XT, which Subaru says can accelerate from 0-60 mph in 4.9 seconds. That makes it the quickest model in the automaker’s lineup, but it’s not all that quick in the world of EVs. While there’s far more power than in the last Solterra, flooring the accelerator pedal hardly pushes you into your seat. The added power is more noticeable on the highway, where there is now enough reserve power for worry-free passing and merging.
Ride comfort is adequate, even with my test vehicle’s 20-inch wheels and tires (18s are standard on the Premium). Washboard gravel roads made the Solterra shudder, but it never felt out of control. The standard dual-motor AWD system — retuned for 2026 for better power distribution and control — and the car’s driver-assist features made getting sideways even on dirt hairpins difficult.
Braking feel is solid and linear enough, and while there are five regenerative-braking settings (four if you don’t count “none” as a setting), there is no true one-pedal driving mode. Fortunately, Subaru has tuned the regen admirably, and it’s easy to seamlessly transition from the strongest setting to braking to a full stop with the brake pedal without stopping short and throwing everyone and everything in the car forward. Annoyingly, Subaru has not figured out that drivers might like to keep their regen-braking setting from drive to drive; when the Solterra is turned on again after stopping, it reverts to the weakest “on” setting.
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Standard all-wheel drive made Subaru popular with drivers in cold climates and outdoorsy types alike. The company is also known for its boxer engines.
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How Does the 2026 Subaru Solterra Drive Off-Road?
Subaru is quick to point out the 2026 Solterra has 8.3 inches of ground clearance, and with its standard AWD and dual-mode X-Mode terrain settings, it’s more than capable of tackling the average owner’s off-roading needs — and then some. The course we drove was narrow but not especially challenging, based on my experience, and the Solterra had no issues with the uneven, undulating and loose terrain. The Solterra is not a dedicated off-road rig, but it is a Subaru.
More Subaru Solterra News From Cars.com:
- 2026 Subaru Solterra Up Close: Meaningfully Updated, Nearly Competitive
- Is the 2025 Subaru Solterra a Good EV? 5 Pros, 3 Cons
- 2025 Subaru Solterra Gets Significantly Lower Starting Price, New Trim
- 2024 Subaru Solterra Review: A bZ4X by Another Name?
- Subaru Latest Brand to Adopt Tesla Charging Standard
How Good Is the 2026 Subaru Solterra’s Interior?
1 / 482026 Subaru Solterra, cargo outlet | Cars.com photo by Leslie Cunningham
Inside the Solterra, improvements include a new 14-inch touchscreen — Subaru’s biggest ever and vastly superior to the portrait-oriented displays found in many other current Subaru models. If it’s different from Toyota’s 14-inch infotainment display in any meaningful way, I couldn’t tell. It’s responsive and intuitive enough, and the graphics are crisp.
A new, wider center console now houses two wireless device chargers. It’s a nice design, but over the course of my driving, I found it irritated my right knee. I’m 6-foot-1, and taller drivers may find this even more annoying. Backseat room was good for someone of my height even behind my preferred driving position. Cargo space should be more than adequate for smaller families or folks with pets, but I’m looking forward to measuring the cargo area ourselves to see how it compares with other SUVs.
Should You Buy the 2026 Subaru Solterra?
With a competitive feature set and spec sheet — and assuming competitive pricing (it wasn’t available as of publication) — the 2026 Subaru Solterra is definitely worth your consideration if you’re shopping for an electric compact SUV. If it can deliver on its improved charging and range in the real world — and currently we have no reason to believe it won’t — it’s better than its predecessor in every conceivable way. While it’s not necessarily vastly better than any of its chief competitors, there’s a chance it could be a relative bargain.
Cars.com’s Editorial department is your source for automotive news and reviews. In line with Cars.com’s long-standing ethics policy, editors and reviewers don’t accept gifts or free trips from automakers. The Editorial department is independent of Cars.com’s advertising, sales and sponsored content departments.
Road Test Editor
2025 Toyota Prius Review: Big on Mileage, Small on Space
By Jennifer Geiger
August 27, 2025
2025 Toyota Prius | Cars.com photo by Corey Watts
Is the 2025 Toyota Prius a Good Car?
- Sometimes! While demand for electric vehicles fluctuates, hybrids are having a moment, and one of the best when it comes to meeting its fuel-economy mission is the Toyota Prius. But while the Prius excels at being a hybrid — and a value-minded one at that — it’s a little odd; be ready to make some comfort and ergonomic sacrifices.
What Does the 2025 Toyota Prius Compete With?
- As a hybrid hatchback, the Prius doesn’t have many direct competitors. It goes up against nonhatch hybrids such as the Honda Accord Hybrid sedan, as well as compact SUV hybrids such as the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid and Toyota’s own RAV4 Hybrid; see the models compared.
The Prius was redesigned from the ground up for the 2023 model year, with new styling that was much more radical-looking than the previous model’s chunky, wedgelike silhouette. For 2025, Toyota added a Nightshade version that makes the Prius look even more dramatic, with blacked-out trim, black 19-inch wheels and an exclusive, eye-popping mustard-colored exterior paint called Karashi.
Related: What Are the Best 2025 Hybrids for the Money?
What Fuel Economy Does the 2025 Toyota Prius Get?
1 / 102025 Toyota Prius | Cars.com photo by Corey Watts
The Prius does a couple of things well, primarily fuel efficiency. The base, front-wheel-drive Prius earns an EPA-rated 57 mpg combined; all-wheel drive is available, but it knocks that rating down to 54 mpg combined. XLE and Limited trims are rated 52 mpg combined (49 mpg with AWD), but even those numbers are super competitive: In their base trims, the 2025 Honda Accord Hybrid is rated 48 mpg combined, the 2025 Hyundai Tucson Hybrid is rated 38 mpg combined, and the 2025 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid is rated 39 mpg combined. For those looking for even more efficiency, the Prius Plug-in Hybrid is rated up to 52 mpg combined, with 45 miles of electric-only range. It doesn’t, however, offer AWD. The regular Prius has an EV mode, but it didn’t get me far: I was able to drive on electric-only power for just a couple of blocks at very low speeds.
The Prius’ drama-free driving dynamics are another high point. While it’s always flown its hybrid flag when it comes to styling, it has a very “normal car” driving feel — in the best of ways.
Power comes from a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that’s coupled with an electric motor, good for a combined output of 194 horsepower with FWD (AWD versions get an additional electric motor for the rear wheels and make 196 hp). While I wouldn’t go so far as to call it fast or fun, the Prius has a lively quality to it. Acceleration from a stop is peppy, and it’s pretty maneuverable in around-town driving.
Drive modes add a bit more character or efficiency, depending on what you’re looking for: The Prius’ Sport mode makes for more aggressive acceleration, while Eco mode prioritizes fuel economy.
Overall, the Prius is very comfortable to drive, with suspension tuning that offers good bump absorption, natural-feeling steering and a well-integrated regenerative-braking system that lacks the odd lurchiness some other hybrids struggle with.
What Tech Does the 2025 Toyota Prius Have?
1 / 122025 Toyota Prius | Cars.com photo by Corey Watts
The Prius’ climate and infotainment controls have a straightforward design and are fairly intuitive to use. An 8-inch touchscreen multimedia system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is standard; a larger 12.3-inch screen is optional. The larger screen on my Nightshade trim was easy to use and responsive, with near-seamless connection to wireless Android Auto every time I got in the car.
Wireless phone charging is standard on the Nightshade, which sits just below the top Limited trim in the lineup. Limited-only options include a 360-degree camera system and autonomous parking. My test car came with an optional integrated dashcam that can record emergencies like accidents, but at $375, it was expensive.
In other ways, including its materials and design, the Prius’ cabin is largely forgettable. The Nightshade trim at least adds some visual drama, with black SofTex imitation-leather seats with gray contrast stitching, along with carbon-fiber paneling on the dash.
Shop the 2025 Toyota Prius near you
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