2019 Toyota RAV4 vs 2020 GMC Acadia

The 2019 Toyota RAV4 had a bold, chunky design with sharp edges, drawing inspiration from the Toyota Tacoma pickup. Its aggressive and futuristic look conveyed strength, with a side-profile styling and taillights reminiscent of Toyota’s luxury brand, Lexus. The RAV4 featured a character line breaking up the rear C-pillar, which was more functional for two-tone color options but seemed like unnecessary design clutter for monotone schemes. The interior was surprisingly simple and elegant, with many features integrated into a floating touch screen and a “pod” that spanned from the center dash to the cupholders.

The 2020 GMC Acadia, positioned as a premium brand, had a flat, blunt face with squared-off headlights and a boxier grille, giving it an upscale appearance. The Denali trim, in particular, featured brightwork that underscored its premium aspirations. Inside, changes were subtle, with new electronic transmission shift switches, a redesigned center console, and real open-pore wood trim for Denali models. The cabin had a mix of soft surfaces and hard plastic panels, with controls laid out logically, though it lacked distinctive premium touches beyond leather upholstery and wood trim.

The 2019 Toyota RAV4 came equipped with a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine producing 203 horsepower and 184 pound-feet of torque, paired with an 8-speed automatic transmission. It offered front-wheel drive or two flavors of all-wheel drive, including a more advanced torque-vectoring AWD in the Adventure and Limited trims. The RAV4’s engine performed well on highways but felt sluggish in stop-and-go traffic, making a lot of noise. The ride quality was generally good, though the steering felt twitchy, and there was noticeable body roll. Fuel economy was impressive, with the AWD model achieving 27 mpg city and 34 highway.

The 2020 GMC Acadia offered three engine options: a 193-horsepower 2.5-liter four-cylinder, a 230-horsepower turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder, and a 310-horsepower 3.6-liter V6. All engines were paired with a new nine-speed automatic transmission, with front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive available, except for the AT4 trim, which had a dual-clutch AWD system. The V6 engine provided smooth, refined power and up to 4,000 pounds of towing capacity. The Acadia’s ride and handling were finely tuned, though it lacked a distinctive driving character. Fuel economy for the V6 AWD model was 21 mpg combined.

The 2019 Toyota RAV4’s cabin was clean and upscale, with plenty of cargo space and spacious seating in both rows. The center stack pod contained climate controls, a large tray for small items, drive-mode controls, and a short, stocky shifter. Cargo space measured 37.6 cubic feet with the rear seats up and 69.8 cubic feet with them folded down. The front row had ample storage options, including deep center-control trays and bins in the doors.

The 2020 GMC Acadia could seat five, six, or seven passengers, with the Denali trim offering 6-passenger seating with second-row captain’s chairs. The front seats were wide, supportive, and power-adjustable, with heating and ventilation. The second-row captain’s chairs were also heated, and rear passengers had access to air conditioning vents, USB ports, and a power outlet. Cargo volume was 12.1 cubic feet behind the third row, 41.7 cubic feet with the third row folded, and 79 cubic feet with the second row folded.

The 2019 Toyota RAV4 LE came standard with a 7-inch touchscreen running Entune 3, offering Apple CarPlay but not Android Auto. The XLE trim added five USB ports, while the Adventure trim featured an upgraded panoramic reversing camera and a larger 8-inch Entune screen. The infotainment system was user-friendly, with hard dials for major functions and real dials for volume and tuning.

The 2020 GMC Acadia included Bluetooth connectivity, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and GMC Connected Services with a 4G LTE WiFi hotspot. Higher trims had an 8-inch touchscreen with a higher resolution display, improved voice recognition, and a Bose premium sound system. New for 2020 were USB-C ports, a more powerful wireless charging pad, a high-definition surround-view camera, and a rear camera mirror.

The 2019 Toyota RAV4 came standard with a full array of airbags, a reversing camera, traction control, and a tire-pressure monitoring system. Toyota Safety Sense 2.0 was also standard, including forward-collision warning, lane-departure warning, automatic high-beams, dynamic radar cruise control, traffic-sign detection, and Lane-Tracing Assist.

The 2020 GMC Acadia included a rear-seat reminder system, Teen Driver technology, and GMC Connected Services with automatic collision notification and SOS emergency calling. Standard ADAS features included blind-spot warning and rear cross-traffic warning. Forward collision warning and low-speed automatic emergency braking were available on higher trims, with enhanced automatic emergency braking exclusive to the Denali trim. The Acadia received 5-star ratings in most NHTSA crash tests and high marks from the IIHS, though it lacked complete data.