Toyota RAV4 Hybrid wait times could stretch to all-new model

Toyota executives have conceded wait times for the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid – Australia's most popular SUV and top-selling petrol-electric car – are now so long customers at the back of the queue could be rewarded by being among the first to take delivery of the next all-new model.

Wait times for the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid remain between 18 months and two years for the most popular variants, though some customers have reported taking delivery six to 12 months from placing an order after buyers in the waiting list ahead of them pulled out of the deal.

Toyota Australia says it is still working overtime to meet the unprecedented demand for the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid.

Despite boosting production, Toyota is still struggling to keep up with demand for one of Australia's most fuel-efficient family SUVs.

"The wait times are as much about demand as they are about production capacity," says Toyota Australia vice president, sales and marketing, Sean Hanley.

"We understand the frustration of our customers and we are truly grateful for their patience. Please know we are doing everything we can to deliver their new car."

Unlike other car-makers such as Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Peugeot which have removed some hi-tech features to reduce the number of semiconductors (computer chips) each vehicle requires in order to keep production lines moving, Toyota has rightly elected to not remove important safety technology from its cars.

The net result is longer waiting times for Toyota vehicles – but customers receive their new car fully-equipped (or better-equipped) once it eventually arrives.

"It's not light for us to understand the frustrations out there at the moment. We get it," said Mr Hanley.

"We're trying our very best to expedite car delivery and review our processes every day."

When asked if it was possible for wait times to come down as some customers at the head of the queue pull out of their deal, Mr Hanley said: "It is possible wait times could come down. It is possible we may be able to increase our supply, depending on what happens in other markets, but we want to manage expectations.

"We're always looking at different ways we can improve our allocation. There's not a week goes past where we're not trying to think of a better way to get these cars to customers quicker and more efficiently … whether it be through better allocations, whether it be through shorter pre-delivery times, or looking at less downtime in the logistics process."

When asked if it was possible the wait times were now so long that customers at the back of the queue might not take delivery until the next-generation Toyota RAV4 Hybrid goes on sale, Mr Hanley said: "It is possible. When we will sell that car now, we acknowledge completely to the customer that the price and specs of that car could change, so everyone goes in knowing what the circumstances are."

The Toyota RAV4 model lifecycle is typically five to six years, which means the next-generation Toyota RAV4 is due in 2024 or 2025 after arriving in local showrooms in 2019.

Mr Hanley said while Toyota Australia strived to be upfront with customers about the delays – and the potential for changes to prices and the fitment of additional equipment – there were unprecedented variables such as parts shortages, production slowdowns and shipping bottlenecks that have made it impossible to provide accurate vehicle arrival timing.

"These are unprecedented times and we of course would love to see these wait times come down," said Mr Hanley.

"That said, we know the circumstances of customers can change, so if someone wants out of the deal, we're not holding them in."

As is the case with most car brands, Toyota customers who no longer want to wait are entitled a full refund of their deposit.

When asked if Toyota Australia was any closer to coming up with an allocation system based on the order in which customers deposits were received, Mr Hanley said:

"The allocation system is still not perfect, but what we are doing now is giving dealers more flexibility to be able to manage their own customer wait times on orders (older than) than 12 months. But even then, that has some limitations."