The Toyota Rav4 Electric has a cult following in the United States - and now that Tesla Motors, the electric car company, has teamed up with the Japanese auto maker, lovers of electric Rav's hope a next generation Rav4 EV will come to life.

Well folks, your prayers have been answered.

According to SF Gate, "Toyota recently announced plans to begin selling a new version of the Rav4 EV in 2012, with help from Palo Alto's Tesla Motors. The move adds a new chapter to a quiet success story from the last wave of electric cars..."

Never heard of the Electric Rav4? Toyota produced and distributed the car within the Unites States and Japan from 1997 until 2003. Less than 1500 versions of the car were produced before production came to a halt. Toyota took back and destroyed some of these Rav4's, though approximately 800 are still privately owned in North America.

"Toyota made an electric car that was so much like driving a gas car that most people wouldn't know the difference," said Ron Freund, a Los Gatos software engineer who owns a 2002 electric Rav4. His Rav4 EV, like all the others, receives a top speed of around 8- MPH and can go 100 - 120 miles on a single charge.

The Rav4 will soon be reborn, and the time is right. Every major automotive producer in the world is working on fleets of electric cars for the ever-growing green movement. Toyota, which is already a hit with its EV and hybrid versions of Prius, can do no wrong when it comes to electric cars.

For more info on the upcoming Rav4 electric, and other new Toyota models, come into Motorcars Toyota - 2950 Mayfield Rd., Cleveland Heights, OH 44118.


Source:  http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/07/25/BU1I1EJ47D.DTL