For comparison, if you want a hybrid Honda CR-V, you’ll have to step up to the Sport Hybrid, which starts at $37,080 including destination or $38,580 if you want all-wheel drive. Of course, that’s a mid-level trim for the CR-V (which actually starts at $32,370 including destination), so it isn’t exactly an apples-to-apples comparison, but if you want a hybrid, you want a hybrid. The much-improved Volkswagen Tiguan now starts at $32,280, but sadly, Volkswagen still won’t give us a hybrid version of the Tiguan.
Meanwhile, the Hyundai Tucson Hybrid will cost you $34,300, with all-wheel drive also included in that price. Alternatively, the nonhybrid Tucson starts at $31,300. Its sister crossover, the Kia Sportage, will run you $30,135 just to get in the door, while the hybrid version starts at $31,735. If you want a Sportage hybrid with all-wheel drive, though, you have to step up to the S, which costs $34,035.Â
As far a gas mileage goes, the most fuel-efficient CR-V hybrid is currently rated at 43/36/40 mpg city/highway/combined, with AWD dropping that rating to 40/34/37 mpg, giving a slight advantage to the new RAV4 there. Then there’s the Tucson Hybrid, which is rated slightly lower at 38/38/38 mpg, and the Sportage Hybrid, which is rated at 41/44/42 mpg or 35/36/35 mpg if you spring for the higher trim level that includes all-wheel drive.Â
Of course, there’s also a lot more to buying a car than price and fuel economy, and you really need to drive a couple of competitors before you decide on one that fits your needs the best. Or you could just buy the RAV4, which sure seems like the choice a lot of people make these days.
