Toyota has been the pioneer of the hybrid technology since the early 90’s and to this date other manufacturers are catching up. Toyota redesigned the Avalon for 2013 and with great success with sales, it saw it fitting to introduce the hybrid model for 2014.
For this week Toyota dropped off a 2014 Avalon Hybrid Limited at our driveway and for a second we confused it with a Lexus. That says a lot since Avalon has always been the boring child of the Toyota line-up. That has changed with the 2013 redesign and now you see a sharp looking sedan packed with all the luxury features that you would expect in a Lexus without paying the Lexus price.
The 2014 Avalon Hybrid is offered in XLE Premium, XLE Touring and Limited model options.
The XLE Premium comes standard with automatic headlights, 17-inch alloy wheels, , heated mirrors, a sunroof, a tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel, leather upholstery, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, a rearview camera, dual-zone automatic climate control, full power accessories, cruise control, an auxiliary audio jack and a USB/iPod interface, an eight-way power driver seat with power lumbar support, a four-way power front passenger seat and heated front seats. Electronic features include keyless ignition/entry, Bluetooth phone and audio connectivity, a 6.1-inch touchscreen display and an eight-speaker audio system with a CD player.
The XLE Touring adds Toyota’s Entune smartphone app integration system, driver seat and side mirror memory seats, foglights, and a navigation system.
The Limited model is the fully optioned out and it includes everything above and adds a 7-inch touchscreen display and an 11-speaker JBL premium sound system, xenon headlights, rain-sensing wipers, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alerts, upgraded leather upholstery, a 10-way power driver seat, an eight-way power passenger seat, ventilated front seats, auto-dimming side mirrors, heated rear seats, tri-zone automatic climate control, a rear power sunshade and hard-drive based navigation, .
Our 2014 Toyota Avalon Hybrid Limited was powered by a 2.5 liter four-cylinder engine paired with an electric motor that’s fed by a trunk-mounted battery pack. This power plant is capable of delivering 200-hp and the power is transferred to the wheels using a CVT transmission.
EPA estimates that the Avalon Hybrid should return around 40 MPG combined driving. During our week long testing we averaged 35.1 MPG of combined highway and city driving.
The Avalon Hybrid’s interior is extremely spacious and well designed. Limited model’s plush leather seats are perfectly suitable for your long work commutes. Front seats are highly adjustable and contain plenty of side bolstering / lumbar support. Rear seats provide plenty of room for a family of 4 or 5 to take the Avalon hybrid to family trips.
The whole multimedia system is very user friendly and we were impressed with the theater-like sound quality. Pairing a bluetooth device is straight forward and we were able to enjoy the music through Spotify.
There are storage compartments that provide ample room for drinks and other items. The trunk of the 2014 Toyota Avalon Hybrid offers 14 cubic feet of space which technically is less than a standard Avalon but still more than enough if we compare to other midsize hybrids.
We think that the 2014 Avalon Hybrid is a model in its own class as there is not much offered by other manufacturers in premium hybrid segment. What we have here is a very impressively designed Sedan paired with the hybrid technology and a Lexus-like interior that offers one of the best automobiles for your daily driving.
Being a Toyota, the interior is very quiet at high speeds and the throttle response is very active. We think that this is a whole lot of car for the price Toyota is charging and there is not much out there in terms of competition.
Overall, we were very impressed with the 2014 Toyota Avalon Hybrid Limited and we will miss this great sedan as it leaves our driveway tomorrow.
