• 2 min read
Toyota may bring back buttons in the RAV4
Toyota says it may restore physical controls after pushing too many functions onto the new RAV4's touchscreen.
Image: iXBT
Toyota says it may have gone too far with touch controls in the latest RAV4. Yoshinori Nagane, the model’s chief engineer, said the company is prepared to bring back some physical buttons and switches if owner feedback is negative.
Nagane said the new-generation RAV4 still keeps several commonly used physical controls, including the volume knob, air-conditioning temperature buttons, and drive mode shortcuts. But functions that were previously handled by separate switches — such as airflow, airflow direction, and seat heating — have been moved into the central touchscreen.
Nagane said Toyota had originally considered cutting back physical controls even further.
“At present, too many functions are placed on the screen. We were considering how many physical switches could be retained, as the team was trying to move more functions onto the screen.”
He added that Toyota is closely collecting owner feedback and reviewing whether it makes sense to restore some physical controls in future updates. Asked whether Toyota is willing to add more switches, his answer was direct:
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“If necessary — yes.”
Nagane also said buyer preferences in China are shifting. According to him, Chinese drivers no longer want cars overloaded with screen-dependent features and instead want knobs and switches.
Frontier Editor
Dan is our resident futurist, covering electric mobility, space exploration, and the smart home. He's interested in atoms just as much as bits. Whether it's a new battery chemistry, a reusable rocket, or a protocol that finally makes IoT devices talk to each other, Dan breaks down the engineering that pushes humanity forward.
via iXBT
