Our customer brought in their new Rav4 Hybrid XSE for a Blackvue DR590X-2CH install. This camera is sleek and offers a user friendly wifi app with decent video quality. For tech package equipped 5th gen RAV4, the rear dash cam will be mounted off center to avoid blocking the factory camera. We also set his SUV up for some light outdoor adventuring with a roof basket, Curt trailer hitch, and upgraded Falken all terrain tires.
We went with the Falken Wildpeak AT Trail which is the same tire featured on the RAV4 TRD Off Road model. These are not the AT3W which we have on our shop's RAV4 hybrid build but the more street oriented version of their all terrain. The trail tire is 3PMSF winter rated making it more capable than the standard M+S Michelins. There is no appreciable difference in road noise in our experience.
The tire size we went with was 235/60R18 which gives the car a slight lift without any rubbing issues. Our customer wanted a bit of extra sidewall protection against curbs as the gloss black wheels would look terrible if the paint was scratched off. As the car is shared between him and his wife, he felt more confident going with a wider tire. The wheel is the standard factory 18x7 +35 XSE gloss black wheel.
The Curt trailer hitch is a straight forward install with the help of our hoist and transmission jack. Bumper cutting is not necessary unlike some other hitches on the market. The downside to this is that it does hang a bit lower which is not as ideal in off road situations. But for outdoors adventuring like mounting a bike rack, this is not an issue at all.
We also accessorized the SUV out with some grille lights and roof basket. The roof basket does add some wind noise and may inhibit clearance with some underground parkades.
