Compare the2025 Toyota Rav4VS 2025 MINI Countryman

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Toyota Rav4 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The MINI Countryman doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Toyota Rav4 are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The MINI Countryman doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

Both the Rav4 and the Countryman have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, and daytime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the Rav4 the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2023, a rating granted to only 114 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Countryman has not been fully tested, yet.

Toyota’s powertrain warranty covers the Rav4 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than MINI covers the Countryman. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 5 years or 60,000 miles. Coverage on the Countryman ends after only 4 years or 50,000 miles.

There are almost 13 times as many Toyota dealers as there are MINI dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Rav4’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2024 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than MINI vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Toyota second in reliability, above the industry average. With 27 more problems per 100 vehicles, MINI is ranked fourth.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than MINI vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Toyota second in overall reliability. MINI is ranked third.

On the EPA test cycle the Rav4 gets better mileage than the Countryman:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Toyota Rav4 uses regular unleaded gasoline. The JCW Countryman requires premium, which can cost on average about 84.9 cents more per gallon.

An eight-speed automatic is standard on the Toyota Rav4, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a seven-speed automatic is available for the Countryman.

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Rav4 is .5 inches wider in the front and 1.3 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Countryman.

For better maneuverability, the Rav4 LE/XLE’s turning circle is 2 feet tighter than the Countryman S’ (36.1 feet vs. 38.1 feet). The Rav4 XLE Premium/Limited’s turning circle is 1.3 feet tighter than the JCW Countryman’s (37.4 feet vs. 38.7 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Rav4 LE/XLE has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Countryman (8.4 vs. 8 inches), allowing the Rav4 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Rav4 XLE Premium/Limited’s minimum ground clearance is .6 inch higher than on the Countryman (8.6 vs. 8 inches).

The Toyota Rav4 may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 200 to 400 pounds less than the MINI Countryman.

The front grille of the Rav4 Limited uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Countryman doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Rav4 has .6 inches more front legroom, 2.1 inches more front shoulder room, .4 inches more rear headroom, .8 inches more rear legroom and 1.6 inches more rear shoulder room than the Countryman.

The Rav4 has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Countryman with its rear seat up (37.6 vs. 25 cubic feet). The Rav4 has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Countryman with its rear seat folded (69.8 vs. 56.2 cubic feet).

While the Countryman JCW is not recommended to tow, any Rav4 can tow a minimum of 1500 pounds.

A Trailer Sway Control is standard on the Rav4, using the Enhanced Vehicle Stability Control sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. A trailer sway program costs extra on the Countryman.

The Rav4 has a higher maximum payload capacity than the Countryman (1240 vs. 1100 lbs.).

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Rav4 has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the Countryman only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

To shield the driver and front passenger’s vision over a larger portion of the windshield and side windows, the Rav4 XLE/Limited has standard extendable sun visors. The Countryman doesn’t offer extendable visors.

Both the Rav4 and the Countryman offer available heated front seats. The Rav4 Limited also offers optional heated rear seats to keep those passengers extremely comfortable in the winter. Heated rear seats aren’t available in the Countryman.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Rav4 Limited keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Countryman doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

Compared to the MINI Countryman, the Toyota Rav4 eliminates the need for separate garage door openers and associated risks of losing, breaking, or having dead batteries with its optional integrated Homelink® universal remote controlled from the rear view mirror.

The Rav4 is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Countryman doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Toyota Rav4, based on reliability, safety and performance.

The Toyota Rav4 outsold the MINI Countryman by almost 35 to one during 2023.