Toyota RAV4 sales showed signs of improvement in August, but the crossover remains far behind the Honda CR-V after a major production disruption earlier in 2026. With four months left in the year, Toyota faces a steep challenge if it hopes to regain its position as the best-selling “not a pickup” in the United States.
RAV4 Sales Improve in August
Toyota dealers in the U.S. sold 34,232 RAV4 units in August. While that would be a strong result for many automakers, the figure remains disappointing for Toyota given the model’s recent sales performance.
August sales were down 19% from August 2025. Even so, the decline was considerably smaller than the 32% year-to-date drop recorded through the first eight months of 2026.
The improvement is especially notable compared with February, when RAV4 sales plunged 57% from the same month a year earlier. Toyota sold just 16,098 RAV4s that month, at a point when the crossover appeared in danger of falling behind the Tacoma, Corolla and Camry on Toyota’s own sales charts.
The RAV4 remains behind the Camry at this point in 2026.
Honda CR-V Widens Its Lead
While Toyota’s RAV4 sales have begun to recover, Honda’s CR-V is moving in the opposite direction. Honda sold 37,607 CR-Vs in August, a 10% increase compared with the same month last year.
The CR-V is also up 8.3% for the year, with Honda selling 302,056 units through the first eight months of 2026.
Based on that pace, the CR-V is on track to sell around 443,000 units this year. That figure would likely make it the best-selling vehicle that is not a truck, while the Ford F-Series and Chevrolet Silverado lines are expected to retain the first and second spots overall.
Why Toyota RAV4 Sales Fell Behind
The gap between the two crossovers is now substantial. The RAV4 trails the CR-V by 82,584 units with four months remaining in 2026.
For Toyota to close that gap, it would need to sell 20,000 more RAV4s than Honda sells CR-Vs every month for the rest of the year.
The RAV4’s best-ever sales month came in March 2021, when Toyota sold just over 47,000 units. Matching that pace every month while adding another 10,000 units each month could put Toyota close to Honda’s total.
Alternatively, CR-V sales would have to fall sharply, something the current numbers do not indicate.
Toyota’s Production Change Hurt RAV4 Sales
The sales decline is tied to Toyota’s transition to the latest-generation RAV4. The automaker stopped building RAV4s at its largest plant in the world, and the production change had a significant effect on supply.
Toyota phased in production of the latest RAV4 across the multiple factories that build the model. The company changed over its plants in Japan and Canada first because those facilities produced more RAV4s for the U.S. market.
However, Toyota’s Kentucky plant, which builds roughly 6,700 RAV4s per month, went months without producing the SUV. That number alone does not account for the entire sales deficit, but the shortfall grew when combined with missed production weeks at the other two plants.
Toyota began building the 2026 RAV4 in Japan before the end of 2025 and started production in Canada in January. The automaker did not begin building the 2026 RAV4 at the Kentucky plant until June.
Toyota has not explained why the Kentucky production change took until June. Queries earlier this summer were met with non-answers.
Why the RAV4 Supply Shortage Matters
The Toyota RAV4 has been a major sales performer because it is affordable, reliable and good. A production shortage of this size can affect more than RAV4 shoppers, particularly as buyers turn to other crossover models.
With fewer RAV4s reaching dealers, the shortage can encourage dealers to mark up available vehicles. As shoppers move to competing models, inventory of those vehicles can also tighten, potentially reducing incentives.
Meeting demand for the RAV4 could therefore benefit buyers looking for affordable vehicles, while the effects of the current supply disruption could extend into the used market for years.
