2022 Toyota Venza Review and Test Drive

This Lexus-lite compact crossover focuses on style and efficiency.

Christian Wardlaw | 

Dec 21, 2022 | 10 min read

Capital One

According to Toyota, the Toyota Venza is a mashup of "venture" and the Northern Italian city of Monza, home of the Autodromo Nazionale Monza racetrack.

Toyota has used the Venza nameplate before, applying it to a mid-size crossover SUV that was more like a Camry station wagon than anything else. It was really roomy inside, had an unusually good sense of style for a Toyota, and offered decent performance but suffered from cheap interior fittings.

Now, the Venza name adorns a highly stylized version of the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid. Had I not told you that, you'd likely never guess that underneath its clean, rakish bodywork, the latest Venza shares a platform, powertrain, and plenty of other components with the RAV4. Toyota re-introduced the Venza for the 2021 model year and made no updates for 2022.

The Venza is for a different kind of buyer, though. It trades rugged design for an upscale aesthetic, and though it comes with standard all-wheel drive (AWD), it’s designed to tackle challenges no more complicated than a slippery or muddy road. Toyota markets the 2022 Venza as a two-row mid-size SUV with a price tag to match. But it's smaller inside than a RAV4, so the reality is that the Venza is closer in size to a compact crossover SUV.

The 2022 Toyota Venza comes in LE, XLE, and Limited trim levels, and base prices range from around the mid $30,000s to the low $40,000s, including the destination charge to ship the SUV from the Toyota City, Japan, factory that builds it to your local dealership.

For this Venza review, I test-drove the Limited in Southern California. It came with the Advanced Technology package, an All-Weather Floor Liner package, and a panoramic sunroof, bringing the manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) to about $44,459, including the $1,335 destination charge. Toyota provided the vehicle for this Venza review.

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2022 Toyota Venza Review: The Design

The Toyota Venza has a sense of style, with just enough drama in the details to make it distinctive. Like many modern Toyota and Lexus models, the front end is overdrawn, with angry LED headlight designs and a gape-mouthed grille flanked by oversized air intakes. But, it looks cleanly integrated with the rest of the Venza's flowing, upscale appearance.

Step inside the Toyota Venza Limited, and the sense of luxury on a budget continues. Toyota employs numerous soft-touch surfaces with contrast stitching, fabric-wrapped windshield pillars, gloss black trim, ambient cabin lighting, and convincing artificial leather to make the SUV look and feel like a premium model. Toyota also claims to have taken numerous steps to quiet the interior, though, during our test drive, it was apparent the Venza isn't as serene inside as you might expect.

Choose the Venza XLE or Limited, and the SUV features touch-capacitive dashboard controls for the stereo, climate, and infotainment system's main menu selections. That approach creates a modern and clean interior aesthetic, but it comes at the cost of driver distraction. It’s nearly impossible to use these touch-sensing controls without looking down and away from the road. Toyota compensates for it with volume and tuning controls on the steering wheel, but otherwise, you're stuck with the touch-sensing panel.

The Venza Limited seems markedly upscale compared to other mass-market compact SUVs. I call it 'Lexus-lite' because it is like an entry-level Lexus inside and adopts its S-Flow climate control system from Toyota's luxury brand. With S-Flow active, the air conditioning directs cool air only to occupied seats, helping to improve overall efficiency.

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An eight-way power-adjustable driver's seat is standard, and in the Limited test vehicle, both front seats offered heating and ventilation. The seat is comfortable on longer drives and provides excellent leg support. Unfortunately, the front passenger doesn't benefit from a similar range of adjustments.

Toyota installs the Venza's back seat over the SUV's battery pack, but the seating position is still a little too low and lacking in thigh support. However, adults will find plenty of headroom and legroom in addition to air conditioning vents, USB charging ports, and cupholders in the center fold-down armrest.

The test vehicle had Toyota's Star Gaze panoramic sunroof. It uses electrochromic glass that you can activate for a "frosted" instead of a transparent effect, blocking out the sun's rays while allowing plenty of natural light to flood the cabin.

Storage space is merely adequate. In front, there is a small bin under the center console armrest, a moderately roomy glove compartment, and relatively small bottle and storage pockets in the door panels. Seemingly sacrificed for style, the center console design wastes plenty of space and forces the wireless charging pad into a narrow, awkward location under the bottom of the dashboard.

A hands-free power liftgate reveals about 28 cu.-ft. of cargo space behind the back seat. Fold the rear seat down, and the available room expands to around 55.1 cu.-ft. There is a spare tire under the load floor, but Toyota doesn't offer any storage areas surrounding it, a missed opportunity. The cargo area also does not have nets or recessed trays where you can secure items such as wine bottles, yet another missed opportunity.

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2022 Toyota Venza Review: The Technology

Toyota mounts the Venza's touchscreen infotainment systems high on the dashboard, where they are easy to see and use. With LE and XLE trim, an 8-inch touchscreen display is standard, while the Limited features a 12.3-inch touchscreen with a navigation system and a nine-speaker JBL premium sound system.

Highlights of each include Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Amazon Alexa integration, SiriusXM satellite radio, and Toyota Connected Services. The connected service plans offer access to a Wi-Fi hotspot, remote access to vehicle functions, safety-related features, and more. Toyota provides complimentary subscriptions of varying lengths, and after they expire, the owner must pay a monthly or annual fee to keep them active.

Generally, I found the technology agreeable. However, in addition to the distracting touch-sensing main menu buttons, the touchscreen user experience isn't always intuitive. Furthermore, while the voice recognition system successfully interpreted many of my test prompts, it did not filter its database only for hospitals when requesting directions to the closest one. It also could not find reggae music when SiriusXM dedicates Channel 19 to the genre and you cannot adjust cabin temperature by voice, which could resolve issues with the climate-system touch panel.

With Limited trim, a nine-speaker JBL surround-sound audio system is standard. Toyota claims it worked with JBL to optimize the sound quality specifically for the Venza's interior, but I was unimpressed. To level the playing field between test vehicles, I evaluate audio systems with all settings centered, and this JBL system lacked clarity in its default settings.

In addition to the infotainment system, the Venza Limited had a digital rearview mirror, a 10-inch head-up display, and a surround-view camera. The digital rearview mirror is great when you've got the Venza packed to the roof with cargo. Otherwise, I thought the display was too close to the driver, forcing sharp and uncomfortable transitions in focus when looking from the road to the mirror and back to the road again.

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Toyota Safety Sense 2.0 (TSS 2.0) is standard on the 2022 Venza. It is a collection of safety features, including adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go capability, forward-collision warning with pedestrian detection and cyclist detection, and automatic emergency braking. Additionally, TSS 2.0 contains lane-departure warning, lane-keeping assist, and lane-centering assist systems, plus a road sign recognition system and automatic high-beam headlights.

Separately, Toyota also equips every 2022 Venza with blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert. In addition, starting with the XLE trim, the SUV adds front and rear parking sensors with automatic low-speed braking.

I tested TSS 2.0 on freeways in the Los Angeles area and on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu. The adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping systems worked well on the freeways, performing better than examples of the technology in other Toyotas I've tested. However, on PCH, driving toward the sun on a late fall afternoon, it struggled for accuracy, especially in shadows or when traveling through old construction zones with pavement scars.

One thing I like about TSS 2.0 is the lane-departure warning system's vibration through the steering wheel, which is accompanied by an appropriate audible alert. It feels and sounds natural, so the driver is more inclined to keep the system engaged rather than turn it off due to irritation.

Toyota Venza crash-test ratings suggest this is a safe SUV. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) gives it a 5-star overall rating, while the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) calls it a Top Safety Pick.

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2022 Toyota Venza Review: The Drive

If you buy a 2022 Toyota Venza, you'll get a hybrid powertrain with AWD. That is the only way Toyota builds the SUV, and it's a decent setup that makes a combined 219 hp.

A 2.5L four-cylinder engine serves as the foundation of the hybrid drivetrain. It pairs with 88 kW front and 40 kW rear electric motors, a lithium-ion battery stashed underneath the back seat, and a continuously variable transmission (CVT). Drivers can select between Eco, Normal, and Sport driving modes, and if they're proactive, they can push an EV mode button for low-speed situations like heavy traffic and searching for a parking space in a lot. As long as the battery pack has enough electricity, the EV mode supplies electric-only driving for short distances, helping to conserve fuel.

The testing loop didn't include those kinds of driving situations. Their omission, in combination with mountainous terrain ranging from sea level to approximately 1,800 feet of elevation, undoubtedly contributed to the Venza's lackluster fuel economy showing of 34.7 mpg, which fell short of the EPA estimated combined figure of 39 mpg. I also used the Sport driving mode for the portions of the route that are typically fun to drive.

Unfortunately, the Toyota Venza is anything but fun to drive. Under hard acceleration, the powertrain moans, groans, and drones in an unbecoming fashion. The automaker says the Venza has Active Cornering Assist, a feature that uses the stability control system to reduce understeer. Too bad Toyota equips the Venza with Bridgestone Ecopia all-season tires that howl in discontent at the slightest provocation and soft suspension tuning that struggles to manage body motions on undulating highway surfaces.

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Is the 2022 Toyota Venza a Good SUV?

The stylish Toyota Venza is great for someone who wants a Lexus NX or Lexus RX but doesn't want to pay the premium for a luxury brand. And, in the spirit of saving money, the Venza's standard hybrid drivetrain also helps its owners to pinch pennies as the gas pump. Plus, a standard Toyota Care plan provides free scheduled maintenance for two years or 25,000 miles, whichever comes first. The Venza also employs tried-and-true powertrain components, is made by a company that earned its reputation for reliability for a good reason, and is a safe SUV based on official crash-test ratings. Though it isn’t likely to excite you with its canyon-carving skills, the Venza is a capable alternative to Toyota’s popular RAV4, especially if you like the design and safety.

Christian Wardlaw

My first word was “car.” That’s what I’m told, anyway. For as long as I can remember, I’ve been obsessed with them. The design. The engineering. The performance. And the purpose. I’m a car enthusiast who loves to drive, but I’m also most interested in the cars, trucks, and SUVs that people actually buy. Anybody can tell you that a sports car is fast. What you need to know is whether or not you should buy that new SUV, and why. My life purpose is to help you make that decision.