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>> Toyota is out to Nightshade all the things. The 2023 Toyota Venza Nightshade Edition becomes the latest (possibly the 13th) offering to be dipped in black trim. It's yet another example of the many popular "blacked out" appearance packages popular with consumers these days. However, the Venza Nightshade does allow buyers to get Toyota's Star Gaze panoramic roof at a slightly lower price point. The electrochromic glass lets occupants turn the glass from transparent to frosted with the touch of a button. Normally it's only offered on the range-topping Limited trim, but Toyota is also making it available on Nightshade, which is based on the mid-range XLE. The company hasn't announced Venza Nightshade pricing yet, but it'll likely slot somewhere between the $36,775 Venza XLE and $40,730 Venza Limited. For those here for the black trim, the Venza Nightshade does not disappoint. There's a new acrylic front grille trim, while lower bumpers front and rear feature smoked chrome moldings. Gloss black adorns the hybrid crossover's side mirror caps, door handles, sharkfin antenna and rocker panels as well. Black roof rails are available too. The Venza Nightshade also rolls on gloss black wheels, variants of the 19-inchers found on the XLE and Limited trims. Darkened badges and interior trim finish off the look. Nightshade Venzas are available in three premium exterior colors, Celestial Black, Ruby Flare Red, and Wind Chill Pearl (white). New to all Venzas for the 2023 model year is Toyota's Safety Sense 2.5 suite of driver aids. It includes enhanced pre-collision sensing that can detect pedestrians and vehicles at intersections while the Venza is turning. Audible warnings, along with emergency braking and steering assist round out the forward warning systems. TSS 2.5 also includes adaptive cruise, lane tracing, road sign recognition, automatic high-beams, and rear seat reminders. Though not part of TSS, Venzas also come standard with rear cross traffic alerts, rear automatic braking and blind spot warning. LED fog lamps are standard on XLE, Nightshade, and Limited trims for 2023. Built on Toyota's TNGA-K modular platform, the Venza's sole powertrain mates a 2.5-liter four-cylinder with three electric motors and a lithium-ion battery for a combined 219 horsepower. It is nearly identical mechanically to the RAV4 Hybrid AWD. You Might Also Like
The Car Connection Expert ReviewJune 26, 2022 Likes
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Buying tipA base Venza is the best Venza for the money, but the XLE adds the latest, largest touchscreen. features & specsLE AWD Limited AWD Nightshade AWD Not quite RAV4, not quite Lexus RX, the 2023 Toyota Venza hybrid crossover is a tweener in everything but efficiency and comfort.What kind of car is the 2023 Toyota Venza? What does it compare to? The hybrid Venza compact crossover seats five people and is half a foot longer but no roomier than the related Toyota RAV4. The Venza rivals mid-size crossovers such as the Honda Passport and Chevy Blazer, as well as large compact crossovers such as the Kia Sportage and Volkswagen Tiguan. Is the 2023 Toyota Venza a good car? Review continues below With excellent fuel economy, good standard features, and a Lexus-like fit and finish, the Venza earns a TCC Rating of 7.2 out of 10. (Read more about how we rate cars.) What’s new for the 2023 Toyota Venza? The Venza is the latest Toyota to undergo the Nightshade treatment with blackout trim, 19-inch gloss black wheels, and a red, white, or black body. Built off the mid-grade XLE, it joins base LE and top Limited grades. The XLE and above come with a much improved 12.3-inch touchscreen designed for North American consumers. Toyota also updated its safety suite across the board for 2023. Sharing a platform with the RAV4 and other Toyota crossovers, the Venza smooths out the edges and angles of its punky sibling with a more mature, urbane look with a gently curving roofline and rounded corners. The sophistication carries over inside, with premium touches and features on all but the base grade. It could be a Lexus as easily as it is a Toyota. The Venza prioritizes the kind of performance most important to most crossover shoppers: It’s quiet, comfy, and secure with standard all-wheel drive, but mostly it’s reassuringly efficient at 39 mpg combined. With its 2.5-liter inline-4 and three compact electric motors, the Venza might reach 60 mph in seven seconds, but it shuffles through its CVT without notice or noise. It rides comfortably and is composed as well, even when it leans into corners. The two-row Venza stretches six inches longer than the related RAV4, but has less cargo room in back. Still, the Venza plies its trade in comfort and roominess for four adults, with 37.8 inches of rear leg room. Squeezing three kids in the back bench would squeeze everyone’s patience. The front power seats have ample support and automatically shift to the rearmost position when getting in and out. The rounded roofline trims a little bit of head room in back, and shaves nearly 12 cubic feet of cargo room from the RAV4. That 28.8 cubic feet of space is easily accessed, however, with a standard power tailgate. Every Venza comes with Toyota’s latest suite of safety and driver-assist systems, including automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, blind-spot monitors, active lane control, and adaptive cruise control. The NHTSA and the IIHS give it top safety ratings, though the feds found fault on front driver-side protection. How much does the 2023 Toyota Venza cost? Pricing for the updated 2023 model hasn’t been announced but expect it to be more than last year’s base $34,000 Venza LE. It rolls on 18-inch wheels, and comes with a power driver’s seat, cloth upholstery, an 8.0-inch touchscreen, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and three USB ports, including two Type-C ports. The Venza Limited tops the lineup at about $43,000 for a surround-view camera system, synthetic leather upholstery, and heated and cooled front seats. Where is the 2023 Toyota Venza made? In Japan. The Toyota Venza smooths out the harsh angles of other Toyota crossover SUVs.Is the Toyota Venza a good-looking car? Understated but confident, smooth with sophistication, the Venza earns a point each for its exterior curves and interior calm. It’s a 7. Far removed from the wagonesque design of its predecessor that launched in the aughts, the new Venza embraces classic crossover proportions smoothed over from all the angles and flair other compact crossovers use to stand out in this homogeneous segment. It eschews the hard creases and jutting angles of the related RAV4 for a curving urbane shape befitting a Lexus, without the oversized grille. The Nightshade trim gives it an edge cloaked in black trim bits and 19-inch black alloy wheels. The interior carries over the cohesion, except for an available 12.3-inch touchscreen jutting out of the dash. Soft synthetic leather pads the arm and hand surfaces, while cross stitching and seat piping elevate it above pricier Toyota crossover SUVs. Review continues below Made to stretch a gallon, the Venza makes cents.Built for quiet, comfort, and efficiency, the 2023 Venza won’t boost heart rates behind the wheel, by design. Its insulated ride earns it a point here to a 6. Is the Toyota Venza 4WD? All Venzas have all-wheel drive and all Venzas are hybrids. How fast is the Toyota Venza? That’s besides the point but its hybrid system could clip its way to 60 mph on the soft side of seven seconds. A 2.5-liter inline-4 pairs with one of the system’s three motors, and the other two drive the rear wheels for a technically interesting version of all-wheel drive. The system outputs 219 hp with a very smooth and quiet integration of gasoline and electric power. Acceleration can feel slushy or inconsistent due to its electric gearless transmission that hunts around the powerband to optimize efficiency. The braking sometimes also feels less than linear because of a regen brake setting that comes on first, but it becomes familiar quickly. The quest for fuel economy is manifest in a navigation system that defaults to the most efficient routes, which can be a surprising frustration. Caveat navigator. With softer springs and shocks than the RAV4, the Venza rides with Lexus-like damping and significant insulation from road, wind, and engine noise. The tradeoff is a lack of driving excitement in its handling, but that’s not what motivates the Venza in the first place. Review continues below The Venza could be considered a Lexus RAV4.Sized similarly to the RAV4, Toyota finishes the 2023 Venza with Lexus-like touches in the cabin. Synthetic leather covers the console, door and dash panels, and contrast stitching and seat piping lend it an air of refinement that’s matched by its quiet ride. Comfy front seats with a standard power driver seat earn it a point, as do a roomy rear seat area and cargo hold. It’s an 8. Toyota covers the Venza’s supportive standard front seats in cloth, though synthetic leather, passenger power adjustments, and heating and cooling are accessible upgrades. Unlike some Lexus grades, the lack of tilting thigh cushions keeps them from being luxurious thrones. One luxury touch is the standard driver seat that automatically shifts to the rearmost position when getting in and out then resets to the driver’s saved position once seated. The Venza plies its trade in comfort and roominess for four adults, with 37.8 inches of rear leg room though head room back there might get pinched for adults taller than six feet. Squeezing three kids in the back bench might squeeze everyone’s patience, too. The two-row Venza stretches 6.0 inches longer than the related RAV4, but its curved roofline trims nearly 10 cubic feet of space in back. That 28.8 cubic feet of space is easily accessed, however, with a standard power tailgate and 60/40-split rear seats that fold down for 55.1 cubic feet of space behind the front seats. The numbers translate to an ability to transport people and gear with ease. Review continues below The Venza proves its safety mettle.How safe is the Toyota Venza? Toyota equips the Venza with a suite of standard driver-assist features, and it performed mostly well in the NHTSA and the IIHS crash tests, with an exception. It’s an 8 here. The NHTSA awarded it five stars overall, but faulted it with only four stars on its front-impact protection. The IIHS dubs it a Top Safety Pick, with “Good” scores for all subtests. On a new side-impact test instituted this year by the IIHS, the Venza earned an “Acceptable” rating. Every Venza comes with Toyota’s latest suite of safety and driver-assist systems, including automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection that now senses potential danger from cars, cyclists, and pedestrians when turning at intersections. Also standard are blind-spot monitors, active lane control, adaptive cruise control, automatic high beams, and a rear-seat reminder. Parking sensors and a surround-view camera system are offered—and useful to boost rearward vision that’s compromised by the roofline. Review continues below The well-equipped Venza serves up a value.With a modern infotainment system, wireless smartphone compatibility, and good standard features, the Venza earns an 8 for its value and tech. All Venza’s benefit from two years or 25,000 miles of complimentary scheduled maintenance, and a 36-month/36,000-mile new car warranty. Hybrid components are covered for eight years or 100,000 miles. Which Toyota Venza should I buy? The $35,000 Venza LE covers most of the bases on what the crossover does best, but for about $3,000 more the XLE adds a 12.3-inch touchscreen, 19-inch alloy wheels, keyless entry, wireless smartphone charging, and serves as the basis for additional features on the new Nightshade edition. How much is a fully loaded Toyota Venza? The Venza Limited tops the lineup and comes with navigation, a surround-view camera system, synthetic leather upholstery, and heated and cooled front seats for about $43,000. An available fixed glass roof that can be adjusted to let in more light adds some charm, but at that price we’d lean toward a Lexus. Review continues below The Venza hybrid goes long on gas.Is the Toyota Venza good on gas? Oh yeah. The standard hybrid has an EPA-rated 40 mpg city, 37 highway, 39 combined, which earns a 5 here. When it comes to AWD crossovers, the 2023 Venza trails only the RAV4 Hybrid and Ford Escape Hybrid at 40 mpg combined. Review continues below Continue Reading The Car Connection Consumer ReviewWhat is Venza nightshade edition?This 2023 Venza Nightshade Edition will also have an acrylic front grille, black-painted outer mirror caps, door handles, rocker panels, and available black roof rails. And, even the bumpers have smoked chrome moldings with a black shark fin antenna.
How much is a fully loaded 2022 Toyota Venza?Price: The 2022 Toyota Venza has a starting price of $32,890. The top model, the Venza Limited AWD, starts at $40,380. A 2-row 5-seat midsize SUV with a hybrid powertrain, the 2022 Toyota Venza slots neatly between the RAV4 and Highlander in the Toyota SUV lineup.
Will the 2023 Venza have a sunroof?The 2023 Toyota Venza Nightshade is available with Toyota's famed Star Gaze™ Panoramic Roof. This premium feature acts as a large moonroof that can shift from clear to frosted or opaque at the touch of a button.
Is a Toyota Venza worth buying?The Toyota Venza is well worth a look, but it isn't exactly the best value in this class at roughly $33,000 and up. Before you buy, you may want to consider less expensive alternatives like the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid, Hyundai Tucson Hybrid, and Honda CR-V Hybrid. Each provides more cargo space than the Venza as well.
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