Since Honda abandoned its unorthodox Crosstour last year, which was more hatchback than wagon and, most would agree, bordered

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on fugly, Subaru’s Outback and this Toyota Venza are the only two five-passenger mid-size crossovers in the mainstream volume sector that venture into more traditional wagon territory. Nissan’s new Murano comes close, but its taller overall height puts it within range of the Ford Edge and other more SUV-like crossovers, which is either a very good thing if you’re looking for something more car-like, or not ideal if greater ride height is preferable.

When the Venza debuted in early 2009 it was just the ticket for disenfranchised Camry wagon owners (who by this point had been without their beloved five-door for eight years), its first year of sales resulting in 12,375 Canadian buyers, while calendar

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year 2010 was even more successful with 12,468 units sold and 2011 resulting in a best-ever 13,159 deliveries. Things started to taper off for the 2012 calendar year with just 11,294 down the road, and that diminishing return occurring despite a mild facelift for the 2013 model year that came partway through the year. It wasn’t enough of a change to spark greater interest, with a mere 9,167 sold throughout the 2013 calendar year, just 7,610 delivered all of last year, and only 4,453 finding homes over the first eight months of 2015. This represents almost nine years of service without a significant upgrade, mind you, the 2016 model tested here soldiering on unchanged,

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so it’s only natural that interest in the Venza has waned over its near decade-long tenure.

Why Toyota’s seeming lack of interest in a segment that is one of the most important in the entire North American auto sector? It does seem odd, especially when considering the Japanese automaker’s Lexus luxury brand does so well with its taller RX line of five-passenger crossover SUVs. This said one has to wonder why Lexus has never offered a seven-passenger crossover ute along the lines of an upscale

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Toyota Highlander, but I suppose resources can only be spread so thin even when you’ve got Toyota’s deep pockets.

All said, the Venza does get a slight change for 2016, or maybe change is too strong a word being that I said it was “unchanged” a moment ago; enhanced is more apropos. Either way, when opting for the mid-grade XLE package you can now get a new red-brown colour for the perforated leather upholstery. Yup… that’s it, and ample reason to warrant a special “Redwood Edition” plaque on its backside, right? I don’t know about you, but this wasn’t what I expected when I caught wind Toyota was creating a special edition Venza for 2016. Where is the natural open-pore matte-finished reclaimed redwood trim in place of the usual high-tech

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glossy grey patterned lower centre stack and console surface treatment? This would’ve made sense. Another thing that doesn’t make sense is there’s no US version of the Venza XLE Redwood Edition (or any 2016 Venza for that matter), and redwoods, as you’ll likely know from West Coast US travels, let alone the dendrology portion of high-school biology class, is a northern Californian and Oregonian phenomenon, not Canadian. Our closest relative to the redwood is BC’s giant Douglas fir, but so as not to go in-depth ad nauseam about xylology (although Toyota’s obsession with towering West Coast trees-sequoia comes to mind-is kind of strange, let alone all things West Coast-Tacoma anyone?), suffice to say the Redwood Edition’s brownish-red perforated leather with black piping does look very nice.

The

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“Venza” name has an altogether different meaning, by the way. According to Toyota, Venza was derived from combining the words “venture” and “Monza,” a city in Northern Italy that every Formula 1 fan will be familiar with because of the Autodromo Nazionare Monza racetrack that’s been hosting a grand prix every year since F1’s inception-albeit the FIA-sanctioned series isn’t likely a happy memory for Toyota. On that note the Venza doesn’t exactly get me thinking about hitting the “Temple of Speed” as it’s referred to in motorsport circles, something along the lines of the FR-S being more suitable around the Curva Parabolica, or better yet, Lexus’ LFA at 325 km/h (202 mph) on the Curva Biassono (Grande).

I actually had a 2009 Venza V6 AWD on California’s Laguna Seca raceway as part of the Western Automotive Journalist (WAJ) association’s track day, and while it didn’t

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measure up to the thrills provided by Chevy’s then-new Camaro, a Ford Mustang Shelby GT500, Hyundai’s Genesis Coupe GT, Mercedes-Benz’ C63 AMG, an Audi R8, a supercharged Lotus Elise and the list goes on, my review noted, “… factoring in its mission in life, it held its own and surpassed my expectations…”, as well as “… The Venza took to the course with aplomb, managing the difficult sections, like the braking zone leading up to the Corkscrew and then the famed set of extremely vertical corners itself, with a composure more softly sprung crossovers with higher centers of gravity wouldn’t have been able to achieve; and it still boasts ground clearance of 205 mm (8.1 inches) which is about average in the crossover class. Yes, this is a decent handling machine, something that will dole out a little fun during regular driving, but more importantly something that will

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be able to negotiate you and your family out of harm’s way if an avoidance maneuver is necessary.” I still stand by this statement today.

The Venza can hold its own on Canadian highways and byways too, with either a 16-valve, DOHC 2.7-litre four-cylinder featuring dual variable valve timing with intelligence (VVT-i) putting 182 horsepower and 182 lb-ft of torque to the front or all four wheels via a six-speed automatic transmission with manual mode, or better yet (for Monza, Laguna Seca and the Coquihalla Highway) a 24-valve, DOHC 3.5-litre V6 with VVT-i producing 268 horsepower and 246 lb-ft of torque combined with a six-speed automatic, manual mode and all-wheel drive. The latter engine (which is the same as used by the Lotus Evora, incidentally, although supercharged

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to push out more power) makes the Venza quick off the line and packed full of highway passing power while delivering smooth, refined operation, but my test car came fitted with the smaller four-cylinder and therefore, while more than capable of keeping up with fast moving traffic and plenty refined on its own, didn’t particularly get the adrenal glands flowing.

It was efficient, however, especially when compared to those taller more SUV-like utes I spoke of at the beginning of this review. The Venza 2.7’s five-cycle EnerGuide fuel economy rating is 11.6 L/100km city, 9.0 highway and 10.4 combined with FWD, or 11.6 city, 9.2 highway and 10.5 combined with AWD. The V6

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AWD gets a claimed 12.8 city, 9.3 highway and 11.3 combined, while both engines enjoy the benefit of cheaper regular unleaded fuel.

If it was all about fuel economy then the Venza’s thousands of happy customers would buy a RAV4 and be done with it, but while the RAV is an excellent choice in the compact CUV class, there’s more to Toyota’s mid-size offering than fuel miserliness. It delivers a substantive feel from the moment you shut the doors and feel its solidity, to the point you pull away from curbside and take to the road. Anyone who’s moved up from a Corolla to Camry will know what I’m talking about, the larger vehicle no more difficult to drive, just noticeably nicer in just about every way. If it weren’t so, people wouldn’t pay more to move up a given model segment.

The

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Venza properly fulfills other mid-size expectations too, such as spaciousness, the front seats easily accommodating for larger folks, whether taller, wider or otherwise, and the rear quite comfortable when three are abreast, with more head, shoulder, hip and legroom than the majority of passengers will ever need. A large flip-down centre console incorporates twin cupholders covered by a lid finished in the same attractive glossy metallic trim found on the centre stack and lower console, as noted before-yes, sadly reclaimed redwood was left off the menu.

Along

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with its comfortable passenger compartment the Venza gets sizable cargo capacity, with 870 litres (30.7 cubic feet) behind its standard 60/40 split-folding rear seatbacks and 1,990 litres (70.1 cubic feet) when those seats are laid flat. The seats fold via levers on each of the rear cargo walls or handles below the outboard cushions, and do so very easily, the mechanisms feeling high in quality and the process definitely more fluid in operation than many others. A hard shell cover falls into place over the gap between cargo floor and seatbacks to stop smaller belongings from falling in between, while providing a good load surface for heavier items. The liftgate’s load opening is wide and relatively tall, access only hampered by the powered tailgate mechanism bulging out on the left side. This is a common problem for any CUV with a powered tailgate, however, and only an issue if trying to load in a large piece of furniture or some other bulky item. More noteworthy, the standard scrolling cargo cover is better built than average.

For

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those who have need of more utility space or trailering a small camper or boat on vacation the Venza’s towing capability varies between four- and six-cylinder models, the former capable of 1,134 kilos (2,500 lbs) of trailer weight and the latter up to 1,587 kilograms (3,500 lbs).

My test Venza was in XLE trim, prerequisite for the Redwood Edition upgrade as inferred, which meant that it came equipped with some nice additions over and above base trim such as the leather upholstery I’ve mentioned multiple times, heatable front seats that have a variable dial for a wide variety of temperatures, navigation that worked perfectly during my test week, advanced voice recognition, Bluetooth streaming audio, phonebook download, plus SMS-to-speech and email-to-speech (very useful features) added to the standard 6.1-inch infotainment system,

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as well as a dual-pane panoramic glass sunroof with sunshades, a powered rear liftgate, and an anti-theft system.

The XLE upgrade price is $4,485, resulting in a total as-tested price of $36,550 plus $1,560 for freight and pre-delivery prep. Yes, that was the as-tested price because the Redwood Edition is a no-cost option, Toyota not charging for the stylish red-brown interior treatment or the “Redwood Edition” badge on its backside. The Redwood Edition is also available with the V6, incidentally, as long as it’s upgraded to XLE trim too. Of note, the Redwood Edition is only available with my tester’s Magnetic Grey Metallic paint, Midnight Black Metallic, or Blizzard Pearl (white), the latter costing an extra $255.

Some

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standard Venza qualities that I noted during my test week included handy welcome lights that shine from under the side mirrors, while the cabin included soft synthetic surfacing atop the dash and front door uppers, plus padded leatherette covering the rear upper panel of the doors, blending into the armrests, while the same metallic patterned gloss surface treatment I’ve already noted on the lower centre stack, lower console and rear armrest also surrounds the window switches. That lower console features a set of cupholders with rubber inserts that allow for smaller beverage containers, plus a narrow bin that’s ideal for holding a large smartphone like my Samsung Note 4 along with its leather lidded case. That entire section slides rearward to expose a big bin below that’s nicely lit with LEDs and complete with auxiliary and USB ports, while another flip-up compartment with a sprung clamp-like holder

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can be found on the centre stack above, which would be ideal for a smaller phone.

The Venza’s HVAC interface sits above, and I must say is the most efficiently packaged set of dual-zone automatic climate controls in the industry. When you look at it, all the necessary controls combine in an area that’s no more than a few inches square, a large rotating driver-side temperature knob included, it makes me wonder why the HVAC systems in other cars take up so much space, but it is what it is and I happen to like the way Toyota organized it.

Speaking of efficient, the Venza’s aforementioned infotainment display shows this car’s age due to its smallish 6.1-inch screen that’s not quite as vibrant in colour or sharp

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in resolution as some others in Toyota’s lineup, but it’s audio functions, complete with Bluetooth streaming, plus its full load of Toyota Apps, such as navigation, phone connectivity, messages, eco (which shows consumption levels over 30 minute intervals), its vehicle setup function section, and lastly its comprehensive maintenance section that lets you set reminder dates for changing the engine oil, oil filter, rotating the tires, estimating tire life, battery life, brake pad wear, wiper blades, coolant, brake oil, transmission fluid, and when it’s time for a general service, plus three personal reminders for bringing to memory anything you want whenever you want, is truly useful. The screen splits into two as well, allowing radio and phone info on the left side and a map on the right, plus many other variables and functions.

The

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steering wheel controls are well organized and highly functional as well, giving access to a decent sounding audio system (although not as enjoyable as the top-line JBL audio upgrade that comes with the Limited package), phone controls, and multi-information display, but the latter isn’t embedded within the primary gauges, which is odd considering these are some of the nicest, brightest gauges around, but instead the black and white LCD screen sits high atop the centre dash and therefore a bit out of place. It is useful for glancing at while driving, however, which was likely the idea, but most newer designs incorporate their MIDs within the primary instruments, so I expect the Venza’s replacement will do likewise. Lastly, all Venza’s get a handy sunglasses holder in the overhead console, always appreciated by yours truly, while the dual pane panoramic glass sunroof directly above the front and rear seats gave the Venza an open, airy ambiance.

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All-round the Venza is a pleasant place to spend time, the new Redwood Edition enhancing that experience.

It’s true the Venza isn’t the newest kid on the block, but it still looks good after all these years, its bold grille, complex headlamp design and beautifully shaped taillights way ahead of their time and helping the car age very gracefully. Equal attention paid to a high-quality interior has furthered its shelf life, making the Venza a credible mid-size CUV for anyone looking for a tried and true family hauler with sportier road manners than most SUVs.

I should add that you can get into a base Venza FWD for only $30,265 plus freight or

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upgrade to AWD for $1,800, and you’ll receive a car that features 19-inch alloys on 245/55R19 all-seasons, automatic headlights, fog lamps, heatable powered side mirrors with integrated turn signals, blindspot mirrors and those puddle lamps I mentioned earlier, plus variable intermittent wipers with a de-icer, powered windows with auto up/down all-round, a tilt and telescopic three-spoke steering wheel with audio, Bluetooth and cruise controls, those aforementioned Optitron primary gauges and the 3.5-inch B/W MID, dual-zone auto climate control, an auto-dimming rearview mirror, rearview camera, satellite radio, an eight-way powered driver’s seat, garage door opener, all the expected safety features including a driver’s knee airbag, and much more.

Time tested style, comfort, performance and reliability set this mid-size Toyota CUV apart, and now of course brownish-red perforated leather. The Venza remains a classy ride that’s still a very smart mid-size crossover choice.

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