Toyota Venza Limited

The Toyota Venza is a new entry to the hybrid market and its brilliance is in its subtlety. Many of its features are what we see in luxury vehicles, not a typical mid-range small SUV.

How it looks when you see on the street: It’s a familiar shape — a small SUV that lands somewhere between the full size Highlander and the Rav4 in Toyota’s lineup. When Toyota carved out the hybrid market back in the day with the Prius, its form was distinct. While electric cars are starting to look more like gasoline cousins, hybrid engines are no longer news and don’t demand distinct design.

How it makes you feel when you get in: It’s crisp and clean and the interior feels well constructed. Nothing plasticky here.

How it drives: I drove it to the beach on a crisp fall day, and the perky energy of the Venza matched the energy of this jaunt. Its curvy form made it easy to park and maneuver around the narrow streets of a seaside town. It gets great gas mileage at 40 mpg — solid numbers for a partially gasoline powered engine.

Space for people and things: Ample cargo space for all the miscellaneous things I had on board for the beach. The back seats were roomy and four people fit comfortably.

Best Features: Toyota Safety Sense is a sweet of features that address safe driving such as lane departure alert with steering assist, lane tracing assist, radar cruise control, and automatic emergency braking.

What makes it stand out: The total package: the hybrid engine in a well appointed small SUV.

What should you compare it to: Honda CR-V Hybrid and the Ford Escape Hybrid.

How much does it cost: The Limited starts at $39,800 and the base model starts at $32,470.