Toyota, after running a Tesla-powered prototype for nearly two years, is ready to debut its electric RAV4 next week, slated to go on sale in late 2012 alongside an electric Scion iQ.

The white, capped-grill example you see here is a prototype based on a 2010 RAV4. Toyota said it would not release any specifics about the production version until Monday, when it will show the vehicle at the International Electric Vehicle Symposium in Los Angeles.

As Ford is doing with the Focus Electric, Toyota will build the RAV4 EV on the same production line as the gasoline-powered RAV4, which will allow the automaker more flexibility to respond to demand -- or, as in the case of the Chevrolet Volt, lack thereof. As part of a $100 million contract, Tesla will build the entire powertrain -- battery, motor, gearbox and other electronics -- and ship it from California to Toyota's Ontario plant for final assembly.

While the electric iQ will be sold only to fleets and car-sharing services, the RAV4 EV will be available to the public. Toyota sold and leased almost 1,500 electric RAV4s to Californians from 1997 to 2003, and about 800 are still on the road. Given the price and range of the Focus Electric, we expect the RAV4 to offer no fewer than 100 miles of range and cost just under $40,000. A redesigned 2013 RAV4 is expected to debut as early as this fall.

[Source: Toyota]