The area I live in always yields the city MPG rating, or less. It is suburbia, USA and that means you hit lots of stop lights and have to get up to 45, just to stop for another stop light. Rarely is there ever any real highway driving, in which you go for 5+ miles at highway speed. So all in all, a 23-25mpg in this situation is great. At higher highway speeds, for long periods, I say 28mpg (acutal measured using miles and gallons calcs) vs. trusting the car computer. For the size and weight of the car, I'd say that is great! And I leave it in the ECO mode, to save more MPGs though there is a normal mode, and sport mode. The car has plenty of power, even in ECO mode, so don't be fooled by fancy ads, the mpg's are great!
In this car, you sit in a good position to be able to see things around you. All of that with visiiblity is good, except the low hanging rear view mirror. My wife's GMC Terrain has the rear view mirror mounted to the very top of the windshield and that is briliant. For a taller person, or a shorter person who raises their seat, that mirror can impair visibility. But, all other aspects are good with visibility and driver position.
Doesn't everyone who buys a Toyota expect it to just run? With 7500 miles on the odometer, I can say I've got no issues nor do I expect any. No weird noises, nothing to take back to the dealer for, it all just works, and has been since I got it. That is a reassuring start, but something I've come to take for granted with the Toyota products.
You'll be surprised when it comes to cargo capacity, because it can hold way more than you first expect. You'll notice that the cargo area extends out a bit, giving you some serious extra advatage. I was really impressed. Then, the back seats fold down flat, so that is a great way to put more cargo into this car. While not a huge SUV, the cargo area seems much bigger than others I've tried in this class. Go see for yourself, and you'll notice the wheel wells don't protrude into the cargo area like most. And you can get the seats flat, giving you that big car feel. If I recall correctly, I got 8-10 of the 12 gallon totes in the back with the 2nd row seats folded flat. That is amazing.
I don't know how "off road" this will be, more than driving in snow or rain. But I will say they included something really cool. There is a switch to latch into AWD mode, for up to 25mph. That means power can and will go to all 4 wheels when in this mode, and up to 25mph. That alone makes this a car that I know isn't afraid of the snow, or else they would not give you that feature.