2017 Toyota Prius Prime: 25 Miles EV Range, 54 MPG, $22,600*

If the Prime it lower then the chip and and rock are going to be flying thur the windshield just like the Gen 4 . I will give a try for 22,600 How much does it cost to put the charged in the garage. Anyone have an ideal?

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

I'd say it is both. Lithium batteries are likely already less than what Toyota pays for NiMH, and they are likely more willing to cut profit than they did with the PiP

I doubt it can work with 240V when it is only intended for a 110V/15a outlet.

I think you could replace the Tesla plug with J1772, and then use Tesla's J1772 adapter for that car.

 

I believe the Tesla — SAE J1772 adapter lets me use the Prius charger to charge the Tesla and not the other way around.

 

There are third party adapters to connect a Tesla HPWC to a J1772 inlet. They're usually used for connecting to public HPWCs with a non-Tesla car, but no reason you can't use your own HPWC...

 

To clarify. The Tesla wall charger uses the same protocols as other EVSEs, so its plug can be replaced with a J1772 one. Now it can be used with other plug ins if such is done. You would have to use the Tesla J1772 adapter to charge a Tesla from it from then on though.

 

I want to say thanks for all the info. Great job Danny!

 

Firstly, I don't think you have to install a 240v line for the Prius Prime, unless you want to drive it on electric as much as possible. Otherwise just using a 110 outlet should suffice since it only takes 5 and a half hours, which you can easily charge while sleeping.

That said, installing a 240v line in your garage or outside of your house if you just have a long driveway will likely cost around $800-1500, depending on what EVSE (electric vehicle supply equipment, or the "charger") you buy, how long of a run the electrician has to do, and how many holes he has to make in case your circuit breaker isn't in the garage already.

There's a Federal tax credit for installing an electric charging station in your house, so you can reclaim 30% of the install costs, up to $1000. I think it's IRS Form 8911.

Regarding what EVSE you should buy, honestly, I think any of them would work since the Prime has a smaller battery in it (about 8 kWh) compared to say the Chevy Volt which is 16 kWh (18 kWh for the Gen 2 2016/17 Volts).

But if you want to future-proof your installation in case you buy a battery electric vehicle later on such as the Chevy Bolt, Tesla Model 3, or Nissan Leaf, I'd recommend having them put in a 50 amp line, and get a more expensive EVSE that can charge faster. This way you don't necessarily have to run the line again, and buy a 2nd EVSE that can charge faster.

For example, I installed a Clippercreek HCS-40P, which is overkill for my Chevy Volt. It can supply 7.2 kW an hour. However, since the Volt's onboard charger can only handle 3.3 kW an hour, that's all it'll send out to the car.

But if I buy one of those aforementioned EV's, I can use the same setup to charge it faster since they have larger charging capabilities (and they need it due to no gas engine backup like the Volt has). I got the plug-in version (note the "P" after the unit I mentioned above) so that I can move the EVSE more easily than if it was hardwired.

In case anyone else is curious about this, here's an article that talks about the basics of EVSE's

How to buy an electric-car charging station: buyer's guide to EVSEs

 

If the battery costs $190/kWh, as sometimes reported for Tesla, that makes the battery cost about $1,700. Subtract the much smaller battery in the Liftback...

Of course, the weight is listed as 265 pounds, which would make it a pathetic 73Wh/kg in specific energy, so the cost is probably a lot higher as well.

 

Have the options been priced yet? I'm quite surprised by their pricing, but still disappointed in the lack of the 5th seat. Or are there no options, just trim levels?

 

It never ceases to amaze me that the changes made to upclass the seating in back gets a "disappointment" label by so many.

Are people not noticing the improvements for the regular seating and only seeing the loss of the middle?

 

I guess I'm not using this to replace a Mercedes S550 to have my chauffeur drive me around. If the back seats are so upclass, why don't they have a back massage and and reclining seats with an extending leg rest?

I value the ability to use my fuel efficient Prius over vehicles that have a higher consumption cost, so the flexibility to take more people in my car is a benefit over the luxury of the back seats.

For comparison, Tesla offered an option called Executive Rear Seats which was meant for the exact purpose you described: two seats in the back with a more upclass feeling. However, it was discontinued after only a few months due to few buyers opting for the option.

Also, one of the reasons I purchased a 2014 PiP over a 2014 Volt was that the first gen Volt did not offer a 5th seat, so it's disappointing for me personally to see this benefit get lost.

 

In my opinion, if you are trying to shoehorn three people into the back seat of any Prius on a regular basis, you have the wrong car. It just isn't practical. I suppose the argument could be made that it is nice to have a '5th seat' option for use every once in a while. However, I pity the poor soul that has to occupy that seat on ANY length of trip!

I think the rear seating in the prime looks classy..and a big improvement.

 

265# is not the weight of 1 cell x95. It the weight of the package.

 

People are still having more than two kids. The lack of a fifth seat means they'll be taking the minivan for all the family day trips.

 

Yeah, I know.

 

Exaggeration isn't constructive.

That's much better. It doesn't answer the question of why though.

Overwhelmingly, I'm finding people prefer comfort, but go with their gut of needing to squeeze a 5th person on rare occasion. Selling that flexibility is a powerful waste, the same thing we've seen with other specs over the years.

True, some people do use it, but the numbers are surprisingly small... and improvement is all about correctly identifying want verses need. Prius has always been a vehicle of change too. Each has its place.

Shouldn't Toyota just offer another plug-in hybrid with more seating & cargo instead?

 

We need more comments like that... since the anti-Prime spin has already begun. I have seen a few Volt owners attempting to paint a picture of "cheap" for Prime by using the low MSRP as their reasoning.

Toyota may have foreseen that, hoping a few upscale features would offset such efforts. At the same time, it's a good move for greater diversification. They have to grow the market somehow. Why not offer something unusually nice for the price?

What starts out as a luxury option tends to eventually become affordable for the masses anyway. Shaking up the industry by doing that unexpectedly soon seems a rather smart move. After all, that is how Prius started out. Think about how ahead of its time that original hybrid was.

 

Except the entire reason for 4-seaters as a luxury option is for when the owner of the car rides in the back, and has a chauffeur to drive the car for them.

I guarantee you, the number of Prime owners who will hire a chauffeur to drive it for them, in a country that isn't in Asia (and I'm thinking of China in particular), is in the single digits.

Toyota's hybrid product for the market that buys a 4-seater as a luxury option is the LS 600h L with Executive Seating.

For the Prime's market, the back seat comfort isn't prioritized as much, and note that the Volt got panned for having 4 seats, too. I really don't think it'd be that much of a hit in weight to reinforce the chassis for the fifth seat, and it'd expand the car's market.

 

Doesn't sound like you are aware of how many vehicles actually only have 4 seats. That's a valuable discovery. I wonder how many others are in the same situation. Hmm?

For that matter, I wonder how many people think Volt now offers a proper 5th seat. Hmm?

 

Count me in - when my father-in-law (90 years young) is hiring me as his chauffeur for long trips visiting family.
Oops, I am in Asia

 

The Volt's 5th seat is absolutely a joke, too, although it is useful for "put a child seat in the middle" applications, I guess.

(The Volt doesn't offer a proper 3rd or 4th seat either.)

And, the lowest-end vehicle I'm aware of with a 4-seat option (as far as vehicles that aren't sports cars where the seats are basically insurance rate reducers, not actual seats), in MY2016-2017, in the US, is the Volkswagen CC. Not exactly a big seller, although it'd be interesting to see the split of 4 vs. 5 seat models sold.

 

It's complicated. We've been through this before.

The Volt only has 2 functional seats for many people (not 5, not 4) if you are taller than 5'10" and try to sit in the back- not safe or possible to sit up straight. Prius is fine up to 6'2" in the back.

Anyone cross shopping Volt, Prius/Prime, please sit in the back and you will understand. Consider your potential occupants. Volt or Prime may have more passenger seating depending on your situation.

 

I want to sit in the back of the Prime before I condemn it or praise it. Right now, I like sitting in the back of the Gen III to do some work or reading better than sitting up front in the passenger seat.