Featured AutoExpress: Prius PHV vs. Golf GTE vs. Optima PHEV

ouch.

 

They are getting a wagon of the Optima PHEV.

 

Well different strokes for different folks. I've never driven a Golf but I drove the Prime and the Kia. Right now the Kia is charging in my garage.

 

Owning a Prius Prime Plus, there were Wth moments:

• "Apply the throttle gently and it uses battery power to seamlessly assist the petrol motor; stamp on the pedal and the box sends the revs soaring." - only if in EV-Auto mode that allows blended operation. In EV only mode, the engine remains off.
• Golf-E - is not a plug-in hybrid like the other two.

Bob Wilson

 

EU spec Prius PHV does engage engine on kick down regardless of mode you are in.
Golf GTE = plug-in hybrid same drivetrain as Audi A3 e-tron

Golf GTE is a pocket rocket, so give it to some journalist and they will obviously like it. But in real world Golf is a more expensive car that uses more gasoline (real world users are getting 59 MPG) and availability in certain markets is a big problem (sales numbers are low). It remains to be seen what future holds.

 

Holy Carp!

Did someone in the EU insult Toyota? If I were a regulator in an EU country, I would make sure regulations made that into an expensive mistake.

Bob Wilson

 

You have different regulatory goals than someone in the EU. This is the market that has ZEV only areas in cities. The Prime modes are about maximizing EV range to have it for those areas. The PHV/Prime acts more like a PiP there because of that. The full EV experience may not be as big a seller there as here either.
European "Prime" has different EV mode names | PriusChat

A summary of other market differences.
USA vs. EU Prime/PHV | PriusChat

 

Based on what has been said here about EV Auto, I didn't think the Prime would have had the same concerns on the EPA test as the PiP.

 

As far as I know the car is tested in default mode and that is not EV Auto. I'm 100% that it has to do with EPA test, there is nothing drastically different about Europe and US that they would do those different modes.

I haven't driven the car but I'm guessing you get full EV power way before you get to that "kick-down".

 

The Prius PHVs don't have a EV Auto mode, but their EV mode is actually North America's EV Auto, or something close to it.
From Toyota's descriptions, sounds like the ICE on in EU EV mode happens when the pedal is 'floored'.

 

u.s. prime defaults to ev mode if the battery has wall charge. assuming that is how epa tested it, the biggest change from pip is the amount of accerator input required to start the engine.

 

The EPA tests with and without wall charge. It's how you get EV and ICE efficiency figures on the window figure.

 

yes, it's the ev range we're talking about.

 

And isn't that calculated from the EV efficiency numbers and the energy of a full charge, as oppose to actually run the car through the test cycles until the battery goes flat.

 

Of course the car gets tested in EV mode just like a normal gasser and it gets lower MPGe rating if gas is used during that run (Gen1 PiP), that is why US version doesn't kick in the engine in EV mode even if you floor it.

 

Personally, I prefer the EU design in this respect, over the US one.
I think the Prime's EV mode characteristic is a result of TMS specific request (part of: "we do not want another PiP"?).

 

I think it's the other way round: measured: EV range starting with full charge and energy (from wall) from flat to a full charge. Calculated: EV efficiency

 

From what is reported here, the ICE triggering thresholds for EV Auto are high enough to not be triggered on the EPA test. The PiP had much lower thresholds.

The longest distance an EPA test cycle simulates is 11 miles. Repeating a cycle until EV range is exhausted will lead to different models experiencing greater or lesser loads in total depending on which point they lose EV during that last run through the cycle.