2018 Prius Prime to 2021 Rav4 Prime?

Ford is doing it with the Escape, and not just the PHEV, but also the hybrid.

 

good for ford. we'll see how it shakes out

 

According to the write-up, interior space does not take a hit because the battery is mounted under the floor. Also, they claim 90 MPGe. The mpg in hybrid mode may be comparable to the RAV4 hybrid, which is listed as 41/38 (I believe the Prime takes a 1 mpg hit over the regular Prius).

 

Other way around. Prime is 55/53/54 and Prius is 54/50/52 (ECO is best at 58/53/56).

 

Less than 20 miles from where I'm typing this, the world's largest Toyota plant in Georgetown, KY is expanding and retooling to build RAV4 hybrids. Availability is about to get a lot better. (Although if I decide to buy a RAV4 Prime, I'd still fly northeast....) Toyota bringing RAV4 hybrid to Georgetown, Ky. plant | News | wdrb.com

 

Just looked up the history of the RAV4 on Wikipedia. Wonder if our California members know that there were two EV versions of the RAV4 that were only sold in California? The first version sold there from 1997 to 2003 for fleet use, but was offered to the public for 7 months in 2002. 1484 were sold/leased in California. In 2012 the second generation RAV4 EV was offered in California with a 41.8 lithium ion battery. Apparently the power train came from Tesla and is similar to that in the Tesla Model S. Looks like the range is less than half of a Tesla, though.
I don't know all the economics of building a pure EV. However, it seems to me that if you could eliminate the cost of an ICE, radiator, transmission, and all the other bits that are required in a hybrid and used those funds and the space to add additional batteries, that a 200+ mile range EV could also be produced.

 

just got the toyota black friday deals. every vehicle was on sale except rav4h

 

We've been looking at a Rav4H ourselves. A sales manager I know told me that the Rav4 Hybrids are the most difficult vehicles for them to keep in stock. They go like hotcakes apparently...

Wonder if the 2021 model will qualify for the $4500 tax break and other rebates. If so, it will definitely be worth waiting for. Anyone have any information on that?

 

Wish it came out sooner. I just got the 2020 prius prime 3 months ago

 

Yeah the wife is VERY interested in the Rav4 Prime - hope it isn't priced too crazy.

 

From leaked battery stats, it should qualify for the full $7500 federal tax credit.

 

It's interesting that Toyota decided to brand this as a "RAV4 PRIME" using the name Prime.

I had never thought too much about the name as a designation for a variant. Consider this definition from Wikipedia:

In mathematics, the prime is generally used to generate more variable names for things which are similar, without resorting to subscripts – x′ generally means something related to or derived from x.​

The black art of marketing is only slightly less arcane than higher mathematics -- and it is certainly not known for its following any kind of logic in coming up with brand naming conventions. So, maybe there will or will not be a "Camry Prime", a "Corolla Prime", and a "Tundra Prime."



Still, it does look nice on the vehicle.

 

Rolls off the tongue better, too. I would rather say I have a RAV4 Prime than I have a RAV4 Plug-in Hybrid.

 

Is there any new technology used in the Rav4 Prime that may be applied to the 2021 Prius Prime to extend the EV range? Or is it simply larger battery = longer EV range? I was set on a 2020 Prime at some point in the near future as my '07 Prius with 228k is reaching the end of it's life. But, doesn't feel like Toyota would leave the Prius Prime's EV range less than the Rav4 Prime's for long?

 

the new tech is the battery pack.
i think when we find out how they located the pack, we may learn of possibilities for future electrification of other models, and if it will be part of tgna in the future.

if so, prime may benefit from it down the road, if toyota thinks it will be profitable to add more ev. 2021 sounds early though, maybe gen3 plug in?

 

From leaked capacity numbers, the Rav4 Prime's pack is almost twice the size of the Prius Prime's.
From photos of the released Lexus BEV, the pack is likely air cooled.

 

RAV4 punches a way bigger hole in the air. And it weighs a lot more. And it goes farther on a charge. Yeah, keeping the battery even that small is probably quite an accomplishment.

 

Very interested in the Rav4 Prime. Though I've been eyeing a Prius Prime for a while, the Rav4 PHEV is even better as I live in the PNW and it's nice to have AWD. Here's hoping the Rav4 Prime can get 50mpg on pure EV mode, though I'm secretly wishing that Toyota would hurry up and release an all EV SUV with 250mile range.