Prius vs tesla..looking for input

That's a lot of miles and does not sound like fun. In our Model 3 we have comfortably done 600 miles each way between up here in Northern California and San Diego. Could have done the round trip within your goal parameters easily, but that's a slog, ICE or BEV. Also, supercharger infrastructure is very robust here in CA where the original poster also is from. Continues to improve everywhere, but not sure how that would effect your travel in/out of TX.

 

One plug in hybrid and one electric car might be the way to go for a household until charging infrastructure improves. And battery technology is moving fast.

 

Yap, that seems to be a reasonable compromise. I am contemplating replacing my Prius Prime with Leaf and my wife's Pathfinder Hybrid to Rav4 Prime. With currently available models, that combination will give us the best functionality and usability with the most economical and environmental friendliness. But who knows, in 2-3 years, there will be more choices for sure.

 

‘With the additional details, I would get the Model Y without delay.
Actually, if you take delivery in the new year, your delivery experience may be less hectic. (end of quarter rush and all).

 

As a two vehicle household, with your wife's PHEV, in theory it sounds like you have many BEV choices for the other vehicle that will get you where you need to go. If all the same you are still itching to upgrade your situation beyond to the Model Y and that is compatible with your finances, go for it.

 

One thing to consider is having one charging station and two cars to charge. I'd say bring all you want to fit to a Toyota dealer and try to fit it in a Prime. If it doesn't fit you have your answer.

moto g(7) power ?

 

I'd avoid a Leaf just because Nissan is still using passive air cooling for the battery.

While the Ioniq Electric has increased its range this year, I understand the hesitation over their first foray. The rear loses some cargo space, though less than a Prius Prime, and it doesn't have a frunk(I'd stick a plastic bin in the void under the hood). While the Niro Electric likely doesn't have the frunk, it'll have more usable cargo space because of the shape, and its range is over 200 miles.

If you can wait a year on the new car, there will be two options available that aren't first forays, and are built on BEV platforms. Ford hasn't released interior dimensions for the Mach-E, but it does have a frunk. The ID.4 doesn't have a frunk. Instead, VW has done the "cab forward" thing with their platform, and shifted the space for a frunk to the cabin and cargo area.

Need a dealer willing to entertain the idea.

Two charging stations are only needed with two BEVs, and if both are see many miles a day. Sounds like his daily commute is around 40 miles. That is what most plug ins recharge over 8hrs at Level 1 rates. Then the second car is PHEV in this case. I can only think of the gen2 Volt and i3 REx that might not fully recharge at Level 1 between getting home and leaving the next day, if they go over 40 miles the day before, but they do have an engine that does need to see some use to prevent issues developing.

 

We have 2 Level 2 charging stations for our BEVs, before that the situation was one BEV and one PHEV. Convenience, perhaps, but over the years never a situation where both L2 charging stations were needed. Except for some edge cases, 2 Level 2 charging stations are a luxury, especially considering so much Level 1 around.

 

Are any of Korean BEV liquid cooled? Purely for the price tag comparison, Leaf (includes Leaf Plus), Hyundai Ioniq EV, Kona EV, Kia Niro EV, Smart EQ, VW e-Golf are the only BEVs that will come down to low to mid $20K after tax credit. If I have to pick one out of this list, I would pick Leaf for sure.

 

I know the Ioniq with longer range and Kona are liquid cooled. Pack heating might be optional. The Niro is likely liquid cooled. The shorter range Ioniq and Kia EV were air cooled but had a fan to actively move the air.

The Leaf is the model with the most reported range loss, and the battery getting too hot is likely the reason.

I thought smart left the US, or is this the last year?

 

Thanks for the info. I may have to look into the Ioniq EV and Kona EV as well as Kia Niro EV then. The only thing is that in the past I could never find any Hyundai or Kia EV in stock in any of the dealers around me. If I have to travel longer than their range allows me to drive it back to my house, that would be a deal-breaker for me. My closest Nissan dealer has 4 Leafs in stock right now, and it is within the range of the car even for the short-range Leaf. As for the Smart, I don't know for sure. We don't have any dealer around here, to begin with. I listed it because it was on the list of eligible EVs on the current state incentive.

Edit: Checked in-stock availability of Hyundai Ioniq EV and Kona EV as well as Kia Niro EV around me. I did find a few, but all in the highest trim only. They are not giving much breaks on rebates either nationally or locally. The price range is all going to be above $30K even after all discounts and the fed tax credit is counted. OTOH, Nissan is offering $7K cashback till Jan. 4. Combined with state incentives and fed tax credit, I can get Leaf S Plus or Leaf SV both ~$39K price tags for just around $20K. Depending on what I can get on my 2020 PP trade-in, I may come ahead on the deal.

 

I agree with getting the prime and putting the $25K difference in TSLA. I did something similar back in 2018. Was going to trade in my Prius Prime for the Tesla Model 3. Even after tax rebate the difference was >$35K...I took that money and put in FAANG + TSLA + SPY..Not quite all TSLA..I wish I did all TSLA. I know we should YOLO sometimes, but I didn't find the model 3 speed/acceleration better than NOT working for 1 to 2 years (just my opinion). To each his/her own. I still joke with my friends that TSLA > Tesla So every time anyone ever ask me if he/she should buy a Tesla, my answer is always buy TSLA instead!

 

SK, you're in NE so you don't need to worry about liquid cooling. Plus, it seems you like to like to trade in your car every couple of years. If you do get a LEAF, get an SV with the All Weather Package because it has heated seats/steering wheel and a heat pump. The S with All Weather Package doesn't have a heat pump. Decide on if you want the smaller or bigger battery and if you want power seats, LED headlights, 360 camera, ProPilot in the Tech Package. I love ProPilot on my highway commute and in stop and go traffic. Test drive one to see if you like it.

I'm enjoying my LEAFs more than the Prime. I put 50k miles on my 19 40 kWh SL and traded it in for a 20 SV Plus last month.

 

Yeah, I inquired my local Nissan dealer and am leaning toward SV (not plus) with All-Weather Package and Tech Package. The price would be the same as S Plus without the option package (no heat pump, no heated seat, no ProPilot). At least for the foreseeable feature, I will be working from home, so even the short-range Leaf offers sufficient range with our other Pathfinder Hybrid to be used for longer trips if necessary. Right now, with Nissan promotion, I can trade-in my PP for a small profit if I do some creative self-financing to generate enough tax liability to take advantage of the full $7500 fed income tax credit. A couple years ago, when we are looking for a second car in addition to PP, I thought about leasing LEAF, but my wife really wanted and we really needed a larger SUV or minivan. So, I did not go for LEAF and bought a used Pathfinder Hybrid instead.

 

Your financial position now much improved, you should very comfortably be able to get the physical product, the Model 3 now.

Did the same on my end at first, bought TSLA over the last 1-3 years which we never sold and initially kept the Plug-in Prius as my daily driver until could no longer resist then got the Model 3 Standard Range Plus early last year for $37k before federal, state, and utility incentives. The difference in cost for us was much smaller compared to the Prime after all incentives and we wanted to be full BEV by then.

 

Yes, financially I am in a much better situation; and certainly can get the Model 3, but it doesn't appeal to me as it did back in 2018. A part of the reason I wanted to buy the model 3 was its autopilot feature. However, now I have put Comma AI's Open Pilot on the Prius Prime, I don't know if the model 3 add any more (except for speed/acceleration = more fun) than what I need. I am winding down on my career, and I think working less is more important to me. Anyways, congratulations on the Model 3: it is a way more fun car than Prius Prime.

 

Redkamel, I am a happy Prime XLE owner. I owned the car for 2 weeks now.
My fiancé is a happy Tesla Model 3 (similar to the model Y) owner, a car I've driven many times for the past 2 years.

First off, Model 3 is a superior car. There's really no question about it- the car costs twice as much though. I would say the feeling I get driving a Tesla is the same feeling I had when I held the first iPhone. The infotainment features on the Prime is not intuitive and feels outdated compared to the Model 3. No surprise here since Toyota's infotainment is not their strong point. The cargo space in the Prime is perfect for me but if you have a baby coming and a dog, I can see how the cargo space might become a challenge because of the bigger battery cutting down on the cargo space. I don't think any car can beat the Model Y's cargo space especially with the frunk (front trunk).

Driving the Model 3 is so much fun. It is also the safest car on the road, which I assume is the same for Model Y.
Personally, I enjoy the Prime when it's in electric mode. I drive a lot for work so a PHEV made more sense to me than an BEV. If you are only driving 20 miles a day for work, the Model Y's range will be more than enough. If you and your family ever need to go on a long trip, you can take her vehicle.

Prime is a blast to drive around town but does feel underpowered on the highways. I recently took the Prime on a 1,800 mile cruise from Los Angeles to Colorado. Passing cars on the highway was challenging. Although I don't have that issue in LA because we have more lanes here. Driving the Model 3 on the highway is a breeze especially with the acceleration and Auto-Pilot. I took it to Vegas from LA last year with no problem aside from having to stop at Barstow for a 30 minute charge at the Super Charging station (something I don't need to do with the Prime). On paper, I should have been able to make it to Vegas on a single charge but with the A/C on and driving like a normal person, I don't see how that is possible.

In terms of the reliability. With the Prime, you have the legendary reliability of a Toyota. Tesla have a bad rep for their reliability and finishes but my fiancé have not had any issue with over 30,000 on it. She also doesn't have to worry about oil change and other maintenance.

If money is not an issue, the Model Y is the way to go especially because your wife has another car for long trips. No car can beat the Tesla's tech, fun factor, cargo space, and safety.

But once you start breaking down $$$, I think the Prime makes more sense. You will get $4,500 federal tax credit (at least here in CA), $1,000 from the state and another $1,000 from Edison. You are not going to get the federal tax credit anymore for a Tesla. Also, keep in mind that Auto-Pilot, the best part of the Tesla in my opinion, is going to cost you another $10,000 while the Toyota's safety features (TSS 2.0) comes standard.

Please keep us updated on what you and you family decided to do. You can't go wrong either way.

 

It all boils down to... want vs need.

Do you give priority to your want regardless of your financial situation or your need?

Decide on that.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

To clarify: Tesla Autopilot comes standard; FSD (full self driving) is the $10k option.

 

That's right. Autopilot is standard with all new Tesla vehicles.

This includes:
-emergency braking
-collision warning
-blind-spot monitoring
-auto steer, accelerate and brake automatically for other vehicles and pedestrians within its lane