After 15 Years (Gen 2 and Prime)...onto the RAV4 Prime

Well all, it's time for me to officially show myself out as I officially left the Prius family last Saturday! I took advantage of the great resale value of $19,500 and traded my 2017 Prius Prime Premium for a 2021 RAV4 Prime. I got extremely lucky in finding one given the shortages, but after a week of looking and being in contact with several dealers, I was able to get the model I wanted (XSE) and the color I wanted (Magnetic Gray) at MSRP. Initial thoughts on the RAV4, I love it, especially the 40-45 mile range on electric! The power and acceleration (121 HP to 302 HP!) is also a huge step up from the Prius Prime, making it a very fun car to drive, and I also like the layout of the dash. And even though the overall MPG is less than the Prius Prime, it's still very impressive for an SUV and the electric range is a huge winner. Overall, after being in a Prius/Prius Prime since 2006, it's nice to upgrade to a larger vehicle and I'm looking forward to many adventures in it!

Coincidentally, I was looking at my account stats, and I actually joined this forum on August 21st, 2006, so 15 years to the day being part of the Prius family until switching to the RAV4 Prime. I remember it well too when I first joined, I was a bright eyed 23 year old who just bought a 2006 Prius in Seaside Pearl for the efficiency and CA carpool lane stickers since I was commuting 45 miles one-way. I then switched over to the 2017 Prius Prime in November 2016, which according to the VIN was #988 on the production line.

It's been a fun ride, and I can't thank this forum enough as I learned a lot in those first few years (remember hyper miling?!). And while I haven't been very active in recent years, this community continued to be a wealth of information when I switched over to the Prius Prime and it was great contributing to those discussions since I was one of the first owners when it came out. I'll come back from time-to-time (maybe a RAV4 Prime section can be created when there's more of us?), but in the meantime, continue the sharing of information and passion for the Prius! This is a great community!

And if you have any questions about the RAV4 Prime, feel free to ask!

 

That's correct! It has a spare which brings back a peace of mind

 

Thanks, all! Thoroughly enjoying the new car! At the very least, I'm still part of the 'Prime' family

After one full week now with the RAV4, the estimated 42 mile range is the sweet spot to make this even more of an EV, at least for me. My normal weekday driving is around 18 miles, so the Prius Prime range was sufficient without having to recharge or switch over to HV mode. However, weekends were a different story, either depleting my battery entirely and switching to HV mode, or charging when I could at home. Not so with the RAV4! I was able to do plenty of driving around town both days without ever switching to HV mode or recharging at home (I did plug-in at a free charge station at my Whole Foods because it was available)...so this car satisfies charging only at night when rates are cheapest!

I got extremely lucky. It was only a few weeks ago did I begin looking at the RAV4 Prime, and only because I realized how much my Prius Prime was worth on the used market. I reached out to some dealers the morning of Aug 14th, test drove it later that morning and after, told a few dealers what I wanted, in hopes at least one of them would get it soon. Over the next few days I was actually giving up hope considering how few were available (I was searching everywhere in California) and the markups some dealers were adding. But that Friday one dealer reached out, had one I wanted, we made a deal on the phone, and Saturday, Aug 21st, walked-in, test drove the specific one I was going to buy, completed the paperwork, and was out driving my new RAV4 Prime by the afternoon. And got a great finance rate from my credit union!

I bought it from Tustin Toyota