2022 Prius Prime verses Prius...things I might be overlooking?

I reordered your quotes a bit. Those three quotes contradict each other. If you are not going to be able to charge PP, then you almost have no benefit of having a plug-in, (besides the cost due to incentives). It probably boils down to what you can find available. At your location, you still have $1500 rebate from Toyota and $4500 tax credit, and maybe a state incentive? This makes PP XLE cheaper than Prius XLE, I think. But, if you need an AWD, then regular Prius is the only way. If you want Blind Sport Monitor, then you won't get that on PP XLE. If you need Andriod Auto, currently only trim on PP that has the ability is LE. I don't know for sure, but Prius XLE may come with a 7" display and is capable of using Android Auto. Again, there are some differences in features you get based on the model and trim you chose, but currently, I don't think you can be very choosy. Your choice is likely to be limited to what is available.

Charging will take ~2 hrs on the L2 charger (240v) or any public charge station that is not using 120v. With 120V L1 EVSE, it will take 5.5-6hour. For all practical purposes, PP is not meant to be charged on the road. Charge at home or at work would be the viable options.

I think so, provided all regular Prius now has LED headlights.

The cargo space limitation is real. If you are coming from Gen3, yous will notice. Also, for a PP, if you opt to carry a spare tire, that has to be stored on the deck or in the rear seat footwell reducing the cargo space further. For regular Prius (non-AWD), there is still a spare tire well you can store the tire, though you will need additional foam parts to store everything properly.

Yes. But, with the rear defroster on, it is not a huge deal. I park my car outside all the time, and never had a problem. However, the lack of a rear wiper makes the low visibility in snowy or icy weather regardless of scraping.

Subaru made Crosstrek Plug-in... I am not sure if that model is still available in 2022. Even if it is, I am sure it is very difficult to find one. It used exactly the same plug-in hybrid system as in PP developed by Toyota. But, due to the aerodynamics of the car, the mpg and EV range was much lower than PP, IIRC.

Again, it may be that you will have very little choice on cars you can buy now. You may have to take whatever is available. As for the extended warranty, I am a firm believer that it is a total waste of money. Yeah, LED headlights replacement is costly, extended warranty is not going to cover collision damage. How else, are headlights going to be "broken"? You, know you are still covered by 3 years 36 months of regular warranty. The extended warranty will not start until then.

 

Daisy, buy the Crosstrek. You deserve it. Or the Crosstrek Hybrid. Or wait for a 2023 Subaru Solterra electric car. They aren't yet bragging about the range, but it will easily handle your 100 mile daily commute and more. Otherwise I agree with Salamander.

Gasoline prices are having a temporary big jump in price. No one can say when prices will drop back to merely expensive, but the world oil situation will stabilize in the future. Don't make long term plans on short term fluctuations. A look at gasoline futures prices shows that big money expects gasoline wholesale prices (42,000 gallons delivered at NY harbor) to drop $.68 by February. I know, prices go up faster than they come down, but a price drop will happen.

 

Ponder: given federal, state, mfg, and dealer incentives, Prime models usually cost less (much less) than their non-Prime counterparts.

 

A pay charger could end up costing more than gas. If you can't charge at home or work, I'd recommend skipping on a plug in. You'll get much more cargo space with the Prius. Some trims still have a spare tire.

The Prime could cost less than the Prius with the incentives, but that depends on you owing enough in taxes to get the full tax credit.

The AWD on the Prius is low power. It's designed for helping in poor weather at lower speeds. It works for what it's intended for, but it isn't like Subaru's AWD.

It only used parts of the Prime's system. The battery, which appeared packaged worse than the Primes, and the motors. The transmission was still an eCVT, but one designed by Subaru so it could be used with their mechanical AWD system.

 

Thanks. I just checked the Subaru site. They are bringing back Crosstrek Plug-In for 2022 still with the same traction battery and 17 miles of EV range. Yeah, when they first introduced the Crosstrek Plug-In a few years ago, I inquired about it at our local Subaru dealer, but they had no intention of selling it. Never had a chance to test drive it or see one in wild. I put my deposit down for the Soltera reservation, but so far I don't know much about the car except that it is a Toyota bZ4X clone. Have they released any info on the AWD system that is going to be used on Solterra (and some trims of bZ4X)?

 

I don't remember reading any physical or mechanical differences for front windshield and wipers between PP and regular Gen4. They share the same OEM wiper blades and I believe the same OEM windshield glass. As you should have noticed the rear hatch window is a different design and shape. PP has the patented wavy rear hatch glass for better aerodynamics but it comes without a rear wiper.

 

In your region, removing snow and ice off the rear window of PP can become a problem. Although the rear defroster does facilitate the melting of snow and ice, the visibility thru the rear window is often limited in PP due to the inability to get rid of all of the snow/ice.

 

Actually, if you are driving in rain, the water will run quite smoothly. Once cleaned, and it is not snowing, the rear hatch window does not get dirty while in motion even driving on the slushy road during NE famous mud season like now. This is unlike the rear window of an SUV which tends to become covered with dirt and mud very easily.

 

I really hate to throw this at you; but have you looked at the Corolla hybrid? You get a trunk, not a hatchback and the price point is slightly lower than the Prius. The drive train is similar; but with a smaller traction battery, I believe.
Since your looking at purchasing later this year, you may want to wait for the Corolla Cross hybrid. I think next year or the following year's model will get the hybrid treatment also; with a possibility of eAWD. It should slot in slightly cheaper than the Prius eAWD. The Corolla hybrid line, replaced the Prius C line, that was discontinued in 2020??
Subaru and Toyota has a technology sharing agreement in place. Toyota's safety system is actually based off of Subaru's eyesight technology. Subaru got Toyota's hybrid technology - that they worked it into their symmetric AWD technology on that Crosstrek. IMHO: the sticker price differential is quite steep when compared to standard Crosstrek with questionable mileage gain to offset that steep cost. The numbers just don't work out. Know that Subaru won't get close to the mileage a Toyota can offer and Toyota's AWD won't be able to get even close to Subaru's AWD capabilities. They are NOT an apple to apple comparison - two totally different animals.

Hope this helps more than adding to the confusion..

 

It's true across the board that repairs to hybrids cost more on the whole than do repairs to ICE cars. That may be changing faster than expected with the new tech manufactures are adding even to sub compact and economy models. No escaping the repair $ sticker shock.

Concerning the not being able to charge at home problem, is that prime has a feature called Charge Mode.
Many Prime owners declare the feature useless due to it not being as efficient as plugging the in and it reducing the Primes total MPG for the trip when Charge mode is used.
It's far from useless IMO, and has several benefits among them being able to charge the traction pack to 80% of the Pimes 100% EV charge, while charging at close to twice as fast as Level 2 (240 volt) chargers take to charge the car. Charge mode takes about a half hour to 45 minutes to charge the traction pack battery to 80% while it takes a Level 2 EVSE chargers close to 2 hours to charge the traction pack to 100% state of charge ( SOC ).
There is a downside to Charge Mode in that it's not as friendly to the traction pack due to the fluctuation in the charge rate while driving as opposed to the steady flow of electricity when plugged into an EVSE charger.

The way the driver switches on Charge Mode is by holding the HV/EV button in for 5 seconds.
And the traction pack needs to be less than 80% SOC or the message on the dash will say that Charge Mode is not available.

blah blah blah - I hope that was more informative than confusing

 

Is the next gen Prius coming out for next year? I don't think that would go unremarked here. Most likely, the 2023 is going to be the same as this years.

So, like most modern sedans then.

Can't get around the fact using a car to generate electricity is less efficient than a power plant. For some fringe cases, using charge mode will have less of an efficiency impact on the car's over all use, but most of the time, if you need EV mode later on, you are better off putting the car in hybrid mode before draining the battery.

 

Yes and no. The sedans I have had in the past had more vertical rear glass so the snow will not stay on the surface, whereas on PP sticky snow will keep accumulating on the surface since it is much less angle than most sedans.

Then, the inability to scrape clean the layer of ice off the curved surface of the rear window surface makes it even more prone to accumulate additional snow. That being said, I have never felt that was a major problem for me. I almost always have something loaded in the back of my car such that it is rare for me to be able to see through the rear window using the rearview mirror even on clear days.