How to purchase a new blue 2023 Gen5 Prius LE FWD

I’m not big on posts mocking someone for a different perspective

He’s of the opinion his current car’s a better fit for his needs, he probably knows better than you or I.

 

It goes a little bit beyond that with Gokhan lol. In his attempts to convince himself (and others) the G4 is better than the G5, he goes on these random G5 bashing episodes. It looks kind of strange.

 

Then no help will be required - others will figure it out on their own.

I like this forum. It’s remarkably civil. I don’t want to see that change.

 

It's not that serious. Gokhan is very knowledgeable, and helpful. It's just comical the lengths he's going through to convince himself and others Gen5 is bad. I don't think some light ribbing to get him to get past the denial phase and into the acceptance phase is going to devolve this forum into gorilla city.

 

This is just Toyota restating the design philosophy behind the PiP and blended PHEVs in general. A battery carries less energy than gasoline, so to have it cover the most amount of miles, use it during lower speed stints of a trip. With those lower speed parts making up most of the regions where the pollution from engine exhaust could have done the most harm and now won't is a bonus. If the trip is within the total range of the battery, go ahead and use the battery. Those comments from the manual are for trips beyond the EV range.

This could also be Toyota a little miffed about the North American market's need for a full EV mode. For the rest of the world, the Prius PHV EV mode is the NA EV Auto one.

Like the thread complaining about the gen5 Prime's higher price increase than the gen4's over the Prius, without acknowledging the new model's EV range being almost double the old's?

 

It is pretty complicated when you are weighing a Gen 4 Prime Limited against a Gen 5 Prime SE, especially if you already own a 2021 Gen 4 with only 23,000 miles. For me, the only significant improvement on Gen 5 is TSS 3.0. I would lose cabin and trunk space, fuel efficiency, and the extra bells and whistles on the Limited, such as JBL, auto-on lights, garage-door opener, HUD, wireless charger, and many more. It is not to mention the great blue-magnetism color.

Perhaps Consumer Reports said it best: With Gen 5, Toyota has made a better car but a worse Prius.

 

The limited G5 has all the bells and whistles of the Limited G4, and then some. The G5's looks, power, and "fun factor" are vastly superior to the G4. The average fuel economy for the G5 is superior to the G4. It's an improvement in just about every way. I am 6'4 in shoes and I fit perfectly in the car. The trunk is a little bit smaller, but it still holds a helluva lot.

If you don't want to spend the money on the new shiny toy, then don't. But hanging around to bash the car in ways that aren't supported by common sense or truth, just seems like sour grapes.

 

With an almost new well equipped car it could be a downgrade to purchase a new SE.

on the other hand you’d likely get quite a bit if you sold your current car.

And THEN bought a 2023 XSE ( ot XLE)

 

Um, the gen4 has 19.8 cubic feet of cargo space. The new gen5 20.3. Total interior volume is a little closer, but still favors the new model. Where those few gallons difference is at could make a difference to an individual, but most are going to call them the same. You listed some valid negatives for the gen5, no need to make a stretch for another one.

 

So, you found out that the 3 cu ft cargo-space difference between Gen 4 and Gen 5 is only for the HEV, not for the PHEV. I didn't realize that.

Nevertheless, it is hard to believe that Gen 5 has an equally comfortable interior with its much lower roof.

 

On fuel economy.gov it says the 22 Prius hybrid has 27 cuft luggage vol, versus 24 for the 23. Plus 22 will carry a spare tire standard equipment most versions.

 

The Car Care Nut's video has an explanation for the discrepancy. The traction battery for the older Prime significantly reduced the cargo space from contemporary non_Prime models. However, the battery has been moved to being under the car, and only a small system component steals space in the rear area. So, the space available is much closer to the space available in the non-Prime model.

I have a Limited, and the floor area is not significantly reduced in the 5th generation (maybe even increased). However, the vertical clearance to the cover and roof is reduced. So the net effect is that the reduced volume only affects you if you put tall items (in the hatch area. The larger glove box (compared to generations 3 and 4), the 'hidden compartment', the pockets in the foam underneath the hatch floor, and the empty space on the sides of the hatch floor allowed me to store things in places other than the hatch.

 

That 27 figure for the 2022 is for the Eco trim, which doesn't have a spare, nor a cargo tray. Either of those takes about almost 3 cubic feet on the floor of the cargo area. The old hybrid did have more space, but the difference might only be obvious to those fully loading the car.

The old plug in battery was, um, poorly packaged, and ate up a lot of cargo space. Which is why the new one's volume is a little better.

 

I just took delivery on a '23 Prius LE. The search went like this:

I went on to cars dott comm, (I guess they don't let you post internet addresses here) selected all the parameters on the left side: Search all miles (I was willing to go anywhere in the country if I could get the one I wanted). Select the model (mine is LE), etc. Then you can click on the ones that show up and call the phone number of the dealership. You can look up the dealership online to see what state they're in.

What I was unwilling to do was to pay a "market adjustment fee". Most of the dealers are charging $5-10K on top of all the other charges (including ~$1K "dealer fees", etc). Maybe 10-20% of the dealers I talked to were not charging market adjustment fees, though almost all do have a dealer fee of ~$900 and various packages like Toyocare or whatever. But at least you get something for some of that money, it's not a flat ripoff.

So I found some good prospects that way, though far away. Meanwhile, my wife decided to just call a bunch of Toyota dealers in our state (Florida), focusing on those NOT in the big metro areas. She found two within a couple hours of us, but one was charging the ripoff extra fee, one wasn't. They had a car on a boat from Japan that wasn't yet presold, and to our delight it was the color we wanted (white). We did the deal over the phone immediately. Took a couple weeks to arrive. It is a couple hours away so I'm hoping we won't require anything major to be repaired, but it's a Toyota so I feel pretty confident it'll be okay. You can take this with a grain of salt, but the sales guy said that generally the Toyotas from Japan are more trouble-free than those assembled in the USA. Better than buying it from another state, just in terms of the complications of state sales taxes, licensing, etc.

BTW, cars dott comm lets you search any distance you specify, so it seems like a good way to search.

Good luck!

 

a concern with gen 5 is the narrower hatch opening

 

I was careful about not selecting eco or awd. Going back I see they have them all at 27. I never looked at the eco before.
Sloped roof hatchbacks always encroach on space. I don’t know which is more sloped, the 4 or the 5. Having a 4 and not going to get rid of it, whatever slope it’s got, I’ll live with it.
OT but when I considered the Niro EV, which was less money, less miles at 11k, I spotted the large battery under the vehicle in a picture. It weighs about 1000 lbs and looked like aluminum shell in the picture. That’s like 20, 50 lb backs of cement. The Prime I have is about like 5 50 lbs bags. I think I carried 4 bags in my gen 2, maybe 5, and that was a load for it.
I always am somewhat amazed at the Prime hauling that weight and getting great mpg. But the Niro I felt around 1000 lbs was a lot hanging under the car and especially with lithium ion fire risk.

 

BEV batteries are heavy, but that weight under the passenger cabin, distributed front to back, actually helps with handling and drive feel.

 

The Volt I had was very solid on the road or in the wind, even though the low mounted battery wasn’t enormous, still it was heavy.
I just didn’t like the look of the battery seen exposed under the car like on the Niro. Plus the weight takes energy. Others may say they like that, it’s all opinion. Mine said no get the tried and proven Prius drivetrain and have the gas backup. Cost on the road for gas may be cheaper than electric on the Prime. So I don’t need to be sweating it out looking at the charge declining and planning a charging stop.

off topic but here is the pic of a Niro EV battery. Maybe it’s ok, but decision made.

 

Exactly my thinking as well:
- Had 2009 Prius with 14 years - 109k of "no problems ownership", 239 fillups and still got the same gas mileage as the first tank (46.4 MPG).
- Right now gas miles are cheaper than all the "recharge-away-from-home" electric miles
- In a hurricane escape from south Florida there are a lot more gas refill options than electric recharge options
- Having gas option totally eliminates range anxiety, and I am a compulsive analyser (technical term for worry).
- I've own a number of car models that are no longer being sold. Toyota's commitment to the Prius line gives me some sort of assurance I'm not buying a flash in the pan, marketing opportunity car.


BTW, I've only had a Prime for two weeks but my average for 10 EV mode days is 23 miles a day. Certainly don't need a BEV for that.