My Review of my Prime Advanced package

Glad to hear that you are enjoying your prime.

You have your facts wrong with the Volt though. It is rated at 53 EV miles, after which it drives like a normal hybrid, just as the prime does. Basically the Volt has much more electric range and better performance, while the Prime gets much better mpg on the ICE.

 

You corrected in the Volt's range. But when it comes to the hybrid function of both cars, they are not the same. The Volt is serial hybrid system and the Prius is a parallel hybrid system. The parallel hybrid system is more efficient than the serial hybrid system, which helps the Prius' engine to have a electric crutch per say to allow it to continue to run in a partial and, at times, full EV mode again to save from using more fuel. The serial hybrid system has the engine to just run to produce more electricity for the electric motor, which is the only thing in the system that moves to wheels. The engine doesn't move the wheel in the Volt. Because of the way the serial hybrid system is designed, the engine has to be really efficient on it's own to even come close to the efficiency of the parallel hybrid system. Toyota throws another annie up on the Volt by having the most fuel and thermo efficient engine with the parallel hybrid system added to it for the best fuel efficiency combination. The Volt won't be considered in the same ball park, if the Prius Prime had the same or better electric range than the Volt and the Prius Prime still kept it's range of 640 miles.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

You can simply not switch the wipers to "Auto". If left in the "Off" position, they operate like normal wipers.

 

But without an intermittent option, which is almost the only setting I ever use.

 

The automatic setting works intermittently if the situation calls for it. And you use the same intermittent speed control in both auto and manual operation.

 

Based on about 1500 miles in my Advanced, im pretty much in agreement with you. 4passenger seating isn't a concern to me as. I rarely ever have more than the front seats occupied. In my case I think the rear seats will be permanently flattened.

I'm in SoCal so I don't have any issues with the rear window or the backup camera. I'm not sure what you mean about the lines moving. Seems to me they should always be square to the rear of the car (which they are)

The gps system actually works great, once you've done 6-8 button pushes (that's way too many). The user interface is poor for sure and the maps are outdated. Hopefully there will be some updates soon. Likewise the whole voice command system takes too many prompts to make something happen and you also have to learn Toyota speak which is clumsy. Seems to me the idea of voice command is that you shouldn't have to look at or push any buttons on the screen to make things happen, which ain't happening here.

My only other complaint is that I think having over 1000 pages of owner's manual is asking way to much of the consumer. Toyota should have developed about 50 YouTube videos to cover most of the basics. It just too hard to lookup things you don't know

The radar assisted cruise control is absolutely wonderful and greatly reduces the strain of driving. I love it!

 

I have the same experience. I have not visited the gas station since I bought the Prime.

 

. . . the following is my review of the all new prius Prime Advanced package! I've had it for about a month now, which has been long enough for me to make an opinion.

I'll start with the cons: if you looked into this car at all, you know that the back windshield has been changed compared to any other prius. It has a dip that is supposed to be more aerodynamic and also used to drain water, snow etc. Here in Pennsylvania we've had a plethora of weather over this month and I've come to realize this rear windshield sucks. Water does not run down, snow does not slide off, and now without a back windshield wiper, it's almost impossible to see. I'm sure it helps my mpg, but it does not help me to see out the back.

Next, is the backup camera. Because of its location under the dip of the rear windshield, I find its always dirty! I'm constantly having to wipe it before driving in order to use it! Its either wet, dirty, or covered in salt from snow. With my 2010 prius, I never had this big of an issue with the camera getting so dirty!

Speaking of the camera, it is less than impressive. If you've ever been in other newer vehicles, their back up cameras have lines that tilt and move to better help assist you. On this prime, it looks like toyota wanted to make it look helpful by taking the camera they've always used and just adding lines. They only help if you're backing up in a straight line, they do not tilt or turn and honestly just get in the way most of the time.

The next problem is the GPS. It has not been updated, it looks the same as it always has. There's nothing special to it. I know with my 2010 I did not trust or use my GPS and it's looking like that's how this will be too. It seems to not know most roads and always takes way longer than if I just use my phones gps. Come on toyota get with it!

Also, this car is only a 4 seater, Toyota got rid of its 5th seat to cut down on weight and improve mpg. I'm sure in the years to come they'll bring 5 seaters back, but if that's what you need this isn't the car for you right now.

Now with that being said here are my pros: in all honesty I do love my car. It's looks are great, the interior (black leather) is comfortable and does not give off that harsh leather odor. The heated steering wheel and front seats heat quickly and perfectly. If you don't already know, this car has no belts under the hood. The heat/air conditioning are controlled solely by electronics and the outside air, which probably contributes to how fast it heats up and also means that in cold temperatures you don't need to turn on your car prior to leaving which is nice!

I charge my car overnight, and this car has a setting that you can tell it what time you leave so that it will be fully charged by that time and also heated up and ready to go based on what temperature your heat or air is set to! Which is super great for cold mornings.

The car also seems to be getting used to my commute, or I'm getting used to the car, but I find that it has been doing better and better each day mpg wise.

The automatic/sensing high beams are nice for night driving, no more having to remember to switch high beams off for oncoming traffic, the car does it for you! Not to mention the lights on this car are amazing!

This car also has a rain sensing windshield. There's a sensor that senses a dirty/ rain soaked windshield and automatically turns on your wipers for whatever speed it feels is adequate. A nonimportant feature, but it is nice!

The get up for the car is better than your average prius! It almost feels like a newer corolla would. It doesn't lag as much, especially with a charged battery. Though when the electric battery is dead, it does go back to the normal prius feel, no biggie!

This car also has radar cruise control. So, you can set the cruise to whatever speed, but if a car going slower were to go in front of you the car will sense that and match it's speed until that car moves from your lane. It'll keep you at a 3 car distance away. So you could have your self set for 80mph but if the car in front of you is doing 20, you will go 20 safely! It's very nice!

This car has plenty of safety features such as heads up display, blind spot detection, rear cross traffic alert, parking assist, and lane departure warning. Which if you've never had the lane departure it can be shocking at first! The car detects the lines on the road and if you cross them (or leave your lane without a turn signal) the car will beep at you, if you don't correct yourself the car will correct your driving for you so it literally steers you back into your lane. It's not aggressive, if you're really switching lanes the car will let you, but it's still nice.

As for the mpg, its amazing. The electric battery allows around 20 miles of gasless driving at speeds up to 84mph. And for those who work close to home you'll almost never touch your gas tank! The car allows you to use only battery or have it switch from hv to ev based on the driving conditions (hills, straight aways, or based on your speed).

I use the hv/ev mode to go to work since I live about 35 miles from my job to get the best mpg. Once the battery is dead the prius does not lose its mpg! I still get my mpg in the 60s with the normal hybrid battery. If you're wondering how this car is better than a chevy volt, I'll explain.

Volts charged battery can get you around 38 miles on a battery until it dies. But once that battery dies the mpg plummets. The battery is now at 0% with nothing saved to help your mpg from then on. You're driving an average car at that point with low low mpg. The prime does not allow its battery to completely die. The all electric driving is over when the battery is around 20%, leaving the remainder to help keep your mpg high even while using gas. A great feature of the car for those with long commutes.

Overall, there are more pros than cons with this car. I love it's new sporty look and fun new gadgets. It does need tweaking but I'm sure it'll come in time! If anyone has any other questions about anything I mentioned or hadn't mentioned don't hesitate ask!

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Everything here matches what we found with the BMW i3-REx but it too has the Volt characteristic. Once the REx comes on, MPG goes in the hole. The BMW is not an efficient gas vehicle.

Bob Wilson

 

The Volt and Prius are both power-split hybrids, meaning they can operate in a series mode, parallel mode, or both at the same time.
The gen1 Volt's control laws favored series mode in order to extend the EV driving experience after the charge is gone, but the system would directly connect the ICE to the wheels at higher speeds for efficiency. Both generations suffer from an ICE not completely optimized for efficiency, but then the longer EV range reduces the time the ICE is even on. For me, a Prime would use almost 4.5 gallons of gas in a week; a Volt would use less than a gallon.
Improving the hybrid efficiency is possible for the Volt, see the Malibu hybrid, but it means adding cost for little to no gain for most buyers.

 

When comparing, electric-efficiency rating comes into play. Here are some examples (fewer kWh is better):

31 kWh/100 mi = 106 MPGe = 2017 Chevy Volt
30 kWh/100 mi = 114 MPGe = 2016 Nissan Leaf
30 kWh/100 mi = 116 MPGe = 2016 VW e-Golf
29 kWh/100 mi = 111 MPGe = 2017 BMW i3 PHEV
28 kWh/100 mi = 119 MPGe = 2017 Chevy Bolt
27 kWh/100 mi = 124 MPGe = 2017 BMW i3 EV
26 kWh/100 mi = 133 MPGe = 2017 Toyota Prius Prime

 

This article does explain that the engine in the Volt is inefficient.
Electric Vehicle News: The Chevrolet Volt is not a true Series Hybrid

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

In pure cash, a Volt will cost me $15.48 to commute in for a week, and the Prime $16.67.

That article doesn't say much specifically about the 1.4L in the gen1 Volt. There is a line about ICE's being 25% efficient in general, but that is it. Then being 6 years old, it has nothing on the 1.5L in the current Volt.

 

~0.5 gal of gas over 5 days?

What does the BMW i3 REx come in?

What sort of weekend or vacation miles?

Bob Wilson

 

My commute is 60 miles round trip, with no chance to recharge at work. I worked with $2.60 for regular and 16 cents a kWh. The i3 BEV would cost $12.96 per week, and REx $13.92. I figure 90 miles EPA is the minimum comfortable range for a BEV for me, allowing for reduced range in winter.

We live in town, so typical weekend errands could be covered by the Prime's range. The occasional trip to see friends and family is around 70 to 80 miles total.

Our most common vacation is to see my parents, which is about 600 miles one way. That would continue to be done by the 2001 Sable. It has more room for the pets. Then the Sable only has @72k miles on it, and without these trips would see less than 3000 miles a year.

 

Did my first BJs run. Couldn't close the tonneau cover over the big package of paper towels, even when turned sideways (the shorter direction), just as I predicted. Still really enjoying my new Prime anyway.

 

not a huge deal, but a disappointment.

 

Ruby must buy in bulk.

 

if prime preclude's bj's, i'm out.

 

South of the Mason-Dixon Line, a BJ has another meaning.

Bob Wilson