Prius Prime or 1st gen Plugin

does the potential for the pip losing hov access as wj tracy mentions above come into play?

 

Test drive the plus. You’ll be pleasantly surprised. The 11” screen is nice until you realize the interface is god awful and it’s a distraction when you’re driving and trying to turn the recirculater on.

 

The screen needs a lot of work on the UX front and hardware too. From what I understand, it resets all the time if it’s exposed to excessive amounts of heat, which what a cars dashboard does.

 

so what is important to you;

1) cost

2) hov access

3)screen size

4) anything else?

 

My Prime Advanced has seen hours and hours of baking at 106°, cool Socal!!. I've had nothing untoward occur with my gigantic screen, no reboots, no freeze ups (come on freezing in 106°!!); everything is fine!
I love my Prime Advanced and knowing what I know, wouldn't even consider Gen 1, 2, 3... Again, if you have the money, quit anguishing and buy the damn thing!
You'll thank me the longest day you live!!

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Go drive the beast in Socal; you don't have to buy it to check it out. You could even take a SILENT friend with you who could spring an emergency "I've got to get home right away" statement, to allow for your escape, should you need it!! Have fun with this thing!! I sold Hi-roller cars for over 2 decades; buying a car should be fun!! If a person likes something enough, AND they have the money, price is never a problem. Check out ALL the features, especially on the Advanced, remember the legendary quality and reliability of the Prius, then post us when you get the puppy!! Remember, if the salesrep and/or dealership treat you badly, get out of there; you owe them nothing til you sign!!

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Hey Bob, ya got me thinking.... I've already got my Prime Advanced in Socal; it seems to me that there's a deal here somewhere!!! I love driving my Prime, but can I take some time off from my IT companies, bring my guitar and amp (battery powered, I swear!!) and do a musical Road Trip!!??? You gotta do the video, Uncle Bob!!


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Hummm, there is this Guinness record:
2017 KIA NIRO SETS GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ TITLE FOR LOWEST FUEL CONSUMPTION BY A HYBRID VEHICLE

• Per Google Map 'non-highway' route, 3,005 miles, 58 hr, ~52 mph ~= 73-75 MPG
• "Stock" your tires are not OEM but I can bring four
• 4-wheel alignment (I have the technology)

PLAN A - straight through

• Using Google Earth, optimize the 'non-highway' route
• 3-4 day start window to look for optimum weather (no rain, tail winds)
• Leaving LA to use night on the first leg to minimize AC
• Frozen 1 qt., water bottles to minimize AC

PLAN B - segments

• Using Google Earth, optimize the 'non-highway' route
• 3-4 day start window to look for optimum weather and include rain and headwind delays
• Plug-in at night and every meal break, start driving when Sun is above horizon

It costs to get a Guinness record and there are few standards ('Standards? We don't need no stinkin' standards.') To do like-to-like we should really use a Prius Two ECO, not our plug-in hybrid.

So let me suggest another approach, the old Edmunds Smackdown:

• Prius Prime, Volt, and BMW i3-REx (Ioniq plug-in if available)
• Coordinate with Edmunds on the technical details of their past smack-down routes and schedules
  • San Diego - Las Vegas back roads
  • Las Vegas - touring the town
  • Las Vegas - San Diego interstates

Owner/driver run, we swap our rides following the Edmunds protocol. We only have to spend three days and one is Las Vegas ... We have a bunch of 3-day weekends coming up Sept-Feb.

Bob Wilson

 

Uncle Bob, if you/we do this, America's Tire has got to furnish "stock" tires, for free with some of their decals for advertising, along with Toyota to furnish motels, meals, and fuel!! Anything else we need should be paid for by "sponsors"; Mobil 1 is another that comes to mind, and tire manufacturer, JBL, Chevron/Shell/Exxon??(a little irony?) etc.!!

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I have no problem with 'support' especially if it includes the cost of the Guinness record. So I checked with Guinness:
Main reasons why applications are rejected | Guinness World Records

Speeding on public roads: Guinness World Records does not accept time-limited attempts in a motorized vehicle on a public highway, because such attempts would require the challenger to, in effect, undertake a race or time-trial on public roads. The only exception to this rule is if the highways used are closed off specifically for the purpose of the record attempt. We monitor a wide range of ‘Lowest fuel consumption in a journey from A to B’ records, and we encourage applicants to consider these as an alternative.​

Here in lies the problem. Going as slow as the 'law allows' gives outstanding MPG and it appears Guinness is against reporting the speed of a record to avoid 'racing' on public roads. But it means these very high MPG numbers are hiding the slow speeds required. But there is a trick that lets a solo driver do the drive:


The trick is to dilute the warm-up cost, ~5 minutes, so make each segment a minimum of 50 minutes long. The greater the ratio, the closer it approaches the maximum MPG value. That is what I did in July 2013:
Efficient driving for a 1,000 mile tank | PriusChat

Notice my average speed, 22 mph, gave the 1,000 miles on a single tank.

So let me suggest practice for a solo record, do a 1,000 mile tank:

• drain battery until SOC shows 0%
• fill-up tank and have the cover closed with a seal (or honor system)
• drive for 3-4 weeks around town at 25-30 mph using secondary streets and each trip +1 hour
• when 'low fuel' comes on, drive the same way but in CHARGE mode to put 80% on battery
  • carry a small wrench for the 12V ground and a 1 gallon, spare gas can
• continue driving until SOC reaches 10-20% and then have the intact seal observed

Driving for MPG record is one of the most boring things one can do. I would never wish it on someone who hadn't done something like this before.

LATE: 1,439 miles, San Diego CA to Austwell TX. Prius Prime 11.3 gal tank @105 MPG ~= 1,186 miles, just 253 miles short. The Prime would need 128 MPG to do it on one 11.3 gal tank.

Bob Wilson

 

Just my two cents - I agree with most posters that it is definitely worth the money to get the Prime over the 1st gen. Also I really think you should take Bob up on his offer - or barring that - purchase from the a dealer in the northeast. I just purchased a Prime Premium from Berlin City Toyota and it was a very painless experience. I was able to get the prime discounted about $5600 under MSRP. You could probably do even better now since the rebates increased. When I searched they did have Plus models but were only discounting them about $4000 making the price basically equivalent to the Premium. Additionally, the screen is great. I know some of the reviews have been negative about the screen, and it is not very intuitive, but once you get used to it it is awesome. I also very much prefer the Softex seats to the cloth ones, makes it feel like a luxury vehicle. Final thing, make sure that the CA rebate (assuming the legislature funds it again) qualifies on out of state purchases. In Colorado, where I live, it does qualify, but not sure on CA.

 

There seems to be a lot of gripes with the infotainment system even here. Prime Entertainment System Rant | PriusChat

 

Yeah, there have been several updates to the infotainment system so perhaps it is better now. Maybe it is just a personal preference thing, for me it just does what I need it to. Once synced with my phone it plays all my google play library over bluetooth with no issues. The navigation is great, although it is a pain to have to enter the address. I actually prefer the navigation to both waze and google maps. I definitely appreciate the big screen for directions. Navigating through the menus It is not quite as snappy as my Pixel phone, but I didn't expect it to be. It definitely isn't very intuitive but after playing around with it I got used to it quickly.

 

but it can't be any worse than pip.

 

Seems like you are likely being wise by leaning towards the original PiP. Not impressed with the members on here pushing you to the much more expensive option when knowing zero about your financial situation.

 

we can't help you with that.

 

Agree with this. Seems most are supporting going with the Prime, and it does seem like a fantastic vehicle (still haven't seen one in person myself), but last year I opted for the used PiP instead for the following reasons;

- my '06 was in dire need of replacement so I had to make a decision (failing engine, high mileage)
- 5 seats & slightly larger cargo area
- saved ~ $10k vs new vehicle for my 2014
- oh, and it was actually available to buy

I drive a lot for work (50-100 miles per day), so I use hybrid mode every day, and also would on the Prime. Given our other car is a Leaf, the PiP is our long distance travelling vehicle, so the 5th seat (2 kids & dog) and generous cargo was important to us. Just seemed like an all around wiser decision at the time. And 13 months later. I don't regret it at all. Especially nice getting double usage out of our L2 charger.

Now, if only Toyota Canada would get their act together and release the Prime in Canada (outside Quebec), it would be nice..........

I do hope Toyota follows GM's lead (can't believe I said that) and add the 5th seat back in, in the future. Not a deal killer necessarily IMO, but a drawback for us. Could be my next vehicle in 3-4 years, particularly if they do this.

Ideally though, I hope I have the budget at that time to get a used Model S, that is my dream... but I got work to do to get there......

Good luck to the OP in his decision!

 

Nice! We are also a Leaf and PiP household. Although I'm jealous of the L2. Still rockin' one shared L1 between the 2 vehicles. Very doable since I work from home.