New 2019 Niro Plug In

i'm amazed that prime and niro have more leg/knee room than rav4

 

While the PHEV is yet to arrive, the newest Escape is out for sit testing.

The fine details of body size, shape, and preferred seating position make the difference.

 

A lot of it comes down to the shape of the dash, and the distance between the rearward most point of the dash and the hip point on the seat. As I understand it, the legroom measurement that manufacturers publish is the distance from the hip point in the driver's seat to the pedals. This can be different on the passenger side of the car (where the husband typically has problems), and doesn't take into account the shape of the dashboard, which can interfere with knees. Since we're considering various cars for me to drive, we have to take into account the legroom and kneeroom in the front passenger seat.

As for the RAV4 kneeroom, all I can say is that there's not enough...something about the relationship of the seat, the dash, and the shape of the dash just doesn't work for us.

Car shopping with tall people can be kind of a pain. I like to research, read, watch videos, compare specs, and narrow down the field of cars that would work. I still do that to inform myself, but in the end it turns into trying on a lot of cars on for size and getting one that fits.

 

I really appreciate you taking the time to write your comments! Thanks very much!

I'm glad that your experience has been positive. The Niro seems to tick all the right boxes for us, so when we get ready to buy, it's definitely one we'll be looking at hard.

Thanks again!

 

what was the last year rav4 you sat in?

 

The current generation. We sat in one a few months ago and in the passenger seat, his knees were touching the rear-most point of the dash. In an accident, his knees and femurs would be shattered, and in normal conditions, there wasn't enough room to move around. Also with the RAV4, the seats are mounted pretty high in the vehicle, limiting headroom.

 

The measurements are also done based on some 'average' sized and shaped person.

Wayne Gerdes of CleanMPG.com is a tall bloke, and his reviews aren't limited to fuel efficient vehicle types. He tries the rear left passenger seat with the driver's set for himself, but not the front passenger though.

 

Thanks for the tip! I've never been to that site, so I'll browse around for a bit.

 

If there's a heat pump - why is the engine running for heat? Conversely, why would the car need a heat pump (as standard equipment) if the engine is going to cycle for heat?!? That doesn't make sense.
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amen!
At 6'-5", and both my self & better ½ having marginal back health at best - we do NOT do well scrunching down into low cars. The only thing with tons of legroom & Headroom as well as being plugin - was the Chrysler minivan. 32/33 blended Highway/City while driving in charge sustain mode, & 33 miles of EV driving. It may look over-priced - but for Cali drivers, state incentives & Fed tax Credit makes it comparable to the poor mileage - 20mpg gas only version. Plus - HOV stickers are a nice benefit.

EPA rates its EV efficiency at 84MPGe, so if you drive around on EV primarily - your dash readout gets mighty impressive for such a large PHEV;

Even when we're driving 50/50 gas/EV - our efficiency still runs higher than our Prius typically did

We are on our 14th month of ownership, and we are just now ½way through our 2nd tank of gas, & that's after taking one trip out of state, as well as Mountain driving for a few Big Bear vacation weekends.
Good luck on your car search!
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With a lower power motor than other PHEVs, the Niro/Ioniq is a blended one, and it doesn't make a pretense of being a full EV. The engine will likely fire up under heavy acceleration or high speeds, so why add a heat pump to the price tag.

 

While they are different platforms, they use the same hybrid drive train.

 

Tesla's don't have heat pumps

 

Why is that? Lack of availability and clout to get one?

 

Because of their size - it's Motors, inverter & traction Battery generate 'enough' heat to do cabin warmth ... which is scavenged for its cabin warmth (besides its electric heater). Would a heat pump be more practical if a traction battery was cold soaked at -20f ? One might think so. But a heat pump works by removing & sequestering heat from the air, & there's little to no heat to scavenge when it gets a lot colder. That's the logic when the cost-benefit analysis was made.
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Okay. Perhaps when an automotive heat pump is more closer in cost to an A/C unit, Tesla will start using them, but even then, BEVs will still need a resistance heater for the coldest times.

 

It'll be interesting to see how efficient heating elements / ceramic / etc can get . . . . maybe even refreshing / re-usable chemical heat? For now though, even our latest ride with seat & steering wheel heat go a long way. It's the wind shield defrost energy that REALLY requires the most addressing when vehicles have seat & steering wheel under control.
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I REALLY wish the Model 3 had a heated steering wheel. Maybe the Model Y? Won't hold my breath.