Why I Got Rid of My New Prime

Just curious: what did you have prior to the Prime?

I'm with you 100% on point number two. I just "tolerate" our 3rd gen's controls, and it seems like 4th gen is yet another level of disconnect. I suspect if no one pushes back they will have all the controls on a touch screen before long, and the mantra will be "just put it on "auto"". Further, the reason for this is to cut costs: it's cheaper than designing/testing tactile, ergonomic controls.

 

Be 'wary' when manufacturers say 150,000 mile traction pack warranty - or 'lifetime'. This lesson was learned the hard way, years ago, first, by Honda hybrid owners - than Nissan Leaf owners. Their batteries lost capacity. that meant mileage went down because gas was now doing more of the job. Buyers asked for replacement batteries. Dealers refused because MOST boilerplate says NOTHING about capacity loss ... even 50% .... 60% .... or higher. In other words - owners were told that capacity loss is normal. It'd take more of a catastrophic type failure in order to get replacements. Through litigation - some manufacturers finally started doing the right thing. Not all. Read the fine print. If it's not there in writing? It's not there.
other than that? congrats's !!

 

HV mode in Prius Prime works the same way. Once you've warmed up, that ICE coolant will be taken advantage of even when switched back to EV mode.

Most people find disappointment from Hyundai upon finding out electric heat isn't available. Lack of choice and dependency on that type of heat (gas still costs too, it isn't free) makes it less appealing design.

 

Ioniq PHEV was also my 1st my choice before I bought my 2020 Prime in early December 2019.
But I settled on Prime because of following reasons:
> No nearby Hyundai dealers had either of my choice of colors (blue or white).
> No discount. Full MSRP price on Ioniq.
> No rebate from Hyundai.
> $3000 less on my trade-in than what Toyota dealer would give for my Tacoma.
> In HV mode, Prime gets better mileage.

At the end of the day I'm happy with my Prime.

 

My instantaneous first thought....

Years down the road when you sell your korean based hyundai, it will not hold its value like the tried and true Toyota Prius. So any money that you're currently up on, will be lost on the backside.


Rob43

 

When I’m at a dealership I always take note as to how full the service bays are. My dealer is rarely more than 25% and usually has next day appointments. The nearby hyundai dealer was packed. I asked what the typical wait time to book an appointment for routine maintenance. 1 week. Not sure about non routine. I crossed Hyundai off my list. Pretty much similar at the Nissan dealer.

 

Also, I've learned that Hyundai's lifetime warranty on the (traction battery) replacement is for a complete failure not for typical degradation of charging capacity.

 

Congrats on a profitable trade-in. That does not happen often in the car buying scene. So PRIME depreciated $4300 in 3 months. I don't think $27K on PRIME is after $4500 tax credit? If not, the net payment is only $22,500 after you file 2019 tax return, meaning you drove PRIME for three months for $200 profit as well. Not a bad deal.

I just wonder if you decide to trade-in your brand new Inoiq PHV in three months, what offer you would get?

 

congrats, all the best!

please keep us posted on your experience

 

It was also my first choice, what stopped me was reliability and resale value. Hyundai is new to hybrids, I expect them to take at least 2 or 3 redesigns before they have something reliable. Also if you check Hyundai forums there are VERY few PHEV owners active, you will be on your own when there is a problem or question.

 

Your state incentive may come with an obligation to refund prorated if it is like CA.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

Well, Consumer Reports gives the non-plug-in Ioniq, Prius, and Prius Prime 69/67, 79/74, and 79/74 overall/road-test scores, respectively.

 

I’d accept those as reasonable choices. I personally will stick with my Prius Prime though.

Hopefully, Toyota (and Prius in particular) reliability vs. Hyundai reliability will never factor into your situation.

However, I’ll add that I’m surprised that you would see only around 20ish real EV miles. Even while my 2017’s EV range was at its lowest (for now I mean; I’m sure it will drop in its old age), I never saw below 25 GoM miles (~23-24 real miles). It has recovered since to around 26ish real miles.

 

You many have completely mis-interpreted that data.

What if the Hyundai dealer in your particular area sells 4X the cars that Toyota does ??
Of all types and models, since they all share the service bays.

That kind of means that they will have 4X the amount of service appointments, even if the "failure rates" are the same.

What you are saying is kind of like avoiding the longest lines at Disneyland.

 

Perhaps that Toyota service department is the stealership stereotype, and people have learned to take their business elsewhere, including the Hyundai dealer as car dealer service departments won't turn away other brands.

To do so on a trip that would be EV only requires manual intervention. A heat pump eats much less EV miles than a resistance heater, but it still eats some, and gasoline doesn't keep forever. To each their own.

The ioniq is new, but Hyundai isn't new to hybrids. The Sonata hybrid came out in 2009. The second generation of it got a PHEV. The third generation will be out this year. It uses a parallel hybrid system like the Ioniq with the difference, besides engine and motor output, being that the Sonata uses a traditional automatic to the Ioniq's DCT.

Time to update the profile.

If I had to choose, I'd go with the Ioniq/Niro over the Prime, but mostly because all the Toyota's I've owned have been the least comfortable cars to sit in. I thought the Smart's size would be great for a second/commuter car, with it taking up just half a garage, leaving room for stuff, but my commute is far too long for the ED model.

 

Regarding the EV range, mine also started low, around 20 miles, but now, it has reached 30 - 40 miles. Perhaps the brand-new battery doesn't have full performance. Climate-control system, acceleration, and climbing ramps or hills are the biggest drains of the EV range. If the EV range is important, I would turn off the heater and A/C completely, avoid any acceleration events (such as merging to a freeway) as much as possible, and avoid ramps such as in multilevel parking structures.

 

This post doesn't make sense on may things listed.