Does the 2024 prius prime, drive the same as a regular 2024 prius xle?

Please come back here with more info after you get back from your test drive at the delearship...

 

prime is a little heavier, should drive about the same.
but i didn't notice a difference in road noise and smoothness in the 2016/17.
maybe came with different tyres? pressures not set correctly?

 

I test drove a 2023 XLE, own a 2023 XSE. While I did not get to test the XLE on the freeway, I will say that at low speeds, you absolutely do notice the difference in engine noise. With the XSE, provided your battery is charged, it's incredibly quiet and honestly luxurious. Without it, you hear the engine. It's hard to go back to hearing the engine after using it like a BEV. Other than that, as far as i'm aware the driving is quite similar. Power response is extremely smooth thanks to the e-CVT.

 

Agreed, that’s why I bought a bolt, tired of the engine noise

 

Should drive/handle better, with F/R weight distribution closer to 50/50.

 

You're going to hear the engine in both cars, and you're not going to hear the engine in both cars. My LE is in EV mode 90% of the time at low speeds.

The good news is, the 2023 Prius is quiet and smooth for the price point regardless of the trim you choose. The Prime of course will have longer runs of ICE off, but at highway speeds, I can't really hear my engine running. The only time my engine is loud and clear, is during hard acceleration from low speeds.

 

Why is this even important? Prius Prime is a lot more expensive, and you should only get if you do BEV driving.

For example, I would never get a Prius even if it drove much better than Prius Prime because I would never downgrade from a PHEV to HEV.

That said, Consumer Reports mentioned that the added weight makes Prius Prime "heavier on its feet," meaning that there is some compromise in steering nimbleness. However, Prius Prime is significantly faster than Prius. Of course, the BEV mode in Prius Prime will be quieter. Other than that, they are very similar cars.

 

Even in HV mode, my 23 is incredibly smooth. I'm constantly impressed by the engineering, and especially the CVT - at any cruising speed (Except going up steep grades) it's pretty much inaudible. I don't think I'd be able to go back to driving an automatic after this.

 

After the first several months of driving my Prime around town almost entirely in EV mode I took a 5200 mile trip where I was mostly in HV mode. The difference to me was quite noticeable. I quickly got spoiled by how quiet EV mode is and hearing the engine even at low acceleration is noticeable--not because it is particularly loud, just that any engine noise compared to absolutely none is a surprise. I got used to it pretty quickly on the road trip, then it was an equal adjustment to get used to how quiet the car was once I was back on EV mode around town again.

As to a direct comparison between HEV and Prime, sorry, was never able to directly compare them, but hope the Prime in HV mode should be pretty similar. I would hope road noise is similar and compared to my Gen1, way quieter! For the first few weeks I was inadvertently speeding a lot. With no engine noise and so much less road noise I had no idea how fast I was going. I had a pretty good sense of speed based on road noise with my old car and it is comparatively absent in the Gen5. I have an interstate test hill I like to stress cars by flooring it at the bottom at 65 and seeing what I can get to at the top. My The Gen1 could top it at 80 and you could feel it was being stressed the whole way up. I tried it with my Gen5 and chicken out half way up. On the last test I chickened out at 90 and at that speed it felt totally secure and stable. I think that is the fastest I have ever driven any car. It was fine, I chickened out.

will

 

If it is cheaper with the rebates, definitely go for the Prius Prime. That was the case in California until late 2020–early 2021, but the credits and rebates are long gone here.

 

I did get the Prime and doing all my toodling around town in EV mode is pretty dang cool! No rebates here to make decision easier, but not regretting it at all. Then, when I go on my cross-country road trips, being able to just fuel up and go 500-ish miles with a 5-minute fuel stop is just as nice. A PHEV may not be for everyone and if not used the way it is intended, maybe not as good as an HEV or EV, but for my use case it is ideal.

I've had Prii since the Gen1 been perfectly happy with efficiency over performance. Getting a leap in performance with no decrease in efficiency feels like cheating and is a lot of fun. I just have no performance car driving skills yet so not sure what I can really do. Nice thing to start learning. Yea, it isn't a "real" performance car, bit it is a lot more than any previous Prius.

will

 

Colorado residents are eligible for a tax credit of $5,000 for PHEV purchased between 7/1/23 and end of 2024. Another $2500 in 2024 if MSRP <$35,000

https://tax.colorado.gov/sites/tax/files/documents/ITT_Innovative_Motor_Vehicle_Credit_Jun_2023.pdf

 

@stuyguy: ooh! That is good news! Thanks! While I was going to double-check come April, I had assumed state credits were only for the cool new kids on the block, pure EVs--like the feds are doing. There is some hope for fairness after all.

I missed out on federal credits for my Gen1 too. I did get a state credit though.

Will

Will

 

Faster......yes. Significantly faster......not sure about that. 1/2 sec to 60 is......faster.

 

@GREEN BAE: Don't fret your first EV range number, it can and does vary a lot for me depending on conditions but also how you drive it. On a nice day without needing AC or heat and "driving it like a Prius", I can easily get 50 miles in EV mode. If the weather is cruddy or extra hot/cold it can drop below 40. However, the biggest way to get low EV miles is to drive the car based on how it looks, not the badge! If I'm feeling my oats and having fun enjoying the extra power, the range is going to be pretty bad.

What I especially like though is that for the 99% of the time I drive it like the name badge I get great efficiency, but then every once in a while I can play and since it is infrequent, my overall mileage is still great. Only a few percent of fun driving to 95+% of efficient driving still averages out to efficient numbers overall. I'm not paying an "efficiency penalty" for a car that indeed does have some extra power. Have fun!

BTW, for break-in period there are lots of ways to interpret it. Mine was to declare the break-in done after two tanks of gas. It gets complicated when you do a lot of EV miles, but to me a tank is a pretty good measure of how much the engine has actually run.

will

 

Where did u get it and what $

 

careful folks, a good phev is the gateway drug to... well, i won't say it