Gen 5 Prius Prime worth over Gen 5 Prius?

Hmm... Good to know. So, that's:

Prius Prime XSE Premium is $50204.50 - $5000 = $45204.50.
Prius AWD Limited is $46204.50

That makes things more interesting, but I still am leaning toward the AWD Prius non-Prime. I currently own a 2012 Prius Plug-In which is outdoors, and the plugging it in part is kind of annoying outdoors in the winter, as sometimes the plug freezes or gets covered with snow or the port gets full of snow and the port cover can't close, and stuff like that. Furthermore, now that I mainly work from home, I don't drive enough to justify it, as I only drive about 8000 km or so per year these days.

OTOH, I live next to a hill and while I can make it up the hill OK 98% of the time, there are certain days in the winter where my FWD Prius Plug-In struggles, whereas my wife's 2016 RAV4 AWD Hybrid has no issue at all.

I'm less interested in the Corolla, but wouldn't completely rule out the Corolla XSE AWD Hybrid.

That $5000 rebate does give me something to think about over the next year though. Thanks for pointing that out.

EDIT:

Oh wait. Would we pay tax on the full cost first and then get the $5000 rebate? Or do we get the $5000 rebate before tax? because if we have to pay tax on it first, that tax is $650.

EDIT again:

Does the Prius Prime support wireless CarPlay?

For the Prius, it specifically says Wireless Apple CarPlay is supported. For the Prius Prime, it just says Apple CarPlay with no mention of wireless CarPlay.

 

Mine does but I am in the US. Not sure if it varies by country. My 2023 Prime has wireless CarPlay and wireless Android Auto.

 

I have a rav4 prime. My range on a full charge is consistently 80-85km, exceeding what Toyota promised.... but then again, it's only 2 years old, so the battery hasn't degraded. Yet.

It's VERY rare that the gas engine comes on; in 39000 km, i've burned 500l of fuel.

With a level 2 charger, it will charge fully in about 4 hours. And using off peak electrical rates, it's a pittance to charge it.

I couldn't imagine going back to regular visits to gas stations. Find charging at home INCREDIBLY convenient.


And the $5k comes off on the after sale price... you pay $55k taxes in, the dealer should only charge you $50k, and gets that $5k from the feds.

As for FWD vs AWD... a good set of snows helps with traction AND braking, and on dedicated rims preserves your factory alloys. Just a thought.

 

Yep and additionnal amonts incentives from some provinces.....here in Québec an additionnal 2500$ so total fed and prov sums up to 7500$CA here in Québec for a Prius Prime......
0$ for a Prius hybrid.

 

Yes, we have good quality snow tires on dedicated rims. (Actually, I get aftermarket Toyota-specific alloy rims for the snows too, just for looks. ) However, the hill is very steep. Like I said, I do manage, but after a freeze I see vans and heavier vehicles sliding around, and the cars with RWD are a lost cause on the worst days. On this hill, after a freeze:

RWD = Disaster, regardless of the tires.
FWD = Usually OK, but often difficult. Worse for some cars than others, but snow tires are a must.
AWD = No problem with snow tires.

 

Thanks for your thoughtful response. I wasn't presuming to tell you what to do. And as an aside, alloy winter rims from Costco on my rav4... for the looks.

 

Even if we didn't have 2 plug in's, on super cold winters? We plug the car into the block heater. In part that's because on cold cold mornings/afternoons - the ice will kick on anyways to protect the traction pack health. iirc - that warm up cycle starts somewhere around 15-20ish°f
.

 

? I don't think I've ever seen/heard my 2012 Prius Plug-In start itself, regardless of the temperature. That would be dangerous too if it was in a garage.

We get to -15C (5F) relatively frequently here, and sometimes below -20C (-4F).

And at these temperatures, I have never bothered with a block heater, as it's been unnecessary. When I lived in Saskatchewan though, we had block heaters there, as the temperatures will drop below -30C (-22F) every year. I've even seen it hit -40C (-40F) there rarely.

 

My rav's always garaged. A few cold days, the ICE has come on uncommanded in battery mode when driving to warm the cabin.

And don't get me started on the heat pump and the 'train horn' noise...

 

This winter northwest Montana we got down to -30°f - so we stayed home until it warmed up to a balmy -24° lol.


I'm really surprised to hear your ICE didn't start in Uber cold, as even running the defroster will bring the ice into play as it's a more efficient way to warm both the traction pack as well as cabin temps. In any event there have been several posts here on PC regarding the Prime Auto cold weather startup.

 

I'm not sure I'm understanding you correctly. My 2012 Prius Plug-In has always started fine regardless of how cold it was, even at -30C. However, it has never started up on its own without user input regardless of the temperature. OTOH, if I start the car in very cold weather, yes it will immediately turn on the ICE to warm up.

 

many pip owners have said the engine sometimes comes on in cold weather when they start out in ev.
toyota mentions it in the o/m, lists about 14 possible reasons, and says there may be other reasons.
mine doesn't usually come on, and it doesn't get below zero here much, and i keep it garaged, but there is one particular route i can take. after .3 miles there's a decent drop in elevation at 40mph that starts the engine. i think it's because the battery is cold and almost ful, it won't accept regen.

 

Yes that makes sense. However, it won't come on if the car hasn't been previously started by the user.

 

just so

 

I forgot to mention that there is also a $250 rebate if you have a Level 2 EV Charger. However, It has to be hardwired to be eligible for a rebate under the Residential EV Charging Incentive Program.


Residential EV Charging Incentive Program


I opted not to hardwire my Level 2 ChargePoint EV charger to make it easier to replace the unit in case it breaks down. I noticed many of the public charging stations from ChargePoint were out of commission quite often! I bought this brand since it was highly recommended for the Prius Prime.