Prius Prime XSE/XSE Premium dismal BEV range

I don't know how Edmunds arrived at their numbers. I seem to be getting 40+ miles in BEV mode on my XSE so far. I've driven nearly 700 miles in 28 days since I got the car. I got the car with a full tank of gas from the dealer and I have about 270 miles of hybrid range remaining. I haven't kept detailed log. My daily driving ranges between 10 and 25 miles and I charge nightly st home. On three occasions that i drove more than 50 miles, I watched the the guage to see when the ICE kicked in, and it did so only after 40 miles. I am not a hyper miler and I don't step on the pedal either I don't have a L2 charger and am still debating if I need one.

 

That is not my real world experience at all. I have been getting 45-50 in full electric mode, and that is with the XSE 19 inch wheels. And, I think my experience is consistent with what others have reported here.

And, other actual reviewers have reported exceeding EPA in full EV range. So not sure what is up with Edmunds.

 

I wonder what their "test loop" consists of?

That may explain the divergence from actual drivers' observations.

 

Never tested this, but i think i get right around 36 miles per charge, using EV in places I probably shouldn't (highway at 70+mph speeds).

I believe this is around the rating.

 

You may not need to get one anyway. Prior EVSE prius plugin versions were able to switch to run on 240v anyway, once equipped with an adapter plug. Someone will be the 1st to experiment .... & it will either work or - POOF - it won't.

.

 

It's not surprising that the EV capabilities of this car are being attacked online, as I can see many would-be Tesla owners considering the Prime if they have a 30-40 mile commute and 4 hours to charge nightly. Not having range anxiety is worth whatever downsides there are, in my opinion.

I still have half my original tank of gas and the ODO reads 450 miles. Full charge 4-5 times.

 

It's likely to just be a driving Style issue. Heck people that by the poor mileage Dodge Demon will gripe when they drive it hard and then fail to get the EPA rating.
.

 

Does this Niro PHEV have a heat pump? Results might look different. Thanks to the heat pump the prius prime should way more efficient in colder climates compared to most other PHEVs

 

Edmunds was recently saying that Tesla was falling well short of their own claims. Doesn't seem to be the same Edmunds tester involved in this report, though.

 

I'm getting consistent 50 mile range / 4.7 miles/kwh.

 

Are those numbers mostly surface street driving ?

 

I really try to avoid driving under the water, so yes. j/k I live on Cape Cod. It's mostly flat and it's mostly slow. Lots of places to coast and regen coming up to stops. Even on the "highway" it's 50-55mph. It's also generally cooler here than the rest of the state so AC use isn't heavy and some mornings like today I'm just using vented air from outside. So yes, these are near optimal conditions.

 

Like anything in life, it's best to take individual data points (particularly from car review guys) with a grain of salt. We have a message board full of expert Prime owners that would put your average "media guy" to shame.

Now, if we start to see multiple reviews identifying similar problems, or the good posters in this board concur, then we've got something to talk about.

Also, these test cars get abused hard. The car in the Edmunds test could have been with a dude the previous week running 0-60 and 1/4 mile passes all afternoon long encouraging the AI to set the car up for max acceleration and throttle response.

Give me the Prime for a week and I'll be on the far right side of the EPA average, guaranteed. Give it to a brake-boosting numbskull, and it'll be on the far left side of average. This isn't rocket science.

 

i don't pay attention to edmunds, they seem to have an agenda. it might just be click bait for ad revenue. they make mountains out of molehills

 

The tester from Edmunds should test it again for a 3rd time and use a different Prius Prime. The numbers don’t add up!

I wouldn’t be able to get 33.7 EV miles only with normal driving. I have driven all freeway miles at average speed of 68/mph in Eco Mode and I still managed to go 39 miles before the engine came on.

 

i think one of the viewers found the same thing, but idk which model they were testing.

 

Agreed. Outside of any known mechanical issues, driving style and environment will always determine what MPGs ultimately are.

Many years ago when I was in the insurance business, I had an struggling agent who always whined about the expense of visiting her clients because her 2006 Honda Civic Hybrid only got 30 mpg. I had a 2005 hybrid model and always got 45-48 mpg on each tank. So I accompanied her one day in the field and drove her around in her car. I noticed the tires were a little low so first stop was at Les Schwab and aired them to about 3 pounds over the recommended limit. At the end of day, the trip meter showed over 48 mpg.

 

Drove 31 miles yesterday in EV mode making the same round-trip twice then charged to full from 43% charge remaining with 5.768 kWh. That ends up being 5.4 miles per kWh and an EV range of about 54 miles.

Today drove in Eco Mode for 12.4 miles and recharged with 1.9 kWh. That is roughly 6.5 miles per kWh. My EV range estimate today is 73 miles.