Hi. I am looking at getting the new 2017 Prius but have now had my head turned by the Prime / Plug In. I used to have a 2010 model. I have a few questions if anyone can help me please. 1. What experience do you have if changing from Prius to a Prime. In particular: - boot size - the boot looks a lot smaller but in day to day (shopping, diy store, Ikea etc) do you really miss it so much. - Fuel - I currently do about 700 miles a month but I think only about 100 of them are where I go above 25ish miles in one hit (I.e behind the charge) on a regular basis. - long distance cruising - I do one trip a year which is 2500 miles around Europe. Plug in opportunities might be zero. How will it perform in hybrid mode at 80mph for 2000 of those miles. The other 500 is normally shorter running about while on holiday. Anything else you think I should know? iPhone ?
- boot size - the boot looks a lot smaller but in day to day (shopping, diy store, Ikea etc) do you really miss it so much. Not a problem for us and I do the weekly laundry. I typically load 3-4 large trash bags with all the laundry and found no problem. - Fuel - I currently do about 700 miles a month but I think only about 100 of them are where I go above 25ish miles in one hit (I.e behind the charge) on a regular basis. The EV is nice and depending upon your access to public J1772 chargers or an external power plug, no problem. The real advantage is using EV to get up to speed and then switching to hybrid mode for the warm-up. This avoids the 'cold engine' penalty and results in outstanding gas mileage. If you can do the whole trip on EV and get a charge for the return, do it, but the superior gas savings is well worth it. - long distance cruising - I do one trip a year which is 2500 miles around Europe. Plug in opportunities might be zero. How will it perform in hybrid mode at 80mph for 2000 of those miles. The other 500 is normally shorter running about while on holiday. The 3.3kW, built-in charger, 12A nominal rate of the portable EVSE, expands the charging options. Many hotels and RV parks have charging stations or power outlets that let you put a charge on overnight. It is easy with such a small, built-in charger. Then using the EV early trick to reach HV cruising speed, you'll get excellent mileage. The car also has a CHARGE mode so if your level is too low and you are approaching a city with strict EV regulations, you can within an hour have plenty of power to pass EV through. Bob Wilson
Thanks Bob. Is efficiency when the battery is depleted the same as a normal Prius or worse (thinking extra weight). In my 2010 I used to regen so much that I could easily fill the battery, especially down hill. I guess that the Prime would be the same but rather than filling the little Prius battery it would keep on charging the bigger Prime. For my big Europe trip I would prefer to assume no charging opportunities and get a pleasant surprise. iPhone ?
boot size: if you're asking, other peoples opinions don't really matter. prime was at the top of my list until i saw the boot in person. now it's on the back burner. other than that, and the lack of spare tire, some extra storage and the missing middle rear seat, it's probably a better car than the lift back in every other way, just as the pip was over the gen 3. all the best with your decision!
I have two kids who don't need pushchairs but do have child seats. On the basis that the two seats are ISOFIX I can't fit anyone in the middle of the regular Prius anyway as they're too close together. This means that the fours seats in the Prime don't matter. Boot space is the only thing really. Planning on getting a massive roof box for the Europe trip so the boot space won't matter so much apart from day to day. It's Prius or Prime. Just need to choose! iPhone ?
The roof box will kill the mileage. You might consider the towing option if available. A small, lightweight trailer will be a lot easier to access and there might be a pop-up camper version. Bob Wilson
Keep in mind just a regular fourth gen is producing mpg numbers well above 3rd gen. Add in the the temp spare (be careful: depending on location some levels have, some don't), the lower boot floor, and just the simplicity of not having to plug-in. Personally, I'd have to hold my nose to buy one; I'm not enamored with the styling, outside or in. But that's another story, lol.
presumably you'e seen this trunk space discussion? There are pictures and dimensions in there to help guide you. PRIME TRUNK SPACE | PriusChat If you are insistent on using the cover you will be disappointed with the trunk. There is not enough room with the cover to put in a fabric/paper grocery bag. I keep the soft tonneau in place and fold it up when I go shopping. My previous car was a honda accord sedan (not a Prius) but the Prime hatch trunk is still more useful than the old car despite being short. I'm disappointed the car doesn't have 6.6kwh charging, for me in the US this means it is not cost effective to use pay based public charging. That's unfortunate but gas mileage is still great hauling around an empty battery so smile that in comparison to a true BEV your 2000 mile trip will be not include any dose of range anxiety
Thanks all. I am 99% sure I am going to go for the Prime. They are the same money but I should be able to half my fuel bill based on the short journeys that we do. iPhone ?
It's knocked about £3k off the price since it was initially announced. The way it works for me is that the car is slightly more expensive to buy per month than a normal Prius but I save the difference on company car tax so over 4 years there is only £50 in it. Then I save lots of ££ on fuel. iPhone ?
1. everyday chore: OK. Weekend Costco run: OK to some sort. Moving some small furniture like nightstand from home A to home B: impossible. 5th seat: nada. 2. Fuel: no difference to me. 3. Long distance cruising: DRCC works great!
