I guess that the Hymotion system itself is supposed to act as an EV switch.
Left of the steering wheel, there is an On/Off switch for the Hymotion system.
I guess that the advantage of a dedicated EV switch is that it gives you more control over everything. Like I said, I'm getting started figuring this all out!
One thing that I have heard from Prius owners is that the heat isn't the greatest in the winter. Of course I would want to MINIMIZE engine on time, so the heat would be even worse...
The only real two requirements that my wife wanted in a car were air-conditioning and a good heater!
To make up for it, the Prius has a heated driver seat!
I charged the car last night, and the Kill-a-watt said it used 4.7KWH. The pack is 5.45KWH, and was most of the way down when we got home. I also only had handy a 14 AWG extension cord, and it was at least a 50'. It was melted down into the snowbank this morning, so I assume I lost at least a few watts to that....
When we had gotten back from buying the car, I had an e-mail from the seller saying "Oooo! I forgot to give you my special charging cord!".
I'll need to bust out a special new extension cord just for the Prius. I like 12 AWG 25' cables. I'll have to permanently mount one inside the garage with a hook to maximize convenience for charging.