Quote:
Originally Posted by broski499
Hello,
I'm looking at a few options for my next vehicle. Want to get a plug in hybrid. Currently driving a 2008 prius.
Top contender is a Ford C-Max Energi 2015. I've been able to find these locally for under 15k with low mileage. I check with my mechanic and he said they use the toyota hybrid technology inside so reliability is solid. Anyone have experience with these?
Kia Niro Plugin - these are a bit newer so the lowest I've seen is around 20k, these are also a bit bigger. Anyone have any experience with Kia Niro's, either the hybrid or the plugin?
The old hard, the prius plugin. These hold their value a lot more so its not my top contender. Is it worth the prius premium?
Any thoughts are appreciated.
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I bought a regular hybrid C-Max for a friend, and she's horrible on cars and it hasn't had any issues in the past couple years. It would be among my first picks for a plug-in.
I owned a 2012 plug-in Prius and wouldn't recommend it because the range is too short, at an average of about 13 miles. Plus, turning the heat on or wanting more than half the acceleration power, or exceeding 61 MPH, or prolonged regen down a hill all kicks on the engine.
Any of the Ford Energi models would be on my radar; especially the Fusion. It's a fantastic car with plenty of acceleration, smooth quiet ride, and 45 MPG... I've only ever driven the hybrid, not the plug-in. The trunk will be smallish.
Don't know anything about the Korean plug-ins, but I'm sure they are excellent.
Decide how much you want to spend, what utility you prefer, and what all electric range you'd like and decide from there.
Whenever I'm trying to decide something, I list all the criteria to be considered in a spreadsheet, then I weight each of those criteria from 1-10 on importance to me, then I rate how well each of the things I'm considering fulfills that criteria from 1-10. Multiply the weighting and the score to derive a value, then add all values together to see which of the options comes out ahead.