I'm driving a 2018 Prius Prime (plug-in). What do you want to know about it?

[dougfromdenver]

Originally Posted by deluxx

How far/fast can you go on battery only? Does it drain the battery 100%? Does it recharge with gas or only over 110V? Does the HVAC run on the battery pack? What about eco-driving? How do you do it in a Prius?

At least 25 miles.
It recharges but, not if you have a lead foot.
I can used 110v, but it is an overnight process. I plug it into 240w, and it takes about 4 hours.
I can run the a/c on battery or eco or if the battery is exhausted (as it was did driving cross country, and only concerned about making good time.
Eco mode kicks in when you DON'T push the EV button.

[dougfromdenver]

Originally Posted by redpoint5

Does the ICE fire up when you need heat? Can you keep it in EV mode while mashing the accelerator?

Heat? Haven't had to deal with winter weather.
I've mashed the accelerater in EV mode. Good performance, better than I expected.

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by dougfromdenver

I can used 110v, but it is an overnight process. I plug it into 240w, and it takes about 4 hours.

That's not my experience: 5.5 hours to recharge a completely empty battery on 110v.

[Vman455]

Originally Posted by dougfromdenver

the $1,800 rebate, plus $7,500 tax credit from the federal government, and then adding Colorado's $5,000 tax credit made buying this vehicle with no brainer.

One minor correction, in case anyone reading this thread is thinking of buying a Prime--it qualifies for a $4502 federal tax credit, not $7500. Which still, right there, makes it cheaper than a comparable Prius with no other incentives!

[dougfromdenver]

My error. I have a Nissan Leaf which requires the entire night to recharge using the 110v trickle charger.

[oil pan 4]

Yeah, 120v charging a leaf sucks.
I'm all setup for 240v charging now.
Most of my charging circuits are 240v 20 amp.
I'm adding a special "clothes dryer circuit" on 8 gauge wire to my garage for 6.6kw charging, if I get a 6.6kw charging vehicle.

[MetroMPG]

Since my friends got back, the main comment I've heard from them is regarding the heads up display (HUD):





When I got the car, I configured the HUD to show the eco-meter and range remaining. Previously, it was only showing the speedometer.


They like having the added info in their field of vision. Visual reminder of what the right foot is doing.

[MetroMPG]

My friends are traveling again, and I offered to be bribed with the use of their car in exchange for feeding their cat.

News since last time:

- The car shows 5.1 L/100 km "lifetime" fuel economy after 20,000 km / 12,000 miles. That's just 46 mpg US - not so great, at first glance. When I returned the car to them last September after my week of EV driving, it was sitting at 4.1 / 57 mpg US.

Keep in mind most of their ownership so far has been during winter (5 out of 9 months). Also keep in mind, as apartment-dwellers, they hardly ever plug it in (they're looking for a house).

- It's suffered a few scratches & dings. And they've already made an insurance claim to replace the front bumper cover that was shattered when someone in a parking lot backed into them on a cold winter day.

- The $5k Ontario provincial EV rebate was cancelled not long after they got the car. It's about to be replaced by a less generous ($2500) federal rebate.

[Vman455]

Ouch. When the Prime was released, several articles I read said the front bumper cover had been designed in three sections to lower replacement costs; hopefully that works out for them.

Does the Prime include electricity consumption in its onboard fuel economy reporting?

[MetroMPG]

I did notice the front looked like several segments. I'll ask them what the bill was when they're back.

As for electricity consumption on the MPG display, I don't think so. But I'm not 100% on that, so I'll look into it.