2021 Toyota RAV4 Plug-in Hybrid

[JeffKeryk]

Beyond getting on the commuter lane, I am not sure what 25 miles buys you, especially if it comes at a stiff premium over the hybrid. The hybrid is the better part of 40 large already; or more. But people will buy 'em and love 'em. I would be curious how the Prius plug in does vs. the Prius hybrid, which CA has loved for a long time. All good.

 

[atikovi]

I'd rather have a Fiat 500e.

 

[14Accent]

Originally Posted by The Critic

The problem with the Volt is that it will take 12 hrs (or more) to charge via 120v. Few of us are home for more than 12 hours at a time on the weekdays. The charge time of the current Toyota plug-in hybrids is 5.5-6 hr, which is more realistic. But because of that, the range is shorter. The RAV4 hybrid gets 40mpg as it currently stands so even when you run out of pure EV range, the fuel economy is still terrific.

The 1st gen Volt doesn't take over 12 hours to charge from empty, on the 12 amp setting it takes around 10.5 hours from empty. Almost every household 120v plug can handle 12A, as long as it's on it's own circuit, e.g. in the garage. The 8 amp setting is more for on-the-go charging when you don't know the capacity of the outlet. Also, who among us isn't at home at least 10 hours straight? Sure... there's the 3rd shift worker, the service industry worker, etc. However, I'd say most people are home that long, at least most days. Obviously not all, but I'd be willing to bet 70-75% of the target market, maybe more.

 

[AZjeff]

Once again, the ICE RAV4 isn't/wasn't for everyone and this version won't be either. And the 25 mile EV range was only a "what if" from the OP but it's being treated as gospel from Toyota. Hate on.

 

[JeffKeryk]

In Silicon Valley, many companies offer charge at work for free or a subsidized rate. I believe this is a growing trend. It sure is around here. 25 miles can be 50 miles, etc. Some people tell me they never charge at home. Of course their cars have more range. Everyone's situation is a little different. All good.

 

[atikovi]

Originally Posted by JeffKeryk

In Silicon Valley, many companies offer charge at work for free or a subsidized rate. I believe this is a growing trend. It sure is around here.

HAHA, People making six figure salaries get all giddy about getting a 50 cent a day perk.

 

[JeffKeryk]

Originally Posted by atikovi

Originally Posted by JeffKeryk

In Silicon Valley, many companies offer charge at work for free or a subsidized rate. I believe this is a growing trend. It sure is around here.

HAHA, People making six figure salaries get all giddy about getting a 50 cent a day perk.

Michael it's the principal... Right?

 

[atikovi]

I'm not Michael.

 

[PimTac]

Being as this is a hybrid, where is the 25 mile range coming from?

 

[JeffKeryk]

Originally Posted by atikovi

I'm not Michael.

Sorry; I was posting using my cell. And it is not 50 cents. But the value is great; that much is for sure.

 

[AZjeff]

Originally Posted by PimTac

Being as this is a hybrid, where is the 25 mile range coming from?

The OP of this thread opines that if this plug-in provides 25 miles of EV range it will be a great car for him.

 

[PimTac]

Originally Posted by AZjeff

Originally Posted by PimTac

Being as this is a hybrid, where is the 25 mile range coming from?

The OP of this thread opines that if this plug-in provides 25 miles of EV range it will be a great car for him.

Okay and that got interpreted as the range of the vehicle period.

 

[dareo]

Originally Posted by AZjeff

Once again, the ICE RAV4 isn't/wasn't for everyone and this version won't be either. And the 25 mile EV range was only a "what if" from the OP but it's being treated as gospel from Toyota. Hate on.

Even in declining 2019 auto sales, the Rav4 is going nuts. Nearly 50k units sold in August. Id say its as close to a "For Everybody"car as you can get. I dont have the data but my guess is 10% or less sell as hybrid or phev.

 

[surfstar]

A 2019+ Rav4 gets 35 mpg hwy. I just never see the increased price of a hybrid/PHEV ever paying off. $25k vs 40k - I don't need all the extra "features" of a loaded vehicle. The standard setups are now coming with android auto (there's your NAV) and all-speed adaptive cruise control. Heated 10way seats and leather, etc are not worth a 40% increase in purchase price. Need AWD? Get a Forester for $25k vs a higher priced Rav4/CRV. ...but again, I know that I'm on outlier who actually knows and cares how much vehicles cost (in terms of extra years of work before retirement!) - most Americans can't look/plan that far ahead. Its all about the monthly payment.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted by JHZR2

Originally Posted by supton

Hmm. It's just shy of 12 miles for me to get to the grocery store. Not a vehicle for me! EV's are interesting but for me, they have to have good range. This one, with 25 miles of range, works for some people, but likely is not going to be much good in perhaps all of my state.

You realize it is a hybrid, right? With a fuel tank, a gas engine, and something like 33mpg combined, maybe more? While going some distance on battery only is neat, it's not the only way, and one is still doing pretty good on gas. I believe the metric of design was 800Wh/mile, which may include derating (using less than actual capacity to keep the chemistry in a desirable range). So that would imply that it has around 20kWh of energy. I think that's high, btw. Assuming it takes 20kWh, that's what? $3 of electric? To do 25 miles? 12c/mile? But you can do like 33mpg, which at $3/gal is like 9.9c/mile? So why do we care if we can't make the trip all electric? Use it in nice conditions when you can really save due to low/no parasitics, and use the engine in HEV mode to get a real mpg advantage the rest of the time. Seems like a win win.

I think I did miss that bit about it being a hybrid... Still, I don't think it'd do much for me. Not saying it wouldn't do something to increase mpg, just that it doesn't pay for itself for me. My commuter cars generally get average mpg at or above EPA highway rating.

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted by surfstar

A 2019+ Rav4 gets 35 mpg hwy. I just never see the increased price of a hybrid/PHEV ever paying off. $25k vs 40k - I don't need all the extra "features" of a loaded vehicle. The standard setups are now coming with android auto (there's your NAV) and all-speed adaptive cruise control. Heated 10way seats and leather, etc are not worth a 40% increase in purchase price. Need AWD? Get a Forester for $25k vs a higher priced Rav4/CRV. ...but again, I know that I'm on outlier who actually knows and cares how much vehicles cost (in terms of extra years of work before retirement!) - most Americans can't look/plan that far ahead. Its all about the monthly payment.

You can get a non plug-in, base model RAV4 Hybrid for under $30K. The price increase over the non-hybrid AWD is only about $1k.

 

[JeffKeryk]

Originally Posted by The Critic

You can get a non plug-in, base model RAV4 Hybrid for under $30K. The price increase over the non-hybrid AWD is only about $1k.

Michael, while that is true based on MSRP, you can only negotiate like $500 off a hybrid but dealers will deal like crazy on the gas only RAV4. That's my recent experience.