Hybrids
- Thread starter Al
- Start date
Hermann
Site Donor 2023
I am usually at 37+ on the highway. My city would be better if my trips were longer than my usual 5-6 miles.
PHEV for the win
We knew we wanted one. The models we chose are fun to drive. My wife’s Rav4H is really transformed by the hybrid drive in AWD guise. For me, I tried a hybrid X3 after experiencing my wife’s car, and ended up with a Tacoma-H. The taco doesn’t get the high mpg but it still has a feel I prefer. All without range anxiety.
I am a huge fan of properly manufactured hybrids. From the eco cars, to the pickup trucks. I really like the idea of plug in hybrids too. But it seems they may fall short in battery life.
I guess @Al just dropped his " provoking feelin's" thread and left.
I probably wouldnt go hybrid for just fuel economy unless the numbers made sense..
now if it was more power I'd consider it harder.
250+ net combined HP vs 170hp gas motor.. sign me up.
The new forester is interesting in that way. The optional hybrid drivetrain is the most powerful and fuel efficient drivetrain.
Although their TINY (1.1kWh) battery makes it less interesting.
I probably wouldnt go hybrid for just fuel economy unless the numbers made sense..
now if it was more power I'd consider it harder.
250+ net combined HP vs 170hp gas motor.. sign me up.
The new forester is interesting in that way. The optional hybrid drivetrain is the most powerful and fuel efficient drivetrain.
Although their TINY (1.1kWh) battery makes it less interesting.
The warranties for batteries on Toyota are 150,000 miles and most others 100,000 miles. I just can't see any negatives no answers I saw here to the contrary hold any water for ME. I would recover the increase of price well before the guarantee runs out. My Time frame in next Fall. Even though my favorit is not the RAV4 Hybrid, it seems to the be the way to go. The other good thing it has DI and Port injection.
A good friend has a CT4, and he loves it. It's a really nice looking vehicle (my opinion). It got jacked up in a car wash, and the dealership went above and beyond to get his car properly fixed. This part depends on the dealer, of course, but he has had a great experience overall with his CT4.
Everytime someone posts a question like this you get the innevitable naysayers who argue about the extra maintenance and battery replacement costs. I really don't think these folks have any idea what they are talking about. Having owned hybrids since 2010 I can say with authority that the only thing extra is an inverter coolont change at 100k. The cost of doing that is more than offset by brake pads lasting 100k due to regenerative braking. You heard that right - 100k on brake pads.
As far as battery replacement goes, our 2010 Prius went 210k and 14 years on the original battery with no apparent degradation in performence. Someone else pointed out that hybrid batteries have 100-150k warranties. I cannot say how many hybrid batteries need replacement in what one would consider the normal lifespan of a vehicle but I suspect that it is a small number. It seems to me that automatic transmissions are far more failure prone than hybrid batteries. Hybrids employ an e-transaxle which is a different and more reliable animal than most conventional automatic transmissions.
As far as battery replacement goes, our 2010 Prius went 210k and 14 years on the original battery with no apparent degradation in performence. Someone else pointed out that hybrid batteries have 100-150k warranties. I cannot say how many hybrid batteries need replacement in what one would consider the normal lifespan of a vehicle but I suspect that it is a small number. It seems to me that automatic transmissions are far more failure prone than hybrid batteries. Hybrids employ an e-transaxle which is a different and more reliable animal than most conventional automatic transmissions.
Battery esplodes we all gonna die!
The cheapest Rav4 MSRP for 29950 before destination and gets 28mpg.
The cheapest Rav4 hybrid MSRP is 32600 before destination and gets 39mpg
So in the proverbial 12,000 miles per year you save 120.8 gallons of gas. Which around here right now is about $326 savings per year.
Thats a long ROI when the original price is $2650 difference - over 8 years.
In reality Hybrids are hot. You can likely negotiate at least another $1000 extra off the ICE - probably more. Now were at 12 years.
Now of course it matters what trim and your gas prices and how many miles you drive, etc, etc, etc. Not telling anyone not to buy a hybrid, but the economies don't really seem to work out for me. I guess do your own math, and to each their own math.
However next year there will only be hybrid, so will be interesting to see how they price them.
I find them to be incredibly dull to drive. No, high fuel economy doesn’t impress me, my cobalt gets 32mpg without trying.
I bought one because it is the only truck that has 7.2kw worth of onboard generator (Other than the Lightning) for powering the camper/house when needed.
It is also the fastest 'normal' truck Ford makes (Except for the Raptor R/Lightning), so there's that as well.
The wife will be getting some form of hybrid when we finally get her a 'new' car. For her use case, it just makes the most sense.
It is also the fastest 'normal' truck Ford makes (Except for the Raptor R/Lightning), so there's that as well.
The wife will be getting some form of hybrid when we finally get her a 'new' car. For her use case, it just makes the most sense.
I think there is a lot of that. You certainly have mega experience and to me are the most credible person in this thread. I don't see why they would be boring? Obviously the only downside with your input would be the initial cost.
You should try driving my Corolla non-hybrid. Set the cruise to 65-70. 40mpg. Day in and day out. As reliable as the sun.
But you'll need to stab yourself in the eyeballs to stay awake.
On the flipside, our Camry hybrid is quiet enough that you'll have drifted off asleep long before you could find the fork to do the stabbing. So it's really a miracle machine (other than it's not actually autonomous, so after you fall asleep, you'll have drifted off the road and into tree, and then St Peter is having a word with you).
So there you have it. Buy a Corolla. With a CVT. You'll live to regret your decision. And repeat it on a daily basis. Until you're comatose and now a repeat Toyota buyer.
[Read all that in Clarkson's voice.]
Our 2010 Gen III Prius was pretty dull to drive but it got great fuel ecconnomy. Our 2017 Prius V is a little better but not much. Our 2023 Gen V Prius is a different animal - very quick yet more efficient than the prior two.
And then there is my personal 2017 Ford C-Max Energi PHEV. It can be difficult not to spin the tires on a spritited start off the line.
PHEV for the win!
Another issue impacting hybrids is trade-in valuations. They take really big hits after five or so years. The dealers are using the battery as a way to offer less. Neighbor has a 8 year old Prius and wanted to trade it on a new one and even the Toyota dealer was giving him trade-in grief. They actually insinuated that they would have to replace the battery in order to resell it. Whether that's true or not, it's that kind of info that could really hurt hybrid sales not to mention resales! I was seriously thinking about a cx50 hybrid but since I only drive about 6 to 8K miles per year per car (have 2) it would take forever to justify the increased cost based on fuel savings alone.
