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I wanted to buy a Toyota Prius Prime - the plug-in hybrid... But we discovered how much smaller it is than our 2008 Prius. Yuck. So then we looked hard at th

I wanted to buy a Toyota Prius Prime - the plug-in hybrid... But we discovered how much smaller it is than our 2008 Prius. Yuck. So then we looked hard at the Rav-4 Prime plug-in hybrid. I like it. But if Toyota is not committed, I'd rather go elsewhere... Is there a plug-in hybrid that's close to the size of a small SUV that you'd recommend? Four people in the family and a great big Golden Retriever that we like to be able to put in the hatch back trunk of our 2008 Prius.

ianai 3y ago
Not sure what you mean by “not serious.” They have a road map. I’ve elsewhere read they plan on a 100 mile electric only Rav4 prime (with the usual gas range) by 2027. Last I checked, the R4P still has the highest electric range of any phev suv. (I think audi now claims 52 miles, but I’ve gotten that much in my R4P so this is within the estimated range of both. It’s all about battery capacity and I imagine those are close.) They have been slow to release BEVs and past executives have had contrary views on going fast to electric. But, they also target a larger scale than other automakers. They also over engineer for their vehicles to last longer. If you want a car that could last to 3 million miles you get a toyota. If you want speed or whizbang tech you go elsewhere and possibly replace the vehicle around 30,000 miles. This feels a little like old school linux hackers complaining about windows in the early 2000s. The positioning of toyota makes more sense from their positioning in the market. Might need more, broader political will power to demand a fast transition.