For its second model year of production, the fourth-generation Prius returns up to 54 mpg city, and it’s priced from as little as $24,685. The MSRP for the plug-in hybrid alternative, dubbed Prius Prime, is $27,100 before the $4,500 federal tax credit.
That’s seriously good value for what the plug-in hybrid variant of the Prius has to offer in return. As per the Japanese manufacturer, the U.S.-spec Prius Prime prides itself on 25 miles (40 km) of electric range. To put that into figure perspective, the Euro-spec model with its fancy solar roof and NEDC test cycle offers 48-plus kilometers (30+ miles). The Prius Prime’s biggest rival, the 2017 Hyundai Ioniq Plug-In Hybrid, is go for next summer.
The trick to the Prius Prime’s electric range is, of course, the battery. It’s a run-of-the-mill lithium-ion unit with double the capacity compared to the standard Prius (8.8 kWh vs. 4.4 kWh). From the fuel economy’s side of the deal, the Prius Prime is EPA-rated a respectable 55 mpg city (4.28 l/100 km), 53 mpg highway (4.44 l/100 km), and 54 mpg combined (4.36 l/100 km).
“Designed to get the most out of every day,” the Prius Prime is in no way the segment leader. The 2017 Chevrolet Volt, for example, offers up to 53 pure electric miles in exchange for $33,220 before destination and delivery. On the full-size end of the spectrum, the 2017 BMW 740e xDrive iPerformance can deliver up to 14 miles of EV range from a 9.2 kWh lithium-ion battery pack.
Average as it is, the 2017 Toyota Prius Prime is one of the greenest machines money can buy. It’s also $3k cheaper than the former generation of the Prius Plug-In Hybrid, which is a-OK by all accounts. Total driving range isn’t bad either, the Prius Prime being rated at 640 miles (1,030 kilometers). These said, if it were your cash on the line, would you spend them on the Toyota Prius Prime or wait for Hyundai to roll out the Hyundai Ioniq Plug-In Hybrid?
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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