To my eye, it looks MUCH better, and it appears that its performance has been enhanced.
4 Likes
Wow - itâs gone from âsure itâs economical, but the looks!â to âlooks great, good performance, great economy!â I may have to rethink my next car choice.
1 Like
Why does it have to be shaped like an egg?
Efficiency/wind resistance. I like it.
1 Like
Looks like a very slick, modernized Prius. Like a concept car for a car show that would ever be built⊠and Toyota built it. Nice.
1 Like
A plug-in hybrid is probably my next car, but I am keeping my 1999 Civic and 2007 Town and Country van going as long as feasible. The new Prius looks more than acceptable, but a small SUV might make more sense for my wife and me because of the higher seating position compared to the Prius.
Iâve had my Lexus NX 450h+ plug-in hybrid for one week, as of today. So far, I have driven 275 miles, and the 15.5 gallon gas tank still has an estimated 428 miles of driving remaining. That is because almost all of my driving has been local errands, well within its 37 miles all-electric range. Most of the gas that has been consumed was on the 70 minute drive home on the Interstate, where I kept it in Hybrid mode.
I purposely didnât recharge it last night, and today, on my way back from my doctorâs office, when its battery charge dropped to ~30% the gas engine automatically kicked-in, and it alternated between Hybrid Mode and all-electric Econ mode.
This model is mechanically identical to the Rav-4 Prime, but with a lot more bells and whistles, a much nicer interior, andâto my eyeâmuch more pleasing styling. But, if you want the same mechanical packageâwith a tiny bit more range because of its lighter weightâyou might want the Rav version. And, the Rav is also a tiny bit quicker. My NX takes all of 5.6 seconds 
for a zero-60 run, but the Rav can do it in 5.4 seconds.
Just be prepared for a very long lag time between ordering it and receiving it. It actually takes longer to get a Rav-4 Prime (possibly 6-8 months), while the Lexus version usually arrives in ~4 months at this point. I was lucky that I found a dealer that was getting three NX 450h+ models about 2 weeks after my visit to the showroom, and one of them was in my chosen paint and interior colors.
If you have any questions, you can send me a direct message, so that we donât bore everyone with the details.
And, bear in mind that these models are not sold in all states. Most of them go to CA, with a much smaller number divided among NY, NJ, CT, MA, and a few other states. In the Facebook groups for both models, one person stated that he drove from TX (where they are not sold) to CT for his NX, and another guy, in GA, stated that he is willing to drive long-distance to get a Rav Prime since they arenât sold in his state.
3 Likes
Why are they limited to certain states? Build capacity? Ambiant temperatures? (gets hot in SoCalâŠ)
Pretty sure itâs the limited number they can build right now. And the Rav4 Prime being one of Consumer Reports top rated vehicles doesnât help.
Cars.com lists 1 Rav4 Prime within 500 miles of me. Other than that there are several in Denver and beyond.
1 Like
Build capacity is one factor, but Toyota has apparently decided to concentrate their sales in the states with the most stringent air quality regulations. I think that is probably a good decision on their part, but they are now getting ready to begin manufacturing these models in Canada (mine was manufactured in Japan, in September 2022), so perhaps the battery & chip availability is improving, and maybe they will begin to expand sales to other states.
I wonder how much a headlight costs?
For a 2023 Toyota BZ4X I found this;
HEADLAMP ASSEMBLY, RIGHT
Part Number: 8114542D10
MSRP: $1494.77
Another place has: Sale Price: $1,064.90. Thatâs still rather high.
A L % R + tax would cost over $2000.
The 2023 Prius isnât in the parts catalog yet where I looked.
The new Prius looks nice. Our next car is going to be a Hybrid or a PHEV. We have an older Prius, 2011, gets around 55 MPG and it gets the job done. Handling and road noise are issues, but with $6 per gallon gas here in CA, who cares. We recently bought a Corolla Cross and it does well on the fwy mileage, close to 40 MPG with my driving. But the hybrid that is supposed to be out next yr, gets worse gas mileage than the RAV Hybrid which doesnât make sense. Here in CA, the RAV Prime has a $10K add on to MSRP at best if you can find one.
I like it. Itâs rakish, aerodynamic, and looks very contemporary, without falling into the trap of excessive surface treatment that has engulfed Hyundaiâs cars.
Excellent point. Car looks great, nearly perfect. But perfection can come with a high price. Ask someone who married the high school classmate voted âmost likely to become a modelâ. ⊠lol âŠ
1 Like
Or, ask someone who attended his 25th HS reunion about how some of the âmost likelyâ folks turned out.
2 Likes