Heading towards a Plug-In Hybrid, likely an SUV…
However we have a length limit of about 15 feet, or 4.6 meters, due to my stealing garage space for a laundry room, back in the '70s. (and the other half is full of a workbench, treadmill, shelving andd stuff.)
Then I found this site, many, many measurements, metric, however, but still helpful. It seems some models have increased their wheelbase between '22 & '23, so we’re still looking… Thought I’d share here incase others find it useful.
No Acura!!!??? I wonder why?
I think that site is based in Europe, because it’s all metric, but I didn’t chase too far…
So far the Honda RAV4 Hybrid seems to fit the bill… Then I think I read they extended the wheelbase, so might have to bring a tape if we go looking… Too rainy this week, tho…
This 15’ length limitation (~180") and the new year, has us looking again. DW found a Kia Niro, however then we realized it was a PHEV, and maybe we really want an HEV, so then I spotted a '23 Honda CRV, naturally it’s a bit longer, at 184" where a '22 was a couple inches shorter at 182" …
So more things to rumble and grumble about… Costco has a buying service, maybe they need to be looked into…
We’re talking with our financial folks tomorrow, see which pocket we want to use…
As far as I understand, a PHEV only adds an additional capability to the HEV, it doesn’t remove anything. Basically, the addition of the plug allows you to use cheap/free electricity when convenient. For example, plugging in for 45 minutes while doing grocery shopping, or two hours while watching a movie.
Well, unless we had solar installed, all the other charging options would be against a Credit Card at the least… And we haven’t seen the need, so far, for solar… So, trying to keep it simpler… HEVs seem to come in with a larger battery, seem to fit our local needs…
Ah, around here the chargers at the supermarkets, movie theaters, city hall, etc are free. But even if you pay for all the electricity, it’s less than the equivalent amount of gasoline!
Haven’t paid close attention, but all I have seen, hardware store, shopping centers were charging for charging, or were the Tesla charging stations… Need to talk to some local owners. BIL had a charger out in his garage, had planned on solar, but it hasn’t happened, Niece/Nephew have an EV, Volt, and lots of solar, and while commuting, his company had free charging stations… SIL just leased a Honda Hybrid, no charging, and actually, hubby just retired from our PG&E utility, has a discounted utility bill, so they don’t pay much attention…
Well, a couple months later, and not much progress. We are gifting the current Honda Civic to the eldest grandson, but he’s got to get his act together, get his license, but we’re seeing little, no progress, so far. If I had a covered space where I could park it, we could move on, but I don’t want to pressure the guy, if he’s not really ready to take on the responsibility of owning, driving, insurance at 28, it may well just be used as trade-in or sold outright… So far only the 2 young women grandkids have their licenses, the youngest guy, at 18 has a nearly identical Civic in their driveway, available since our daughter passed in '21, but has yet to get his license! We’ve offered all lessons, but so far no takers… Strange to me, I was after my license on the day I was eligible… Different times I guess…
Sell it. Every day that goes by it’s worth less until it becomes worthless.
Well, it’s been promised to the GK, since it’s an '07, it’s value will be slow to change much… We’ll continue to nudge him, we thought the winter weather might induce more interest, he walks to work, but now it’s springtime, maybe some sweet young thing will put on the needed pressure…
Not much progress, so far, GK has his permit, but flunked the computerized CA DMV test, they don’t let you make corrections, once you make a selection, it’s over, you move to the next question, so he’s been advised to find all he test prep sites, try again…
In the meantime, I found this great review, explaining the Honda CRC Hybrid’s engine/motor workings as well as more details… At $39K, a bit more than initially planned, but I might allow my arm to be tweaked a bit…
I agree with Gh. Sell it. Or, perhaps, transfer ownership and responsibility to him. Doesn’t matter if he failed the driving test. He can still own it, pay registration, pay insurance. That might motivate him. And if he doesn’t want to do that, sell it and let the kid do it in his own time (and on his own).
1poorkid only got a driver’s license when she had to drive to an OFH as part of her CNA training in high school. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have gotten one. (And then she didn’t finish the CNA thing anyway…went a different direction.)
Well, if we must, we’ll rent an enclosed storage space for a while, we know he’s trying, so we’ll see how it goes… As far as value, it’s not important to us as we’re gifting it to him, it’s in great shape, but odds are he’ll break it along the way, so once he has it, not our problem. Just wish there were more enthusiasm by him, but then again, his Dad, our son never was too concerned or interested in a car either, always someone around to drive, girls, guys… so it may be genetic… It is an expense, so maybe that’s the worry there… Hopefully sometime soon…
Update, as we close in on the need to do the deal, we once again had SIL’s Honda Hybrid CRV park in the garage, pretty snug, made DW nervous, so after find a couple CRVs, we backed off and flipped to a '23 RAV4… a little shorter, more goodies, which runs the tab up a bit more, but looks like a better fit, long term. Toyotas have always been a bit more, their '24s aren’t out yet, so a '23 it will be, IF we can find one… Local Credit Union automotive buyer guy is a part timer, so DW contacted the Costco automotive folks, so we’ll see what they find…
We are finding the '23 Toyota Rav4 Limited Hybrids are tough to pin down… Earlier this evening we thought we had one going with a dealer down in Sunnyvale, CA, was a decent color, options price was OK, then I noticed the mileage, 28 mpg… Oops, it wasn’t a hybrid which hit 41 mpg… We were to the point of putting a Reserve on it when I realized we’d overlooked the Hybrid part… Sadly for us and the sales fellow, we backed off, he’s looking again in the morning… Bummer… But he may have a lead on one being built…
Meantime the CU & Costco guys need a little chatting up, too…
Overload… But nudging along…
I have a 2019 RAV4 hybrid.
The “estimated” mileage was 40 or 41.
I get real world 35 according to the calculator on the screen.
The gas tank was advertised to be 14 gallons.
In the real world it’s 10-12.
There’s some kind of “problem” that Toyota can not figure out how to fix.
IMO, it’s low on Toyotas list of things to do, is not dangerous, and requires resources to repair. So Toyota ain’t gonna fix it.
It’s a known problem, has been since 2019 and is on the internet, if you care to research it.
I normally fill up when the tank gets between 1/4 n 1/2.
Just like I’ve always done. So, it’s not a “real” problem. It does not stress me.
A couple days ago, though, I ran it til the “gas pump indicator light” came on. I assume the tank had 1 gallon or so remaining, since the manual says that when that light appears, there is 20-30 miles of range.
I put 10.9 gallons to fill the tank, according to the fuel gauge.
With a full tank (12 gallons?), the calculator says 380-390 miles range. That drops rapidly though, so I don’t really trust it.
I think Toyota applies the “estimated” mpg at a fill-up, then after a couple miles, begins to adjust it to “real world”.
I pay little attention to the estimated range. Normally, I just fill up when it gets to 1/2 tank.
Overall, I give it a 4/5. IMO it’s a mediocre vehicle.
And, it does what I need it to do.
I’ve had no problems with it, so far.
ralph
The main reason for moving away from the Civic is the safety features in today’s vehicles, DW is a tad jittery parking, wants the sensors, cameras, so the search continues. The RAV4 Limited packages seems to generally include what we want, but some tack on stuff we don’t care about or want, besides pushing the price up beyond what we’re willing to pay. So if we have to wait, might as well also insist on the pearl white as well…
Not so concerned on the fuel capacity, as most driving is local, normally, so more battery use than the engine…
Hmmm, although I imagine it has to recharge via the engine, since it’s not a plug-in, so there must be engine run time to make up for the battery use…
I’m happy with the sensors, and safety stuff.
I wish I’d gotten the “pedestrian proximity safety sensor” that would help prevent hitting pedestrians etc in parking lots.
The back up camera is nice, but basic. It could be better?
Other Cameras would be nice, too. Forward, dash, side?
Check the phone to Toyota connection?
Mine sucks. The numbers/contacts … Suck.
I’m using “hey Google” for more and more functions.
Toyota wants access to all your data.
Mine is NOT a plug in. I’ve a Hybrid XLE.
The engine starts and runs… Most(?) Of the time.
I hear it start up when sitting still.
It’s mostly quiet and low stress.
Without the engine, my 2019 RAV4 has LESS than 5 miles of range.
The traction battery (EV) is not very big.
This site says about 1km (1/2 mile!) range from the traction battery! If I read it correctly.
MAXIMUM RANGE
The RAV4 Hybrid EV mode range is much shorter than the Prime. EV mode can drive between a few hundred meters to about 0.6 miles (1 km).
When I go through a car wash, car transmission in neutral, a warning sometimes pops up that the traction battery is low. Blah blah. Turn off AC, radio, etc to protect the traction battery.
This is really annoying.
Toyota will not upgrade stuff after you give em the money. Their philosophy is NOT like Tesla.
ralph
I’ve had to change my understanding of the functional operation of the Hybrids, after reading your battery only range info. I was still thinking of them as mainly an EV, not a hybrid, but now I’ve see several YouTubes, reviews, articles and it makes more sense to me/us.
So we are still waiting on calls from the Credit Union & Costco, we may have to move up a notch in $$$'s, maybe slip a bit in colors… But so far we have no ‘bird in hand’…
That Resource link has a ton of information as well… Almost overwhelming in some was, DW left it to me to do the delving in there…
Likely things have changed since 2019, and there is still a 2024 coming along, but it’s unclear when they are scheduled, maybe a pre-order and hoping out for exactly what we want is an option…
This fellow was good at explain a lot of the details as well as comparing Honda vs Toyota…
Thanks for all the info!
weco