124 mile initial electric range! Well that would likely cover 98% of a driver’s needs. Plus they would not have charger anxiety on a long trip.
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My wife likes the PHEV idea specifically due to range anxiety on long trips - just kick in the gas motor and go. I don’t like it because it increases complexity and I still have all the gas-engine maintenance issues that I’ve begun to despise.
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While may undercut sales, it also will fill a major niche market both for those that have range anxiety and those that do not typically drive long distances.
I’ve long argued that most PHEVs get the ratio wrong; that in most cases, they are gas engines first with tiny electric motors and it should be the other way around.
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And 98% of the time you are carrying around a gas engine you don’t actually need at the moment.
It is a difficult balance to get right. Because if you have a 250 or 300 or more mile range on your battery you are carrying around a lot of battery range you don’t need either.
I can’t see how 124 miles is that much better than 62 miles, half the size. You still have to worry and pay for the maintenance on the gas engine.
I was one of the very first to get a Prius plug-in hybrid back in 2012. About 65% of the miles, to date, were on electric with a max battery only range of ~14 miles.
Mike
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Catering to people’s fears engendered by misinformation just encourages more misinformation and more fear.
Not a good idea.
-IGU-
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