Comment by qrush | Hacker News Reader

Comment by qrush | Hacker News Reader

I'm real glad this isn't with the RAV4 Prime. Here's my 1 year review from last month if you're thinking of getting one:

1. I signed a contract for my 2022 Blueprint SE Weather Edition just before the Inflation Reduction Act was signed, so I was covered for the tax credit and successfully filed for it. (NO way I'd buy it today without that credit though!)

2. I've absolutely loved this car, upgrading from a 2017 Jeep Renegade as my family SUV. My Jeep also had a massive amount of problems (replaced axle, AC system, tires, more for the ~5 years I had it) and having a year of maintenance-free headaches has been a huge relief.

3. Last year a lot of the posts on r/rav4prime were about getting protective coverings, etc. I got a few quotes but ended up just buying $100 worth of car wash stuff and keeping it clean as I can myself. Scratches are just a reality.

4. I don't have a Level 2 charger at home and I wouldn't bother at this point to install one. Most of my in-town/city drives are EV only, and highway trips I still get ~40MPG+. I just charge overnight if I need to, or luckily there's a few free chargers close by.

5. My main complaint is the anti-slip detection seems to go off a lot. Maybe it's the roads here close to Boston, or it's just real paranoid about slipping.

Some stuff I've bought that has helped:

1. Sun Visor Organizers (x2). I absolutely hate the giant "WARNING" about airbags in your face. Use that space for something productive instead.

2. Yakima FrontLoader Upright Bike Mount (x2). These are on sale at REI right now and have been so nice to use, and look pretty great. They're real easy to take on/off too if you're doing road trips without your bikes!

3. FITCAMX 4K Dash Cam. Way cheaper than the OEM model and looks like it belongs. Install was real easy. Given how crazy Boston driving is, I have gotten footage of some real dumb drivers here - and this is mostly CYA in case someone hits me.

Anyway that's it, here's an obligatory photo with the car loaded. https://i.imgur.com/1Stc3Ci.jpg

> Sun Visor Organizers (x2). I absolutely hate the giant "WARNING" about airbags in your face. Use that space for something productive instead.

I understand this is a North American thing. I know some bmw owners would buy used EU visors that didn’t have them. The parts are often shared with lots of years+models and relatively worthless in a part-out so pretty cheap if you cruise eBay.

The nissan leaf has a backup alarm in reverse (beep-beep-beep-beep!)

There was a button to turn it off (back up at 5am and wake up your neighbors?)

However it was removed in the US for reasons. People would get european buttons and install them to be able to disable that annoying noise.

I also have a recent RAV4 Prime. I tend to drive less than 40 miles at a time so I'm almost entirely on battery. I noticed that you can configure the charger to use either 8A (meaning you have to charge for a long time to refill) or 14A (which speeds things up a bit, but you need a dedicated circuit, there isn't a lot of headroom on top of 14A before your breaker trips). I don't really see a need for level 2 charging.

Although I keep the car in "Eco" mode it still has more acceleration than most cars, and in "Super" mode, it's insane (there is only one area where I need to use this for about 30 seconds).

Same! I just charge at home, and luckily my town library has a free charger that I use on weekends when I can. My "Super" mode use is typically reserved for when I'm late getting my kids somewhere... >_>;

ooc, when you charge at home overnight how much range can it refill?

I can just about refill the full 40 mile range over night, by plugging in when I come home around 5PM and unplugging around 8AM, when charging at 8A. I guess the math is: the battery is 18kwh and charging at 120V for 15 hours at 8 A is ~14kwh.

thats awesome. i put a call into our local dealership, and sounds like the wait time for the one i'd like is still >1 year :(

> I noticed that you can configure the charger to use either 8A (meaning you have to charge for a long time to refill) or 14A (which speeds things up a bit, but you need a dedicated circuit, there isn't a lot of headroom on top of 14A before your breaker trips).

If you are in the US something to be aware of is that the ratings for residential electrical stuff (breakers, the wiring in your walls, cords, and outlets) is the rating for non-continuous loads.

For continuous loads (defined as 3 or more hours) the rating is 80% of the non-continuous load rating.

E.g., if you've got a circuit with wiring rated for 20A with a 20A breaker and multiple 15A outlets any load plugged into one of those outlets should not exceed 12A continuous, and you should not exceed 16A continuous on the circuit.

This isn't as well known as it should be. I only found out about it when I was researching to try to figure out why a 13A extension cord I was using with a 12A continuous load eventually burst into flame.

Charging at 14A then, assuming it won't finish in under 3 hours, should be done using a 20A outlet.

The good news is that it should be cheap to install one. The National Electrical Code requires that garages have at least one 20A circuit for outlets, so you should already have the wiring and breaker to support it. You should just need to replace one of your 15A outlets on that circuit with a 20A outlet.

The outlet itself is a few dollars, and is a simple DIY job (and I don't think requires a permit or inspection in most places) but first make sure that you really have a 20A circuit. If you hire an electrician it will cost whatever their minimum billable amount of labor is.

>>My main complaint is the anti-slip detection seems to go off a lot. Maybe it's the roads here close to Boston, or it's just real paranoid about slipping.

What tyres are on the car currently? Sometimes really poor budget tyres can do this, especially as they wear out.

Gonna be the Dunlop Grandtrek PT20, which are terrible tires.

Did you get it for msrp? I remember people talking about how this particular model was getting priced $15-20k over in early 2022.

I got one for just $700 over MSRP in Pasadena recently. Had to visit multiple dealerships and haggle them down quite a bit (They wanted $5000 over). Although not easy, it's possible now, they aren't as unobtainable as they once were.

Nope :( However with the credit before the IRA was signed and MA tax rebate, it made sense. The markup wasn't that bad though, yikes.

re: anti-slip detection going off a lot. I'm not a big car guy, but is that what causes the weird grinding sound occasionally when hitting the brakes, particularly when hitting the brakes around the same time as going over a speed bump / pot hole / other thing making the road briefly uneven? If so, I have that happen a lot too

That's ABS.

I thought ABS was generally activated if braking really hard from high speed, but I hear the weird grinding somewhat consistently when lightly to moderately tapping the brake while going < 30mph.

I do know (or at least, I think I know) what ABS feels like when being applied and it doesn't feel like that. But my frame of reference is much older cars before the 2021 rav4 prime I have now, so maybe it's just different.

I don't know your car specifically. But newer ABS may pulsate at a higher frequency than older systems.

But with a PHEV, you might also be using regenerative braking more often and friction brakes less often? If so, the friction brakes might have more corrosion and give some odd sounds when they are finally put into use, as they scrape the surfaces clean again.

It's also activated when there is slip detected, such as when you go over a broken section of road while braking or even turning. My Chevy Suburban will engage the ABS even without me braking.

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