If you want economy and to save the planet, a Prius is probably the way to go for a long time.
But electric mode all the time is nice from a fun perspective. I think EVs are just great drives.
But electric mode all the time is nice from a fun perspective. I think EVs are just great drives.
#1 on the Greener Cars list.
Running the math, its clear that ACEEE assumes you're 100% Electric. According to brief Reddit searches, it seems like Prius Prime 2024 is closer to 75% electric / 25% gasoline in practice. (You could *theoretically* stay in 100% electric mode since its just one button click... but 11-second 0-to-60 time is pretty bad, so many people prefer to be in Hybrid mode instead)
That's still quite good though. And if you've got a lot of city driving (ex: 0-to-30 times), then 100% EV mode button is probably pleasurable. But if you have a highway or two as your commute, you'll want the ICE engine part of Prius Prime to get you up to speed.
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Still, Prius Prime is incredibly efficient. In 100% gas mode, it still scores 64 Green Score due to its lack of rare-earth metals in its EV motors, its smaller 13.6kW-hr battery pack (less Lithium/Cobalt being mines), and far lighter weight than most EVs. And at 130+ MPGe, its going to use less electricity than most EVs (even highly efficient ones like Leaf).
So all in all, Prius Prime is likely the most environmentally friendly vehicle you can buy in practice (even after correcting ACEEE's mistake of 100% EV assumption on this vehicle).
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The only real downside is that most drivers don't plan to use the PHEV part, and instead focus on the Hybrid part. At which point, the Corolla Hybrid or Crown Hybrids are better vehicles.
Prius EV is less than 100hp, and the ICE is under 150hp. But together they combine for 220hp.
But rumor is that Prius's EV motor is battery limited, not size limited. So it makes no sense making a bigger EV motor on this vehicle, not until Toyota adds a bigger battery al least.
Toyota has bz4x at least for pure EV. But Toyota's hybrids and PHEVs are the best on the market. The EV market has a lot more competition.
I really do think that PHEV is the right answer for the majority of Americans. Honda's got great Hybrids but no PHEVs right now in the American market (Honda Insight and Clarity were both cancelled).
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Studies like ACEEE's "Greener Cars" show that PHEVs and Hybrids (Ex: Prius Prime, Prius, Honda Accord Hybrids) are still top10 choices for environmentalists today however.
So no "need" to go EV if you're trying to be environmentally friendly. There's still a lot of work to make EVs better for the environment. Battery chemistry is a big deal and is uneven across EV manufacturers, some chemistries like NCA are dirtier than others.
I’m not worried about going green, I just prefer the EV driving experience. I know that’s a bit selfish, but many car enthusiasts after trying EVs can’t go back to ICEs, let alone hybrids.
Some batteries, like NCA, have worse emissions than others.
Also: the grid is mostly coal and nat. gas today. Case in point: the Hummer EV burns more fossil fuels on electricity because it weighs 4 tons.
EV doesn't make anything automatically more efficient. Only the smallest and lightest EVs, like the Leaf, have high environmental scores.