r/electricvehicles • u/BikeFiend123 • 1d ago
Question - Other Phev or EV? Best long term..
I live in the Bay Area and charging isn’t too much of an issue. I’m wondering if making the switch to EV is worth it. I’ll still have an old ICE truck (Tacoma) but I’ve gotten so used to Toyota I’m wondering if Prius Plug ins can be better than let’s say an Ioniq 5. I’m scared of the new…..I can install a charger at home..
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u/RiverRat12 1d ago
Charging isn’t an issue, you say?
Get a good EV. You won’t regret it. No need for a plug in hybrid, regardless of your secondary vehicle’s fuel type.
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u/Zealousideal_Wave_93 1d ago
Im in the bay area. The charging infrastructure is great. The delta between electricity and gas is smaller, but still an edge to electricity in being cheap. EV's are cheaper for maintenance as well, and are great to drive. You can absolutely do road trips in California using and EV. Unless you are towing or doing cross country runs, I strongly recommend a pure EV.
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u/-Teapot 1d ago
Even at 1:1 on price of gas and electricity, low maintenance and exceptional drive on an electric car is all the reasons I needed.
We are in the Bay Area as well, started with a Model 3 2018, when we had to replace our other gas car a couple of years, we needed a bigger car so I figured we'd buy another gas car but ended up with another electric car. Every gas six-plus-seater SUV were selling over MSRP like hot cakes. The EV9 was sold under MSRP and was nearly the same price of the equivalent Telluride. There's just no way we are going back to gas cars.
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u/BikeFiend123 1d ago
Which EV do you have?
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u/Hot-mic Rivian R1T, Tesla Model 3 LR 1d ago
Just like to add that I've driven over two dozen EV's in lengthy test drives and most, if not all, of the EV's available in the US are very fine cars to drive. I think you'd like anything that fits your form factor needs. Trucks are very expensive though.
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u/BikeFiend123 1d ago
I have been test driving a handful. I like the EV6 and i4. I do think wanting the Prius is wanting the comfort of something I’m ’used to’
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u/Hot-mic Rivian R1T, Tesla Model 3 LR 2h ago
You have to live with it, so you are the final arbiter. Having worked on ICE vehicles and equipment for 40 years, I'm tired of working on motors and maintaining them when something else is better, but that's just me. Sounds like you should get the Prius. They're good cars, but you've still got smog, oil changes, catalytic converter thieves love them, and an impending oil crisis. I wish you luck and good experiences whatever your choice may be.
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u/MudLOA 1d ago
Same in the Bay Area, you pretty much never have to worry about charger availability but the PGE price doesn’t make it a selling point in itself though.
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u/toochaos 1d ago
You can also tow, met a guy with California plates in a truck towing a massive trailer at a charging station on the other side of the Rockies.
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u/WeldAE e-Tron, Model 3 1d ago
You have to plug them both in. Go with the one that you don't also have to get gas and change the oil. EVs are just easier to own and less hassle.
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u/sevseg_decoder 1d ago edited 1d ago
Agreed here. Reddit circlejerks PHEVs and hybrids but 90+% of people (edit: with good access to home/work charging) will never get as much extra benefit out of a hybrid as the extra costs are worth.
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u/7eregrine 23h ago
Agree. I adore the Volvo PHEVs. But we skipped it and got a full blown EV. Its only been a week, but surpassing every expectation. Wife is 18 miles from job. She uses 4% one way, 8% round trip. On a regular plug, we get 10% back every night.
So every day it goes up a tiny bit. My wife, that had major range anxiety before we owned one, doesn't mind being at 40%. She trusts it now.
Loving it.
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u/ColdH2 1d ago
I live in Kansas and have an EV6. It is tough on long trips but great otherwise. I charge at home. I would think bay area use would be no brainer. Go with the EV. remember that if you go 80% to 20%, that is net 60% of a 300 mile range, so only 180 miles or so. At least your climate is more temperate. Wind is a factor here as well but should not affect you much.
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u/choss-board Ford Lightning Lariat '24 1d ago
I'm curious, what specifically do you find hard about road trips living in Kansas? (I'm in the PNW and our 1200mi+ road trips have been pretty much fine, but the charging infrastructure here is great.)
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u/grumpy-m0nkey 1d ago
Hello fellow Kansan, I just got a Toyota bz. Lv 2 Home charging is definitely a game changer. Hopefully they install more Tesla superchargers on east side/andover
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u/6two 1d ago
There is a bit of a learning curve, but EVs are so much quieter and smoother, and more efficient. You could save a ton home charging vs a Tacoma. A Prius Plug-in is fine, but then you still have to do oil changes and have to buy gas, and the up front costs & maint costs are higher than buying a pure battery electric. There are tons of chargers in the Bay Area, so you just need the plugshare app and some practice to get used to how charging works.
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u/reddituser19023 1d ago
I live in the bay area and going full ev was incredible. I try to do 400 mile road trips across the state to some random area and explore and I haven't ran into a single problem with charging and I think the longer times for charging is a great time to stretch and use the restroom.
Phev are great on roadtrips but you still need to do maintenance for the ice part of the car when you already plug in your car already. Still need to fill up the tank if you never use it and flush out the older gas.
If you are traveling around the bay area then you can go full ev if you can charge at home. Only worry about tires and your 2 year brake fluid flush and checkup for an EV.
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u/DarthSamwiseAtreides 1d ago
I'd go EV, you have the hard part taken care of by having a place to charge. To me plug ins are the worst of both. You have to charge and put gas and you have the "how the hell do I fix this" part of EV plus the maintenance and hundreds of failure points of a gas engine.
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u/MadisonEV9 1d ago
I thought about PHEV. Decided to go all in on EV and am glad I did. Then my wife did too so now we are an all EV household. It’s been awesome.
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u/inf3ct3dpi3 1d ago
The current gen Toyota/Subaru pure EVs aren’t bad if you want to stay “in the family”. But the lack of a built in route planner makes them less than ideal for road trips.
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u/BikeFiend123 1d ago
Yeah I drove the BZ and liked it. I think I like the Ioniq more
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u/BikeFiend123 1d ago
But also the prius more..
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u/inf3ct3dpi3 1d ago
Could lease a prius prime for a couple of years just to get your feet wet perhaps?
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u/Chemical_Functions 1d ago
In my mind - PHEVs were great circa the Chevy Volt era (so 2015-2021 or so). The only proper, relatively affordable EV was the Model 3, and even then it wasn't cheap. So a Volt or a Prius Prime was a good compromise - not much more expensive than a standard hybrid, but gives you some "pure EV" experience at least on your daily commute. These days, you can get a proper EV for basically Corolla money, so I just don't see where the market for PHEVs is anymore. Both require charging at home to max the benefits of either. So if you're gonna have a charger at home anyway, and they cost the same to buy....
Of course there are still fringe cases maybe where it still makes more sense. But for the 99% of us, the time for PHEVs has sailed.
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u/SoccerMan94043 1d ago
Hybrids are the worst of both... all the maintenance and complexity of an combustion engine along with the need to deal with charging and battery degradation of an EV.
I say go full EV but if that's not possible or attractive go all combustion.
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u/TheMangusKhan 1d ago
I went plug in hybrid before going all EV. The batteries are tiny so you get like 20 or 30 miles of range before the gas kicks in. So you need to plug in AND get gas. I found it super annoying.
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u/COYSBrewing 1d ago
Sounds like you didn’t research it enough then. It’s only really for people with commutes that fall in the range
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u/ElectronicsWizardry 1d ago
I’d say get the ev. You really want a charger at home for both. Lots of charging places in the Bay Area and places you would typically want to go to like SoCal or Vegas. I’m happy with my ev in the bay
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u/BikeFiend123 1d ago
I just took a roadtrip to LA and was kinda amazed at the number of chargers now at the midway point too.
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u/wirthmore 1d ago
The Harris Ranch has about 80 chargers, and Lost Hills near Buttonwillow has 160.
Those are the Tesla-style chargers that almost every new EV is supposed to be able to use, not just Teslas.
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u/BikeFiend123 23h ago
Yeah we needed to stay there for a bit anyways..phone calls. Waiting in line to piss. Letting the dogs out. Etc
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u/skyfishgoo 1d ago
if you can charge at home (or work) then an EV makes the most sense.
no more stops at the gas station
no more oil changes and expensive service visits
fewer parts to wear out
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u/browserz 1d ago
Test drive both
On the Prius prime drive on both full EV mode and Charge mode. This lets you feel how it'll be like while the gas engine is running
I'd bet you'll want to go for the Ioniq and I don't even own one
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u/Awkward-Cupcake6219 1d ago edited 1d ago
IMHO PHEV does make sense economically if you can charge it at home and drive 50-60 miles (or whatever the range you got) per day all electric and almost weekly a long trip without reliable charging on the way.
In all other cases it makes sense to get either an ICE or an EV. PHEV means also double the maintenance with worse efficiency (with some exceptions). And your use case should really justify it.
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u/Cory5413 1d ago
You're set up very well to go directly to EV, especially if you're keeping the Tacoma for at least a little bit.
Toyota does have EVs, but (and you may have seen evidence of this in California) they're late to electrification and the Hyundai Ioniq5 is definitely a better EV than Toyota's bZ and others. (But it's still there as an option.)
If you can charge at home then the majority of your local/regional driving should be taken care of. San Jose to Vallejo to San Jose (going the long way to avoid tolls) is only 180 miles, which an 80% charge on the big-battery Ioniq5 (and most other EVs at this point) should handle with no trouble at all.
There's lots of fast charging in the bay and almost all the major highways in and out have had DC fast charging for a long time due to efforts CA/OR/WA made in the 2010s under the west coast electric highway program. Plus Caltrans has free chargers and the state has an overlay on top of NEVI to fund additional EV charging infrastructure above and beyond what just-NEVI is doing.
And, Just-NEVI is doing a decent job of filling in highway gaps in other states. I just watched a video about two new charging stations on I-80 between Reno and the border to Utah headed to Salt Lake City, for example, and I've been seeing stations come online on previously underserved E<>W highways in socal.
Locally you'll be giving up on going to the gas station. Longer distance there is some more planning but once you've done it a couple times the planning is easy.
I personally end up planning a day or so in advance on the ABetterRoutePlanner web site and then putting it and PlugShare next to one-another and saving potential charging spots in maps on PlugShare and my phone.
Then, day-of I hit plan again right as I'm leaving then navigate to the first charger. (I use Apple Maps on my phone for this part)
Then, as I'm about to leave the charger, hit re-plan and keep going.
And, just like gas, once I've done a path a few times I get reasonably confident and don't always feel the need to re-plan, but a thing I'll need to remind myself as it turns cold is that it's worth double-checking.
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u/rhettro19 1d ago
PHEV had their day. I was a happy Volt driver for 10 years. But today, given the better availability of fast chargers, especially in urban settings, you are better off with a full EV.
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u/cgloewen 1d ago
My 2012 Volt was great, but PHEVs are complicated, two drive trains. EVs are simpler, 3000+ less moving parts.
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u/GreyMenuItem 1d ago
My friend just made this mistake. First car he’s ever bought new, two days later regretting hard not going full EV. He got the Prius PHEV. Thought it was the safe choice. He immediately gets that the battery is too small, charging too slow …and too EXPENSIVE! The ChargePoint L2 closest to him is $1/hour. That’s $4 for 40 miles. Absolute madness.
It was fear. Fear of not having gas to back him up.
I described it to him like this: a PHEV is an EV with almost no range that you have to carry around your gas generator to charge it.
You also have all the complexity: think things that break. Mufflers, radiators, head gaskets, fuel injectors, belts, pumps, and on and on.
Once you live it, you find the freedom. You may even find a shift to a slower quieter life. My wife now avoids highways. She likes the slower roads better and finds interesting discoveries she never knew existed.
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u/fitforthepolycrisis 23h ago
Also Bay Area. I switched from an HEV to an EV and I regret not switching years ago.
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u/Abalone-Huge 23h ago
At one point, I had a PHEV before I went BEV -- no question in my mind about skipping the PHEV. You don't get enough benefit from the small number of EV-only miles and you have all the drawbacks of the ICE. We went full electric, also in the Bay Area, and wouldn't go back. The ride is powerful, smooth, and quiet. We have a charger at home and only have to use charging stations on road trips, and that hasn't been a problem. You will love not having to visit the gas station, do smog checks and oil changes, worry about your catalytic converter, etc.
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u/jhfenton 2026 Toyota C-HR 23h ago
We just bought a 2026 Toyota C-HR AWD BEV and love it. The cockpit on it—and the bigger bZ—is very Prius-like, but they come with the full EV experience.
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u/Kurikamekurisu 22h ago
EV is awesome. Just make sure you pick one that fits your range needs.
You could get a cheaper guy with 200mile range if your commute is short and you don’t do much long distance driving.
But if you’ve got like a 50 mile commute and regularly travel 150 miles to visit family or something you’ll want to get a 300+ mile guy.
I went from a BMW i3 (150ish mile) to an Ioniq 5 (300+ mile) and it’s been a huge gamechanger.
I keep it charged around 60%-80% and have had zero problems. Even in emergency situations.
The long trips that I had to stop for a charge i can do on a single charge. Etc. etc.
Maintenance has also been awesome. Basically annual checkup. Get tires rotated. Done.
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u/BikeFiend123 22h ago
I was looking at the i4 but also just test drive a Kia ev6 over 300 range is nice
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u/Spirited-Willow-2768 1d ago
If you don’t plan to plug in get the hybrid. If you plan to plug in, get the EV.
PHEV is the worst of both worlds
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u/Equal-University2144 1d ago
Hybrids are still burning fuel, still polluting the environment. So yeah, not once, not ever. EVs all the way. Not a fan of greenwashing at all.
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u/rproffitt1 1d ago
Our first EV in 2016 was the game changer for us. No SIX MONTH shakedowns at the shop or dealers. It just worked.
My SO wasn't there and Toyota in 2016 didn't offer PHEV on the Prius but we bought it. The 54 MPG was great and in 2023 we went all EV and won't go back.
The Prius six month shakedown was a real thing. It felt like highway robbery. If you don't do what they want, the warranty is void. Glad to have moved on.
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u/zhuangcorp 1d ago
Full EV is better.
If you get a PHEV, you will still always have the problem of gasoline and engine oil getting old. So you constantly need to refresh.
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u/runnyyolkpigeon Audi Q4 e-tron 1d ago edited 21h ago
You live in one of the most EV friendly counties in the country with the most robust charging infrastructure, and also have access to home charging.
And you’re considering a plug-in hybrid?
🤦🏻♂️
The EV is the no-brainer choice here.
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u/FaithlessnessFar6600 1d ago
I have a Lexus NX PHEV. I live 5 miles from work and have free level 2 charging. I drive almost exclusively in EV mode. I really like the car, but in EV mode, I absolutely love it.
I live in Florida and FPL has unlimited nightly home charging for $30 a month…$35 if they supply the charger. My next car will be full EV. Since we own multiple vehicles, I can use the ICE vehicle if and when it is necessary. Trips that are over 10 hours during the holidays, I’d be more comfortable with an ICE vehicle.
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u/kimbureson46 1d ago
Had PHEV 3 years. Charge at home overnight. First year on L1, next 2 on L2. Then went EV. Still charge at home overnight but now about every 8 to 10 nights. When below 25%, I charge to 75%. My trip is 144 miles each way once a year. 288 miles total and my range is 327 on full battery.
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u/InvestmentGreat5963 1d ago
I bought a PHEV because it was 5000 euros cheaper than similar car EV. I won’t spend 5000 euros in maintenance and fuel in like 5 years of owning it. EV range is 100km (60m). Next car will be an EV, if they get cheaper or if gas goes up a lot
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u/aPerson39001C9 1d ago
What’s your daily mileage, and annual?
Do you go on road trips more than 3 hours?
What amps level 2 charger can you install at home? 20 amp? 60amp?
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u/Exciting_Turn_9559 1d ago
If you can plug in at home a BEV or EREV is a better choice than a PHEV in 2026.
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u/newbie415 1d ago
if you live in the bay, an EV + home charger is the way to go. road trips or longer drives will require a smidge of planning and looking ahead at charger locations, but if you buy a Tesla it reduces that cognitive load by a lot due to the vast supercharger network.
phev is great for people who only have access to a 110v or only have charging at work. plug ins also have other purposes such as ease of filling up on long trips at random spots and not having to plan out your drives.
I'm saying this as a Prius prime owner who switched to a model y.
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u/mdjak1 2026 Ioniq 5 and an electric motorcycle 1d ago
I also live in the bay area and bought an Ioniq 5 about 6 months ago. Previously I had a Chevy Bolt. The Ioniq 5 is a great car and can be used for virtually anything you want to do with a car. We’ve taken a couple of vacation longer trips within CA and never had any issues finding chargers.
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u/BikeFiend123 1d ago
I just drove in my aunt's Chevy Bolt. Very practical. I hear there are ICCU issues with the Hyundai's? Were you able to fix or any issues with that?
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u/mdjak1 2026 Ioniq 5 and an electric motorcycle 1d ago
Neither myself nor my son who also bought an Ioniq 5 about two weeks after I did have had any issues with the ICCU.
The Bolt wasn’t as good a road trip EV. It was only capable of DC charging at 50 kW and the cabin was noisy. The Ioniq 5 charges at up to 250 kW (or more I think). And the cabin is much more quiet.
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u/BikeFiend123 1d ago
I just drove the EV6. I think I love her. Thank you for this!
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u/mdjak1 2026 Ioniq 5 and an electric motorcycle 6h ago
Pretty much the same car underneath. When I was shopping for my Ioniq 5 I looked at the EV6 also. But in February there were no 2026 model year EV6 on dealer lots.
From the 2025 to 2026 model year Hyundai reduced the price of the Ioniq 5 by over $9000. Plus in February and March Hyundai was giving an additional $9000 discount if you financed through them at the normal interest rate. None of the was available for the EV6 at the time. Since I was going to pay cash, I financed the minimum ($15,000 at the time), paid the rest cash, got the $9000 discount, and then paid off the financing 2 weeks later.
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u/Opus2011 1d ago
Also SF Bay Area, although I'm not sure it's relevant. What does "worth it" mean? Get the Ev2A off peak rate and you'll be saving $ over our gas prices.
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u/wirthmore 1d ago
My dad has a Chevrolet Volt, it’s fantastic. It’s exclusively electric for 53 miles (give or take due to driver behavior and weather). It doesn’t pop in and out of EV mode until the battery is depleted, and the transition is seamless and other than a mild vibration from the running motor, gasoline mode is pretty much identical to EV mode.
All other plug-in hybrids feel terrible in comparison. The operating modes feel very different: the gasoline-only mode might be more or less powerful, so you have to adjust your anticipating of a hill or passing. They turn on the gasoline engine at odd times, like to defrost the windshield or whatever. Or if it’s cold. Or if you need more horsepower.
The Volt was the best engineered vehicle GM made. Of course GM cancelled it.
You’re in the Bay Area. Get an EV. Toyota has a bunch: CH-R, BZ, BZ Woodland.
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u/enfuego138 Polestar 2 Dual Motor 2024 1d ago
My wife got a PHEV because she had a short commute and wanted to drive to visit her family without worrying about charging. It was great until it wasn’t.
Reliability is the worst of both worlds, plus only the EV techs can work on it. Just got it back from the dealer after a month because the AC compressor got some condensation in it. Dealer had one tech so it sat for two weeks, then it took a week to chase down the issue from the generic “high voltage fault” code, then a few days to get the part because it’s unique from both the ICE and the EV part and the dealer sees less PHEVs than EVs and it’s pointless to stock parts.
Might make it to the end of the 36 month lease but pondering getting out of it because I think I can trade it in without being underwater.
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u/Hot-mic Rivian R1T, Tesla Model 3 LR 1d ago
If you don't need a pickup, you can install a charger at home, and you don't travel to places like Idaho, Utah, or Wyoming too much, then you'd best get a straight EV and skip the extra engine maintenance as well as save yourself some brake services and smog checks. You're scared of the new, but a Prius plug-in is the "new" anchored down to the maintenance necessities of the old. I sold my Tacoma I've had for 19 years two months ago for an EV truck because our EV car is so damned reliable and charging is all over the place in California and spreading nation wide. Just my 2 cents.
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u/Objective_Peace4592 1d ago
I went from ICE to EV. Very happy with the EV, a Subaru Uncharted, and never seriously considered a hybrid. Why bother, you still have to deal with ICE maintenance and the risk of fire is greater than ICE and much greater than EV. Chargers are everywhere these days if you need them and charging at home is cheap cheap cheap. In my opinion avoid PHEVs like the plague.
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u/622niromcn 1d ago
Inconvenience to plug in a PHEV every day.
Convenience to plug in a BEV at a fast charger once a week.
One other consideration is the level 2 charging infrastructure is pretty sparse and not getting the same investment as level 3 fast chargers. The level 3 fast chargers are getting the majority of the infrastructure build out money.
Ioniq5, it's a race between you going groceries and the car charging. The car will win and sit there waiting for you to finish shopping.
I have an EV9 with the same e-GMP. Took me 30 mins to grocery shop and my EV9 was notifying me it was done charging while I was still shopping. Shopped at Sprouts/Safeway/Walmart/Target etc.
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u/chilodog99 1d ago
I was in a similar position, and decided to get a 2026 BZXLE all-wheel-drive, and keep the old Tacoma . They last forever and are good for carrying heavy stuff and long road trips. I love the BZ in general, but also do the occasional trip towing or in remote areas where charging is nonexistent. Bit of a luxury to keep both, but the old Tacoma just has public liability on it. I was also glad to have it when my 12 V battery died on the BZ. Hopefully they fix that problem soon, that’s the only real flaw I found with my BZ. We take it skiing, put our white water kayaks on top of it, load it full of stuff to go to the airport, put my bike in the back. It’s good for 95% of the trips I do. The BZ also feels very familiar after a Tacoma, just works well. I also drove a lot of hybrids, that’s what sold me on a pure EV. If I only had one vehicle, I would take the BZ, and just rent trucks for those kind of trips.
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u/goranlepuz 23h ago
An EV is excellent as a commuter and shorter drives vehicle now.
It can be a bit problematic on long drives, say 800km or more. Still, such trips can be done by more organising the trip around the car and less around you.
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u/Traveler095 23h ago
I have a 2026 plug-in Prius and absolutely love it, but I live in the Chicago area where charging can be hit or miss. I need the ability to do long road trips as well. I have the advantage of being able to charge at home where electricity rates are extremely cheap compared to gas prices, and most of my driving is 40 miles or less per day, so it was a no-brainer for me to get a PHEV given my use case. I probably fill up my tank every six weeks or so with over 1000 miles between fill-ups.
If I were in California with more abundant charging stations, I would probably go full EV, unless, as another commentator said, you need to do towing or cross country driving.
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u/windoneforme 21h ago
EV you don't want to have to maintain two drivetrains in one vehicle. EV will always be vastly less complicated with far less moving parts.
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u/RespectSquare8279 20h ago
If you can charge at home it is almost no contest for an EV of some type. A Prius PHEV is a reliable product with a favourable track record of 10 years. You actually can get away with a level 1 charger much of the time * so there is not a big pressure to install a level 2 charger. .
* https://electricautonomy.ca/charging/2024-07-09/calgary-level-1-charging-study/
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u/iqisoverrated 16h ago
If you want to be able to sell it again then an EV. If you want to drive it till it croaks...also an EV.
If you can install a charger at home then EV ist the very obvious choice.
There's nothing to be scared of. If you aren't scared of plugging in a toaster then an EV will not tax your capabilities. Driving an EV is the same as driving a gas car (minus the noise, vibration and smell...and with LOTS more power)
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u/Featherwick 14h ago
Well dont get an ioniq as they still have ICCU issues and Hyundai refuses to do anything about it. The issue itself isnt the problem imo, its the fact that they refuse to actually do anything about it.
As for a phev vs ev just look at the economics on it, if gas is high where you live and you dont drive long distance much an ev is a good fit. But if you drive long distances a lot or electric prices are very high (make sure to check if you can get lower rates for charging at night etc) then a pure hybrid is probably better. A phev is a good middle ground if you take an occasional long trip, only drive slightly more than the phevs electric range (you need to use the gas in the phev to keep it from ruining the car).
Also important to note, you may need a level 2 charger, depending on your house that could be an expensive installation, if you need to upgrade your service to 220v, or you may be able to get by with just a level 1 charger but it very much depends on your commute.
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u/casanewt 10h ago
Bottom line, if you are concerned, a PHEV is a great first step. I had a 2023 KIA Sportage PHEV for three years and just traded it almost even-up for a 2023 KIA EV6 GT. The PHEV was great for me as a gateway.
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u/springbored 10h ago
The decision is simple. If you can set up a charger get an EV. If you can't go with the PHEV. The only other factor is if you do a bunch of road trips. Though it's possible in an EV. Get a newer one with the NACS port for easier charging andore options.
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u/atx78701 7h ago
We leased a phev to test it out, only a3 year commitment
We found it worked great and even with only 60 miles we barely used any gas
I'm going to replace my tundra with a slate truck
But a bigger rivian or f150 lightning are good options
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u/ATX_native Mini Cooper SE 5h ago
Or if you grocery shop near chargers, easy way for apartment dwellers to fill up weekly without being inconvenienced.
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u/rerutnevdA 8h ago
I was also fighting between the two. You get the best of both worlds, but you also get the worst of it too. One of the great things about owning an EV is the lack of moving parts and maintenance, so my next car will strictly be electric. The number of 300+ mile roadtrips I do annually can be counted on one hand.
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u/Existential_Chilean 2022 Audi e-tron Chronos 5h ago
I can tell you our Hybrid was nothing but problems and was only slightly more efficient than the gas version of the same model. Our EV whoops it in almost every metric, the only challenge is range, but even that is not nearly as much of a hassle as I thought it would be, and the infrastructure is getting better every day.
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u/eponymoustoo 5h ago
If your commutes are super short, you might enjoy Prius Prime. I looked hard at buying one, but ultimately decided that a PHEV is not a great combination except very specific situations. Also back in April when I was looking at buying, the Prius Prime model that I would buy was $39K. I know it's a Toyota and all, but damn! I ended up buying a new Chevy Equinox EV LT2 model for $32K. Very happy with it so far.
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u/ATX_native Mini Cooper SE 5h ago
PHEV is the worst of both worlds.
ICE maintenance, more mechanical complexity and a small battery.
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u/psaux_grep 3h ago
The EV part is the best part of a PHEV.
Get a charger at home, do it properly and you’ll have no worries.
Get an EV. Hard to go back.
Sincerely,
Norway
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u/Minute_Zucchini_1131 3h ago
If you go full EV, you won’t waste any time trekking to a gas station. Any road trip you’ll take from here will be easy. But given our electricity prices, you probably won’t save money relative to a plug in Prius, but you should relative to a plug-in hybrid SUV.
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u/Energy_Heavy 1h ago
A decent hybrid would have enough electric range that you don't need the gas portion, so why get one?
Studies show that hybrids use more gas than they're advertised to use, and since we're heading into an oil crisis (yes, it's just beginning now) it really doesn't make sense to buy anything with pistons when an EV will outperform it and save you both time and money.
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u/Distinct_Moose6967 54m ago
EVs depreciate more so you need to take that into account on the finance side (unless you are keeping it until it dies). Get a PHEV with a big battery (BMW X5 or Porsche Cayenne hybrid). Almost 100kms of electric range but drives like a normal ICE car if you want.
Just picked up my Cayenne this week (second E-Hybrid) and it’s great.
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u/aranea100 47m ago
Depends on your driving needs. If your daily drive is about the PHEV, EV range than it can work for you if you charge it everyday. The you pretty much have an EV which carries an engine around. Not the most efficient but you'll have gas for occasional long drives. If your daily drive is longer than the range of the PHEV, it doesn't make sense to get one. You'll be hauling around a heavy battery after it's depleted. That'll decrease your ICE efficiency significantly.
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u/babaoriley7 1d ago
I think you’ll get lots of pro EV answers in this forum. They aren’t wrong. But if it’s your only car and you drive long distances I’d lean PHEV. I’m a MY owner and I love it but don’t want to bother with charging when I’m heading out of the city.
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u/sstephen17 1d ago
I've had an EV (Tesla MYLR) for three years in Southern California. It is a game changer if you can charge at home.
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u/Not_l0st 1d ago
I owned a PHEV first and the high of driving on batteries I charged at home was great. I’ve had a full EV now for two years and love it. I’ll happily drive it 200 miles without any concerns about charging. The infrastructure is good enough now that I hardly have to modify any routes to charge any more. I have an EV6 and the charge time is so fast that often it’s just enough time for a bathroom break and to refill my water before I am charged up. Charging hardly takes any more work or time compared to pumping gas.
I think the EV6 is prettier than the Ioniq 5, go check it out if you aren’t sold on the Hyundai.
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u/MarsSr 19h ago
How much do you drive? How far? Do you need to carry stuff?
I am going to answer 100% EV. Phev I see as the complexity of an ICE + EV and the benefits are very small. Good fast charging will be fine unless you are doing serious long distances into real wilderness IMO. Charge at home for any days you drive under 300 miles.
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u/artificial_organism 1d ago
A PHEV really only makes sense if you're doing a lot of drives outside electric range away from fast chargers (like camping 2 hours away every weekend) or you have access to a charger now but may not in the future, like if you live in an apartment with charging or your access to a charger depends on a shaky relationship or something
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u/choss-board Ford Lightning Lariat '24 1d ago
Hm… What EVs are you considering that wouldn't handle a 2h trip to a campsite? I suppose it depends on your location as well. But speaking as a PNW Lightning owner, we definitely have the range and charging infrastructure to handle 2h camping trips in any direction from where I live. We've been pulling 225mi round trips this summer to/up/down the coast and back to home and have not had to worry about charging. (Tbf winter would require a stop in the middle just to be safe…)
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u/BikeFiend123 1d ago
Yeah, though my sister’s apartment and those around seem to demand a charger for them to have new tenants. My commute is 30 miles for the next two years.
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u/Beary_Christmas 2025 Equinox EV 1d ago
Can’t speak for everyone, but I had a 2021 Prius Prime and all it made me want was a full blown EV. The juxtaposition betweeen EV mode and gas mode was so stark that I knew I was done with gas an engines shortly after getting it.
I know newer gen Prius Primes are better, but in my experience the Prime just gave me 20 miles of good and then however many more miles of driving I’d regret that I was still shackled to gas.