PiP vs standard

How would replacement cost compare of the 2 different batteries? Do you we know the difference in cost?

 

the lift back is in the low $2,000.'s, the pip i'm not sure, maybe $4-5,000.? no one here has had to replace theirs yet. someone mentioned low mile junkers for $1,500.

 

Do you have many miles on yours? Have you noticed any battery difference since new?

 

4 years for mine. 73,000 miles. No difference.

 

Do you usually plug in or do you use it like the regular non plug-in prius?

 

I couldn't imagine anyone not plugging in, even if their original purpose for buying the plug-in was for the sake of HOV privileges. It takes only a minute and the gain is obvious. So, of course I do, and not just at home either. At work, the electricity for charging comes from a massive (85 kWh) solar array.

 

i have 38,000 miles, with 25,000 of that in ev mode. maybe lost 10%, it's hard to know for sure.

 

I think the people that are seeing very little change might be getting fooled a little bit. Unless they have new tires, the OEM's wear may be helping their distance. That, combined with learned efficiencies in driving in electric.

 

How does the wear effect things? Is it the radius of the tire getting smaller as the tire wears, or the thinner tread providing less rolling resistance, or the rubber getting harder as it ages and lowering rolling resistance? I just got new tires (at 66000 miles), and my first impression is that my mileage has taken a dive.

 

Good question. I don't know the details of how it exactly changes things. But I've always heard it makes a big difference.

 

without standardized testing when new, and then every so many thousands of miles, it would take a major reduction in miles for a human being to recognize a drop.

we're like frogs in water coming to a boil, we don't recognize anything until it's too late.

 

My experience with the PiP uncharged in stop and crawl freeway rush hour traffic is that the PiP will regen beyond what the standard Gen3 Prius will. I have noticed that post rush hour crawl, the status display will be on the "big" battery instead of the little one and will list an EV range of over 1 mile when I was operating in HV on the little battery with no EV range at the start of the stop and crawl.

Overall I'm getting about 53-55 mpg without charging and about 57-58 mpg with nightly charges driving about 150-200 miles a day as a Uber driver in the Atlanta area.

I do miss the extra gallon from the gas tank and have started topping off the tank when I can. I don't miss the spare tire since I've not needed a spare since my college days in the 80s.

Heated seats are a must for me so score 1 for the PiP

Don't use the Nav and the apps opting for the phone. It's a learning curve thing for me. Why learn a different way for my car and my wife's car when I'll have my phone with me in both cars? So that the PiP has those is meaningless to me.

Given the wheels and the extra trim looking better to me, I'd pay a premium to get a plug-in so I'd definitely buy another PiP at a discount.

Oh,I forgot to mention that PiP is eligible for Alternative Fuel plates in GA which grants HOV lane access with just a driver. Huge benefit if you commute in the Atlanta area.

 

very progressive for georgia.

 

All of the above. With worn tires, the wheels have to turn more revolutions to travel the same distance compared with new tires. The odometer then uses the extra distance in the estimated range calculation.

Deforming the tread on a new tire increases rolling resistance and decreases efficiency. Bald tires have less rubber deforming, and therefore are more efficient to drive on.

I'm not sure harder rubber has much effect though.

 

If you ever go from well-worn tires to new without a drop in mpg, you've got a mpg keeper.

 

Never knew that. They may be more efficient until you need to stop in the rain!

 

I think bald tires (slicks) are better at dry braking too. Same for accelerating: just picture a drag race vehicle. It's a balancing act, weighing dry vs wet traction.

 

Do we see a day, technology-wise, that we see tires somehow do both (become slicks and great depth for snow and ice)?

 

There's a thought. Yeah I can recall needing sudden/fast acceleration to jump into a short left-turn opportunity, with snow tires on dry/bare pavement, and spinning the wheels.

 

With modern steel belted radial tires, the rolling circumference of the tire changes much less than one might expect from simply applying tread depth wear to the normal circle equations. The road contact patch is flat, nor circular. With tires loaded and inflated within their normal operating range, the rolling circumference is determined mostly by the length of those steel belts just beneath the tread. Belt length changes very little with tire wear and inflation pressure.