No Plug Prime or Gen4 LB?

the prime only has 4 seats and the hatch floor is raised about 3". without plugging in, you might get slightly better mileage than the lift back, but the extra weight of the battery won't be helpful. prime does not have a spare, or any space under the hatch floor, where lift back has one or the other, albeit with styrofoam in place.
imo, it's a pretty big distinction between the two, and price isn't everything. are you sure you want to spend 20 something k for a car, and anot a few hundred for a new outlet?

 

The prime has the ability to set a charging schedule. If you set it to charge from 2am to 7am, it's probably unlikely that the other things on the 15A circuit will be drawing much power at the same time, thus preventing a circuit breaker trip.

The other option is to get a charge cord with an adjustable charge setting. I read about one that has 1A increments from 1A to 16A. This tells the car through the communication channel to limit its draw to that value.

 

I wonder if the Prime has a setting like the Chevy Volt does, where if you're on a 110v outlet, you can select between 8 amps and 12 amps, specifically because not everyone has an upgraded outlet.

On earlier models, you could set it to default at 12 amps, but later models forced you to pick it every time, or it went back to 8 amps to play it safe.

The Gen 2 Volt gives you a "home" option so that it'll remember to charge at 12 amps when you're at home, and defaults to 8 elsewhere.

I sprung for a 240v line in my garage, so that when I get a BEV later on such as the Tesla Model 3, I can charge those at a faster rate. I was also surprised that installing a 240v charging station in my garage qualifies for a 30% Federal tax credit for the install and the faster EVSE (electric vehicle supply equipment, aka the "charger" you plug into the car with).

I heard some people who bought the Plug-in Prius never bothered to plug it in, especially in California where most got it for the HOV sticker. But the Prime has a bigger battery, so more mass/weight to move around, and can only seat 4. If that lack of a 5th seat, spare tire, and slight loss of storage space isn't a deciding factor, you could just drive it around like a regular Prius.

 

I believe the EVSE cord that comes with the Prime has a lower amp charge setting.

 

Just keep in mind that the charger draws as much electricity as a space heater and you will be fine. You can have as many things as you want plugged into the same circuit as a space heater, just don't use them all at the same time. Charge off peak to avoid conflicts.

As to your other question, instant gratification. Buy a LB for $25k or buy a Prime for $29.5 but need to wait until tax time to get your money back? Nah, too complicated. Financially, it may not make sense but that's why online shopping hasn't completely replaced brick and mortar stores despite lower prices.

 

If you have tax withheld, you can get the money back *in advance*. Just withhold the amount of the deduction before you buy the car.

 

As Trollbait says, be sure to check if Prime charger has more than one option.
As Ashlem says, for the prior PiP believe the GM Volt (or was it Leaf?) charger could work on a PiP at 8 or lower amp.
You could check earlier PiP threads around 2012 for what new PiP owners were doing.

If you live in CA, lots of folks got PiPs for HOV access and never plugged in much.
Prime is a little more sacrifice in space vs. PiP for a couple reasons, so make sure you are OK with it.
PiP was closer to Gen3 on seats/cargo space.

Here is what I'd say just to be aware...Gen4 went to sleeker sedan look which basically gives lower rear, less Cargo space.
Now add on top of that bigger Li battery and its harder to squeeze it into a Gen4 without some sacrifice in space.

I guess if you live in a state with huge rebate (eg; CO is $5000) we may hear more getting Prime just for net cost.