I'm probably in the minority here, but a PHEV can make a lot of sense for people. I seriously shopped the Toyota prime RAV4 when it came out. It is so much better than the basic hybrid version with the extra power even with the limited for electric range, and made a pretty compelling option for us. It is about as quick as the single motor Y 0-60 and it isn't slow. We ended up buying an RDX instead of the prime as the Toyota dealers were just too greedy price wise and the latest gen's looks aren't as appealing to us. Rav4 just felt cheaper inside than the Acura and while it was quick, it was boring other than in a straight line. So we sacrificed fuel economy to have something more entertaining to drive.
We too had a PHEV C-Max. It really work quite well from my wife. She had to drive 50 miles to work she could charge for free then back home. So it's range was perfectly adequate for her. On a long trip we could go 500 miles on a tank without an issue. Yes, mileage could be better on the highway but in town it was very good. It was a pretty compact package with a high roof, and the auto park worked quite well. I still can't pry it away from my wife after 7 years of driving it.
@xls_ - give your situation, if you can get the Prime at retail, I would probably go with it if you can get it more quickly. Let the Teslas crazy demand settle a bit and see where they go with the next gen MY. You can easily drive your Rav4 for some time and like get out of it for free. Same is likely true for the MY but I suspect you'll get a Prime sooner than the MY. I've owned a ton of Toyotas and they've all been pretty much flawless with fit and finish and reliability. Tesla isn't there yet for everyone but our MYLR was put together very well.
If fun to drive is important to you though, the MY will be a better option. Keep in mind the range will never be what Tesla claims except in a very limited set of circumstances but the performance stats are dead on. Honestly, the MachE shouldn't even be in this conversation. It has a lot of promise but there are a lot of issues that need to be worked out. Maybe the next-gen will be even better than the Y. The Ford dealers are clueless about them and the charging network still sucks.
Trips will not be an issue on the MY even with the less than promised range. If you don't mind the extra money, you won't be disappointed but if cost is a bigger issue, the Rav4 isn't a bad option.
We too had a PHEV C-Max. It really work quite well from my wife. She had to drive 50 miles to work she could charge for free then back home. So it's range was perfectly adequate for her. On a long trip we could go 500 miles on a tank without an issue. Yes, mileage could be better on the highway but in town it was very good. It was a pretty compact package with a high roof, and the auto park worked quite well. I still can't pry it away from my wife after 7 years of driving it.
@xls_ - give your situation, if you can get the Prime at retail, I would probably go with it if you can get it more quickly. Let the Teslas crazy demand settle a bit and see where they go with the next gen MY. You can easily drive your Rav4 for some time and like get out of it for free. Same is likely true for the MY but I suspect you'll get a Prime sooner than the MY. I've owned a ton of Toyotas and they've all been pretty much flawless with fit and finish and reliability. Tesla isn't there yet for everyone but our MYLR was put together very well.
If fun to drive is important to you though, the MY will be a better option. Keep in mind the range will never be what Tesla claims except in a very limited set of circumstances but the performance stats are dead on. Honestly, the MachE shouldn't even be in this conversation. It has a lot of promise but there are a lot of issues that need to be worked out. Maybe the next-gen will be even better than the Y. The Ford dealers are clueless about them and the charging network still sucks.
Trips will not be an issue on the MY even with the less than promised range. If you don't mind the extra money, you won't be disappointed but if cost is a bigger issue, the Rav4 isn't a bad option.