Why I gave up and bought a Prius Prime

[Gen3Joe]

I wonder how many potential customers like the original poster tesla lost by deciding to focus on premium trim cars first. They must have done the calculations which told them the money they'd make by forcing people who want the full tax credit to buy more upgrades was more than the money they'd lose in lost sales from people who wanted the 35k version and gave up when they realized they wouldn't get the credit.

But I wonder if that calculation included the losses created by preventing the tesla family from expanding as much as possible? Putting more teslas into middle class neighborhoods instead of just gated communities might have been more beneficial to the brand than selling PUP interiors and LR batteries.

Tesla is doing what they have to in order to survive.

 

[EV-lutioin]

I looked at the Prius Prime and considered it as a place holder until I got my Model 3, but the hack job of adding the battery to the trunk with a big hump made me laugh and walk away. If Tesla did that they would be raked over the coals by trolls for a "fit and finish" issues

 

[Asymmetry]

I consider a Prius giving up on life.

I would of bought a V8 or some sportscar as a placeholder and enjoy it while you can. Or if it was purely economical, a second hand 4cyl skirt courier would of done the job.

 

[SageBrush]

But I wonder

Do you also wonder how many unsold Model 3 Tesla has piling up on lots ?

I haven't seen any

 

[skitown]

I looked at the Prius Prime and considered it as a place holder until I got my Model 3, but the hack job of adding the battery to the trunk with a big hump made me laugh and walk away. If Tesla did that they would be raked over the coals by trolls for a "fit and finish" issues

View attachment 292978

That looks like a Prius Prime dog bed.

 

[mattack4000]

Arggg, why do they have to make the car so ugly. Between this, the two hydrogen cars. My 5 years old think they are transformer cars as they are so different (not in a good way either)

 

[Need]

Arggg, why do they have to make the car so ugly. Between this, the two hydrogen cars. My 5 years old think they are transformer cars as they are so different (not in a good way either)

I think by now they are doing it on purpose. So everyone could just take a quick glance and see that.. hey that's a Prius. There is really no other car looks like a Prius. It is like their signature look.

 

[slipnslider]

Do you also wonder how many unsold Model 3 Tesla has piling up on lots ?

I haven't seen any

How would you "see" people who've quit on the model 3 after they realized they wouldn't get the full tax credit on the base model?

 

[SageBrush]

How would you "see" people who've quit on the model 3 after they realized they wouldn't get the full tax credit on the base model?

Your are missing the point. Sales are production constrained (duh!).

 

[slipnslider]

Your are missing the point. Sales are production constrained (duh!).

BATTERY production constrained. One more reason the smaller battery should have shipped first.

 

[mattack4000]

Are people really cross shopping between these two cars? It seems highly unlikely that the number is all that high. I feel like price is more of a barrier than anything else.

 

[S'toon]

I'd go for the Ioniq PHEV over the Prius Prime (and the Volt over the Ioniq), but I don't think the Ioniq isn't available either.

 

[SageBrush]

BATTERY production constrained. One more reason the smaller battery should have shipped first.

Tesla is charging $9k for that extra battery. They are doing things right.

 

[mattack4000]

BATTERY production constrained. One more reason the smaller battery should have shipped first.

This sounds like wallet constrained to me.

 

[slipnslider]

This sounds like wallet constrained to me.

Nope. Different problem. They machine to build the modules wasnt working so they were doing it by hand.

 

[slipnslider]

Tesla is charging $9k for that extra battery. They are doing things right.

Maybe. Does it help tesla more to sell more 9k options right now and lose some sales to middle class homes, or does it help them more to get more teslas into more middle class homes sooner?

 

[devilmountain]

Arggg, why do they have to make the car so ugly. Between this, the two hydrogen cars. My 5 years old think they are transformer cars as they are so different (not in a good way either)

Agreed, I would never even consider one based off of looks alone.

 

[SageBrush]

and lose some sales to middle class homes

They are not losing any sales. Every car is sold before it is produced and they are incapable of producing more.
Your argument is simply flawed.

What you are really saying is that selling to Jim has some extra value over selling to Joe, even if Jim spends less. That is a difficult argument to take seriously on the best of days and is most certainly not going to sway anybody except Jim while Tesla is avoiding a cash crunch.

 

[S-2-X]

Makes total sense to me! We had an 04 Prius for 8 years then sold it to a family member who still loves it. We traded our MS in for a Model X after a (6-month wait). Took a beating on the trade but we love the MX. In The meantime our 2012 PriusV is about ready for a trade so we reserved the M3 on the release date. About a month ago we were finally able to sit in one at our nearest Tesla store. It's soooo tiny and low to the ground. I realize it won't compare to our MX but for a second car I would like it to measure up to the Prius in the space category but IMO it doesn't. We took our deposit off and are still shopping for a good 2nd car. Of course the Prius is dog slow compared to the zip of the Tesla. It's just a different animal altogether!

 

[NuShrike]

I bought into, and still believe in, the promise of a Tesla for the masses. And me, I'm the masses. I really, really want an electric car. A 35k Tesla is just (barely) within reason for my finances. The other electrics don't appeal like a Tesla. Not at all.

But then my '04 Prius, best car I've ever owned, started calling for maintenance I wasn't willing to invest in at 172k.

And the math, it just doesn't lie. The farther away the ever-receding Tesla delivery date, the less rebate there will be. Put with that the fact that, after rebates and Toyota's aggressive moves to get rid of 2017 cars, the cost of my new Prius Prime got down to $16k. So we're talking probably $10-15k less than the M3. That is one major chunk of change to a lot of people, including me.

The EV mode range of the Prime is nothing major. But the overall mileage with regular charging becomes ridiculously high. It became really hard to justify waiting around for a Tesla. $10-15k will buy an awful lot of other things. Heck, maybe I'll finally get that vintage Gretsch guitar AND a car.

Thing is, the Prius Prime, which clearly has Tesla nods all over the place, is a really great car. It's some stiff competition for the ecology-minded buyer without a trust fund. Tesla is going to have more competition than it thinks.

I hope, like crazy, that by the time I'm ready to relinquish the Prius Prime, there's a Tesla that fits my needs and my budget. Because I'll still be rooting for it, and hoping there's one with my name on it. And I hope all of you who are waiting are rewarded in a big way when you finally get an M3. I'll be jealous.

I'm in the similar boat as you. '05 Prius, 220K+ miles. Hi PriusChat folks.

I've already paid the maintenance: inverter pump, water-pump, MAP sensor (factory), spark-plugs (factory @ 210K+), front-brakes (factory @ ~175K+), rear-brakes (factory @ 210K+), O2 + catalytic-converter. Need to replace the master-window-switch as one of the rear windows thinks it's closed -- even when open.

I have the original TRD Sportivo suspension. Shocks are still fine.

Switch this out for a Prius Prime? Well, not with Toyota's anemic efforts toward a real BEV. Switching to lithium batteries from NiMH also reduced the trunk space? What is Toyota smoking? Can't even be bothered to bring the 7-seater Prius V to the USA, wth.

Therefore, I would now be a prime Tesla 3 candidate. However, I refuse to get on the waiting list for anything that's:

• basically sight-unseen
• first-gen (I have a 3rd gen only rule after getting burned too many times by 1st gen bugs and deficiencies)
  
• manufacturing constrained
• battery-constrained (still waiting on my PowerWall!)
• basically has no rebates at this point after the waiting list
  
• only just launching the long-range battery
• only just launching dual-drive system
• threw out years of touch-ergonomics wisdom and experience. Instead has a dangerous control-panel that recently would lock one out of the glove-compartment in a crash
• so on.

I've looked at the Volt, Bolt, Ioniq, e-Golf, etc. Took measurements of their trunks too. V/Bolt: too heavy, ugly styling, internally cramped. e-Golf: not enough range even with their new upcoming battery. Leaf-2: maybe, but the "finished" version isn't out until 2019ish ..

So I'm perfectly happy using my current beater for commuting while I wait another few years for things to finally settle and get polished.

For the gear heads, my commute is mix of freeways, long winding roads, and hills. I'm fine blowing by most cars (that aren't trying hard): on 270° uphill turns; don't bother getting on the freeway at @ closer to 70+ mph; can't take 90° turns at speed into an uphill fast enough to wake up traction-control but not engage it, etc. There's advantages to going 100% on a lower-power car, it's more fun and less dangerous. 0-60 mph @ 10s is underrated when most people don't even bother taking advantage of their 0-60 mph in < 8s.

So whenever Tesla, or somebody else decides to get their issues sorted, then I'll buy in. Meantime, dumped the waiting money into a bigger PV installation as that actually pays for itself after purchase.