18 miles to work each way

[Ashley64]

Good afternoon,

 I have just joined the forum because I am very interested in getting a 3rd Gen Prius with about 50,000 on the clock. I'm not interested in a plug in as basically I have nowhere to plug it in. My daily commute is 18 miles to work each way averaging about 50mph. There are a couple of hills that I generally freewheel down in my Skoda. 

Do yo think that I could get to work at least one way on Battery alone? 

I know this is a bit of a daft question but I've got no experience with hybrid vehicles at all.

 

Many thanks

Ashley

 

 

[Sooty]

Straight answer is "No".

The Gen 3 has only about 1 mile range on Battery alone.

Plus if you are on Battery and go above 25-30 MPH the ICE will kick in.

The Gen 3 is a great car and will serve you well on your commute.

[Bper]

Hi Ashley,welcome lots of good advice when you need it and always welcome when you give it.👍

[TonyHSD]

Hi and welcome. 
As mentioned earlier these cars aren’t designed to drive on electric alone.
It will be mostly a mixture of both petrol and ev as these two complement each  other to help the car achieves best performance and efficiency.
EV drive can be available in certain low speed applications and when the power train its not loaded to push the car fast or uphill. Your downhill drives though will be mostly in  ev even if the engine starts and you can hear it running. , but it is not an electric or plug in hybrid car to offer any ev drive range  👍

[BhxTrev]

Hi Ashley,

I had a Gen3 Prius before my present Gen4 I drive now. I agree with the comments already posted & would add that I did about 66,000miles in my old Gen3 Prius before I part exchanged it for my present Prius.
 

During all the time I had the Gen3 Prius I never had a single problem & other than services & MOTs I never had to replace any wearing items such as brake pads, discs, Battery (the 12v one), or exhaust etc. The hybrid Battery never gave me any problems whatsoever & after about 6 years was still in tip top condition. It was economical to run & a pleasure to drive.
 

Even though you can’t drive much as an ev using Battery alone, generally going downhill & braking recharges the hybrid battery & usually doesn’t use the ice. I think you’ll enjoy driving the Gen3 Prius but if you have any questions, as I’ve found as a member of this forum for many years, other very knowledgable members are always ready to help & advise. 

[Ashley64]

Thank you for the warm welcome everyone and advice. 

I think I've been assuming that you could choose either Battery or ice for some reason but obviously this isn't the case as they work in harmony. It's probably the same for most hybrids I suppose.

As soon as I make my purchase I'll be on this forum quite often I'm sure.

I was also attracted to the Prius because of the boot space and I just like the quirkiness of the car.

Thanks again

Ashley

[Cyker]

The thing about hybrids is they aren't really EVs, they're just very efficient ICE cars.

The main source of their efficiency is they are designed to capture 'wasted' energy, e.g. from braking, or from the engine, and stuff it into the Battery for later use.

The traction batteries are 10-100 times smaller than the traction batteries in full EVs, and they aren't designed to propel the car for long periods. I tend to use the energy in mine to extend a 'coast', e.g. where in a normal car you'd lift off a bit and let the car coast, you can do that in the hybrid but hold the coast for much longer.

 

[Duffryn]

I have a 2014 Gen3 with just under 44000 on the clock. I have been retired for as long as I can remember (!), and now cover only up to 3000pa. 

In the summer the mpg is around the 60/65 mark, in the winter this drops to 50ish. I have never been happier with a car than I am with this one, it's absolutely ideal for me and the wife's needs, and I just would not part with it even though I could probably scrape a few £££s together to splash out on a newer one.

The only 'niggles' with it for me are road noise from the LRR tyres, and occasional squeaks from behind the dashboard, both occurring on roughly surfaced roads.

A recent check on WBAC tells me it's still worth £9k at nearly 10 years old!