Tell me about the Prius PHEV.

[ChemicalChaos]

Hi all,

I currently have a Mk1 Honda Insight as a super-economical daily drive and long-distance car. I do a lot of short trips to work (<5 miles), a lot of medium trips to see family (25 miles), and importantly a fair few cross-country trips to shows and events nearly every weekend in the summer.
The Insight was perfect for this on paper, being able to fuel-sip as the same Pence per mile as full electric, but without having to stop and charge at a services when I'm doing 350 miles in one day to and from a usually rural location (read: I absolutely will not have a BEV so please dont suggest one).

Unfortunately, this flyweight little miracle designed for Californian highways is really struggling with the state of a lot of the rural (and urban) roads near me, on its tiny high-pressure wheels. And lets not get into the narrow track vs the speed humps surrounding my house. I fear even with my most careful driving it's going to get pounded to pieces, it feels like a wheeled equivalent of one of those exquisitely engineered but rather delicate Japanese bamboo and ricepaper houses.
Anyway, really what would suit me would be a ~30mile PHEV thats suitably economical on a long run, but this seems to be a gap in the market given my friends and relatives have variously found out their big Volvo and BMW PHEVs will struggle to break 30mpg on petrol motorway drives, in which case I might as well take my Discovery towcar....
The smaller more economical cars (Auris etc) all seem to be SCHEVs which to my mind defeats the object rather. The only ones that buck the trend seems to be the Hyundai Ioniq, which has a pretty small electric range and also has the minicab factor in spades, or the Vauxhall Ampera, which has a frightening list of expensive things to go wrong on them.

However, through research the other day I discovered there has been a PHEV version of the Prius for the current and last 2 generations. Disregarding the pathetic range of the 2nd gen and the expense of the current 4th gen, the 3rd gen PHEV is in my price range, has a 30 mile range, and is easily new enough to fall into the 10 year Toyota Relax warranty. I also quite like the way it looks, weirdly they've decided to give it an entirely different front and rear end to the SCHEV version. Importantly it also, from road tests, does 70mpg on petrol when cruising, which isnt too far removed from the 90mpg of the insight when one factors in the fuel saved by commuting electrically.
The road test reviews all mention a comfy ride and the usual Toyota robustness, which gives me confidence vs an elderly Insight.

I've seen a low mileage PHEV Prius in a nice colour at a car supermarket local to me, so I've resevered it to go and test drive at the weekend.
Can anyone tell me please if there is anything I ought to be looking out for on it fault wise? I'm not quite so worried given the manufacturer warranty I can get on it, but I'd quite like to avoid buying a lemon in the first place! It's only been MOT'd once a year and has 35k miles in 5 years so I'm reasonably sure it's never been a minicab (and I've never seen a PHEV version as a taxi, to be fair!) but I'm wondering if there are any subtle telltale signs to look out for?
It is listed as "business edition" but it seems they all are!?

Thanks in advance....

[Shabaza]

Left field alternative here.
But have you considered a BMW i3 REX

Sounds like it would fit the bill as most of your driving will always fit in the EV range, whereas the PHEVs may not

[Gibbler290]

I had one for two weeks as a rental. Was very impressed. Good real world range, surprisingly quick and a number of people mentioned how smart it looked. Interior and equipment all very good.
If you can get it for the right price you won’t feel bad about buying one.

[Snow and Rocks]

You won't go far wrong with the PHEV Prius, particularly as it sounds perfectly suited to your use.

I'm in the process of buying a Rav4 PHEV as our usage is similar but with the added complication of living up a forest track on a North facing Aberdeenshire hillside so could really do with the extra ground clearance and all wheel drive.

It's worth doing some reading into just how clever, and surprisingly simple, the Toyota hybrid drive system is - genuinely impressive engineering that means they're bombproof, low maintenance and efficient to run.

[boxedin]

I'll add a vote for a Toyota PHEV.

Why? Their experience and out of all the various PHEVs one of the simplest: no turbo boosted 3 pots, no DCT etc.

[ChemicalChaos]

Thanks all, sounds a good bet then!

I had looked at an I3 rex, but they really are meant to be amazing emergency rex from the looks of it, apparently the scooter engine only gives 100 miles of range and makes a total racket.....

[raspy]

I would aim for a 4th Gen if you can push the budget. Toyota made a lot of big improvements in the 4th gen vs the 3rd gen, especially in how it drives in addition to making the powertrain even more efficient.

I had a 4th gen HEV which got 60mpg when cruising and between 70-90mpg when driving in London. I did have the 4th gen PHEV for a day and that was just as good plus the bonus of having a much larger battery.