Man Who Hates EVs Buys EV. What Will Go Wrong?

[RRocket]

Well I don't hate EVs, but....


Was looking to upgrade the Prius to another plug in but with AWD. There's  a couple of boat ramps that were sketchy this year, covered with moss or slime (or ice!) Plus I'm looking at a slightly bigger boat. And the Prius has 270k on it (but still runs and drives perfectly). So I started kicking tires...

And stopped as quick as I started. The costs for used AWD plug-ins are ridiculous! Rav4 Primes are $35k ($37k with Technology Pkg). Outlander PHEV same ballpark. Considered a new Prius (no AWD though) and prices were similarly bonkers.

On a lark, looked at the prices on some EVs. And they are pretty cheap! Mid $20s fully loaded. Ended up testing one. Like it enough to decide to buy one. So I did. I'm curious to see if I'll regret it.

The much unloved Toyota BZ4X is what I ended up with. The fact they are unloved has depreciated them to borderline "bargain" prices. But only IF you can deal with the shortcomings. And I think I can.

Range is 300km (or so). The most I did in a day last year with work was 118km. The most in a non work day was 136km. And I regularly make my 40km range in the Prius work. So I have no concern there.

Charging time on 110v is 50 hours from dead to full. I only work part time and my time between shifts is 40 hours. So no concern. If it doesn't work out, I'll upgrade to a level 2..which gets it down to about 10 hours. Crappy for an EV but will work for me.

Since this is replacing my Prius, that was the benchmark. Not shocking it's "better" in most regards. Ride and handling are fine. Car feels planted (low CoG?). Better acceleration. Quiet. Nicer interior. Even the sucky JBL sound is better.

The Technology Package here vs the Prius is massively better. Not shocking given the 6 years between vehicles. But I actually was shocked by how fast and polished the self parking feature is vs the Prius which already worked really well.

Even though the Prius ICE engine was a bit grumbly...I think I'll miss that. I just like ICE. But I still have my awesome LS. So all is well!!

Anyways, here's the car. 2023 Toyota BZ4X with Technology. 49k kms. Bulk of factory warranty still intact until 2031. Also a HUGE thank you to Guy!! He checked out the car for me and like my Prius I bought it based on his inspection/test drive. So he's 2 for 2 on selling me Toyotas!

[Firm]

Congrats! Literally never heard of or seen a BZ4X, but it sounds like it'll meet all your needs and then some. The fact that you have the ICE LS you can lean on if/when the EV isn't going to cut it makes this pretty sensible. Did you trade the Prius or you going to sell it privately? 

[GreatBigAbyss]

Congrats on the new EV.  Looks like a solid buy for you, and it should work well for your needs. 

[Tortoise]

That looks pretty clean! And should work well for you. For me the 300 km range would be severely limiting for a number of trips that I do, particularly if I'm towing the boat. 

How far do you normally drive to the nearest launch?

[RRocket]

How far do you normally drive to the nearest launch?

6km. Here's the live video link. https://www.essex.ca/en/play/colchester-harbour-live-video-feed.aspx

The next most used is 25km.

We are surrounded by water so you're never more than a few KMs from a launch.

[RRocket]

Congrats! Literally never heard of or seen a BZ4X, but it sounds like it'll meet all your needs and then some. The fact that you have the ICE LS you can lean on if/when the EV isn't going to cut it makes this pretty sensible. Did you trade the Prius or you going to sell it privately? 

I'll sell the Prius privately...Very reluctantly.

[Gurgie]

Nice find! Will be interested in hearing your impressions.

Was thinking that you finally took some decent show'n'shine pictures, then realized they are dealership pics 

[Tortoise]

Was thinking that you finally took some decent show'n'shine pictures, then realized they are dealership pics 

"like"

[RRocket]

Nice find! Will be interested in hearing your impressions.

Was thinking that you finally took some decent show'n'shine pictures, then realized they are dealership pics 

That's why I used them.

Bad enough I bought an EV! Bad pictures would have been a bridge too far! LOL 😆

[RRocket]

Congrats! Literally never heard of or seen a BZ4X

Subaru made a sister called the Solterra.

The BZ4X uses Subaru's off road X-Drive AWD modes. And also has hill ascent/descent. I've seen some impressive off road capability videos from both vehicles.

[RRocket]

Congrats! Literally never heard of or seen a BZ4X

Subaru made a sister called the Solterra.

The BZ4X uses Subaru's off road X-Drive AWD modes. And also has hill ascent/descent. I've seen some impressive off road capability videos from both vehicles considering what they are.

[Johnnymac]

Congrats on the new wheels.  Was it a short term lease return you think?  I always wonder this when seeing cars with so few kms and years for the first owner.

One thing that I would have done extra that I might not do with other vehicles is go to Toyota with the VIN and see if they can print you off all the service and repair records.  Sometimes that'll show if there was some issues that kept popping up and could have caused the trade.

[RRocket]

Congrats on the new wheels.  Was it a short term lease return you think?  I always wonder this when seeing cars with so few kms and years for the first owner.

One thing that I would have done extra that I might not do with other vehicles is go to Toyota with the VIN and see if they can print you off all the service and repair records.  Sometimes that'll show if there was some issues that kept popping up and could have caused the trade.

Clean service..no problems.

Was a service loaner for the dealership.

[Johnnymac]

Congrats on the new wheels.  Was it a short term lease return you think?  I always wonder this when seeing cars with so few kms and years for the first owner.

One thing that I would have done extra that I might not do with other vehicles is go to Toyota with the VIN and see if they can print you off all the service and repair records.  Sometimes that'll show if there was some issues that kept popping up and could have caused the trade.

Clean service..no problems.

Was a service loaner for the dealership.

Perfect, so it should be good then.  Any idea of what the service intervals are or any major services that might be coming up?