Plug-In Hybrids? Just Say Hell, Yes (If You're This Type of Person)
Don’t disparage PHEVs; electric cars aren’t right for everyone yet.
Nothing excites me more for the future than being forcefully pushed into it. Wait, no, that’s not right. These days, new car technology progresses at a frenetic pace, and sometimes it feels like you’ll be left behind if you don’t live at the cutting edge. But that's not true. They’re just cars—get what makes you happy.
Your consideration set might include a plug-in hybrid like the 2024 Toyota Prius Prime I’m driving for a yearlong test, along with gas, hybrid, or fully electric cars. The point is, we’re not here to shame anyone for their automotive choices, especially if the choice you make doesn’t negatively impact others.
Electric cars are great, but you know what? Right now, plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) make just as much sense for many. Here’s why.
Public Charging Woes
Even as the public network for electric car charging improves, it’s still nothing compared to the gas refueling network it competes with in the minds of many new car buyers. In our 2024 Prius Prime XSE, you are in and out of the gas station in five minutes with pumps that nearly always work, and you decide where and when you stop. Because stations are everywhere.
Or there’s the EV charging network, which—again, is improving—but you may either need to leave early for a trip to avoid lines at charging stations or plan for extra time on journeys you’ve taken many times before, as gas cars generally travel farther than EVs before needing to stop. Once it’s your turn to charge, the chargers occasionally don’t work or only deliver a fraction of the charging speed you’re expecting.
Americans often shop with a “just in case” mentality; these road trips aren’t a regular occurrence for most of us, but the potential for inconvenience keeps some from making that jump.
What’s Wrong With a Bridge?
It’s true, plug-ins like the Toyota Prius Prime (called Prius PHEV for 2025) are weighed down by complexity: You have the powertrain of a gas car and an EV mixed together. That makes PHEVs heavier and more complex than conventional cars, but EVs aren’t perfect, either. Why not encourage all electrification?
Remove the need for automotive perfection for a second. Instead, see plug-ins as a lower-stakes way to introduce consumers to electrification. A plug-in hybrid car owner who stays on electric propulsion for a full day may wonder what it would be like to go longer without having to plug in, all on electric range. They’re doing this at their own comfort level using their own hard-earned dollars on what’s often the second biggest purchase they’ll ever make.
In the red Prius plug-in you see here, I have no trouble matching and usually exceeding the EPA-rated electric range of 39 miles. As for the base model, its smaller wheels allow for a longer EPA-rated range of 44 miles, and it wasn’t tough in L.A.’s temperate weather to get at least that many miles before the gas engine automatically turned on.
Toyota tells us its plug-in hybrid owners plug in about three times a week. For first-time PHEV owners, that’s three times more than they were plugging in before.
PHEVs represent a bridge to an automotive future that’s fully electrified, and automakers get it. Volvo is pivoting back to a mix of hybrids alongside EVs for the next few years, and GM is doing the same. Ford has moved away from a three-row electric SUV toward an extended-range plug-in alternative, and a similar story is playing out at Hyundai, another EV leader.
Automakers are realizing that, at least for now, EVs don’t make sense for everyone.
