Comments by "Be Low Below" (@toyotaprius79) on "Kirk Kreifels" channel.

  1. EVs always had character, but when they're all competing in the same mid-luxury segment, then the criticisms laid against them become hard to refute.
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  2. Power was not the problem, it crucially had torque to get out of its own way. That just depended on the driver... The problem of the 4th generation was its cynical creation. It's not as good as the 2nd gen Prius at being a Prius: ergonomic and pragmatic. How versatile the car is, on top of its efficiency and reliability was its secret sauce. A plugin is the holy grail, but the 4th gen Prius' Prime was disadvantaged by the TNGA's rear double wishbone suspension which forced the large plugin battery on stilts impacting cargo space. Imo, the worst thing about the Gen 4 (prime) was when they offered it with only 4 seats, for some executive delusion that Prius prime buyers wanted to be more exclusive. That's the headliner folks. Power was not a problem, let's be real it's not how little power you have it's what you do with it. But what do I know I live in Europe, 106-121hp is average, plenty even. Asking for ever faster and heavier cars make roads more dangerous. It's a given. But a fast Prius has been a nice party trick since the 5th's release.
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  3. They're clearly not making enough beyond emissions regulations
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  4. Keep them out? What's the matter with ye? Why act like they're a detriment if just as an option? There's plenty to be had with a 220+ hp hybrid in a light weight sports car
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  5. Toyota should have been competent enough to have made a hybrid/Prius pickup truck a decade ago. But they're not.
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  6. Let's take the time to notice how Nissan is asleep at the wheel with electrification. No active cooling LEAF for example. The Note ePower has been on sale since 2016 JDM, in Europe the smallest ePower is only the Juke 5 years later... US market has even less options. Nissan should just have faith in globalising their JDM products because the vacuum for entry level cars are so strong at the moment that only Chinese EVs are primed to take over.
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  7. Inflation is caused by Profit, Speculation and Competition with other price jackers. That's the kicker.
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  8.  @TheSpaniardFromCalifornia  Remember Trump? Now they're back, in Pog form.
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  9. Representatives of Shareholders say it doesn't make healthy enough profits 🤡
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  10. ​ @fortheloveofnoise I hope that doesn't mean greedy, mock SUV design and pricing
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  11. ​​​​ @Tyrewhisperer  You may need to look the other way around from solid state. Iron phosphate batteries and Sodium ion batteries seem to be the current game changer which will have consequences, solid state has been as over hyped as hydrogen (or an ID BUZZ or Honda e). Toyota did good in making its bipolar NiMH batteries only for the PriusC/Aqua, but that's it and its being gatekeeped in the JDM for years.
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  12. ​ @martink7945 expertise in manufacturing EV disinformation and culture wars
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  13. Not quick enough for Prius owners to be making their own DIY plugins and trucks a decade earlier
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  14. They didn't even try using Toyota's series/parallel hybrids yet. Mazda had a working Mazda2 rotary REx concept 10 years ago and they squandered it.
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  15. Uh not quite
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  16.  @tylertullis6536  🎯 It's a cynical crossover and underwhelming EV
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  17.  @mylesgray3470  the 4th gen was like a cynical creation by PR executives what they thought Prius drivers wanted. The Prime was disadvantaged by the TNGA's rear wishbone suspension. If it was just a twist beam (like how Hyndai diversified between EV and PHEV), the Prime would be a bigger success than it has been. That also goes for the 4 seats it was first offered with, because of some executive decision that the Prime was meant to be for exclusive buyers...
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  18. it better come with wankel manual and a wankel hybrid.
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  19. True. One thing Volt drivers wished for was stronger level 2 charging. 6.6kW would allow 2x more ev driving for any given charge mid-day. Faster charging but retaining a useable smaller batteries makes better sense. We have to value maximising the use of limited materials. Even if I rather there be no ICE to lug around and fuel burned! Just a shame there were not enough built in the last 5-7 years and there's not enough available second hand for us today.
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  20.  @olso1901  definitely not the case in Europe. They (dealerships) still poorly reflect and sell the plugin hybrid as an exclusive item. Harming adoption.
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  21. That could've been done 35 years ago. But...
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  22. Why fetishize manuals? Above in the moment driving pleasure, for rotary engines they're counter intuitive. The load from the road is going right through to the rotary's tips which we all know are phenomenally reliable. There's so much more than can compliment rotaries. Not just as range extenders or series hybrids, but imagine how it'll perform in Toyota's series/parallel hybrids? Mazda's just acting out as a culture war brand for clout and it's embarrassing to see.
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  23. A lot heavier than I was expecting. Still, if the real world performance shows good fuel efficiency and good distance/kWh and retaining everyday EV driving, this may actually be better than the full BEV. Annoyingly, the MX30 is still a big, heavy, inefficient car. The BEV would benefit if its 30kWh was in a more appropriate vehicle (not the most profitable/crossover)
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  24. Growth comes at a cost
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  25. Mercedes
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  26. Why does Toyota wait until Ford's Maverick hybrid (over a decade after the Escape and Prius) to convince itself that there was always a market for small, durable and efficient pick ups? It's crumbs at this stage. A Prius Pickup and PRIME should have been made back in 2013 when a Prius C, V and a compliance plugin was the best they mustered.
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  27. Just like that? Mazda isn't being different by not offering EVs. They're selling posh sedans and SUVs like everyone else... You know that right? They're betting on short term and high profitability until they can't sell combustion no more. You know they'll be tied closer and closer to Toyota's hip, right? Soon to be just a badge.
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  28. ​ @Gregory-Masovutch they can keep the manual MX5. but the problem with all cars is that there was always been a deliberate limitations of EVs and even hybrids. I'm surprised Mazda hasn't re engineered a Toyota hybrid system into a FR set up like what Subaru did with the crosstrek. Imagine a single or duo-rotary engine in a series/parallel hybrid. It'll be a first of its kind They're not only efficient, they have strong torque and power delivery. That has never been in a car lighter than a PriusC/Aqua before.
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  29. Full size trucks create inflation
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  30. ​ @User.Joshua  what was your EV by chance? Fair enough if you only had one vehicle, but one common solution is to keep a beater (that you actually only drive rarely).
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  31. Haha yeah I can take the piss take, but I feel bereft for the car (for Mitsubishi), a more beefier, 36kWh rear drive egg would be a missed opportunity for the brand maker. But really honestly, the iMiEV's guts were left untouched since its 2011/12, with only comfort features coming and going. By 2014 there was a real speculation that the i-MiEV would get a refresh, but nah. Battery supply was diverted mostly to the Outlander PHEV, and the iMiEV just went under the radar after 2015. It was a 2005 chassis on a steel ladder frame after all. But with the likes of the expected, affordable 22kWh 44 - 76hp Chinese-originated Renault KWIDS coming to Europe as electric Dacias - one could really wonder when Mitsubishi has lost itself by not giving the little pioneer another glance.
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  32. The bZ4X is a crappy designed EV, second to the Mazda MX30. Worse than the meh VW ID4 That's the failure of those respective executives who squandered the 2010s pumping out overloaded crossovers and disinformation for you to eat up for the short term profit. Don't forget, China is the world's largest automotive market and Toyota is failing spectacularly in it.
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  33.  @Unchainedmaple888  you do know that it's every employer in the world that decides prices reacting to market flux right?
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  34.  @Unchainedmaple888  and it's OPEC politics that stages gas prices. And that domestic fuel is also sold at global prices when Brandon could and should nationalise such things to protect you and stuff from the side effects from market pot stirring and eventual social disasters
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  35. Lithium batteries in hybrids (which are much smaller) do tend to suffer from cold and take much longer to warm. Nickel metal hydride batteries traditionally used in hybrids perform better because they're more temp tolerant and less efficient which helps build up heat in the cold. NiMH batteries could take 15 minutes of driving or more to warm up. Small lithium ions in hybrids take longer, often more than the entire commute.
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  36. Ah yes, but the Ariya is a crossover, and more profitable. It'll be Nissan's only EV to choose from soon.
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  37. You don't see the problem of how drilling and burning fossil fuels are still being pushed?
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  38. Pride comes before...
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  39. Don't forget the executive's pay
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  40. Is this not just a feature of the system/industry?
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  41. Kirk, you dont think that there's a repucussion in record sales of combustion engines ? Have you not noticed the horrific weather, globally?
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  42. ​ @doriangray2347 don't be showing off your power level son
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  43. Mazda seems ok with aiming for an upper market brand. Their recent MX30 was not so much as a tip toe in the EV pool, but more of a floater. They failed to invest and research properly in EVs after executives spent years stirring up anti EV culture war FUD. Toyota and Honda too, they're doing well with hydrogen.
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  44. ​ @limitedreach4446 and how are they going to get mandates calm? Put their money into politics? As if they haven't already
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  45. I know right...
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