25 Year Struggle.  Playing the long-game is what enthusiasts don't take seriously.  My reply to the "unserious" claim fell on deaf ears.  They don't want to admit the experience gained from production of PHEV could directly benefit BEV.  Just like in the past, there was a narrative that such sharing & transfer of knowledge was impossible.  Just because the vehicle had a plug and could deliver an entirely gas-free commute, didn't allow those EV miles to count.  It was absurd; yet, countless BEV purists argued that being truth.  Ugh.  Who is their audience?  Are they really so brain-dead that they believe an ordinary consumer would dismiss gas-free driving as not being electric?  Posts pushing such nonsense was mind-boggling.  Anywho, much of that is coming to an end due to the misconceptions of "electrification" getting so much attention.  I stressed that in my reply too:  100% of the new RAV4 including the use of electric-motors and batteries marks an end to the 25-year struggle to overcome misconceptions about electrification.  We can simply point to the phaseout of ICE as overwhelming evidence that the technology is well proven.  Now, focus can shift to promoting the benefits of having a plug.  Whether it is a PHEV or BEV doesn't matter.  They both take advantage of electric-motors and batteries.

Marketing Language.  Seeing BEV purist be their own worst enemy is rather frustrating.  They don't realize the narrative they created is just a narrative.  Ugh.  For example: "My biggest fear is that it confuses customers thanks to Toyota's marketing and stories like this one that use Toyota's marketing language."  That is their own rhetoric.  The belief is that "electrified" will make everyone assume the vehicle has a plug.  What?  It means adding a battery and using the battery.  I know people are well aware of that too.  All you have to do is look back throughout hybrid history.  Fear was always about the battery, how long it would last.  There was never any concern about where the electricity being used came from.  It was always about electricity storage, the battery.  Ugh.  That is so easy to confirm.  Yet, those troublemakers fighting Toyota's approach to phasing out ICE vehicles fear a misunderstanding.  They create their own problems.  Anywho, I asked about that fear:  What would customers be confused about?  Seriously.  Electrified just means there is a motor & battery somehow involved.  If the vehicle also has a plug, you plug it in.  Most people recognize there are benefits of charging from a cord.  Many may not have any clue how that electricity is being used, but many owners of ordinary hybrids had no idea what was happening under the hood anyway.  All they ever needed to know was the hybrid used less gas.

Remember, commercial level-2 are usually limited to 6.6 kW for speed.  So regardless of the kind of plug-in you own, most charging will be overnight at apartments & condos anyway.

Don't Need It.  This comment was inevitable: "What I see as a downside is with the not very fast fast-charging, clogging up the [at this point] limited DC fast chargers with cars that don't *need* it."  I find it rather ironic having been attacked as a PHEV owner when I commented about BEV expectations, while waiting for delivery of my bZ4X.  One particular troublemaker couldn't ever articulate his frustration with me.  He was a disenchanted original RAV4 EV owner who expected far more from Toyota than just continuous improvement.  He wanted to Toyota to take the market by storm, even though the market wasn't ready.  Heck, years later it still isn't.  Wouldn't more vehicles charging with DC help promote more installs of DC fast-chargers?  What part of that is difficult to understand?  We want them to be used heavily, so more will be installed and competition will bring about lower prices and improved charging experiences.  This isn't rocket science.  It's basic economics and good business.  Ugh.  I provided a simple example, which I suspect will fall on deaf ears... oh well, I tried regardless:  That argument doesn't work.  PHEV with depleted EV capacity will get a much greater return from a short charging session, since that will prevent the ICE from starting.  Think about local usage, beyond the "road trip" only mindset.  For example, we have a local McDonald's with DC chargers no where near any highway corridor.  What's the downside between kWh usage between a PHEV and a BEV for local driving?

The Point.  Things are getting interesting.  Apparently, none of the BEV purists ever imagined DC fast-charging becoming an option for PHEV.  Why not?  As their battery-packs get larger and DC becomes common & convenient, it makes sense capitalizing on it.  After all, no separate plug is needed with NACS as the standard.  Anywho, there are some who just don't get it: "I don't really see the point in DC fast charging for a plugin hybrid.  The whole point of a plug-in hybrid is that you charge the car at home and use the gas tank to make sure that you never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever have to charge the car out in public."  Reading that is amusing.  I took advantage of public charging with mine from the very beginning.  Work had chargers available.  Commuting to work depleted the battery entirely.  Why wouldn't I plug in to start my commute home with full capacity available?  It made perfect sense.  Having DC available could definitely be handy at times too.  With all that background of my own, I wondered if I could get any more detail about that post by sharing:  No, the point is to significantly reduce gas consumption.   Where did you hear that claim from?  Back in 2012 when I bought my first PHEV, the chargers in the ramp at work were a daily opportunity.   They enabled me to squeeze out as many electric-only miles as possible.  Same thing as when out & about anywhere else.  Taking advantage of those charging opportunities really paid off too.

Unserious.  This is a great example of drawing a conclusion based on anecdotal evidence, rather than trying critical thought: "My biggest complaint with Toyota is how few PHEVs they build relative to non plug-in hybrids and how they were completely unserious on electric until recently.  It feels like they are turning a corner though."  Reality is, some have been caught totally off guard.  They believed the narrative so much, they are now creating a means of justifying their position.  Actual evidence is why.  Facts reveal they have backed themselves into a corner, realizing attention must be diverted elsewhere to avoid getting caught in their own hypocritical trap.  Looking at Europe, where 100% of the Prius are now PHEV really messes up their "relative" perspective.  We could easily see the same thing happening here.  But for such a successful transition already in progress, it would mean Toyota had been serious all along.  Ugh.  I replied to that attempt to spin intent with:  That impression of "unserious" was a message of impatience from enthusiasts.  They created a narrative out of frustration for how long it takes to address the needs of mainstream consumers... like waiting until the next-gen rollout for something both competitive & profitable.  Not only does that require time for design of the vehicle itself, it also requires waiting for battery production to take hold.  With the situation for Toyota, that meant investing $13.9 Billion in a plant in North Carolina... which just started producing its first batteries a few weeks ago.

Truth.  Purist detest seeing anything like this: "The average American drives 35 miles a day.  50 mile range would make a huge dent in gasoline use.  A friend with a first generation Prius Prime struggled to use his gas and was worried the gas would go bad."  The reason why is simple.  Their primary fight material against PHEV is now working against them, which I shared saying:  BEV supporters have feared that reality for years; their old "dead weight" argument is now reversed.  I have bZ4X and my wife has a Prius Prime.  We take the PHEV for road trips.  It's a no-brainer for families with multiple vehicles. In fact, it makes the decision to purchase a BEV with a small battery-pack for everyday use quite easy.  Toyota will capitalize on that opportunity.

100% Electrified.  That term makes enthusiasts crazy.  They claimed "EV" for their own use, portraying its purpose to indicate only battery-electric vehicles.  The fact that any vehicle with a battery & motor use to provide propulsion power without the use of a gas-engine was never acceptable in their minds.  They outright dismiss production of batteries & motors for that use as beneficial in any regard.  No experience or refinement of any kind could possible carry the fleet forward.  Hybrids were a dead-end, having no usefulness whatsoever.  That absolute has come back to haunt them.  The use of HEV, PHEV, BEV and FCEV are becoming a common sight.  They absolute hate that.  Some journalists are trying to ease them into that reality with statements like: "Notably, the RAV4 no longer includes any option for a non-hybrid powertrain."  That was the opening of an article about Toyota electrification effort.  I was curious what type of trolling and how many outright attacks there would be.  Enthusiasts are not happy.  Playing offense now, I provoked some feedback:  "100% Electrified" is the short way of stating that.  It is also the polite way of raising awareness that, unlike most other automakers, they are raising their standards.  Having a hybrid base makes the upsell to plug-in hybrid a very easy step, especially with a 50-mile EV range and DC fast-charging.  Their new battery production in North Carolina sets the stage nicely for that opportunity.

With regard to "Toyota finally getting into the EV game."  That's just a narrative.  Those looking at their history of how hybrid technology evolved recognized the pattern, their formula for success.  Toyota takes their time, production is low volume and they don't cater to early-adopter priorities.  Enthusiasts demonstrate frustration & impatience with that approach, so they spin their own assumed outcome.  Now, we have confirmation of that history repeat.  Toyota was simply doing the same thing with bZ4X that they did with Prius.

Impossible.  Ugh.  Gotta like how quickly people forget: "So, how do you square this effort with GM's EV progress and battery development plans?"  What progress & plans are those?  When I asked in the fall about the "impossible" requirement, not single person could explain how the required number of EVs would be sold.  Plug-Ins need to be 35% of sales next year for each automaker.  Supposedly, GM would easily achieve that.  Many declared it a simple task.  I asked how.  Now they are turning it around, asking how Toyota will do the same... even though they still haven't explained what GM's plans are.  Reality is, GM won't.  We remember the past.  Both GM and Ford pulled the same thing, declaring victory long in advance without any clear means of reaching the goal.  What will end up happening is they'll fight the effort, forcing states to scale back requirements so automakers will have to deliver less.  Again, ugh.  I provided a reminder of this upcoming standoff:  Last year when article "Toyota Calls California EV Rules 'Impossible' " was published, many here piled on claiming Toyota wasn't being realistic and that GM could easily meet the ACC-II requirements for 2026.

That convenience of EV miles without any range-anxiety and starting ownership using nothing but a standard household 120-volt outlet for recharging makes PHEV a very compelling choice.  RAV4 is positioned extremely well to lead a boom in sales, reaching consumers BEV still cannot.

Video: Random Summer Drive.  Motor RPM was intended to make it's debut with that as focus of this video.  Instead, this great drive opportunity popped up, a trip from the southern suburbs of the Twin Cities to the northern suburbs.  It was too good to miss.  Conditions outside were near ideal, comfortable & beautiful.  So, the new gauge was revealed with no fanfare.  In the past with hybrids, seeing RPM was a really big deal.  That activity informed you of gas consumption & electricity flow.  You could clearly see what the system, learning a great deal about how such high efficiency was achieved.  When the plug was introduced, understanding how EV mode worked was a really big deal.  It showed the parallels of PHEV to BEV.  This video expands upon that.  I took advantage, capturing as much detail as I could.  You get to see the relation between RPM and electricity flow.  That flow may not be intuitive to some people.  There is not a direct relation between speed & consumption.  I'm quite curious what owners watching the video think when they get to see the new gauge in action.  Share your thoughts... Toyota bZ4X - Random Summer Drive

Tire Marketing.  One of the national tire-seller chains (who's name I will exclude, since I don't want to help them promote their brand) has turned to online marketing with: "EVs are heavier and wear out tires faster than traditional cars.  At ***, we understand the unique needs of your EV."  That's a good example of cherry-picking.  There are small, light-weight EVs in China.  Many here will fast-wearing tires are doing that because they feature soft rubber for high performance, enabling 0-60 acceleration times much faster than ordinary gas vehicles.  Ignoring that obvious marketing effort, I looked to the comments for rhetoric.  It was an easy task.  I stumble across this almost immediately: "all that no gas guzzling is for nothing. go through tires twice as fast."  That caught my interest.  No context is a dead giveaway the person had not invoked any critical thought.  So, I asked:  Twice as fast as what?  Mine are currently at 29K miles and look like they will easily deliver another 21K.

Renaming Vehicles.  All along, there have been many cumbersome vehicle names, most notably ID.4 and R1T.  Enthusiasts not only turned a blind-eye to that, they also created their own... MY, M3 and CT.  None of that was ever a problem, only Toyota.  Ugh.  Ironically, seeing bZ4X renamed to what many owners already call their vehicle... bZ... is somehow still an issue.  People supposedly want real names.  Really?  Who are these people?  We'll find out, because they are coming.  VW will be dropping the ID names.  With so many elsewhere, it seems that was inevitable anyway.  We'll find out how that gets received.  In the meantime, this is what I had to say on the topic:  It was always telling about priorities when enthusiasts would attack Toyota for their naming, yet turn a blind-eye toward what VW and Rivian for doing something similar.  Tesla's branding to spell out S3XY was the next level of hypocrisy, since abbreviations were commonly appended to M3 and MY.  Rollout of CT brought all that to an end though with so many setbacks, necessitating a full rebrand of the automaker.  Long story short, it's time to focus on what actually makes a difference.  In this case, it could be a refreshing change for VW.  That's a clear way to draw in the new audience, since new names will result in new marketing.