What more do you realistically need?

Battery Warming.  There's lots of people posting about the battery-warming feature in Prius Prime.  Though my data from last year is limited, it is still something to work with.  I captured operational aspects.  You can see how the system performs, but there isn't any detail about the battery.  Back then, all I had was limited access.  Just engine information doesn't tell you enough to really understand what's needed to deal with extreme cold.  This generation of battery-pack includes warming technology.  It's not complicated.  It's basically a carefully thought out plan to take advantage of what essentially is just warming-tape.  That simplicity is key.  Done right, you have an affordable solution that's really effective.  Proving that's what Toyota actually delivered shouldn't be too much of an effort.  Complex filming setup can be a problem though.  If you breathe too much in a cold car, the windshield will freeze from the moisture you are introducing prior to starting the vehicle.  I'm hoping to avoid that situation while trying to get valuable extreme cold data to share.  I'll keep the Prius plugged in to take advantage of the warmer.  Since my 240-volt charger at home is Wi-Fi enabled, I will be able to capture that data in the form of a graph... hopefully easy enough to see that I could include that detail in a video.  The electric draw shown will be exclusively from that of the warmer, since the battery-pack itself will be fully charged prior to the wait.  Stay tuned.

Observations of other markets is what helps bring about a better understanding of what we will soon be facing.  Looking close at the very large Chinese market with a very different culture and very different priorities will teach us more about what we need to consider.

Think about how Toyota has strived to deliver high efficiency for both EV and HV modes, as well as keeping emission-rating for the HV system impressive to all those promoting cleaner air, without forcing a premium to be paid.

Extreme Cold.  Weather forecasts state we are in for a blast of cold that will reach an extreme.  We will likely break records, seeing temperatures low enough to break daily records.  It does get that nasty from time to time in Minnesota, but it has been quite a number of years.  In fact, I only remember a few times dealing with such situations in the Prius.  Those are distinct memories that really stand out.  The engine basically never really warms up, you only get brief opportunities for it to shut off... with previous generations.  Knowing of the improvements Prius Prime has implemented, it don't expect as noticeable of an experience.  The engine will just run at a high RPM initially, but longer than usual, then stay in that low & off zone.  Since I will likely just work from home to avoid the horribly slow commute, that driving experience may not happen.  I'd like to get something to share, but wasting so much time behind the wheel when you've got deadlines to meet doesn't make sense.  Though less convenient, being able to work remotely is the better choice.  Hopefully, after the dangerous part of the system coming through passes, I'll be able to film a commute in the extreme cold.  Stay tuned.

Sensibility?  Sometimes there is a glimmer of hope from the noise of chaotic discussion: "Ultimately, this goes back to coming up with cars that people not only want, but they can afford."  Well, there isn't much to add to that.  How many times did the "nicely under $30,000" goal get mentioned over the years?  I would remind them of it and then point out why it was so important for the technology to be affordable.  You'd think that would be obvious.  But then again, some online act as though they are totally brain dead.  I never cease to be amazed how many people expect the technology to either be totally free or for there to be a complete payback at some point.  That could make sense if they would make an effort to explain why, but they don't even try.  It's why I'm often not that hopeful with most discussions.  What does "afford" actually mean?  For example, if you look at monthly expenses.  Put in those terms, a person could see how the reduction of fuel cut has the potential to offset car payments.  If the two come close, you stand a chance of keeping the person's attention.  They may even become curious and ask you to tell them more.  That's the key.  Find something they find important.  Money out-of-pocket can be a powerful motivator, even if the balance is a bit more than anticipated.  Many people just need some sensible conversation to find out what the expenses really are.

Consequences.  Rather than expressing concern warning of detrimental outcome, I am now pointing out actual consequences.  Those days of arguing risk and defending position are over.  Volt was leading a group of followers down a rabbit hole.  Those individuals attacked me whenever I tried to get them to look at the big picture.  They were convinced the path they were on was what would lead them to happiness.  They were wrong, very very very wrong.  Making it worse, they now recognize that my concern was sincere... which is an extremely uncomfortable position to be in after countless hostile responses claiming otherwise.  No matter what they say, I can turn it on them now.  So, they disappear.  Quickly approaching the anniversary of their biggest counter-offensive, that defeat appears to have been taken seriously.  Volt died a painful death... one of silence.  It will be looked back upon as a major failure, technology without support.  They were so focused on engineering, the consequences of their business neglect became overwhelming.  There's no way to save such a monumental mistake.  Dismissing a fundamental aspect of success was foolish... and they all now know that.  It's all too clear Volt wasn't a vehicle intended for the masses.  This is why I pushed the "Who?" question so much.  It was meant to be a wake-up call to draw attention to opportunity being missed.  So much focus on their niche was a terrible choice.  Oddly, some still try to spin it as not so bad.  To that, I say:  That narrative here is pretty sad.  Several automakers are diversifying with fuel-cell exploration and pursuing EV offerings.  Those that engineer with press-release get lots of credit.  Those who don't get an "anti" label.  No one cried foul about how GM squandered their subsidies on a niche rollout as a distraction from actually electrifying their fleet.  It worked well too.  That resistance to delivering a plug-in SUV or Pickup went completely unnoticed.  In other words, some here really need to reevaluate priorities.  The group-think has consequences.

It's all about understanding the seemingly unrelated moves that contribute to fleet advancement.  With so many parts moving, it's very difficult to picture what's happening while in the middle of that plan.  As we draw closer to rollout, it will become obvious how each of those steps helped progress along.

Trolls.  You follow forums & blogs long enough, eventually you'll notice a pattern.  Today, it was: "tesla technology is way beyond anything else on the market"  That came from a troublemaker who's been getting worse and worse... absolutely refusing to provide anything quantitative.  Posts have become vague, to the point of being worthless.  Heck, he often doesn't even quote what he's responding to anymore.  It's basically a takeover of threads.  You know, someone craving attention.  For the last 2 years, he's complained about the smaller cargo area in Prime.  It never ceased.  He just likes to object, perhaps?  Following his other posts though, to get a better idea of who I was dealing with, it was obvious he had no actual business or engineering knowledge.  All those were lacking substance, closely resembling propaganda.  It was really annoying to confirm.  Some of it was just pure greenwash too.  The complete absence of anything with merit was so frustrating.  So, I did more research... know your audience... after all.  That was necessary, since my confrontation was replied to with a parrot response and I didn't want to waste anymore more time.  The result sounded alarms.  Seeing his post count at nearly 75,000 was all it took to become very concerned.  He likely turned rogue, the result of disenchantment... which means an endless stream of finding-someone-to-blame posts.  Sound familiar?  I looked up recent posting activity.  87 posts yesterday.  64 the day before.  153 the day before that.  Yup, that was it.  Constructive nature is lost when such a magnitude is reached, which was clearly evident by the lack of detail.  It was becoming just spin.  A troll was born.  I always wondered how that attitude came about.  It the same thing I've seen several times in the past.  History repeats itself with such persistance.  Knowing there is no satisfying someone who just plain does not came, I ended his provokes with:  It's the same old "vastly superior" nonsense again.

Ugh.  "but every day toyota tinkers, tesla advances. all carmakers are already behind the 8-ball. only tesla is prepared for the future."  That one particular troublemaker who appears to be someone who posts frequently & continuously throughout the day at trolling volumes keeps filling up discussions with substantless content.  It's so annoying when a person just participates for the sake of participating.  His "contributions" take away from the value, just cluttering up threads with words lacking any merit or even any substance.  They just fill space, making content of value more difficult to find.  I try to inform, but providing education without sounding condescending is really a challenge:  Know your audience.  Please take the time to research what it takes to actually prepare.  That post clearly reveals you have not.  Toyota is doing exactly what it takes to advance.  High-Volume processes cannot be changed quickly.  Adaptation works best by taking numerous small steps.  That everyday tinkering is evidence of progress forward. Forcing the perspective of Tesla (a limited product start-up) makes absolutely no sense.  Claiming otherwise confirms being out of touch with what legacy automakers must do.  Only enthusiasts care about the impression of being behind.  Ordinary consumers aren't even paying attention to the early-adopter market.  When they finally do take notice in a few years, they'll see Toyota was well prepared from all the technology they already rolled out in their hybrids.