Talk me off the ledge: Considering Toyota RAV4 Prime

[SeaGeo]

One of the largest gaps between the Rav4 and the Rivian is the self driving capability.

*Driver assistance capability. ?

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[Braindead]

Lots of good opinions with smart people here, and not a few Toyota/Prime/other EV owners.

So, help talk me off the ledge of withdrawing my RTI pre-order, and going for a Toyota RAV4 Prime.
1) Less cost
2) The PHEV aspect, where I DO have a ICE "if I needed it". 99% of the time I wouldn't, but there's still the accessibility of "During Adventure" charging.
3) Of course Toyota's tech is already a proven/known factor, whereas Rivian is a start up.
4) All the questions posted elsewhere about resale/leasing/financing/"first adopter" (which I'm typically not).

So, Talk me down, ye Disciples of the Great R.

I bought a RAV4 Prime XSE with The 6.6Kw charger loaded package last august for 50k MSRP and traded in a 5 series. Almost 3k miles and still only halfway on the original gas tank. Peace of mind that I can’t run out of juice anyway. My brother has a model Y and they are always conscious of distance. The Prime is a great, fast and practical car but doesn’t have the refinement of my previous BMW or my XC90.
My XC90 lease expires this year and I registered for a Rivian (if it comes in time). You should definitely have at least one ICE car. So if your other vehicle is an EV, go for the Prime, else the Rivian

 

[the long way downunder]

I bought a RAV4 Prime XSE with The 6.6Kw charger loaded package last august for 50k MSRP and traded in a 5 series. Almost 3k miles and still only halfway on the original gas tank. Peace of mind that I can’t run out of juice anyway. My brother has a model Y and they are always conscious of distance. The Prime is a great, fast and practical car but doesn’t have the refinement of my previous BMW or my XC90.
My XC90 lease expires this year and I registered for a Rivian (if it comes in time). You should definitely have at least one ICE car. So if your other vehicle is an EV, go for the Prime, else the Rivian

A friend replaced a Range Rover with a RAV4 Prime. RAVes about it. I just emailed him to ask how he bought it. He said there were "zero" cars he could get nearby (Chicago) but purchased it remotely somehow from a dealer out of state. He's old and old-school, so I'm guessing he phoned dealers, he barely uses email, so I doubt he used carvana or one of those sites (which is what I'd do.)
For my two cents' on the RAV4 Prime, it's expensive for what it is, so it's false economy in terms of total cost of ownership (including resale value in 3 - 5 years) but it is an impressive vehicle with all the features.

 

[ORFynder]

I bought a RAV4 Prime XSE with The 6.6Kw charger loaded package last august for 50k MSRP and traded in a 5 series. Almost 3k miles and still only halfway on the original gas tank. Peace of mind that I can’t run out of juice anyway. My brother has a model Y and they are always conscious of distance. The Prime is a great, fast and practical car but doesn’t have the refinement of my previous BMW or my XC90.
My XC90 lease expires this year and I registered for a Rivian (if it comes in time). You should definitely have at least one ICE car. So if your other vehicle is an EV, go for the Prime, else the Rivian

Im planning to still move forward with a Rav4 Prime purchase in the next 2 months (next in line at a Toyota Dealership for a red or white XSE) The way I figure it, is that it is expensive at +$50K, but counting on the $7500 Federal Credit and $2500 Or rebate that brings the cost of the buying a Prime a little over $40K. If I decide to get rid of it when my R1t comes in Q3'22, i think i can sell it for more thank $40K

 

[RideAlong]

Oh come on ! needing to be 'talked down off the ledge' on a Toyota RAV 4 ? If your budget is THAT tight u might consider a good pre-owned vehicle - ?

 

[Braindead]

Im planning to still move forward with a Rav4 Prime purchase in the next 2 months (next in line at a Toyota Dealership for a red or white XSE) The way I figure it, is that it is expensive at +$50K, but counting on the $7500 Federal Credit and $2500 Or rebate that brings the cost of the buying a Prime a little over $40K. If I decide to get rid of it when my R1t comes in Q3'22, i think i can sell it for more thank $40K

Yes the loaded Prime works out to just over 40k after state and federal incentives. It has more features than the Tesla and Rivian (cooled seats, heads up display, digital rear view etc) so you won’t be disappointed. I doubt you can sell it for over $40k in 6 months - used car prices will come back to sane numbers soon. I think it’s a better primary car than Tesla or Rivian but the other two will be awesome second cars if budget isn’t an issue.

 

[LoneStar]

I doubt you can sell it for over $40k in 6 months - used car prices will come back to sane numbers soon.

I cannot say what the 6 months ahead future holds, but I can testify that owning a RAV4-Prime XSE with all the options for seven months now, that I've gotten offers in the $47-48k from Carvana and CarMax and a ridiculous $50.5k offer from Vroom. So the present craziness of the used vehicle market makes this ride a small lotto ticket when you factor in the $7.5k Fed tax credit and the CA state rebate.

 

[Max]

I have been thinking about this as well. On plus side; I don’t expect to use more than a tank annually except when I travel, 600 mile range with lower stress and cost of energy when I travel, 1500W inverter, Toyota, “lower price” , does more off road than I will ever do (see TFL), much lighter than R1 and one year less wait for me than R1S…

on the other hand 2500 lb towing may not be enough, it has a tailpipe and I saw this:

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough!

Gotta tell you this story; I have an ice cream addiction. My roommate was never able to finish an ice cream he put in the freezer because I could not resist the temptation. He bought every flavor in every store and after a year of experimentation he found Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough; the only flavor I could not handle. He was set after that. Me and you would get along just fine.

 

[nc10]

What does it take to get a RAV 4 prime now? Can they be ordered from a dealer at MSRP? What does timing look like?

 

[DeafPug]

What does it take to get a RAV 4 prime now? Can they be ordered from a dealer at MSRP? What does timing look like?

That really depends upon your local market. I don't know about the RAV4 Prime in particular, but be prepared for a wait of a couple months to take delivery due to lack of inventory and also be ready to drive several hours to another dealer if your local dealer is doing the garbage about adding on a market adjustment above MSRP. You can get MSRP, but I doubt you can get any discount below MSRP in this market. I just found an in-stock RAV4 Prime listed at MSRP on cars.com, but it was located a little over 200 miles away. I would definitely contact them by phone to verify that they are selling it for MSRP and not just listing it at MSRP before traveling that far.

A month ago, a friend was looking at replacing their 10 year old 4Runner with a new one. The local Toyota dealer added $8k to MSRP on the new vehicle and wouldn't even give a quote on the trade-in value on their old vehicle without the person paying a non-refundable deposit on the new vehicle. They told the local Toyota dealer to pound sand and ordered a vehicle through the local Honda dealer. After a couple weeks, they decided to cancel the Honda order and contacted a Toyota dealer 150 miles away and made a deal on a 4Runner. The 4Runner is what they really preferred because they do some off-roading for work. The second Toyota dealer said they were getting a fair amount of business from people that were upset at our local Toyota dealer.

 

[ORFynder]

What does it take to get a RAV 4 prime now? Can they be ordered from a dealer at MSRP? What does timing look like?

We are scheduled to pick up a Rav4 Prime hopefully this week(Still planning to get our R1T). On a waiting list since Aug(located in OR) . I would expect a min 6-9 month wait if they take have a waitlist and how big the dealer is. Toyota does not let you order a car as they allocate vehicles to dealerships. Best bet is to get a prime in the NE (NY or NJ) but most dealers will have a markup. Also to note is that the $7500 fed tax credit for Toyota is estimated to be reduced after June since they should eclipse the 200K EV mark in Q1. Good Luck in your search

 

[Max]

There is something to be said about having energy source option in your vehicle. Electricity prices have gone up by 400% in Spain:

Source: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1267552/spain-monthly-wholesale-electricity-price/

 

[Rad]

wow, talk about inflation!

There is something to be said about having energy source option in your vehicle. Electricity prices have gone up by 400% in Spain:

 

[dleewla]

take the plunge, makes the line for Rivian one less.

 

[moosehead]

At the risk of getting flamed, imma just gonna say it.

Life is too short to drive a japanese vehicle.

Even worse, imagine the most boring, homogeneous vehicle that will last forever.

No offense intended.

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