{"id":32191,"date":"2024-02-08T09:20:24","date_gmt":"2024-02-08T13:20:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=32191"},"modified":"2024-02-08T09:20:24","modified_gmt":"2024-02-08T13:20:24","slug":"payne-as-winter-whips-evs-prius-hybrid-makes-a-statement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2024\/02\/payne-as-winter-whips-evs-prius-hybrid-makes-a-statement","title":{"rendered":"Payne: As winter whips EVs, Prius Hybrid makes a statement"},"content":{"rendered":"

Oakland County<\/em>\u00a0\u2014 This has been the winter of electric vehicles\u2019 discontent. First of all, it\u2019s winter. Despite decades of predictions of snowless winters and dried-up Great Lakes, Chicago was still an icebox this January, registering subzero temperatures and wreaking havoc on EVs, which \u2014 when taken out of their natural California habitat \u2014 have a strong allergic reaction to cold.<\/p>\n

A WGN-9 Chicago story went viral nationwide:<\/p>\n

The subzero temperatures are taking a toll on the EV batteries, leaving drivers frustrated.<\/em><\/p>\n

Darryl Johnson, an Uber driver, said he waited hours just to get to a charger, only to wait even longer while it charged. But the frustrations continued even after he left after he found his battery draining faster than normal.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s horrible … it takes two hours to charge, then the charge leaves really quickly, so now you\u2019re back at the charger twice a day,\u201d Johnson said. \u201cThey definitely have to work on it because I\u2019m out of this Tesla after today. I\u2019m not going to ride it again.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The 2024 Toyota Prius Hybrid will go 58 miles on a fill-up thanks to 52 mpg hybrid tech.<\/em>Henry Payne, The Detroit News<\/em><\/p>\n

Maybe he should try a Prius.<\/p>\n

You remember the Prius? The hybrid gas-electric moral statement that launched the green car segment? It caught fire in the early 2000s as the car to be seen in if you preened green. All the cool kids had it, including Hollywood stars Cameron Diaz, Harrison Ford, Tom Hanks and Leo DiCaprio, who drove them to the Oscars to advertise their commitment to the planet. Prius introduced a new green language to our automotive lexicon: hybrid, tailpipe emissions and California high occupancy vehicle lane passes. And, of course, Pious.<\/p>\n

The latter was the nickname non-believers gave to the Prius faithful. Pious sold like hot cakes, until it didn\u2019t. The movement moved on to pure electrics and Prius became oh-so-15 minutes ago \u2014 losing its California carpool lane status, its $7,500 tax break, its popularity for not going all-electric. Sales plummeted to 35,800 last year as the Tesla Model Y became the new green king at 385,900 sales\u00a0a year.<\/p>\n

Suddenly, the OG is relevant again. Thank Chicago.<\/p>\n