I’m surprised, the dealers near me will tell you they sell at MSRP but then add on all these useless packages like spray on cheap ceramic coating or extended warranty, or some kind of protection package and inflate the price by a couple grand or so. Or they’ll add on an adjustment of at least $2500 to $5000 to the price.

 

There still are dealers who will sell at MSRP with no crap added to the vehicle. You have to go find them. I purchased a CX-5 last month at straight up MSRP and also received a very handsome trade allowance for my Passport.

 

Why are you ridding yourself of your MDX so soon? I'm interested in the CX-70 when it happens but certainly not first or second year production. Tha's a foolish thing to do. Be patient and purchase 3rd year production.

 

The MDX gets 19 mpg, which means it has been sitting in my garage for the past 7 months. I've only got 1200 miles on the vehicle. I rarely use a 7 seater, but am anticipating starting a family soon which means I'll need it again. The CX-90 PHEV will have more power and likely save me quite significantly on gasoline. Right now, my daily driver has been the Mach E GT and the Rav4.

Usually, I would agree with you, but the CX-90 will have that $7500 tax credit which I am definitely taking advantage of.

 

I rented the CX-5 while I was on vacation in Seattle/Vancouver area. Excellent vehicle. I was considering buying one as well but if Mazda came out with a PHEV version, I would gladly trade my Rav4 for it, as I find the interior quality way and ride quality nicer than the Rav4 and it kind of matches the RDX in many aspects. I've decided to wait on the Rav4 Prime as the 2023 model has a new digital cockpit display and larger infotainment screen, but we'll see. I'm hoping that Mazda releases their PHEV soon.

 

nah, my Acura is still quite awesome. Just didnt know about the ev6 and wont own a ford or Tesla.

The reason for dumping the RDX so soon is thst its not worth the $1250/mo to me that it costs to own and operate. That is loaded out SQ5 money in 2020, and I refuse to pay it for an RDX, as awesome as it is. Say what you want about "times have changed", but I refuse to accept that, in this way. The EV6 will drop the monthly footprint back in line with the product Im getting. It's a pure dollar to value proposition.

The issues with the Prime kindof surprise me, but Ive seen them pop up pnd am glad I sold mine.

 

my turbo cx5 was a great vehicle. I think the new cx70 and cx90 will be excellent. The issue is that you're saddled with ICE maintenance, as well as EV complexity, and that's kindof why the Prime fell out of favor with me, as well as previous mentioned.

 

I do know the limitations of having an EV. I would never drive mine out on long road trips. I would at max drive an hour each way to work and back. I would not take it out for more than 200 mile road trips at a time. There’s always some range anxiety. When that happens I take my ICE or PHEV.

It’s only used as my commuter vehicle. You don’t want to run the risk of going to a charging station and realizing it doesn’t work or if it doesn’t have level 3 charging capabilities. You also don’t want to charge with level 3 anyways as it shortens battery life and overheats components due to higher voltage. Also, expect some drop even im cold with EV regardless if it has a heat pump or not. Ford may drop more with the Mach E but I bet you EV6 will drop as well (10-15%) in range.

As for operating costs, sadly that’s how much it costs to run any car that costs $50k or more nowadays with exception of maybe hybrids or PHEV or EV. Also, $1250 a month is quite significant for the RDX. I pay less than that with the MDX although I don’t drive it as much. If you’re driving that much and require that much gas then EV isn’t for you either. You’re better off with a PHEV. The R4P is actually a really good fit in that aspect.

 

$1,250 to own and operate? Cut out the ownership to compare apples to apples, how much of that to you spend on fuel alone? How many miles does you drive in a day/week/month? What do you spend annually on maintenance (oil and diff changes)?

Kind of in the same boat. When I bought my Acura RDX on 11/2020, gas was $1.82/gal (Texas) - far cry from where it's been today. With petrol prices soaring to $5+/gal and $8+/gal in some states (with no end in sight on them going down, due to the current policies). Fed pushing going EV hard with billions of $$$ to get the infrastructure built quickly, and other EV mfg doing the same. Thus I put in two orders for EV's, the new ID4 PRO S AWD and Tesla Model 3LR. Both can easily take road trips with the current charging infrastructure - those who have "range anxiety", can easily get over it buy plotting our before hand (Tesla does this for you - the others are catching up fast) on where and when to stop.

My 21 has 10k mile on her. Since I get 16-17 mpg in the city (cold weather it goes down to 14-15mpg) and 23-25mpg on pure hwy trips (just did a 1600 mile trip in the RDX - its a thirsty one) - all that is real world mpg. Disappointed I get no where near the city mpg - as thats most of my daily driving. Just seen Honda/Acura is doing a joint venture with GM to use there EV Cadallic platform to bring there own to market in 2024-2025. Thats a little late compared to all the others.

Only other option I see is go Hybrid or get a smaller super fuel efficient vehicle. The 1st increases mpg by almost 3x what I get in the city and 2x on the hwy, however you still have all the maintenance of a ICE vehicle. The latter is a option - but nothing out there temps me to "down size". I will miss the smell of "gas", the roar of the exhaust in the ICE vehicles - but EV do have advantage. Just test drive a Tesla, Mache E or any thing else, the instant 100% torque and HP is crazy. Given a new Tesla Model Y performance will do 0-60 in 3.5 seconds - thats super car league.

 

Yeah Mach E GT does it in 3.5-3.8, depending on the trim level, but it also has the huge advantage of the federal tax credit of $7500 over any Tesla.

My next EV will probably be the Polestar 3, but it depends what the reviews are. I’m putting a deposit once orders open in October.

PHEV still might be the way to go. I’m really excited about the Mazda CX-70/90.

 

I spend $500-600/mo in fuel. The PEV will work fine. PHEV was okay. I averaged 55mpg in my Prime, I think the PEV will save way more money vs. the Prime, and the EV6 will do everything better.

 

That is a BIG chunk of $$$ for fuel for a month. Can't blame you for looking at other more economical options. You must put on some serious miles monthly - 1.5k-2K?

 

What's a PEV? Do you mean BEV?

 

PEV (Plug-In Electric Vehicle) & BEV (Battery electric vehicle) = EV (Electric Vehicle) **both the exact same, PEV & BEV are old acronyms.

OTHERS:
PHEV = Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles
Hybrid = Combo of Gas and electric, hybrid car runs on a combination of electricity and conventional fuel (NEVER NEEDS TO BE PLUGGED IN TO CHARGE THS SMALL BATTERY)

 

At the risk of being a pedant, all of those are EVs. EV is a superset of PEV, HEV, and FCEV, and PEV itself is a superset of BEV and PHEV.

 

Quite possible that gas prices will come down after the summer. While the EV may save more money than the Prime, you also lose out significantly on convenience factor as well. Especially since you're driving that much. It's actually a bad idea to get an EV if you're driving that much, especially if you have to charge it all the time. Supercharging to that 30 minute charging all the time would actually destroy your battery quickly. The Prime would cut down your gas costs at least by half to a more reasonable level, and you can get 42 miles of electric range as well without using any gas. Too bad you got rid of it. Would've been nice to keep it. I bet some part of you regrets getting rid of the Prime. The resale value on the Rav4 Prime is crazy right now. The EV6 also probably performs worse than the Rav4 Prime unless you get the higher trims that cost $50k+, but then you lose range and get 274 miles at best per charge. If you're looking to have the car last, you would only be charging it to 90%, so at best you would get about 240-250 miles per charge. Consider that you have to install a Level 2 charger which will take at least 8-9 hours to charge the vehicle to full.

It already takes several months to get a Prime (almost all dealers have a waitlist now) unless you're willing to pay at least couple thousand in markup.

The scary part for me, and this is for my Ford Mach E GT as well, is that one day, it might just not charge or stop working and then you're stuck. You better have another backup car like I do just in case that happens. Again, as I said before, EV's are new to both Ford and Hyundai/Kia. Expect some problems. And this has nothing to do with the recall for Ford or Kia. It's more common sense. I made the mistake of buying the RDX on its first year of production, but at least now I have a backup vehicle. So far, my car has been great and reliable, but again, you never know.

 

That range anxiety goes away once you get educated and adopt to a new standard. People road trip all the time in EV’s, just plan your stops using charge point or the Tesla app. Most Americans don’t drive 200+ miles a day, so the majority will be charging at home. Plus there are a lot of free level 2 chargers to use while shopping, at the airport and in small towns and cities,

Some many be new to the EV world, but they all tend to use a couple of battery and electrical motor mfg. The rest are typical car production parts, VW has been dominating Europe and other parts of the world with multiple EV vehicles, but the USA on get one model.

I enjoy my Acura, but the real world MPG is super disappointing. Plus, it’s no where as quick as it’s electric counterpart.

Wish Acura would put the resources into EV and Hybrids now, as they are getting left behind.

I never considered a EV when gas prices were below $2/gal, but those days are gone - we will level out at some point hopefully, but getting our oil from other countries doesn’t make that a promising bet anytime soon.

 

Well, unobtanium is spending $500-600 a month on gas, so he must be driving quite significantly, way more than the average American. Also, know that the 'free' level 2 chargers while shopping (I used them) isn't that fast. Gave me only 10 miles of range after one hour of shopping. They sure limit the amount of electricity for you. While most Americans don't drive 200 miles a day, it is a pain to take the car out on long road trips. It's annoying to have to find a charging station when there aren't that many to begin with, and you can't use those Tesla Superchargers either. Most of the time they're only Level 2 chargers, so only providing about 30 miles per hour of charge. Also, those chargers are usually located near a Walmart or Target, when I'm not really in the mood for shopping. Sometimes, those chargers don't really work and are broken, making it worse. My EV is basically 99% charged at home. It's a perfect commuter car, but not a good long distance road trip type of car.

I don't know what road trip means to you, but for me, it's more like driving cross country, or driving down the coast. It's impossible if you're trying to drive more than 220 miles at a time unless you can find a level 3 charger, but then make your battery not last as long with such high voltages.

 

Good luck with your EVs later this year boys.

 

I agree that I can see an EV in my future, but solely as a commuter-type vehicle to run local errands and return home to charge every evening.

With kinds/grandkids spread all over creation - 400 to 700 miles away - ICE is the only way to go for us. With the current technology and placement of charging stations (infrastructure), it would add a couple of hundred miles and several hours to our trips. At my age, I'm not willing to make the necessary "adjustments".

I'd also like to know where all of the electricity generation will come from. With the current state of the USA infrastructure near collapse during peak demand times, where will all of the needed energy come from? Renewables? Ain't no way.......................

 

$600/mo is fuel. Its ugly. I drive around 3k mi a month.
I considered the Tesla model Y, but I just can't do Tesla. The build quality is horrific. Every one of them I've looked at is terrible, even from 20ft. I literally passed one doing 80 and could see thin spots in the pearl white paint. Its stunning how bad tesla is. Now, Im not saying Kia is just amazing, but Tesla is like 1990s Kia in the quality realm.

Im tempted to buy two EV6 and double up on my tax credit, but the risk averse part of me says...what if you hit a deer in the first one and it bombs trade value? Why deal with this complexity? Blah blah blah, and so I probably won't, but mathnerd is on to something with that for sure.

I had a rav4 Prime. I loved it at first. She fast. People are running stock Primes in the 13s at the strip. But...handling under throttle and the awd system in general is bad. Also, the new rav4 has a lot of issues, sadly. Leaking roofs. Corroding high voltage cables. Lots of big stuff. The Kia may, too, but their warranty is much better so there's that. Also, 49/51 weight distribution and 4.5 second 0-60. Yes the model Y is faster, but everyone says they ride like a log wagon and are scary at speed, while the ev6 just keeps getting praise. I also like its interior better. Further, even though Kia isn't the brand I wish it came from, they DO have an actual dealer network.

 

okay...why?

 

noone on the ev forums is really complaining. In fact, I did a quick Google search (not the best way), and found plenty of Electrify America and Charge Point stations along the typical paths I road trip. Even through rural OK. There are way better apps than this though.

 

I really like the cx70 idea, but the drawbacks of still maintaining an ICE engine plus the fact that its significantly slower didn't endear it to me. I do absolutely love Mazda as a company though. I can't say what Id do if I had a shot at one before my ev6.

 

Many of the stations are not level 3 charging, so you’re getting about 30 miles per hour of charge. That might be a big issue if you’re taking it out on long road trips. Again, I would avoid level 3 chargers because they will degrade your battery faster and may overheat your components due to higher voltage. That’s why the Mach E had the ‘recall’ to limit the amount of voltage or
power.

 

Most people on the forums aren’t taking their EV on super long road trips. I take mine only to commute to work and back. Never long road trips. On the Mach E forums, I’ve read some people saying that their Mach E on long road trips was a nightmare because a lot of the chargers weren’t working or was full. If you’re willing to take that risk then that’s fine.

Gas stations are far more reliable.

 

When it comes to battery cars you just need to take some time and figure out your daily usage! I initially said hell no to the XC 60 T8 with a battery range of just over 20 miles......then sat down and realized much of my driving on a daily basis is within 20 miles...and on long road trip, it still averages around 35 mpg if I stay around 65mph. and when I drive, I dont want to be stopping to charge......its get in the car and drive, I detest stopping. I think many would be surprised. Once you have a battery car, you really enjoy not stopping at gas stations.

 

I agree. Maybe an EV strictly to putz around town. The whole EV thing isn't prime time yet. I also don't care for the weird or futuristic look they have. Tesla's look like they came from the cartoon movie Cars and others from the Jetsons cartoon. The "E" part of the EV is good but make it look like an ICE vehicle.

 

Only way to get there without a lot of pain, is a comprehensive energy plan with a road map for transition to most vehicles running on electrical power - which we don't have today. BTW - not everyone will be charging their EV vehicles at the same time, all day long. That misconception is false.

Similar $5+/gal (or $8-$9 in some states) is not good part of a smooth transition.

 

That’s part of the reason why I got the Mach E GT. Out of all the EV’s it looks the closest to an ICE vehicle. It has a grill in front that looks realistic.

 

Plus, its fast (0-60 is the mid 3 sec range), has good range (260-270 miles on a full change and normal driving) and can change pretty quickly at a DC fast charger or on a level 2 at home.

 

this is true. Most ive seen are only going on 12-1400mi trips. Nothing truly cross country. Still, no issues, and thats good enough for me.

 

In an unrelated note...Toyota already recalling the bz4x as well as the Subaru Solterra. Any EV that is in its first generation will have issues. This is not specific to any car brand. All car brands will have issues with a new platform. Toyota advised everyone to stop using their vehicles for the time being. Expect hiccups when you get your EV6.

Toyota recalls first mass-produced EVs less than 2 months after launch | Reuters

 

To be fair the recall has nothing to do with anything electrification related. It's for loose hub bolts, which would affect ICE or EVs the same.

 

Every EV has had them, but to be fair, this is the rims falling off the hubs, not exactly an EV only component.

 

I think the Audi e-tron's exterior and interior looks the most like an ICE vehicle. I'd like to see EV's that are made to look just like their ICE counterpart. Most EV's (to me) are over the top with the futuristic look or you have the Tesla (comical) look which reminds me of something out of the Disney movie "Cars".

 

the e-tron is probably one of the nicest looking vehicles on the road, ICE or EV....we have 3 e-tron SUV's in our neighborhood so I see them a lot. I've seen the sedan only on TV ads, and it is every bit as good looking...it's just the price...and of course, opinion only, I agree on Teslas...that look is terrible, comical or otherwise, the SUV's or whatever they call them are almost indescribably ugly, especially from the rear. (expect the 'S' which is a really good looking vehicle, but over 100K.) Over the next 24 months it looks like there will be a lot more EV selections, so a lot more choices.

 

You're right! The Tesla S is a good looking vehicle but, certainly not worth $100K. It looks as if Audi designed it for Tesla.

 

I feel like the S is a hold-over. Think of it like you would in 2012, when this styling came about. It looks par for the course.

 

Agree. The S is getting 'long in the tooth' as they say. Sometimes cars age terribly because they try and create the look of the future or some other advanced design, and 5-10 years later that look no longer does it. The S is somewhat conservative, but nice and I still it looks very nice. The rest of the Tesla line, to me, looks poor.