2025 Prius PHEV vs the EV Wave: Still Worth Plugging In?
Today we’re behind the wheel of the 2025 Toyota Prius plug-in hybrid. Not the Prime anymore, just Prius plug-in. Toyota simplified the name, but that’s about the only thing they made simpler. If you caught my reviews in 2023 and 2024, you know, I was impressed by the new Gen Prius. It finally looked cool, had real power, and actually drove like a car I’d choose, not just settle for. Now, in 2025, the market is flooded with new EVs. The question is, is a Prius PH EV still worth plugging in? I’m Adam. This is Dex Garage. Let’s get into it. So, before we dive into this one specifically, let’s talk about the trims offered for 2025 in the plug-in hybrid versions. You have the SE, the XSE, and the top-of-the-line trim, the XSE Premium, which of course is what we’re driving here. The SE is budget friendly and the efficiency king with up to 44 miles of EV range on its smaller 17-in wheels. The XSSE adds 19-in wheels, soft tech seats, and some upgraded tech, but loses a few miles of EV range. The XSSE Premium fully loaded with a 12.3 in touchscreen, JBL audio, heated and ventilated seats, power liftback, panoramic monitor, and Toyota’s advanced park system. It’s the Prius at its full send. With that, let’s jump into this one here and check out the exterior design. Toyota completely redesigned the Prius a few years ago. In this new look is a winner. It’s low, sleek, and in this super sonic red paint, it turns heads. Sharp LED lights, clean body lines, and a low roof line, making it feel more like a Sportback than an EcoMobile. The 19-in alloy wheels on the XSE premium trim fill the wheel wells nicely. Yes, they cut a few miles from EV range, but they definitely boost the style. You can get a fixed glass roof, but what we have here is a solar panel roof. So, we have no sunroof or glass roof, but you are taking advantage of the power of the sun. And just like I said the other two times I’ve reviewed the Prius since it was redesigned, I really like this design and it definitely makes it a vehicle that you don’t feel bad driving designwise. Moving around to the rear hatch, you get a standard liftback hatch. It is a powerlifted hatch on this trim. Cargo space is just over 20 cubic feet behind the seats. It’s not huge for a hatch, and the sloped roof limits vertical storage, but it’s adequate. The lithium ion battery is stashed under the rear seats, preserving floor space in the rear. You can fold the rear seats down and get nearly 27 cubic feet of usable cargo room. Taking a look under the hood, we have a 2.0 O L 4 cylinder engine paired with a 13.6 kilowatt hour lithium ion battery and Toyota’s hybrid system. System output is 220 horsepower, 0 to 60 around 6.6 seconds. Drive modes include EV mode, auto EV and IHV mode, and the standard hybrid mode. charging. It takes around four hours on level two, 11 hours on a 120 volt. And again, this isn’t a big battery. It’s just slow charging. You don’t have DC fast charging, but for daily plugins at home, it gets the job done. But with all that out of the way, let’s jump inside and take a look at the interior. Step inside and the Prius continues to impress. Toyota’s gone for a tech forward look with a little futuristic flare. Quirky, yes, but well executed. Let me give you a good look around. All right, kicking it on. It is push button start, obviously, and you do get all the chimes and all that necessary for modern vehicles. You can see the Google enabled 12.3 in touchscreen infotainment system. This does have wireless or wired Apple CarPlay. You’ve got your uh USBC port down here. You also have another one for just charging, but everything works well. Very responsive, very nice. I really like Toyota’s new design. I’ve said this in a lot of the more recent uh Toyota videos. We do have the premium soft text trim seats with red stitching and this maroon and red contrasting piping over here. All really nice. They’re comfortable. They are heated and cooled seats. And in the back, we do have heated seats as well. Most of the trim is black, but you do get this red right here. And there is a red light in there. You can’t really see it on the camera, but you get a red ambient glow. All really fun. Really nice. Below the screen, you have all the AC and heat controls here, plus your heated and cooled seat buttons. Again, your charging ports and a little tray. And this tray is not for wireless charging. You’ve got another accessory port charger here. And this little tray can lift up. You’ve got cup holders, the quirky gear shifter that probably any Prius or Toyota hybrid vehicle have these days. Push over and up for reverse. We do get the full 360 camera view with the backup camera. You also get the tech where you can see underneath the car as you back up or pull forward, which is really nice. Push in right here for park. Over and back for drive. Over for neutral. The next array of buttons here is your drive modes, which we sort of covered. They’re mostly just like EV versus hybrid modes. You’ve got a quick button for auto EV and HV. Your electronic parking brake, a hold button, and your traction control. And then this little slot right here is actually for wireless charging. So you can throw your phone in, slots in nicely, and it will wirelessly charge while sitting in there. It does hold your phone really well. It won’t slide back and forth, but it is a little bit more difficult to find the sweet spot. And then you have your armrest, which has a little bit of cushion to it. Open it up. It’s a nice size cubby. You do get two more USBC charging ports in there, which is great. Our backup mirror here also doubles with the rear view camera, which I like the feature and definitely helps if you’ve got the back packed with stuff. To the side of the steering wheel, you have a parking button to help with the parking assist. You have another button here to automatically bring up those cameras without having to put it into reverse. And then more of the quirky style of the Prius. You have the kind of small compact steering wheel. Lots of buttons arranged on here, but mainly for your cruise control and interfacing with the driver information screen and things like that. And then, of course, that driver information screen is set way back. Easy to see over the steering wheel for the most part and gives very minimal but good information. This one also does have the JBL sound system, which sounds decent enough. Rear seats are decent. This is a smaller sedan, fast back. So, me at 61, I have very limited headroom, but uh my knees and feet fit in just fine for where the passenger seat is. The driver seat does get pushed back whenever you turn it off or get out. So, it looks more pushed back than it would be when I’m driving. But still, riding behind me as a driver at 61 is going to be a lot more compact than riding behind somebody like my wife who’s a lot shorter. kids rode back there for a pretty good trip and they didn’t have any issues. With that, it’s time to get this thing out on the road. Start talking about the drive. This is obviously the most fun I’ve had in a Prius. The electric torque makes it quick off the line. The gas electric transition is seamless. Light but responsive steering, plus a low center of gravity makes it feel confident in the corners. Yes, you do put your foot down and you do get a really awful engine note, but for a plug-in hybrid, and for a traditional Prius, it’s fun. The ride is comfortable for city driving at highway speeds, you’ll notice some wind noise and tire noise, especially with those 19-in wheels, but obviously not a deal breakaker. Regenerative braking is well balanced. No weird grabby moments. It just feels like a natural drive. In EV mode, the Prius plugin hits up to 114 miles per gallon E. This is in the XSSE and XSSE premium trims. Once the battery is depleted, you’re looking about 48 m to the gallon combined in hybrid mode. Total estimated range around 550 mi. Whether you’re charging daily or just coasting through your week, this car sips fuel even when it’s not sipping electrons. And throughout my week, I’ve been averaging a little bit less than 48 m per gallon. Mine sitting at 42.5 m per gallon right now, which I do a lot more high-speed roads, less stop and go, and when I am stopped, I’m idling, taking pictures or video. But I’ve definitely seen it on the road with that 48 miles per gallon or higher. With that, let’s talk about the price. So, the SE base price is around $32,600. The XSE Premium as tested is at $44,324 with some options and destination charge. That includes premium paint, panoramic view monitor, advanced park, and heated rear seats. It’s not cheap, but for what you get, it’s a strong value, especially considering what full EVs with this kind of tech usually cost. Of note, the PHEV is not qualified for the $7,500 tax credit, which can obviously come into play if you’re crossopping an EV and a plug-in hybrid like this. So, let’s do some comparisons really quickly to other plug-in hybrids that compare nicely to the Prius. You have the Kia Nero PHEV, which I do like. It’s less expensive, has about 33 miles of EV range, more of a small crossover feel than this kind of a sedanish feel. You have the Ford Escape PHEV, more traditional SUV shape, 37 miles of EV range and priced very competitively. And then you have another competitor from Toyota in the RAV 4 Prime, which is all-wheel drive, gets about 42 mi of EV range, way more space, but starts well over $44,000. So, it just depends on kind of the space that you need. They’re all solid competitors, but none match the Prius’s blend of sleek design, tech, and efficiency. Now, let’s go back to the big question. Should you stick with a plug-in hybrid or go full EV? I recently drove the Chevy Equinox, and it’s a tempting option. It starts around $35,000, offers 250 plus miles of range, DC fast charging, and is eligible for that tax credit. If you’ve got consistent access to charging, the Equinox or something like the Hyundai Ionic 5 might make more long-term sense. But if you’re not quite ready for a full EV, if you want plug-in capability without range anxiety and with Toyota reliability, the Prius PHEV is still a smart, flexible choice. With that, let’s jump out. I’ll give you some of my final thoughts on this thing and we’ll wrap up the video. So, here’s the deal. I still like the Prius a lot. It’s efficient, comfortable, sharpl lookinging, and actually enjoyable to drive. The interior is a bit quirky, sure, but in a charming way, and it still delivers on value. In 2025, the EV landscape has changed, but the Prius plug-in hybrid continues to carve its own place. For many drivers, it still hits the sweet spot, and if you think you’re one of those, it’s definitely worth a test drive. With that, I hope you enjoyed the video. If you did, please hit the thumbs up button. Leave me a comment down below. Let me know what you think about the new Prius, the plug-in hybrid version. Subscribe to the channel if you’re not already. We do a different review every week. Lots of great content. EVs to plug-in hybrids to big trucks to sports cars. We got it all. Also, check out txgar.com where we’ve got a lot of written reviews as well as event news coverage from a lot of great authors over there, not just myself. Really, we’re checking out txgar.com. links all in the description. Thanks for watching.
The 2025 Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid XSE Premium blends sharp styling, real electric range, and surprising performance into a well-equipped package that still makes sense in today’s EV-saturated market. With 220 hp, up to 39 miles of EV range, and 550 miles total, it offers flexible efficiency and tech-forward comfort—making it an ideal choice for drivers not quite ready to go fully electric.
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