u/Fly-n-Skies

Mine might be an extreme use case, but I wanted to show what the PHEV is capable of under ideal circumstances.

I've had several EVs, have 1 currently, and when we replaced an older gas car I was reluctant to have only EVs. When researching PHEVs, there wasn't a ton of information available on real world experiences. Most of the owner reviews I've found were somewhat negative and complained about poor fuel efficiency, and that the gas engine was forced to run too often.

My goal with the PHEV was to effectively have 2 EVs for daily use, but have the gas engine for the occasional road trip so we wouldn't need to use fast chargers. EREVs are just around the corner, but I took a leap with the PHEV anyway.

As you can see from the image of the dash, my sportage phev is hardly using any gas. I'm now a thousand miles in, and I haven't even used a single gallon of gas. The dash stops at 999mpgs.

I drive about 45 miles per day. My commute is 40 miles round trip. I am able to charge overnight and midday, so it is operating entirely electric. A level 2 charger helps get enough charge in a short timeframe if I need to run a quick errand.

I've only had the gas engine kick on once due to acceleration, and that was because of cruise control when I changed lanes on the highway. I've only seen a message on the dash requiring the engine to run for maintenance/fuel and oil once as well. When it does, it basically just idles 1.3-1.5k rpm.

I will be taking the car on a trip that will use the gas engine soon, and I plan to leave my tank mostly empty so the fuel doesn't go bad during normal use.

Yes I am aware that cabin heat requires the engine to run. My climate is mild and I park the car in the garage, so only heated seats and steering wheel are needed in the morning.

For those trying to understand what a longer commute would look like, my wife drives 90 miles round trip and she averaged about 50-60mpgs in the same (but different) car. So even in a longer commute, you can still nearly double the fuel efficiency of the normal hybrid as long as you can charge it daily at home or work.

If you drive more than 100-150 miles often, can't charge daily, or live in colder climates, then the regular hybrid may be the more cost effective option. Of course this is a bit subjective based on my experience.

Finally, yes you may need to factor in electricity costs, which are a fraction of the cost of gas in most areas. I have solar so I am only concerned with the use of gasoline.

I hope this helps show what the PHEV is capable of, and some real world experiences so you can make a more informed decision if you're considering one.

But we did just bring a new PHEV prestige home 😂

I don't think I would have chosen blue, but Vesta Blue is great. Way better in person compared to how they show it on the website.

I'll try to keep this brief as possible. I've been lurking in the comments of other posts, but I'm finally ready to share my very disappointing experience with the EV6.

The issue: I took delivery of a brand new 25 EV6 GT-Line AWD in early March. I test drove the vehicle and everything was great. Within 3 days of taking it home, an alert on the dash said to refill the battery coolant. The tank was completely empty. I took it to the dealer who topped it off and said to keep an eye on it. 2 days later it was completely empty again. The car has just 200 miles on the odometer.

Shitty dealer and loaner/rental reimbursement: When I took delivery my salesperson said they'd check in with me to see how I'm getting along with the car. I told her about the issue both times it happened, but they did absolutely nothing to help. I was told that I had to make a service appointment and they would reimburse a rental starting the date of the appointment and after they've verified the issue is warranty eligible. I didn't drive the car for 4 days until the car could be seen in their earliest appointment. First week of ownership and I couldn't drive the car for half of it, no replacement car, no loaner, no reimbursement for a rental through the next weekend.

In the shop: I drop the car off and they diagnose the issue very quickly, it needs a new heat pump. All I hear after that is that the part is on backorder, no ETA. It took 63 days for the part to arrive**.** The car was in service for 64 days in total, all with just 200 miles on the odometer. There was zero communication until I was told the car was repaired completely out of the blue. Meanwhile, I had just made my 3rd car payment for a $60k EV6 but I had been driving a base-trim rental car for over 2 months. Altogether, the entire experience is beyond disappointing.

Now: I have a brand new car covered in 2 months worth of pollen and bird poop. I have nearly $3k in rental and gas expenses in addition to the car payments I've made that will take an unknown amount of time to get reimbursed. I'm told the buyback and lemon law process can take months if not over a year.

The good: Kia did offer to reimburse gas expenses and told me to keep my receipts. Also, now that I have the car back, I'm reminded why I got it in the first place. It really is an amazing car, and I wish Kia would address reliability and customer service issues. My issue could have been resolved so much sooner if they didn't have so many other cars needing repairs. My dealer is swamped, everything is taking a long time. They kept telling me they could get me into a loaner after they fixed other cars that have been out for weeks/months as well. I don't know how this is sustainable for a high volume brand.

Bonus: While my EV6 was in the shop, my other Kia EV with 25,000 miles went in for a repair and has been there for 5 weeks and counting. For over a month we had 2 rentals, still have 1.

I honestly believe they have some of the best cars on the market, if they can fix their reliability and build quality issues. Until then, I'll be shopping somewhere else.