Rivian 1/2 ton high temp, grade test. Good read/video

valhalla360 wrote:

Reisender wrote:

Re maintenance costs for hybrids. From what I gather they are pretty low. However when in gas mode their operating expenses are similar to an ICE car. Depending on where you live and what the gas and electricity prices are that can be quite high in comparison to a pure EV. Our total operating and maintenance costs were about 8 times higher with a Grand Cherokee than a model 3 Tesla. Both vehicles cost roughly the same. Grand Cherokee had great cargo room though. Meh. Pros and cons all around. I didn’t think we would want to go back to a premium high performance sports sedan...and yet here we are. LOL :). Who knows what it will be next time. :).

Sure, comparing a compact car to a full size SUV, operating costs will be higher for the SUV. Also, how many years for each and how was each used? A 10yr old Cherokee used hard vs a 3yr old Mod 3 used mostly for light commuter work, sure maintenance costs will likely be higher but you are comparing apples to oranges.

Of course, how much is 8 times higher...$10/yr vs $80/yr, 8 times is largely irrelevant to the average buyer. Or are you trying to slip fuel costs into the comparison...where again the apples to oranges comparison makes it a misleading comparison.

So yes. I am including fuel costs in operating costs. Our Jeep wasn’t that bad for maintenance costs. Pretty good vehicle overall. And yah, our usage needs changed so although the cargo room was great in the SUV it wasn’t needed anymore. A Tesla model 3 is not a compact car though. They are actually quite roomy. And has two trunks. More of a mid size. So keeping it real there is some apples to oranges comparisons. Having said that for us the fuel costs went from around 170 to 25 bucks per month. And a heck of a lot more convenient.

So yah, it’s cheaper. Works for us. Not the right fit for everybody. One would have to analyze what they do and see what works. Obviously gas and electricity prices can move the needle a lot. Here it’s a no brainer. Which is why 15 percent of all new vehicles sold are Electric. When EV trucks are available that will easily double.

If an SUV is needed the model Y is a nice alternative to something like the Grand Cherokee.