400 miles could make the difference for anyone in the central US (" flyover country", or "EV charging desert". ) Then again, this is a VERY expensive vehicle, and they won't sell many in the center of the US anyway. Incomes are higher in the NE and west coast. And from an environmental perspective, the bigger a battery a vehicle has, the larger environmental impact. Most people are just carrying around a huge battery that the only use a few percent of the time. Various studies show a PHEV can be better for many driving scenarios.

What about regular hybrids (and PHEVs)? The Prius is favored as a taxi in some parts of the world as a taxi due to it's very low COO, and hybrids are very suited for urban driving.

Yep, Toyota has way more experience than anyone building mixed powertrains, and so these will be reliable and sell at or above MSRP. Of course , all the EVangelists are already throwing temper tantrums and calling out Toyota for being behind the times. EVs might work great for most Californians and various urban dwellers around the globe. But for people in flyover country, PHEVs are much more practical and economical. These RAV4s will sell like hotcakes. As most people know (but some refuse to acknowledge), the auto industry is still limited by battery supply. And when given the choice of making 5-10 PHEVs or just one EV (for the same battery capacity), it is much more beneficial for CO2 reduction to make PHEVs. And it's more economical. Various companies have sold a few compliance EVs, while losing lots of money on each one. That's not exactly what I call making a difference. Sure, Tesla is presumably making money now (finally) but they were skirting the edge of bankruptcy for many years. Good for them for making it, but that's the exception. Among the traditional automakers, Toyota is leading the charge by cranking out a bunch of hybrids and PHEVs , which is better for the environment and the company's bottom line than selling a few compliance EVs. Based on what we already saw with the hybrid RAV4, these Primes will be even more desirable and will sell at or above MSRP. Now that's progress.