Hybrid XL received. First Impressions.

[HybridOnOrder]

After a long hard battle (that I still lost) with the dealer, I scored an XL.

Initial caveat so far (not that I'm looking for things wrong) is my hips. I'm a slightly larger gent and the driver's seat is a pinch uncomfortable after being in it for a solid hour ride back home. I'm hoping it's just my fat hips and the newness of the seat. The only thing I miss is the cruise control, but that's a minor "ding" in this baby. My 10yr old named her Ocean, so there she is.

The drive was great and looking over the hood reminds me of the old 2000's Ranger hood. They are putting on a spray in bed liner in the coming weeks and will be outfitting Ocean with some weather mats as well.

Hi There,

Are you planning on keeping both trucks? I see you ordered another one.
I ask b/c I ordered an XLT with various options. Then all this info comes out that the options will slow the arrival. So then I ordered (from another dealer) a super plain XL, hoping a plain, bare bones would at least be built. So far, I haven't had to figure out what I'm going to do with which one....just curious, thanks

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[HybridOnOrder]

Happy New Year, folks.

Picked up Larry.
It's 20 something miles from the dealer, the highways were clear, the side roads, not so much, so I was able to try out 75 mph in the HOV, slippery mode near home, and fired up Let It Be, Starirway to Heaven, and Baby got Back off my phone.

Oh Ahab was ROCKIN' out in Larry.
* AWESOME *
Can hear your glee in your review. Which is so nice to read.
Your truck is beautiful!

 

[BigDinTX]

Hi There,

Are you planning on keeping both trucks? I see you ordered another one.
I ask b/c I ordered an XLT with various options. Then all this info comes out that the options will slow the arrival. So then I ordered (from another dealer) a super plain XL, hoping a plain, bare bones would at least be built. So far, I haven't had to figure out what I'm going to do with which one....just curious, thanks

I'm hoping that I can trade the XL in and take my XLT with all the options I wanted.

 

[Ahab]

Awesome review! If you can, please post your impressions of the Hybrid after a few miles. Beautiful truck. ENJOY!

So, I've had it a few days. One word, delighted.
The hybrid has done 47.2 and 51.0 mpg on local (<10 miles) urban trips. Took the Hairy One to the dog park and used the Christmas gift hammock, which worked extremely well. Took unneccesary trips to try everything, and most or all of the steering wheel menu and/or the screen menu are intuitive. Andriod Auto is fantastic, and hearing texts or songs off the phone are a pleasure. We had 8 inches of snow and until today an extended freeze, so road ice is everywhere, and I live on a hill. No problem - normal or slippery mode both obey a sensible driver. I have had two people stop and ask me about the truck, in both cases, new Honda Ridgeline owners. I loathe the exterior testosterone look of most trucks (Toyota needs labels on their fenders, "inflate to 100 pounds") but the Mav found that happy middle ground. The alto blue just kicks ass. And I'm not an exterior looks kind of guy. The interior, for form, fit and function, meets or exceeds expectations. My hand still reflexively gropes for the gear shift handle instead of the rotary gear dial, which is weird, but I'll get over it. Wind noise is minimal with the Lariat acousic windshield, which does matter. One gripe: storage is all over the place up front: which is good. But all of them are kind of small - collectively, there is a lot, but except for the cell phone compartments, there is nothing long enough to put some pens, or travel aspirin, or even chewing gum packets, for example. The center armrest cubby is HUGE, and deep, but I don't travel with anything that big in the cabin. I stick something small in there, it'll get buried.
I get the SIBL added tomorrow afternoon. Next Wednesday the dealer adds the bed swing-out tool box, the tailgate lock, and (required in WA state) front license plate holder. The tonneau has shipped and should be here in a week or so.
My career is manufacturing and supply chain. I took a personal and professional leap by getting the first-run of a manufactured product, which I rarely do, much less a truck, and think it will pay off. For those of you still waiting, be patient. I ordered mine on July 6, so I do understand the angst. It'll happen.
Best,
Ahab

 

[FloodingdowninTX]

That's beautiful man.
No, I didn't proofread your words. Maybe I read only a few.
But I'm waiting to have a hybrid of my own scheduled.
We shall never surrender!

 

[Jdub]

Received my Hybrid XL on Thursday! I put about 75 miles on it in the last 24 hours. Mostly highway miles. The mpg is right around 36 so far. I bought and installed the $300 tonneau cover from the realtruck website. Tonneau barely reaches the length of the bed so I plan to add some weather stripping to make a watertight seal where it meets the tailgate.

This is my first hybrid so here's a list of my first impressions:

1. No engine noise on startup. It just shows 'ready to go' on the instrument cluster. Once in drive, it whirrs out a simulated engine sound for pedestrians. In reverse it adds a little chirping noise.

2. Great adjustability in the seat. The one lever pushes the seat higher and forward, the lever behind it reclines the seat. Together with the telescoping steering wheel there is sure to be a perfect seating position for everyone.

3. Pleased with the audio. I like that the back speakers are raised up to ear level in the cab pillars. There are 'driver' and 'all seats' modes which adjust the front to back volume ratio. There is also high, mid, and bass eq adjustment.

4. Ride is smooth and probably more quite than the average sedan.

5. Instrument cluster is clean, it would have been nice if they put digital speed, compass, realtime mpg, and realtime battery charge/use on one screen. Instead I find myself toggling back and forth between the menus using the buttons on the steering wheel. I like that you can access most of the vehicle settings/features via the instrument cluster screen, so you don't have to fiddle with the main touch screen.

6. The back seats aren't bad, definitely not as spacious as an SUV, but I really like the modular 'fits' concept for the back seat. I can slide in the cup holder module if I have passengers, or put in the trash can module if I'm going on a long drive, or take it out if I need the floor space for groceries.

7. Truck bed is sturdy and the tail gate is pretty light. I wanted to install a drop in liner, but it seems like they are out of stock right now. I plan to cut some 2x6's to make a compartment for groceries using the built in diy slots in the sides of the bed. The XL doesn't come with floor anchors, but the holes are there already. Not sure if they are pre tapped.

It definitely has more power than my old 96' manual ranger that barely could get up to 70 mph. More powerful engine aside, the maverick does take me back to the feeling of the good old days.

That's all for now.

 

[Eagle11]

So, I've had it a few days. One word, delighted.
The hybrid has done 47.2 and 51.0 mpg on local (<10 miles) urban trips. Took the Hairy One to the dog park and used the Christmas gift hammock, which worked extremely well. Took unneccesary trips to try everything, and most or all of the steering wheel menu and/or the screen menu are intuitive. Andriod Auto is fantastic, and hearing texts or songs off the phone are a pleasure. We had 8 inches of snow and until today an extended freeze, so road ice is everywhere, and I live on a hill. No problem - normal or slippery mode both obey a sensible driver. I have had two people stop and ask me about the truck, in both cases, new Honda Ridgeline owners. I loathe the exterior testosterone look of most trucks (Toyota needs labels on their fenders, "inflate to 100 pounds") but the Mav found that happy middle ground. The alto blue just kicks ass. And I'm not an exterior looks kind of guy. The interior, for form, fit and function, meets or exceeds expectations. My hand still reflexively gropes for the gear shift handle instead of the rotary gear dial, which is weird, but I'll get over it. Wind noise is minimal with the Lariat acousic windshield, which does matter. One gripe: storage is all over the place up front: which is good. But all of them are kind of small - collectively, there is a lot, but except for the cell phone compartments, there is nothing long enough to put some pens, or travel aspirin, or even chewing gum packets, for example. The center armrest cubby is HUGE, and deep, but I don't travel with anything that big in the cabin. I stick something small in there, it'll get buried.
I get the SIBL added tomorrow afternoon. Next Wednesday the dealer adds the bed swing-out tool box, the tailgate lock, and (required in WA state) front license plate holder. The tonneau has shipped and should be here in a week or so.
My career is manufacturing and supply chain. I took a personal and professional leap by getting the first-run of a manufactured product, which I rarely do, much less a truck, and think it will pay off. For those of you still waiting, be patient. I ordered mine on July 6, so I do understand the angst. It'll happen.
Best,
Ahab

Great write up, I have an 11 yr old Rottie/Dalmation mix who can't jump up into the CRV without help, the Maverick doesn't look as tall as the CRV, so hoping Maggie (the dog) doesn't have many problems getting in, she loves going for rides....

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