The best electric car is the one you never have to plug in — a hybrid-electric car, such as the Toyota Prius. It has all of the advantages of an electric car, including the ability to be plugged in (if you buy the plug-in version) and run on battery alone for about 25 miles without ever having to worry about plugging in because it can recharge itself as you drive.

It also has twice the range of any purely electric car — more than 600 miles — so you don't have to stop for gas very often either.

It's an example of an electric car that makes a lot of sense, which is probably why so many people have bought one.

What It Is

The Prius is the original hybrid — the first mass-produced partially electric car.

Like an electric car, this compact-sized hatchback has a battery pack and electric motors. Unlike an electric car, it never runs out of charge — or range — unless you run out of gas. This eliminates the main problem besetting electric cars of having to plan your drive around your range because of the time and inconvenience involved in recharging electric cars.

The Prius also addresses another electric car problem: the cost. You won't spend a cent on gasoline if you buy an EV — but you'll spend a fortune on the EV. The least-expensive EV currently available, Nissan's Leaf, costs $27,400 for the base version with a smaller battery and just 150 miles of range. A Leaf with a higher-capacity battery and 226 miles of range lists for $32,400.

A Prius stickers for $24,625 to start for the L Eco trim.

You can also get all-wheel drive, something rival hybrids like the Hyundai Ioniq ($23,600 to start) don't offer. The cost so equipped is $27,235 for the LE AWD-e trim.

A plug-in variant called the Prime is also available. This one differs from the standard Prius hybrid in that you can plug it in to a household outlet to recharge its batteries and thereby use no gas. It can also travel about 25 miles on battery power alone, just like an electric car. But when it runs out of electric-only range, you don't have to stop for a charge.

Base price for the Prius Prime is $28,220.

What's New

To visually jazz up the Prius a bit, Toyota has added a Nightshade package to the list of available options. It includes black-anodized wheels and trim plus rain-sensing wipers, keyless entry, a heated steering wheel and simulated leather seat covers and door panel surfaces.

What's Good

Practical — and affordable.

Hatchback layout provides ample room for carrying large, unwieldy items.

AWD is available; other hybrids in the class such as the Hyundai Ioniq and Kia Niro don't offer it.

What's Not So Good

Center-mounted LCD touchscreen interface is not easy to use while driving.

Lacks the quickness that comes standard with most EVs.

Hyundai Ioniq costs less and is more conservatively styled.

Under The Hood

Every Prius comes with the same 1.8-liter, 121 horsepower gas engine on the one side of the hybrid drivetrain, paired up with a battery pack/electric motors on the other side of the drivetrain.

The standard Prius comes with a smaller battery pack that assists the gas engine in propelling the car and powering accessories when the gas engine is not running, as when the car is stationary or during deceleration/coasting. The standard Prius can also be driven about a mile at speeds up to about 25 mph on battery power.

The plug-in Prius has a higher-capacity battery pack that can propel the car at normal road speeds for about 25 miles.

On The Road

Neither version of the Prius is quick — zero to 60 takes more than 10 seconds — but unlike electric cars, the Prius just keeps on going long after the EV has had to stop and make you wait while it recharges.

The standard model's near-700-mile range is stupendous. It is nearly twice the range of the longest-range electric cars — for half as much as it costs to buy a Tesla 3 with its "long range" (358 miles) battery pack ($50,990).

At The Curb

Something almost everyone will like about this car is its expansive side glass, which tapers downward toward the front of the car so that by the time it reaches the driver/passenger side, the view to the side is superior versus many other modern cars.

Another Prius plus is the hatchback layout, which greatly ups the practicality quotient by making it feasible to use this car for things Toyota probably never intended it to be used for, such as carrying home a 4x4x6 fence post from Lowe's with the rear hatch closed.

The Rest

One nettle is that some desirable options, such as the 10-speaker JBL audio system that comes standard in the Limited, aren't available in the lower-priced trims.

Also, AWD is only available with the standard Prius; the plug-in version is FWD-only.

The Bottom Line

If you'd like to just drive without having to constantly think about how soon you'll have to stop , the Prius might just be the right electric car for you.

View the Toyota Prius this week.

Eric's latest book, "Doomed: Good Cars Gone Wrong!" will be available soon. To find out more about Eric and read his past columns, please visit the Creators Syndicate webpage at www.creators.com.