A few months have passed since we took delivery of our Toyota Mirai, and the sedan has already visited the dealership twice for servicing. Toyota offers free maintenance for three years or 35,000 miles, a more generous deal than the automaker’s typical two-year/25,000-mile coverage. Really, servicing the Mirai every 5,000 miles has felt like servicing any regular vehicle. Once the dealership has finished rotating your tires and performing a few inspections, you’re ready to go in an hour or two. There are a few differences, though. Only four dealerships in Southern California service the car, there are special Mirai technicians, and you’ll have to field a few friendly questions from the staff about how you’ve enjoyed the vehicle and what it’s like to fill up.
The Mirai has taken a few small trips, including a 200-mile round trip to San Diego to try fueling stations I haven’t visited before. First, I stopped at a station in San Juan Capistrano, which was the first station I’ve seen that automatically starts with a mandatory tutorial (unless you have a special code). Then we visited the new Del Mar station, where, as I often find when I go to refuel anywhere, another Mirai was waiting. The faithful Mirai provided a comfortable ride for the long journey, and I didn’t feel like I had to baby the throttle to go the distance. Although I only really needed to fill up once in San Diego, I’m glad I tried out the new stations and now feel confident in traveling longer distances with fewer fill-ups. Much of my range anxiety dissipated over time as I become more comfortable with the infrastructure.
Still, if you’re driving a Mirai, you might have to fill up more often than you would in a highly efficient gas-powered car. My average commute is 56 miles a day during the work week, and I’ll have to fill up at least twice during the week. Meanwhile, my range readout is still hovering below the 312-mile EPA rating.
Keeping me entertained during my drives is Toyota’s Entune system with a 7.0-inch touchscreen. It works well, and the screen isn’t prone to much smudging. Lower on the center console, there are buttons for seat warming. Because they are so close to the cupholders, I sometimes press them by mistake as I reach for my drink. Meanwhile, I also find myself wishing the vehicle had more lighting. With the infotainment screen far away and the instrument gauge not in its usual place right in front of the driver, the left side of the cabin gets pretty dark at night. I wish there were one small light so I could see to adjust the air vents, lights, and parking brake.
Something curious but mostly painful happened to me while filling up at a hydrogen pump recently. There is a metallic section in the middle of the nozzle unit just above the handle. A few of my fingers froze there, and it hurt pretty badly for a few minutes. The pain didn’t go away entirely for several hours. Perhaps it’s obvious, but you probably only want to make contact with the fueling nozzle in the handle area.
More on our long-term Toyota Mirai here:
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