Toyota Prius
Jun 15th, 2006 | 11:34 AM
#41
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,762
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I bought a civic Hybrid 3 yrs ago because I liked the look beter than the Prius.
Now that there are so many of the Prius on the road....I'm more accepting of the look. If I were buying now...I'd go with the Prius
My understanding is that the Prius goies all-electric in the city and gets much bettter mileage than the civic.....but on the highway, the civic seems to do better.
Now that there are so many of the Prius on the road....I'm more accepting of the look. If I were buying now...I'd go with the Prius
My understanding is that the Prius goies all-electric in the city and gets much bettter mileage than the civic.....but on the highway, the civic seems to do better.
Jun 15th, 2006 | 01:17 PM
#42
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 23,073
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A hybrid makes the most sense for those people who drive mainly in the city and not in extremely hot climate. That's because a hybrid does its magic in two main ways - 1) at low speed, the gasoline engine can stay off; 2) during braking, the kinetic energy of the vehicle gets converted to electrical energy and gets stored in the battery. When you're driving on the interstate, neither feature is working, so you just have a well-built car, like all Toyotas are.
And I believe the gasoline engine has to run to get you A/C. So, if you live where A/C is required most of the time, the benefits also diminish.
For those who enjoy the hackback and extra storage, you may want to consider the Matrix. A 2WD XR can get 36MPG highway with a manual, 34MPG auto. And this middle trim MSPR at <$17,000.
BTW, a Golf TDi diesel gets 37/44MPG - which may be worth considering as well.
And I believe the gasoline engine has to run to get you A/C. So, if you live where A/C is required most of the time, the benefits also diminish.
For those who enjoy the hackback and extra storage, you may want to consider the Matrix. A 2WD XR can get 36MPG highway with a manual, 34MPG auto. And this middle trim MSPR at <$17,000.
BTW, a Golf TDi diesel gets 37/44MPG - which may be worth considering as well.
Jun 15th, 2006 | 03:54 PM
#45
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 4,713
Likes: 0
My next car will be a prius (unless a better hybrid comes along). I know that the gas savings might not be worth the extra cost, but to me, helping the environment would be worth it.
someone said "Saving 100 gallons of gas will not reduce US' dependence on foreign oil, and will not do a single thing on total energy consumption, even if every American drives a hybrid." Ummmm I don't think I agree. IF a Prius gets 50 mpg on the average and EVERY American drove one (or an equivalent) how could that NOT effect our dependence on others for oil? 50 mpg is twice as much as many cars, and even 3 or 4 times more than others. I'm sure it would make a nice dent in our foreign dependence.
And every time I see a Prius, I have Prius Envy!
someone said "Saving 100 gallons of gas will not reduce US' dependence on foreign oil, and will not do a single thing on total energy consumption, even if every American drives a hybrid." Ummmm I don't think I agree. IF a Prius gets 50 mpg on the average and EVERY American drove one (or an equivalent) how could that NOT effect our dependence on others for oil? 50 mpg is twice as much as many cars, and even 3 or 4 times more than others. I'm sure it would make a nice dent in our foreign dependence.
And every time I see a Prius, I have Prius Envy!
Jun 15th, 2006 | 04:59 PM
#47
Original Poster
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 1,276
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Jun 15th, 2006 | 05:31 PM
#48
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 23,073
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Austin - Let me explain one more time. We buy foreign oil because cost of domestic oil production is higher than importing. Has nothing to do with fuel economies of our vehicles.
Reduce the production cost of domestic oil, and we'll buy fewer foreign one.
Reduce the production cost of domestic oil, and we'll buy fewer foreign one.
Jun 15th, 2006 | 05:48 PM
#49
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 12,848
Likes: 0
Lynnejoel, my son's piano teacher has a Prius (for about 10 months now) and simply adores it. She is happy with it on every score, and with pump prices at near record levels I doubt you will ever regret the decision. Everyone knows that hybrids sell at the list rate, and I respect people who drive them; they are the ones putting their money where their mouths are--
I still do a lot of carpooling/hauling kids and dogs to the lake so I bought a new Nissan Quest last June. I've had it for exactly a year and have almost 39,000 miles on it. You can bet I would love to have that Prius!
Because I have a real-time fuel consumption bar graph window on my GPS screen, I have learned to modify my driving to get the best possible gas mileage. I use cruise control when going above 35 or 40; the steady gas supply is much more efficient than the intermittent bursts of gas using one's foot allows. I get a little over 24 MPG overall in my 350h minivan--about 22 in the city and up to 27 on the highway.
Thank you for being such a good citizen!
I still do a lot of carpooling/hauling kids and dogs to the lake so I bought a new Nissan Quest last June. I've had it for exactly a year and have almost 39,000 miles on it. You can bet I would love to have that Prius!
Because I have a real-time fuel consumption bar graph window on my GPS screen, I have learned to modify my driving to get the best possible gas mileage. I use cruise control when going above 35 or 40; the steady gas supply is much more efficient than the intermittent bursts of gas using one's foot allows. I get a little over 24 MPG overall in my 350h minivan--about 22 in the city and up to 27 on the highway.
Thank you for being such a good citizen!
Jun 16th, 2006 | 02:51 AM
#51
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 650
Likes: 0
Wow! Still a hoppin' thread.
Don't have to read this reply, as I'm going to digress a bit, but I do feel it's to make a point. ;-)
Will ask hubby as he studied this stuff way before this particular model was released...and was so excited by its potential that when it came out & I said..."But, isn't kinda funky-looking?" (just my personal tastes at the time) seeing his enthusiasm for all that it might offer...
I just had to 'go along.' ;-)
And he had to wait a long time for the car then...due to Toyota not expecting the early very positive response it got! (but still not over MSRP)
It felt good as the early birds for this model to help (at that time for sure) let others see
that these things are NOT bizarre, not under-performing,
not...hard to use. (early perceptions)
Well, you get my drift.
But that was back then.
Now they are just huge where we live & yes, you're safe in assuming we're in Nor Cal. But it's so encouraging to see!
One day after hiking in a local park,
returned to find maybe out of 8 parking spaces, at least 3 were Prius!
Pretty cool. (may have even been 4 of 'em...I don't know but it was pretty fun to see them all lined up there...& I just had to snap a picture!)
Hey...that was over a year ago, so...
was still fairly new to be seeing more & more of them. So cut me some slack! ;-)
Once gas prices truly shot up, well, now the populace as a whole began to re-think their choices a bit...
and the numbers have only grown.
I'll ask hubby about the battery issue...any concerns out there, but I DO know that our particular year came with a 10-yr warranty on the battery as an 'enticement' (to everyone) so no one would be 'leery' or concerned about this very issue. (since a new model over here)
Hubby had zero qualms after seeing how long they had been on the road in Japan, after all. Like today, when I just saw the world's coolest solar/hybrid/diesel blend ferry boat...
on its way here...am hearing the same. They compared it to the Prius...
and said, like with it, it would switch to fossil fuels as needed, but overall they expect it to conserve over 50-60%!
When they started discussing how the extra $1 mill over traditional passenger-only ferries would pay itself off easily w/in a couple of years...well, it made me think of THIS conversation, folks. ;-)
Btw, like w/the Prius...
the new boats have already been in existence & a great success in Australia. (Sydney)
So what seems all 'new' here often is far from it. We have to all not forget that thing, when super-concerned about battery issues, etc. (Other examples that come to mind:
we were WAYYYY behind too on pay-at-pump gas pumps in the US ...
I saw them in Norway a number of years before here...due to lack of population there to man pumps/stores.
Same went w/the novel thing (I thought at the time) of drawing money right out of your bank account while shopping, which again Norwegian hubby was doing in Norway, fully 5-7 yrs before it reached our shores. (he was doing this back when we were in college still!) We're now 40-ish...
so you can do the math. ;-)
Lastly, the whole prepaid bridge toll crossing device which we use in cars...again, *heavily* employed by Europe years & years ago. I was just waiting to see when that might finally hit our shores. Thank goodness, it's finally here, as well.
Just wanted to say I admire everyone's discourse here & think it's been a most interesting thread. Any other questions, feel free to ask.
Just remember both w/that Civic & any other hybrid, what is experienced mileage-wise the first year is NOT the best you're going to get.
It takes a while to reach max efficiency. (and re: questions on temps...we HAVE driven it through VERY hot regions last summer w/AC & still did fine on freeway gas mileage-wise)
I doubt we averaged the close to 60 we now get, but I think it was more around 50.
Even ON freeways, I see it kick over to battery sometimes, as it gets into a groove, it seems. Maybe sometimes this is when we're heading down hilly parts of freeways, but I don't think so. But I love to see it, I tell ya!
Don't have to read this reply, as I'm going to digress a bit, but I do feel it's to make a point. ;-)
Will ask hubby as he studied this stuff way before this particular model was released...and was so excited by its potential that when it came out & I said..."But, isn't kinda funky-looking?" (just my personal tastes at the time) seeing his enthusiasm for all that it might offer...
I just had to 'go along.' ;-)
And he had to wait a long time for the car then...due to Toyota not expecting the early very positive response it got! (but still not over MSRP)
It felt good as the early birds for this model to help (at that time for sure) let others see
that these things are NOT bizarre, not under-performing,
not...hard to use. (early perceptions)
Well, you get my drift.
But that was back then.
Now they are just huge where we live & yes, you're safe in assuming we're in Nor Cal. But it's so encouraging to see!
One day after hiking in a local park,
returned to find maybe out of 8 parking spaces, at least 3 were Prius!
Pretty cool. (may have even been 4 of 'em...I don't know but it was pretty fun to see them all lined up there...& I just had to snap a picture!)
Hey...that was over a year ago, so...
was still fairly new to be seeing more & more of them. So cut me some slack! ;-)
Once gas prices truly shot up, well, now the populace as a whole began to re-think their choices a bit...
and the numbers have only grown.
I'll ask hubby about the battery issue...any concerns out there, but I DO know that our particular year came with a 10-yr warranty on the battery as an 'enticement' (to everyone) so no one would be 'leery' or concerned about this very issue. (since a new model over here)
Hubby had zero qualms after seeing how long they had been on the road in Japan, after all. Like today, when I just saw the world's coolest solar/hybrid/diesel blend ferry boat...
on its way here...am hearing the same. They compared it to the Prius...
and said, like with it, it would switch to fossil fuels as needed, but overall they expect it to conserve over 50-60%!
When they started discussing how the extra $1 mill over traditional passenger-only ferries would pay itself off easily w/in a couple of years...well, it made me think of THIS conversation, folks. ;-)
Btw, like w/the Prius...
the new boats have already been in existence & a great success in Australia. (Sydney)
So what seems all 'new' here often is far from it. We have to all not forget that thing, when super-concerned about battery issues, etc. (Other examples that come to mind:
we were WAYYYY behind too on pay-at-pump gas pumps in the US ...
I saw them in Norway a number of years before here...due to lack of population there to man pumps/stores.
Same went w/the novel thing (I thought at the time) of drawing money right out of your bank account while shopping, which again Norwegian hubby was doing in Norway, fully 5-7 yrs before it reached our shores. (he was doing this back when we were in college still!) We're now 40-ish...
so you can do the math. ;-)
Lastly, the whole prepaid bridge toll crossing device which we use in cars...again, *heavily* employed by Europe years & years ago. I was just waiting to see when that might finally hit our shores. Thank goodness, it's finally here, as well.
Just wanted to say I admire everyone's discourse here & think it's been a most interesting thread. Any other questions, feel free to ask.
Just remember both w/that Civic & any other hybrid, what is experienced mileage-wise the first year is NOT the best you're going to get.
It takes a while to reach max efficiency. (and re: questions on temps...we HAVE driven it through VERY hot regions last summer w/AC & still did fine on freeway gas mileage-wise)
I doubt we averaged the close to 60 we now get, but I think it was more around 50.
Even ON freeways, I see it kick over to battery sometimes, as it gets into a groove, it seems. Maybe sometimes this is when we're heading down hilly parts of freeways, but I don't think so. But I love to see it, I tell ya!
Jun 16th, 2006 | 03:05 AM
#52
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 650
Likes: 0
Oooo...to clarify.
The 10yr warranty came on all Prius when we purchased. (an early perk for first year buyers perhaps)
The tax rebate was being threatened back when we bought even...we knew its time and the amount would be going away eventually, so if that's still decent & you're pondering a Prius...
I highly recommend that you take advantage of that sooner than later. (as more & more sell, may become too costly to offer...or so will go the thinking)
Lastly, more on that new Solar Sailor I mentioned. (article & pics attached, altho' not as good on images as I saw earlier)
Think it's been used in Sydney for 5 yrs already but w/out the wind component which they've now also added! The answer to everything? No. Nor is the Prius.
But both DO contribute in their own way to take some of the 'load' off our already over-burdened environment & air/water. (*never* a negative)
Excerpt follows w/link.
Don't forget to click on photos!
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...type=printable
***************************************
"The operators love it, the passengers love it, and it produces zero water pollution," said Robert Dane, a physician and sometimes yachtsman who invented the solar panel wing device that is the heart of the boat.
The solar wing, which can move up, down and sideways, collects sun power, which is then transferred to batteries that power the boat's electric motor.
Solar isn't the whole show -- the sun only produces 24 horsepower, enough to run the boat at about 5 knots. For extra power, the boat's generator can run on LPG gas, and the wings can be used as sails.
***************************************
The 10yr warranty came on all Prius when we purchased. (an early perk for first year buyers perhaps)
The tax rebate was being threatened back when we bought even...we knew its time and the amount would be going away eventually, so if that's still decent & you're pondering a Prius...
I highly recommend that you take advantage of that sooner than later. (as more & more sell, may become too costly to offer...or so will go the thinking)
Lastly, more on that new Solar Sailor I mentioned. (article & pics attached, altho' not as good on images as I saw earlier)
Think it's been used in Sydney for 5 yrs already but w/out the wind component which they've now also added! The answer to everything? No. Nor is the Prius.
But both DO contribute in their own way to take some of the 'load' off our already over-burdened environment & air/water. (*never* a negative)
Excerpt follows w/link.
Don't forget to click on photos!
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...type=printable
***************************************
"The operators love it, the passengers love it, and it produces zero water pollution," said Robert Dane, a physician and sometimes yachtsman who invented the solar panel wing device that is the heart of the boat.
The solar wing, which can move up, down and sideways, collects sun power, which is then transferred to batteries that power the boat's electric motor.
Solar isn't the whole show -- the sun only produces 24 horsepower, enough to run the boat at about 5 knots. For extra power, the boat's generator can run on LPG gas, and the wings can be used as sails.
***************************************
Jun 27th, 2006 | 09:40 PM
#55
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 9,922
Likes: 0
On a point of Daydreamer's, last time we were in the US (10 years ago now) I noticed quite a few gas stations offering a choice of full service or self-service lanes, which I liked. Here in Australia full service even then was as scarce as hens' teeth. They weren't high-status jobs, but helped to reduce the unemployment numbers and were good for students. Many people I know would be more than happy to pay a little more per litre for the old fill-'er-up/clean windscreen/check oil.
Jun 28th, 2006 | 03:50 AM
#57
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 9,641
Likes: 0
We're starting to car shop and the Prius is on our list (caveat: we're Canadian/American but live in the UK). We don't live in an extreme climate and the car would be used mostly for around town and shorter trips, although we may take it on some longer ones. Compared to many of the cars people drive around here, it's not that small and offer a lot more rear leg room than the other fuel efficient (roughly 50 mpg) car we like--the Citroen C3 (for reference, see: http://www.citroen.co.uk/level3/mode...sp?pagetype=C3). The Citroen C3 is cuter and a lot cheaper but offers next to no leg room in the back. However, we would get significant tax and insurance breaks on the Prius and if we drove into London with it (not that we ever would), we wouldn't have to pay the "congestion charge" (a $15 per day charge to drive in the main part of town). FYI, gas here is somewhere in the $8 per gallon ballpark. I don't like driving over 65 mph anyway.
So...Prius owners...how comfortable is it up front for semi-long distance trips (driving 3 to 5 hours at one go)? Esp. for someone over 6'? How is it in the back compared to a Corolla or Honda Civic or VW Golf?
IF you found a "regular" car getting 50 mpg would you still want the Prius?
So...Prius owners...how comfortable is it up front for semi-long distance trips (driving 3 to 5 hours at one go)? Esp. for someone over 6'? How is it in the back compared to a Corolla or Honda Civic or VW Golf?
IF you found a "regular" car getting 50 mpg would you still want the Prius?
Jun 28th, 2006 | 04:05 AM
#58
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 10,169
Likes: 0
BTilke, I find the seating in Prius to be at least as good as a Corolla. It also has a very useful boot without needing to use the rear seat area. We rented one for a week and got about 55 miles per US gallon (rental agency told us to expect 44) in a combination of town, rural roads (equivalent of UK 'B' roads, trunk roads (UK 'A') but very little motorway in a hilly area. We LOVED this car and would buy one in a minute except that we live in a place with many unpaved roads and consequently need a lot of ground clearance. The only problem with the Prius was remembering to watch the road rather than the screen that displayed current activity and mileage. Starting is not intuitive, and the shift lever is counter intuitive (or was in 2004) but you quickly adapt.
Jun 28th, 2006 | 07:13 AM
#59
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 556
Likes: 0
BTilke -
I can't speak about comfort in the back seat but I've been perfectly comfortable driving 2-3 hours trips. That's the longest drive I've done so far in the year I've had my Prius.
Regarding a regular car that got similar mileage, I'd probably still choose the Prius. The low emissions are very important to me. In addition, it's just a really cool car! I love the technology included and I really love how quiet and smooth it drives (due to the type of transmission, you don't feel any shift as you accelerate).
I can't speak about comfort in the back seat but I've been perfectly comfortable driving 2-3 hours trips. That's the longest drive I've done so far in the year I've had my Prius.
Regarding a regular car that got similar mileage, I'd probably still choose the Prius. The low emissions are very important to me. In addition, it's just a really cool car! I love the technology included and I really love how quiet and smooth it drives (due to the type of transmission, you don't feel any shift as you accelerate).
Jun 28th, 2006 | 06:37 PM
#60
Original Poster
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 1,276
Likes: 0
hey again everyone,
thanks again for your good cheer and encouragement.
we bought a silver one. i never wanted a silver car, but i get migraines and hot cars + driving around always triggers one. i now love silver cars. funny how opinion changes.
prius is pretty roomy. i was surprised b/c we also own a 12 yr old tank of a buick and the prius is designed better and thus more interior room.
if you're over 6' be careful when getting out of the car! i'm only 5'7" and i bonked my head getting out on the door frame!
thanks again for your good cheer and encouragement.
we bought a silver one. i never wanted a silver car, but i get migraines and hot cars + driving around always triggers one. i now love silver cars. funny how opinion changes.
prius is pretty roomy. i was surprised b/c we also own a 12 yr old tank of a buick and the prius is designed better and thus more interior room.
if you're over 6' be careful when getting out of the car! i'm only 5'7" and i bonked my head getting out on the door frame!
