Prius V

[asciibaron]

I've always been in the camp that you shouldn't extend yourself to afford a Prius. If it's in your budget/price range go for it. People that go 10-12k over their budget to buy a Prius can find themselves not getting their money back.

sure, if you can afford it, why not buy it over the other comparable vehicles. the short list for us given our needs (not our wants) put us into station wagons/cross overs and some SUV's. the best of the bunch were the Jetta TDI wagon, the CR-V and the Prius V.

the Jetta will breakdown, it's just a matter of when, the CR-V gets horrid mileage compared to the others, so the Prius V was what we went for.

for us, the hybrid technology's better mileage led us away from the CR-V, we didn't go looking for a hybrid. the big plus is that my wife can tool around on only the battery for the short trips she makes around town - that's significant if everyone did that.

[Lotophage]

waiting for the Subaru hybrid.

Yeah, keep waiting. My guess is they continue in their current "keep shooing our old customers away" mode and introduce a Suburban-sized SUV.

Says the customers "Hey guys, you've totally cornered the market for compact utility vehicles- all we want is better gas mileage."

Says Subaru "We hear you, that's why we made every vehicle 25% larger."

[asciibaron]

Yeah, keep waiting. My guess is they continue in their current "keep shooing our old customers away" mode and introduce a Suburban-sized SUV.

Says the customers "Hey guys, you've totally cornered the market for compact utility vehicles- all we want is better gas mileage."

Says Subaru "We hear you, that's why we made every vehicle 25% larger."

hahahah, so true. i have 4 years until i can buy a car, who knows what will come out then.

[Lotophage]

I've always been in the camp that you shouldn't extend yourself to afford a Prius. If it's in your budget/price range go for it. People that go 10-12k over their budget to buy a Prius can find themselves not getting their money back.

Though, that advice pretty much goes with any vehicle.

"But the BMW has great resale value!"

[asciibaron]

of course, this has been the mindset at Subaru...



what happens when you adjust those numbers for the cost of gas today. hahahah.

[takl23]

Though, that advice pretty much goes with any vehicle.

"But the BMW has great resale value!"

Of course, but people think the they will get their money back SO quickly with better gas mileage.

I've been looking at a 328xi actually....

[Lotophage]

hahahah, so true. i have 4 years until i can buy a car, who knows what will come out then.

Seriously, Mazda cx5.

Looks good, is fun to drive, has as much space as a forester but doesn't look like it was designed by the post office.

And in theory, Mazda will be bringing a diesel version to the states in the next couple years.

[GirchyGirchy]

hahahah, so true. i have 4 years until i can buy a car, who knows what will come out then.

No kidding. My '06 Altima is rated for 27 mpg highway. Sylint's '10 gets 32mpg. The just announced '13 will be rated for 38mpg. That's freakin' amazing.

[parity]

I just bought a Prius v Five about a month ago. And so far I am averaging 42.5 MPG. Its a great car, I am getting a hitch installed on it so I can put a bike rack on the back. Unfortunately, I couldn't fit my bike in the back standing up with the front wheel off without taking the seatpost off. Which is why I am getting the hitch bike rack.

I considered getting the Jetta Sportwagen but, I think the maintenance on the automatic DSG will be more. You can go to tdiclub.com and read their forums about the kind of maintenance required on an automatic DSG. However the manual transmission is better and cheaper. However I didn't want a stick so this is what was the deciding factor in getting the Prius v.

In regards to the Volt, they are up 276%:

http://media.gm.com/content/dam/Medi...Deliveries.pdf

And will restart production one week early:

http://idealab.talkingpointsmemo.com...aw-reveals.php

[Sylint]

No kidding. My '06 Altima is rated for 27 mpg highway. Sylint's '10 gets 32mpg. The just announced '13 will be rated for 38mpg. That's freakin' amazing.

I LOVE my Altima. I drive it hard w a roof rack and still get over 30 mpg.

[GirchyGirchy]

I LOVE my Altima. I drive it hard w a roof rack and still get over 30 mpg.

Get a MY13 and you should get 36!

[KWL]

Says Subaru "We hear you, that's why we made every vehicle 25% larger."

Ummm... Our 1999 Forester is rated at 25mpg highway (seems to be accurate) while our ... ahem ... 25% larger 2012 is rated at (again, what we are experiencing) 27mpg. They didn't shoo away this customer. It's a better car.

Back to the Prius. I've been a Prius-doubter. Then we rented one in California and drove it to Yosemite. It did well. I still don't think I would buy one, but the hate has been scaled down a bit.

[froze]

Gee, I get 20 to 21mpg in a 72 Chrysler Newport 4 door with a 440 cubic inch engine! I can very comfortably haul 6 tall people around with their luggage in the trunk. What's really cool is we can put our 3 grandkids in the back who all use child seats and their not bumping elbows.

[asciibaron]

Of course, but people think the they will get their money back SO quickly with better gas mileage.

14 months is pretty quick.

[DIRT BOY]

Wow dude, you got me. I'm just making all this up.

Its alo designed to be aerodynamic, as its under-powered. Also form an engineer and desginer at Toyota.

[DIRT BOY]

but i'm drawn to them like a moth to a flame, how ever will i manage?

the point of buying a Prius is two-fold:

1. for a little more money we got a car that has more space and gets better gas mileage

2. my wife can make the commute to work on only the electrics, thus saving even more money!

Unless she is going less than 20 mph, no she can't. But yes, you can go up to 20mph in EV mode. My wife's commute is 2.6 miles and most in in traffic. Yes, she in in EV most the time and goes well over a month on gas. She loves hers and I do to! It rides nice, comfortable and looks great. A little under powered, but I like it. She is getting 44.7mpg with the bigger 17" wheels. I got her a prius V 5.

[DIRT BOY]

sure, if you can afford it, why not buy it over the other comparable vehicles. the short list for us given our needs (not our wants) put us into station wagons/cross overs and some SUV's. the best of the bunch were the Jetta TDI wagon, the CR-V and the Prius V.

the Jetta will breakdown, it's just a matter of when, the CR-V gets horrid mileage compared to the others, so the Prius V was what we went for.

for us, the hybrid technology's better mileage led us away from the CR-V, we didn't go looking for a hybrid. the big plus is that my wife can tool around on only the battery for the short trips she makes around town - that's significant if everyone did that.

Your right. There are a few cars in the same class as well. The Outback, Santa Fe and the Kia Sorrento. The prius V has them beat by 20+ mpg in the city and vey, very close to room.

[DIRT BOY]

Says Subaru "We hear you, that's why we made every vehicle 25% larger."

And now there have record sales! I would have never bought a OB, if it stayed these same size. the cars got bigger and mph got better. So?

if I could drive a Tahoe sized SUV in Hybrid for under $30k and got 30 mph in the city, I would be all over that and so would most of America.

Not everyone want to drive a shoebox.

[DIRT BOY]

Ummm... Our 1999 Forester is rated at 25mpg highway (seems to be accurate) while our ... ahem ... 25% larger 2012 is rated at (again, what we are experiencing) 27mpg. They didn't shoo away this customer. It's a better car.

Back to the Prius. I've been a Prius-doubter. Then we rented one in California and drove it to Yosemite. It did well. I still don't think I would buy one, but the hate has been scaled down a bit.

Scaled down? Huh? The Prius is the same size. The Prius v is larger and the new Prius c is smaller.

[pennstater]

2006 Pruis. 70,000 miles commuting in New York City. Great fuel economy. Also, brakes are like new.
No brake dust and I would have had at least two sets of brakes on a non-hybrid by now. That's probably another 1,500 in savings.

And, I would pay extra for a vehicle that causes less pollution. I pay extra for a lot of things I think are important. Besides I usually would have bought a vehicle at least 50% more expensive.

Now both my adult kids also own a Prius plus an Rx hybrid. I have a 2007 Prius in a work fleet with 150,000 miles. Only one set of brakes, air filters, tires and oil changes. I should put in new plugs and replace the auxiliary belt. Amazing car.

I also believe it is important to tell the auto manufacturers that fuel economy does matter and that I am willing to pay for it rather than send young men and women to fight in the Middle East.

Sure, I'd rather have an Audi S4 but I can fit a Look XL frame in the back of my Prius with the seats down without taking off a wheel.

[DIRT BOY]

Get a MY13 and you should get 36!

That's great if you need why milage. But that's awesome for that size and quality car.

Sad things is, the auto companies could make that car get 60 on the hwy easliy.

[Chain]

i took the car out on a drive with the family after dinner to get myself familiar it. after a few miles i felt comfortable, but i can see where these things are easily distracting - i set the MPG display to average and left it there. when i put it to "real time" i kept trying to keep the number as high as possible and that was problematic - i was going 5-10 MPH slower than the traffic.

it can be fun to watch the numbers and keep them within the ECO range.

our little drive averaged 47.6 MPG. gas today was at 3.99 a gallon. my wife's 2003 Sonata was getting 23 MPG. she averages 15K miles a year.

Great... one more jacktard in the left lane of the highway doing 45 in a 65 just so they can play their mileage game and save the planet.

says a Honda Civic Hybrid owner... Actuallyt the best part about the hybrid is getting to drive in the HOV lane during rush hour.

[asciibaron]

Great... one more jacktard in the left lane of the highway doing 45 in a 65

hahah, we were doing 85 in the right lane while mooning the SUV a'holes as we passed. the four year old loved it!

[snapdragen]

Yeah, keep waiting. My guess is they continue in their current "keep shooing our old customers away" mode and introduce a Suburban-sized SUV.

Says the customers "Hey guys, you've totally cornered the market for compact utility vehicles- all we want is better gas mileage."

Says Subaru "We hear you, that's why we made every vehicle 25% larger."

Which is why when I decide to get rid of my Forester, I will not be buying another Subaru.

[KWL]

... Actuallyt the best part about the hybrid is getting to drive in the HOV lane during rush hour.

That achangin in Virginia.

Hybrid rules on Interstates 95/395:

• Hybrid vehicles licensed with clean fuel plates issued before July 1, 2006 are allowed to use the I-95/395 HOV lanes during HOV hours (6 a.m.-9 a.m.; 3:30 p.m.-6 p.m., Monday through Friday). The current exemption expires June 30, 2012. Hybrids with clean fuel plates purchased after July 1, 2006 are not allowed to travel on the I-95/395 HOV lanes during rush hour without three people on board.

Hybrid rules on Interstate 64 and Interstate 264 in Hampton Roads:

• Hybrids with clean fuel plates are allowed to travel in Hampton Roads on the I-64 and I-264 HOV lanes during rush hour with one occupant. The current exemption expires June 30, 2011.

Hybrid rules on Interstate 66:

• Hybrids with clean fuel plates issued before July 1, 2011 are allowed to travel in the HOV lanes on I-66 during HOV hours (6:30 a.m.-9 a.m. eastbound, 4 p.m.-6:30 p.m. westbound, Monday through Friday) with one occupant. That exemption will expire June 30, 2012. Hybrids with clean fuel plates purchased after July 1, 2011 are not allowed to travel on the I-66 HOV lanes during rush hour without two people on board.

Hybrid rules on the Dulles Toll Road:

• Hybrids with clean fuel plates are allowed to travel in the HOV lanes on the Dulles Toll Road during rush hour with one occupant. That exemption will expire June 30, 2012.