2011 Lexus CT 200h: A Prius In Lexus Clothing

you mean the engine? because nothing else is from Prius, nor did the article say so.

 

I thought it was a pretty well written and informative article. Any time you get a compact or 'sportier' type of car, there will be compromises on interior space. Usually there is less headroom, less rear seat room and less cargo room. The Mazda3 hatch is like CT, less interior room than Prius. Same with Focus hatch, Impreza, etc... all the ones with same length.

Not until you get into a true wagon do you gain the interior room back like in a Subaru Outback, Jetta Sportwagen or the new Acura TSX wagon, etc...

 

It's a very nice looking car. I've seen a handful driving around my area and I always give them a double take and a thumbs up. For the price, however, I'd prefer a Prius v or even a Prius V.

 

I bought a Prius IV (navigation) for my wife a month ago, fell in love with the car, and I almost bought one for myself. Wound up with a $32,000 CT instead (base CT luxury, vinyl seats, no navigation). As much as I love the Prius I like the CT that much more. The Detroit newspaper review above nails it. It's a Prius in a sportier, more luxurious package, with some very impressive technology.

For years I had my eye on cars that are similar in style to the CT; the Mazda 3 hatch, the Audi A3, the Volvo C. The Lexus brought everything together for me: styling, luxury, sportiness, and hypermpgs. Anybody who complains about the Ct being underpowered simply doesn't get the whole point of the car. And frankly when you dial it into Sport mode the car is quicker, the steering more responsive, the suspension tighter. When you put the CT into Eco mode it gets notably better fuel economy. The technology on the car just flat works, just like on the Prius.

These are the most impressive cars I've ever owned in many respects (Prius and the CT) and I've owned a lot of nice cars.

 

You would have to drive the Lexus a bit. It's really a completely different car. MUCH more sporting platform/wheels/tires/suspension. More luxurious, really feels like a Lexus (I had a 1999 GS 300 for three years, so I've had one of the bigger ones). Lexus does a very nice job, lots of nice touches on the car, higher build quality (my perception) than a Prius, which is high praise indeed (the Prius exudes quality).

 

I should have stated that for my needs, the Prius offers more utility. Comfort is nice but I work outdoors a lot and value cargo room more. The CT is nice and imo looks better than any Prius.

Handling is easily enhanced with new springs and sway bar.

 

What MPG are you getting with both cars?

 

After the Japanese natural disaster, the CT200h is finally back on dealer lots. I was at the Tustin auto center today and they had a row of CT200h, and when I was in Carlsbad this past week, they had a row at the Lexus dealer down there. I saw three brand new CT200h on the roads over the past week here in SoCal.

Hey Toyota, when are you going to send me my prototype test version of the Prius-C PHV, Lexus-conversion? I'm ready to start testing and sending you data.
.

 

Restoring hybrid production was priority for Toyota as cars are in high demand.

 

I know the Lexus HS250h is a Prius chassis with a Camry Hybrid engine and a modified Prius body. I think the CT200h is totally different vehicle than the Prius the only similarity being the engine.

 

you know wrong... CT is based on Prius but they changed... everything but powertrain.
HS is very much based on Avensis, including chasis/suspension.

 

Okay then Mahalo.

 

48-50 with the Prius, 38-44 with the CT. And to drop down to 38 you have to really flog that CT. The car is friggin great. As is the Prius. Just thrilled to death with both vehicles. The observation above is correct - the Prius is MUCH bigger inside, both for cargo and rear passengers. The CT is more sporty, luxurious. You know, it's just so Lexusy. GREAT feel and handling to the CT.

Couldn't possibly be more thrilled with these two vehicles. On the Prius we also sprang for a 5 year/125,000 mile Platinum Toyota extended warranty. My wife drives 25K miles annually. Hey the car is a month old, it already has 2000 miles. So it goes. The dealer only charged me $1100 for that extended warranty, that made sense to me.

 

I don't know if that's true, that's not the impression you get, but platform is just the foundation, you change the suspension and everything else and it's no longer the same car at all. How some people don't seem to understand that is odd to me (i.e. my 2007 Acura RDX may have been on the same platform as a Honda CRV, but the two cars couldn't have been more different).

Driving both cars back to back regularly, my impression is that the only parts they share is the drivetrain, and there are a couple of key differences there (i.e. the Sport Mode on the CT avails you bigger voltage than the system gives you on the Prius, you can research this). Even though the Prius may be a bit faster 0-60 (it's lighter) in actual real world driving (i.e., 30-50 mph) the CT feels like it has more balls when you're in power mode. But the CT feels like a pricier more dialed in car all the way around, that's what you get with a Lexus I suppose.

They are similar in some respects but quite distinctive in other ways. Both great cars. The Prius is more practical, the Lexus is more stylish and luxurious and a far better handler. What I really love about the CT is that it's a super gas-sipper that's huge fun to drive when you're in the mood. Sure, you have to get on it and peg the accelerator in those situations, but when you do it goes fast enough to be fun, and the handling of the car is sublime. Reviewers may call it 'numb' or 'disconnected', but that's not my perception. The car feels like it's on friggin rails. But smooth, plush rails : ).

Toyota does it right, Lexus does it even righter : ).

 

Actually, I think you are both perceiving it the same, but are coming from different priorities. The mutability of terms between the speaker and listener doesn't help.

'Numb' and 'disconnected' do not mean the car rolls along like an old land yacht. Soft like a comfortable couch. 'Plush' actually made me think of that. They aren't necessarily knocking the handling. A car can be well mannered (doesn't do something unexpected) and nimble even out to the extremes of handling demands, and not have what they are talking about. Which is feeling the road.

I said necessarily before because a car that doesn't communicate the road to the driver may give an impression of lesser handling. Also, at the extremes that some reviewers go to, that lack of addition information from the car could mean not taking the car to its limit, or going past it.

I can't speak of the CT or even the gen3, but back when I looked at the gen2 I also test drove the Matrix and Focus. Of the three, the Focus was the most fun the drive because it did transfer more of the road to me. But this is one of the many things that come down to personal preference in car choice.

 

Thoughts of a non-car guy:

I've seen reviews of the current Ford Focus and Ford Fusion that complement their handling and road feel, while still praising their ride quality and ablity to "isolate" the driver from bumps and vibrations. From my limited perspective, that is historically a hallmark of American cars (i.e., during my 40 years of driving), whereas Toyotas and certain luxury cars tend to be too numb or floaty, and Hondas and BMWs tend to be too sharp (better handling and road feel, but less isolation from bumps and vibrations).

I was thrilled when I got my 2010 5 Prius, since it had a much tighter steering ratio, less body lean, and a much more stable ride than my prior 2004 Prius. Over time, I've grown annoyed with the lack of "isolation", since most of my driving is now on bad city streets.

Based on my 2 limited test drives, the CT has a tighter steering ratio than Prius 5 (confirmed by looking at specs), and less body lean (not sure if this is all due to suspension differences or in part to better seats and lower seating position). The dampers and independent rear suspension seem to successfully increase isolation, by reducing vibration and at least some of the more intense bumpiness (compared to Prius 5). As most CT reviews note, it is still a relatively stiff and sometimes bumpy ride compared to higher end Lexus cars, and "road feel" is still sort of numb. However, it has an extremely "planted" feel to it (compared to Prius 5), which for me makes up for that numbness.

All in all, I'd prefer more "American" feeling ride and handling, but want a hybrid plug in with a hatch and better ride quality (more like my 2007 Hycam). I could try a Ford, but I don't really trust them and don't really like their looks, interiors, or cabin tech. If anyone wants to suggest alternatives, please feel free.

 

It is based on suspension differences. My 2005 Prius would sway like a tuna boat but after installing the stiffer lowering springs the body roll is almost completely gone. Those who install thicker rear sway bars claim the same reduction in body roll.

 

Funny. I always thought of that as European, since the Focus I drove was designed there. Then again, reviews said the suspension was 'detuned' for American tastes on roads.

I had a 1996 Taurus and2000 Ranger, and I liked them. The wife got a 2001 Sable because of the Taurus. I got the Matrix because I actually felt like trying something different. It was mistake. I really wanted the Prius, but if I had gone with the Focus, I could have happily waited for the gen3.

There was issues with the Taurus, but nearly all of them can likely be traced back to the first week I had it. I was rear ended at a stop. The mini-van buckled its hood. It looked like I got away with just a scrape on the bumper, but years later I realized it had twisted the entire frame. Except for the recent problem with Mytouch, today's Fords seem to be better built.

I brought that up because the selection of plug ins is limited in the near future. Unless you are also counting EVs with that term, it's the Volt, Prius, C-Max, and a super sports car (Karma Fischer, IIRC). If it doesn't click, then it doesn't, but they should be given a test drive first. Specially the KF.