Please Help Me Choose a New Car!

You get 23 mpg (US) out of a 2.0 litre Audi A3? Then you must drive like your life depends on it.

My advice would be to keep the car you have and slow down!

 

I'm trying to decide between the 2012 3rd gen Prius IV/V, the Prius Plug-in, or the Chevy Volt. I thought about the lexus ct200h, but not sure i want to spend the extra cash for less mpg. I believe my distance is too far for the Leaf.

I would not buy a first generation anything or any GM product. Why does it have to be a Four or a Five? (Toyota doesn't call them IV/V as of the 2011 models) What option(s) do you need to have that justifies the extra $5,000 +?

 

doesn't your audi take premium too...?

a volt would be a huge setback to you financially...

i recommend a used genII for a lot less money (reliability is still there as most these car will last well over 200k miles)

a leaf would limit you to just your work commute.. if you sit a lot you may not have extra power to cruise on... a point a to point b type of thing...

a plug in prius will have a premium and in the end if you don't charge it every day you drive (as the volt) you're simply paying an extra premium for that car. then it comes down to charging. our electricity is almost on it's next tear and we barely use any electricity. if i were to have a plug in car, the savings would be change over the current prius.

you'll probably never see much of a gas up difference between the prius and the CT... except the ct is a way sexier car. (i see a few on the road every day) the ct is a true luxury prius in a sense... comfort and partial utility with good gas mileage versus the prius with it's better gas mileage (gas bill won't be too much different in the end)... the difference is.. the prius is designed to put a lot of crap in.. a utility vehicle of sorts along with a good car. since i haul things like lumber and such, my prius is perfect.. i could never do that in a ct.. and never would even if i did have the car.

with the options lexus puts on the car (mark levinson audio, etc) it comes out far on top in my opinion.

 

get the 2011 Prius Two if you want the savings.
Go for a Prius Four if you want the leather.

i totally understand where you're coming from.
my total commute is 80 miles one way.. yup that's eighty. but i only work 3 to 4 days a week and i don't want to live where i work.

We own a 2011 Lexus RX 350 and a 2009 Toyota Camry SE.
i use the Camry which gets around 26-30mpg highway BUT LA traffic is so horrible that i am sure i'm not getting the 21mpg/city.

to cut the story short, since the Camry is aging 72,000 miles already, we decided to trade it in and get a 2011 Prius Four. added the navigation package.

you might be surprised that the Prius has more leg room and MORE room for all the things you mentioned ( photo equipment etc) than the Camry.

Even though we own a Lexus, we didn't get the HS nor the CT200. if you're buying a hybrid.. get the Gold Standard... the Alpha dog. and that's the Prius.

as for the Nissan Leaf, which we also considered, there's a long line to get it.
People who have it now, ordered as early as Spring 2010.

good luck! happy car shopping

 

a premium prius isn't very premium though... a package 5 might get you better audio and radar cruise control with lane assist and such but will you use it? a package 4 gets a moon roof (cool)... but a solar panel and remote a/c that functions like crap (heard rumors they will pull it in the future)... and lets say those two are fully loaded... the audio is still crap IMO... it will never compare to your bmw audio.

seems like you need to go test drive a few cars.

it also sounds like the prius matches your utility.. the ct might too... but i don't know from experience. 8 ft lumbar fits perfect into a prius with the passenger seat folded flat. not sure about the CT...

 

Do you really expect anything close to an up-check on this forum for a Volt? Some of the folks in these hallowed halls would rather see you drive an H3.

OK...so since you're trying to disengage the "artsy" side of your brain for this decision, I'd go with a G3-IV.
You can buy one right now if you wish. Fewer questions about reliability or availability. Your driving habits (as indicated) make this subtype (as I see it) a good fit.
The ATP has a lot of groovy doo-dads, but you're not on the road enough to justify the cost to feature ratio.
YMMV.
Yes....I know. The folks in Aichi are trying to make us eschew Roman numerals for their model subtypes, so you may want to ask for a 2011 or 2012 "four"....or 4, or FO-WER for you Texicans.

I'd stay away from the Volt simply for the cost, limited availability, and reliability questions. Same with the PHV...except that I would expect fewer reliability issues, since the base drive train has been around for a while, but when they do come out---they're going to be overly expensive and hard to get.

Good Luck!
Let us know what you decide!!

Oh....
One last thing.

:welcome:

Welcome Aboard!

 

Advanced Technology Package.

https://encrypted.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=advanced%20technology%20package%20prius&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CCEQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.toyota.com%2Fprius-hybrid%2Foptions.html&ei=pf1nTs-NKrDLsQLB9uWfDg&usg=AFQjCNH52IyA8jHkTHdJEuUFASsqdgYBAA&sig2=ybbxGrZz6Hj1lSAjdOQ_gw&cad=rja

When compared to the Gen 3 Prius, the Volt makes monetary sense until you drive more than 55 miles per charge, then it is more costly to operate than the Prius. Once we know the EPA specs for the PHV Prius, we will know if there even is a range where the Volt makes sense.

Prius Two through Prius Five.
http://www.toyota.com/prius-hybrid/specs.html

 

IIRC, ATP = "Advanced Touring Package".
I'm not sure of all of the tricks and traps, since the "higher" trim levels are out of my economic depth band, but I believe it's available in the V...or five....or 5...or whatever they're calling it this month.
Do not confuse roman numeral V with Prius v, which is a different type altogether and, like the PHV, is not available yet.
Then...some forum cop will be writing you a ticket for using roman numerals as quickly as they can get the powdered sugar off of their fingers...

A quick trip to a Toyota dealership will answer alllllll of your questions.
Well....OK. Maybe not.
The last time I walked into a dealership, I knew more about the Prius than the sales person.
However (comma!) you can still do a stare and compare with the models that they have on the lot.

Shhhh!
Don't use the "V" word here. (meaning Volt)
We don't say good things about "that" car here!!

OK....so, as far as the Volt is concerned, if this were a fair and balanced website somebody would point out to you that you should be more concerned with the care and nurturing of our fragile little planet and that you should get the VERY greenest (non-GM )car you can afford. In terms of ROI, you're probably never going to wind up in the black with a Volt, or a Leaf, or the PHV.
It's supposed to be about more than return on investment.

Whatever.

Drive one of those as well if you wish, but as I said before....it's limited availability, initial cost, and questionable long term reliability would place this car on my "aviod" list. Same with the PHV. There's a reason it's taking so long to bring that car to market. I would just wait to make sure that's it's not developmental issues.
Probably not....but still.




Best of luck!

 

25 to 30 is a prime range for the Volt. (Unless you are comparing it to the Leaf where it loses until 72 miles between charges)

My speculation is that the PHV Prius will be more economical to operate very soon after 40 miles between charges and for ranges under 15 miles.

I suspect that the Prius PHV will use less electricity for the first 13 miles, then use regular gas with an MPG over 50. Somewhere under 20 miles the Volt (still using electricity) will begin to cost less per mile until 35 miles when it begins using Premium fuel at 37 MPG. Over 35 miles but not very long, the Prius is cheaper. 52 MPG? * Regular vs 37 MPG * Premium.

If you cannot charge it at the office, the Prius will be cheaper to operate (even the non PHV Prius will be cheaper to operate) If you can charge it fully twice a day, the Volt would be cheaper to operate.

 

I'm guessing it will be between don't-like-driving-a-Prius and don't-want-a-BEV.

 

Prius HEV, but, how much does your electricity cost per kWh?

If you can afford to think about a Volt, the LEAF is the best of the electrics for you (I don't think the range would be a problem at all, but non-commuting requirements could be too much). But electricity and your driving would make a big difference on whether the LEAF could save the difference over the Prius. I don't think it would, but it could get close enough that the EV bonus would make it worth it.

For more real-world information ask some drivers on Nissan Leaf Forum - Online forum for the Nissan Leaf Electric Car.

 

PHV Prius 26 miles on electricity, 13 free
Volt 60 miles on electricity, 30 free
Leaf 60 miles on electricity, 60 free

 

If you can charge at work then the LEAF would definitely have enough range (it does anyway).

If you aren't paying for the electricity then the LEAF would be the cheapest (only potential issue is battery replacement cost). (I'm against daytime workplace-charging during the day since it would add to peak load. I could excuse it if you had enough PV at home to cover your electricity use.)

With the 8.2c/kWh I'd still think a regular Prius to be better financially (but we don't know the PHV price yet).

The only issue with a LEAF would be the cost of other uses that it couldn't handle.