Sell 1st Car (Prius) For Scion tC

It is much cheaper (Insurance, tickets,etc.) to drive a 'slow' car all out than to have to drive a 'fast' car as slowly as society demands.

I was never NOT at full throttle when accelerating with my Toyota Corolla All-Trac wagon, (103 Horsepower and all wheel drive) my daughter claimed the only car I ever passed going uphill was a Toyota Corolla All-Trac wagon with an Automatic transmission.

The Prius v is too 'fast' I am hardly ever at full throttle, unless passing at highway speeds.

 

I remember the days when I owned both my cars and motorcycle outright…

Those were the days.


I guess do what makes you happy and most importantly make sure you can afford the newer car first.

Your mpg will probably get cut in half though going to the TC for the 2008 Prius. So take that into account.

 

Keep the Prius.
Save for a house.

Driving new, exiting, modifiable cars is a really cool thing, but it's spendy.....and almost anything with a motor in it is going to be worth *nothing* in ten years.
I drive older cars and trucks now with $0 monthly payments. I didn't when I was a kid.
You have the opportunity to work it the other way around.
Drive more humble cars now.....and when you're older then you can drive whatever you want to!

My first car was a 70's model Pontiac Firebird.
I'm not very sentimental about it.
It would be a deathtrap by today's safety standards, and today's base model Camaro would run circles around it....and get better gas mileage doing it.

 

I completely understand your dilemma. I was a car guy, and these days my financial priorities are not fast or furious. However, trust me when I say that the TC is only a half measure. If you are going to commit to fun over frugal you should really know that the TC is hardly the car you want. I'm guessing your budget is about $6k-$7k. For that money you can find a decent used Miata or MR-2 Spyder. I'd look for something Toyota, Honda, RWD with a stick. The TC isn't bad, but beyond the sportier looks and worse mpg, its not so different than the Prius to drive.

 

38 years and nearly 60 cars later don't even remember my 1st car!

 

I'm in my 80s, so my opinion obviously isn't what you want to hear. However, I do remember the first car I owned. It was a 1953 Buick Ugly. (Maybe I'm not remembering the model name correctly, but I do remember the car.) This tank was equipped with a straight-8 engine and a DynaSlush automatic transmission. (Again, maybe my age has caused me to misremember the trademarked name of the transmission.) This vehicle got eight miles to the gallon of high test gasoline no matter what the driving conditions were. I could rely on getting 8 MPG driving around town with multiple stops, driving alone at low speeds on level roads, driving full throttle up hills, or driving with a car full of passengers and luggage at highway speeds on the Garden State Parkway. I suspect I could have turned the engine off and coasted downhill and still consumed a gallon of gas in eight miles. I grew to hate everything about that car.

By way of contrast, I love my 2007 Prius. The mileage is about 7.5 times better, it rides more comfortably, accelerates faster, handles better, and is a whole lot more fun to drive.

 

It's definitely a personal thing, no one can decide for you, and it depends largely on your priorities. I came from a 2nd-gen Integra (very fun) and while I still think fondly of the Teggy, I prefer the Prius by a long shot. My priorities are more in the environmental impact, ease of ownership and cargo versatility arenas though.

I used to like the tC, but as others have mentioned, it really doesn't impress in any category and it's pretty thirsty. If I wanted something sporty, I'd probably look for a Civic Si, but in reality, the Prius is my favorite thing to drive now.

I also recommend not being obsessed with the outer condition of an automobile. That's a stressful, frustrating compulsion. If you send a shiny piece of metal out into the world, it's going to get dirty, dull and dented. I like to allow cars to reach equilibrium with their surroundings--it's much more zen.

As with off-road driving (my roots), racing often has more to do with the driver than the vehicle. I'm certain that the Stig driving a Geo Metro would clobber me on the track, even if I were driving a Lotus. Much of performance driving is in the head. Focus on weight transfer and line selection, grip the wheel at 9 and 3, and just keep a bit of LeMans in your mind. It doesn't really matter what you're driving.

Don't forget that the Prius has rallied, it has autocrossed, and it has streaked across the Bonneville Salt Flats (and set a record for its category at 130.794 mph).

I'm glad I don't still have my first car ('84 Bronco, about 9 mpg, like above), but if my first car was a 2nd-gen Prius, I'd surely hold onto it!

 

That is what my BMW is for! When I get done with my work commute and get to go to the hockey rink.
TomK

 

go with your gut. just be sure what it's saying.

 

When I was 19, I bought a bright red Beretta GT; tinted it out, big stereo, loved that car. I sat down and calculated what it cost me....$210/mth payments for 4 years, $2.5k insurance, etc. etc. etc.....in 1990's dollars.

Had I tucked away that money and drove beaters, I would have enough now to buy any number of used toys on the market.

Keep your Prius and drive it into the ground...invest the money saved in maintenance/gas every month...buy an 350Z in 5 years, or an FR-S in 7. Let someone else eat the depreciation.

Faz

 

If your choice is between a Prius and a Scion tc, you should just stick with the Prius. You are not going to look any cooler with a scion.....so you should just bear it out until you can get something that makes a real statement......about coolness. The prius should be more reliable and should save you more money. Once you save enough money, then go buy the car you can ultimately enjoy

 

I used to drive a 1998 Mazda MX-3 1.6 litre twin-cam coupe before I bought the Prius. The MX-3 to me back then was the epitome of not just "cool", but "sub-zero"!
When I bought it back in 2004, the cost of petrol in the UK was never an issue. I'd metaphorically speaking, drive all the way to the Sea of Tranquility on the moon and back and never bother about the cost of fuel.

In those days, fuel was cheap. It used to cost me under £35 to fill the 50 litre tank. Fast forward to 2013, and it was costing me £60 to fill it up. Insurance had ballooned from barely £450 to some companies quoting me £1,200 - and that was with 15 years accident free...!!! The insurance code for the MX-3 was actually higher than a friends Mercedes C Class Saloon with leather interior and all the top level trimmings!

I was being financially scalped, because I was driving a car that looked like it was a flying saucer on wheels, and could break the sound barrier just sitting there, looking "Oh, so pretty. Yet, capable".
It WAS a nice car, and I bought it for its futuristic kick nice person looks. It certainly turned heads wherever I went. Inside, it was nothing spectacular. And apart from the much unannounced "Mazda Passive 4 Wheel Steer System", was pretty standard mechanically in its 1.6 litre guise. But I ended up paying through the nose to run it. It ran best on High Octane Super Unleaded Fuel - and that's what it got.

By the way, trivia; the MX-3 was used as a background prop, most of the body largely unmodified, in the movie "I, Robot". Will Smith actually slides across the bonnet of one in a chase scene in a car park.

I ended up selling my "beloved" MX-3 for purely economical reasons - the recession in the UK meant I couldn't afford to run it anymore! I did my homework, discovered with shock and horror that I could save £200 a month in fuel bills, buying and running a 2nd hand Prius!
Yes, I squinted at my calculations repeatedly, wondering where I'd gone wrong, and where the catch was......there were none really.

I part exchanged my MX-3 for the 2008 Prius and haven't looked back since. Do I miss driving that ellipsoid UFO on wheels that turned heads? Er....no. The Prius, mechanically, technologically, is light-years ahead of the MX-3 and similarly related standard cars!
I quickly realised that manufacturers were churning out virtually the same formula with hardly any innovation on the bulk of affordable mass produced vehicles. Generally the same engines and transmissions cleverly sold to the masses with a wide range of bodies to cater for individual tastes.

The Prius may not look like a Ferrari or carry the clout of a Mercedes Benz, but, it's got it where it counts. You've got a vehicle with inarguably one of the the most advanced mass produced hybrid propulsion systems ever manufactured. That the Prius II was over-engineered and is acknowledged as being generally ultra reliable is a big bonus.

I'd wager that your Prius II, cosmetically imperfect it may be at the moment, is more like the fabled "Millenium Falcon", than a boring Hyundai Trajet or something. You DO need a vehicle that saves you on fuel bills, and maintenance bills too. You can jazz the Prius up a bit with add-on parts if you want.

I do understand your wanting something exciting, but believe me when I say "exciting" is many a time overrated. My Prius II can dash from a standing start at "warp speed", if need be, compliments of its 67hp electric motor that puts instant torque straight into the propulsion system in a way ordinary cars cannot do! There's nothing quite as rewarding as pulling away from other cars (from a standing start in traffic), and hearing them working their gearboxes and clutches, while you effortlessly pull ahead, and slip into the lane you want, well ahead of them.

The Prius II is only as slow as you want it to be. And, anyway, drive safely! This vehicle encourages you to do that. Too Fast Too Furious? T'is, but a movie about fast cars. I often wonder how many people have got tickets because they were emulating this movie's antics? You probably want to avoid that. I guess the Scion's gonna be a lot more expensive to maintain than the Prius. Even if maintenance cost the same, stick with the Prius - I would strongly suggest.

I'd say, keep your Prius. It's a spaceship on wheels. Sorry if nobody else can see that. I'd also describe it as motoring's best kept secret. And that would be accurate. Properly maintained, the Prius in 2nd hand guise will save you money you can invest in the things in life that REALLY matter. Think of it as a "Nerd" car. A Prius II was driven by Leonard Hoffsteder in the earlier episodes of "Big Bang Theory" - I recognised the interior (even though they removed the front head rests for filming).

I'd stick with the Prius, and run it into the ground. Financially, you'll be way better off in the long run, and methinks you'll look back, and realise you made the right decision.

Over the last 2 years alone, I've saved over £4,000 in fuel bills!!! And that's helped me tremendously, in keeping my head above water in the biting recession over here in the UK. I wish I'd been driving a Prius during the 9 years I'd had the MX-3.

The final decision of course, is yours, and yours alone. No disrespect meant, or implied, by anything I have written above.

Good luck


iPad ? HD

 

I would not call tC an exiting car either. If you want more excitement from your drive consider Mazda 3. Available with stick if you'd like.

 

Check the insurance cost , seems to me the tC has a lot of miles on it but if it's in good running condition go with your feelings ,,, have a mech check it out ,
My first car 1951 plymouth cranbrook , rock solid , my second car 57 chev convert ,,, this was back in
Early 60s ,,,, both great cars , but the 57 was ,,, a ticket taker ,,,
Good luck to you

 

If you maybe meant a MAZDASPEED3, then yes I agree that is def. An exciting car. I've owned 2..... And a skyactive mazda 3 hatch (auto) in between the two Speed3's

In essence MAZDASPEED3 = fun
Regular mazda3 = not fun.

The new speed3 is supposedly slated to come out in 2017 with well over 300hp and AWD, to competed with the focus rs and wrx. Tempting..

 

Not fun? Even bone stock 2.0L Mazda3 sport with stick is more fun than tC. It may be underpowered, but at least it will be decent mountain/canyon carver in stock form.

Toyota had done marvelous job lately of depriving its owners from driving experience. Where are the all Celicas and Supras, MR2s gone? The only ones of their current offerings I'd consider are hachi-roku (FRS) and maybe new iA (which is rebadged Mazda2). But MPG on FRS is a deal breaker for me, iA isn't out yet, and when it will I'd still consider Mazda2 due to Toyota "nosectomy" job.

I hope MP3 will come with oil burner as they intended, so it will be hoot to drive and still get 40MPG.

 

whoa, deja vu all over again.