Opinions please, Hybrid vs Efficient ICE Car. Is it worth the investment?

Wow, the miss-conceptions abound even here!

First, please prove the Prius has a "hybrid penalty". No, you can't compare it to a Corolla. That's an economy car.

Second, the "ICE car", driven at 80 MPH, will also get much poorer mileage. The Prius will still win.

Third, the hybrid battery, while "expensive", is no more than the ICE car's automatic transmission, and they will fail at about the same time as the average for the Prius battery. The Prius has no clutches, belts, or shifting gears in its' transmission. It -should- last longer than a "normal" automatic (and does).

The real truth (not an alternate fact) is if you drive more than about 20,000 mi. per year you will save money. From the "experts" who have actually done the math. I believe they are called "accountants".

 

At what price of fuel? $3 and $4 yea, $2 not so much.

 

I don't know about the rednecks where you live but I've spent a whole lot of time running down I-79 in WV, I-77 through Va, NC, SC as well as I-26 in SC and I-95 in SC, Ga and Fl as well as I-75 down the length of Fl. and never ever once have I had issues driving at 65 mph in a 70 mph zone. In fact at least quarter the people on the road were driving around the same speed.

Making excuses that you have to drive 80 mph or people get upset with you, makes me wonder if it is an exaggeration.

If I was driving the miles you are there are very few cars that can beat a Prius in highway mileage, I get 56 mpg at 65 mph using Shell 87. The new fourth Gens Prius get about three to three and a half mpgs better at the same speed.

One poster did bring up the new 10th Gen Civic which as fuel mileage goes I feel it is an excellent choice as a non hybrid for highway use.

As you see with the chart below speed will kill your fuel mileage once you get over 60 mph.

Park the car in the right lane with the Cruise control set at 65 mph and enjoy the ride, screw everyone who thinks you're driving too slow they're not paying to fill your tank.

 

A great many who have the conviction that "if I don't go 80 they will kill me" have no idea there is any other lanes on the freeway but the left lane. Leave a sensible distance behind a Semi, go the same speed as a Semi, and no one will bat an eye at your speed.

The right lane is your MPG friend, the speed of travel of the long haul truckers is your MPG friend, leaving enough distance you don't have to ever touch your brakes is your MPG friend.

 

Around these parts......long haul truckers have settled on 63-65 m.p.h. .....I'm guessing they've decided that's the "Sweet/Spot", all things considered.....fuel economy, wear & tear, safety risk, etc., etc. .....good enough for them......good enough for me

 

i don't know about the finacials, but these cars are so frickin' cool, it's worth whatever it takes to own one. is there anything better than driving with the engine off, or having it shut off every time you come to a stop?

 

Lots of long haul truckers own their own cab and pay for their own fuel so they have calculated very carefully the benefits of speed versus cost. And some of the companies have governors on their trucks for liability reasons.

My approach is most normal runs I try to cruise control at 2-3 miles under the speed limit. If time is of the essence, then time is the determining factor.

Depreciation, insurance and maintenance costs are going to be far more than fuel costs on most cars. In 5 years I've spent $2.4k on fuel, lost $14k+ on depreciation, spent $50 on non-scheduled maintenance (darn wiper blades). Over 40k miles.

A hybrid has less ICE engine related costs, less brake related costs. So buy on reliability and depreciation estimates for the brand/model. But also factor in comfort in the hours you drive. Do a significantly long road test and make sure that over the thousands of hours you'll be in the car the car fits you and the sound fits you and all the rest of it is relatively unimportant lest you wind up with a car you hate to drive and want to dump it prematurely because the depreciation of an early turnover will kill you..

Good luck.

 

Along with cost of gas ,,,,, mpg remember
Difference in
Insurance
License yearly fees
Depreciation
Comfort

 

If you're looking to buy new, then also consider the Hyundai Ioniq. They are rated better in the highway than the Prius. You do have to take a risk on reliability.

But the Ioniq might be just cheap enough and efficient enough over a regular ICE car.

 

This is a good idea, but I would wait for real life MPG numbers, can't trust Huyndai on that. They cheated before. Reliability is unknown, but there is lifetime warranty on battery (not sure conditions).

 

yes, and no. how many miles on her?

 

On my car, the traction control light can come on briefly when driving over (especially braking while driving over) potholes and when there's standing water, ice, or snow on the road. If you were driving on a rough or very wet road, then the traction control seems normal. If you were driving on a dry and relatively smooth road, then that's something to check out. The Prius does get loud when the gas pedal is closer to the floor, so that's normal. 38 mpg is a bit low for your average Prius, but if you're driving faster or more aggressively than most it's reasonable.

 

No, he pressed brakes hard and activated hill hold. 38 MPG is low, unless one drives like my wife. Loud engine under hard acceleration is normal for any CVT, this is why most people dislike them.

 

did you reset a trip meter and see the result at the end, or were you trying to watch the instantaneous mpg's?

 

I bought a 08 prius a while ago for my wife to use for work (Nanny/transporting 2 kids) and then when she crashed it, we went a few weeks without it, there is no way I would not have a prius. So we bought a 2011 model 2. We use it for commutes and lots of day/ long road trips. Overall the best and most reliable car I have ever owned (over 30 cars by now).

I would recommend since you are not falling in love with the prius yet is to just get a nice reliable toyota or honda camery/accord and enjoy your 80+ mph speed limits.

For what it is worth, I drive all over the country going 55-60 mph ( I hypermill) and yes while people do get mad, I have never had something thrown at me and don't even get honked at much....only time I am willing to go faster is on 1 lane roads

 

I've filled up my PiP 10 times since I got it in late December. Just for grins, in my mileage spreadsheet, I made columns to compare my cost vs. a 49 mpg Gen 2 and a 28 mpg typical car. Over those miles (7,057), at current gas prices, the gen 2 would have cost $240 less than the typical 28 mpg gasser. I've spent $226.29 so far on gas and electricity. My PiP's gas and electricity costs are $333.82 less than the 28 mpg machine. At $3-4 per gallon, the savings will be much more, but this isn't exactly chicken feed for me.

 

How hard are you pressing the brake? Is there a beep too? If you immediately let go of the brake, does the car immediately creep, or does it stay stationary for a couple seconds?

With a hard press of the brake, you could be activating the hill-holder function, meant to prevent rolling backwards on uphill starts.