Okay. This is getting silly now.

I just joined (Hi all), because I'd like to say that I'm antsy about the price too.

I could be one of those 'new to prius owners'. We don't own a hybrid, nor would we probably save any money with one, because my wife and I probably drive less than 15K miles per year _combined_.

So why am I thinking about the prius at all? I'm considering it because we're in the market for a new car, sometime this year probably. Our cars are relatively old (7 and 8 years), and the oldest is showing increasing signs of getting ready to call it quits.

Furthermore, I don't particularly like buying used cars. I prefer to buy a car new, with a loan, then own it much past the end of the loan. That way the costs are more balanced budget-wise: I start with a car loan payment while it's fully covered under warranty, and by the time it drops out of warranty, I can afford repairs because I own the car out-right. Owning the car longer saves me money because I lose the difference between 'retail price' and 'trade-in value' less often by making fewer vehicle trades at dealerships. When compared with buying a 3-year old car every 3 years, that savings alone can get pretty close to the faster depreciation of the new car. Add to that the advantage of starting ownership with full warranty coverage and no repair cost, and 'knowing' your car when the warranty runs out, so I know it hasn't been run down, beat-up, or maintained badly, and if by it turns out to be a bad-news car, I can still get rid of it. But I would prefer the car to be good enough to keep.

So I have set a budget for myself for 'car spending', put some thought into it, and then consider what cars would be a good buy for my 'ownership pattern' and demands for a car.

Because I prefer to own a car longer, reliability matters. While we don't drive very much now, and gas prices aren't crazy at the moment, both those facts may not stay the same for all those years that I hope to own the car.

We like to travel for vacations, sometimes by car. We really like having a sunroof. The car we're keeping (for now) has a trailer hitch and can be used to haul bigger items, so we won't miss one.

I had been looking at the Camry Hybrid, a reliable four-door sedan that should be comfortable enough on longer trips, with more power than the four-cylinder but much better fuel mileage than the six cylinder. Seemed like a very good match.

Then Toyota puts in the 2010 Prius:
- According to some reports, less road/wind noise (more comfort)
- A sunroof that also happens to keep the car from getting too hot when parked in the sun.
- This hypnotizing magic mpg value (50), a level where we won't have to worry about gas prices going back up any time in the next six years, for on our longer trips, or for regular driving if/when we do start driving more.
- For a price less than the Camry Hybrid.

So.... I'm interested in the Prius 2010 price because if not too high, the savings versus the camry hybrid can be worth the (hopefully small) loss of driving comfort, leaving us with more money for the many other things in life...

I'm actually more interested i hybrids more than last summer, because back then they were in short supply, high demand, and selling above msrp, while now many of them are even below invoice.

Getting a deduction for the sales tax, and maybe more (HR1606??), does give me an incentive to not wait until the recession is over...

 

Welcome!!

Time to get a Toyota then.

I'm guessing from this you haven't owned a Toyota before?

I buy used Toyotas, keep them for 10 to 14 years, don't spend anything on repairs and save a bundle, but each to his own.

You will do well with a Prius.

 

Hi there! As an owner of a 2007 HyCam with 46,000 miles on it and a sun/moonroof, I can confirm that it is indeed very comfortable on long trips and very reliable. Trunk space has also been adequate (often mentioned as a potential drawback) for 2 people with dogs. As a former owner of a 2004 Prius, I can confirm it too was very reliable, but much more tiring to take on long trips. However, the hatchback design makes it a much more versatile car and it was a great runabout for in town driving.

My current intent is to replace a '97 CRV with the 2010 Prius, if it is priced reasonably (as in less than a similarly equipped HyCam). The improvements they have made appear to address all of the known shortcomings of the Prius, including more comfortable and height-adjustable seats, tilting/telescoping steering wheel, much better (less finicky) electronic steering, much improved linear tracking and highway stability, and enough additional power to remove any concerns about the current Prius being slightly underpowered for long hill climbs, etc. Plus you can get that remarkable sunroof now!

It will be interesting to see if the new Prius becomes my preferred long trip car, based on MPG, cargo flexibility, and the adaptive cruise control. I suspect the HyCam may still be slightly better from a ride and comfort point of view. You can't get the SR and the ADC in the same package this 1st model year, but since ADC is likely to be an expensive option, you probably don't care about that. Here's hoping for reasonable pricing for all of us!

 

Thanks for the feedback guys!

Well, when saying repairs I also meant increased maintenance. For example, A new set of tires typically costs the same as a car payment. Also, I live close to the beach and the salt will get into anything, and I'm not just talking about rust on the vehicle body (which btw can be greatly reduced by regular rinsing and a good paint sealer). Leave the car parked outside for a week and the first time you take it out you can hear what it did to the rotors/break pads... Anything under the hood that isn't sealed in gets attacked vigorously, from hose clamps and c-clips to radiators and AC tubing.

I'd love to see a car I own to last that long, but I don't see that happening for me. I love the beach, but cars don't like the salt so much...

If the price is right, I certainly hope I won't be disappointed.

 

Thanks for that feedback. It would be nice if it were possible to rent one for a couple of days before buying, to take out on a longer trip, but how could you guarantee to get a 2010 model if you go to a rental company?

 

There won't be any 2010s in rental fleets for a while...

 

MotorWeek review of the 2010

MotorWeek: Road Test: Search

 

Hi Lauren! Welcome to Prius Chat! :welcome:
I know we love our Prius... and I really enjoyed my chance to see and play with the 2010, back in January. If you get a chance to take a test drive (or two) of the current Prius, you will have something to compare to the 2010 when it comes out

Enjoy!

 

Thanks for the welcome Rae Vynn and actually I JUST DID!!! I rented an 09 from our dealership here for the weekend, drove about 600 miles on a road trip, and was VERY happy with how it performed. It was almost all highway trip and I averaged 42.7 mpg, going 72-74 mph on cruise. That makes me smile.

However, I think I am willing to wait for the 2010 because it has so many little things improved or added that are worth the wait for me. But it was so beautiful driving a brand new car and my friends were SHOCKED when I filled up after the whole "to destination" trip with only $12 at the gas station. LOL

It is a comfort knowing I can order the 2010 and if I don't like it (can't imagine that, though ), then I can just get the 09 instead. Now if I could just decide between spoiling myself ridiculously with a sunroof or having a slightly lower monthly car payment. hmmm.....

 

I live on the ocean as well. The Outer Banks of NC is that elbow jutting out in the Atlantic where all the hurricanes come home to die when they miss Florida....

There is a very large group of owners here in this narrow dune of sand here. Thus far there are no problems to report after 3-1/2 yrs and 110,000 miles. Except for rubber which as you can imagine wears quickly running 150 mi daily I've spent a total of.........$300 on regular maintenance over the life of the vehicle. But, all the oil and filters have been and will continue to be free for the life of the vehicle so that's a big savings. Still, factoring in a normal oil / filter service cost of say $25, after 21 oil changes my total normal maintenance bill would be less than $1000 after 100,000 miles.

These are remarkable vehicles.

 

I've owned my 2004 Mercedes C230 Sport Coupe for only 3 years and I've paid almost $4000 Canadian already, for very minor repairs and scheduled maintenance. I am so looking forward to trading in the Benz and getting my new 2010 Prius in June to cut down on my maintenance fees, never mind the gas!

 

I have been waiting for almost 2 years for the 2010. I am not very good at waiting for a car (if it's one that I really really want). Well it's almost here and I'm chewing on what's left of my nails. Would I like to know the price today ? YES! I can only hope I hear the price before I run out of nails, but I will wait and I will be sitting in my new car in 6 to 8 weeks and all of this angst will soon be forgotten!

 

It was a wait in '04 for the original Gen II as well. We got exasperated, & just bought used in stead . . . but never looked back . . . and with over 80K miles on it now, worth the wait.

Bahh! aint nothin' . . . come see me when you can pull a bowling ball through a brake line

But you DO make nicer crop circles than I (in the snow )

+1
Onlly thing I can't speek to is their statement that there's still 'body roll' as our test drives were a whole lot simpler than there tests were, I'm sure.

 

well i remember when the 2010 was first announced and everyone was saying $35,000 for top of the line and i said $30,500... people thought i was crazy, i thought..."hey... few few percentage points higher than last year is what they always did before..." which is how i based my price...

but who knows... we shall see soon enough.

 

That is encouraging, even though 3.5 years isn't that much, but 110k miles definitely is (you drive a _lot_) ;-). Do you usually park it outside or in a garage?

$300 total maintenance at 110k miles definitely is very low, congratulations on that, but are you doing a lot of the maintenance/inspections yourself, or skipping on them? The 30K and 60K maintenance combined alone, even without the oil change, add up to more than that (according to the edmunds.com maintenance guide).

How did you do that?

 

I park it outside under our house about 1/2 a mile off the Atlantic. The wind blows nearly all the time so there's a ton of sand under the hood.

I don't do anything special except to try to dodge other moving objects ( been hit twice, two blown tires, 2 rocks to the windshield, hit a curb / broke two wheels, multiple dents ) because it's my driving tool.


The low maintenance on my Prius is due to two situations.

1. At the store where I bought it the oil and filters are Free for Life for every vehicle buyer ( I eat them alive on this ).
2. Also the periodic maintenance is actually minimal. You need to read your Service Manual and understand it. Not much more than oil/filters every 5000 miles and an air filter every 30,000 miles is all you need. Tires and rotations and cabin air filters are pretty much your personal choice.

At 30K and 60K all that's required is oil/filter and engine air filter. There's nothing else unless you want to do it. These services should add up to about $50.

 

And virtually no issues after 3.5 years. That's very nice ;-)

Nice. Thanks a lot.

Now let's see the prices ;-)

 

And a much more cluttered, cramped, less ergonomic cockpit without tactile buttons and most climate controls around knee level behind the shifter, Cycle through rather than direct access to vent and fan positions, reverse camera only with NAV, EV that cuts out at 26 MPH rather than 34 MPH as in Europe/Japan markets and after market EV in N.A., etc, etc, etc.

There are a lot of reasons a person would prefer the "5 year old design" to the "brand new one". Just MHO of course.

 

No argument there. But it should be 'fairly' simple:

1. If you want to put real sized people in the back (as opposed to kids in car seats), you don't want an Insight or Hybrid Civic (rear legroom)
2. If you want a trunk, you don't want a Prius or Insight
3. If you want a trunk but also want to put long stuff in the car, you don't want the hybrid Civic (rear seats don't fold), though the pass through in the HyCam is fairly small.
4. If you want the best MPG, you ONLY want a Prius, you sure as heck don't want a Fusion or Camry Hybrid.
5. If price is your major issue, yeah, the wait on the 2010 pricing (and what 2009's might sell for after the 2010's come out) is a real PITA. But it does toss the Fusion hybrid and Camry Hybrid out of the mix.