Convince me I want this car!

I just bought mine, and I love it. I came from a more inferior car than a CRV, though. CRVs are cool, and I don't blame you for liking it. My wife has a newer Civic and I love that car...

I've only been in CRVs for a few minutes here and there, but there are things I like more in the Civic: Way better seats for me. More pep. WAY better cup holders and storage compartments in general.

The Prius is far more fuel efficient, obviously, and has a lower cost of ownership (brakes, belts, etc.). It is a little bigger, but not much. Back seats are more roomy. Better A/C controls and more sophisticated in general, even in my II.

Cargo space is great, though certainly not as much as a CRV. I'm a musican and I carry gear in the back. More than enough room for all my stuff. I've fit road cases, amps, etc. without problems. It is much smaller than my old Rodeo, but gets the job done.

I think the Prius is fun to drive. In PWR mode it is quite quick and handles well. I really like the ride of the car. Nice and smooth. My old truck threw me all over the place, so I'm thrilled in it.

Not sure what else to tell you. I'd have a hard time taking a loss on a car like that, so I'd probably hold out. The CRV is a great vehicle and it sounds like you like it a lot...you'd probably like the Prius as well, but you may lose a fair amount of dough..

Good luck!

Mike

 

We have a 2007 Honda Element (same platform as CRV) and had to give up a 2007 Prius to become a dual Gen III Prius household.

We are definitely excited about owning these high tech vehicles and my wife has long overcome her deep emotional attachment with her beloved 2007 Prius (with only 17K miles, in immaculate condition, and her first non-hand me down car of her very own).

At this point, we're not giving up the Element because of the cargo room (which should be more functional than the CRV -- please don't take offense) it has. Nonetheless, with the rear seats folded down, the cargo room of the Prius is quite useful because of the hatchback. As well, not sure others have confirmed but the hatch in the Gen III rises higher than the Gen II and I can confirm that the interior width of the cargo area for the Gen III is about 2 inches wider at the base than the Gen II (depending upon where / what you are measuring of course).

Since I know that the CRV has a bit more MPG than the boxy Element, I'd say keep the CRV if you really feel the CRV is FUN (though I'm not sure how a CRV is fun since I view the Element as the fun alternative of the two since both have the same Honda engine & are built up from the same vehicle platform. of course, the CRV is more luxurious and refined than the basic Element.)

. . . OR something my wife found to be very therapeutic in letting go of her beloved Prius to trade in is to prepare your CRV for trade-in at the maximum value it could ever hope to sell / trade-in for. Do everything you can to give it the best detail job ever and restore it to like-new condition (e.g., polish up all the scuffs, dress the tires, remove all the carpet stains, clean-up every inch of the interior and engine compartment, touch up all paint chips, wax it to its deepest shine, clear out all the radio and other electronic presets or custom information, etc.). Now, let your newly made over CRV settle in for a few days and keep it in its pristine state.

Then go to CarMax to get the minimum trade-in value offer that they will guarantee you for the next 7 days. Explore what other personal concrete offers you can get for your CRV (e.g., craig's list or other individual sale). Keep digesting any and all shortcomings of the Gen III being discussed in PriusChat.

If the luster of your CRV has worn off a bit by the time you see and experience the disappointment of how others view and actually value your CRV AND your interest, intrigue and appetite for the 2010 Prius (comparably equipped) remains, then the trade-in may very well be a reasonable and positive option for you to consider ?

 

I convinced myself to buy a prius by putting all expected costs of ownership of my present car ( a 1999 Nissan Primera Estate ) and of a Prius over a 3 year period on to a spreadsheet and to compare them.

Of course with the high depreciation hit ( £10,000 ) for the prius it's costs came out higher than for my primera. But nowhere near as bad as my 1st guess.

In my case the difference was around £5,000 over the 3 year period. Now that sounded more than OK to me for the increased pleasure of driving and owning a prius. But in every case it has to be an individual decision based mainly on the quality of car you are changing from.

 

Not to sound like I'm trying to convince you not to buy it, but I'd never trade in a recent model vehicle with only 24K miles unless I completely hated it. Chances are, you won't make up the hit you take on the CRV with your gas savings from the prius.

 

Pugsy, It sounds like you liked the Prius and you want to get the Prius. You've already convinced yourself you are getting a Prius. The real question is: What is the value point you are willing to give up in trading-in or selling the CR-V. CR-Vs are good vehicles; when you're ready you'll get the Prius. Good luck --TK

 

Hi Pugsy,

In think I agree with ninails. 24K miles is too new.

Driving 12k miles per year (apparently, please confirm) is good for Prius mileage, but what kind of driving do you do? This will be important in any advice somebody might give you regarding trading in the relative new CRV. If you had been doing 30K miles per year, it might make sense to trade in the CRV.

My opinion is that you should decide to get the Prius, and then put money in "new Car" account at a bank for the next several years. The Prius is no "dud" in comparison to a CRV. When you have the money saved to buy the Prius outright, 4 years?, then you will have another 48K miles , or 72 K miles on the CRV and that would be a good time to sell it off.

The new car depretiation is just economically bad to trade in such a new vehicle.

 

I concur with TKY & others - the $ value of new CR-V is 22k, you might end up with half that, and roughly the same 18 months from now.

Then in 20+ months from now, there will be some new cool cars to give the Prius G3 a run for it's money, you'll have more choice.

I used my 1999 Toyota Sienna to mid-2006 before getting the Prius. I got over 6k$ back from a mini-van that had about 95k miles on it. It had only cost me a brake job over 7 years. Timing was perfect.

Now I have a G2 and plan on keeping it at LEAST 10 years, so I won't be getting a G3 - but most likely a G4 in 2016+, then again PHEV might postpone that even further.

 

The Smart Key system, the eCVT transmission and its smoothness, and the quietness keep me buying hybrids. The ability to get "Special Clean Fuel" license tags that allow me to use the HOV lanes without any passengers is just icing on a great cake.

 

I don't know enough about your cargo requirement but you could get a light-duty, receiver and a small trailer. Now this is not an approved Toyota solution but many of us have towed over-sized loads in light weight trailers around town.

The Prius is not a 'load up the house and move across country' vehicle because we don't know enough about the impact on the transaxle. However, for light duty loads, 1,000 lbs, and in town, say under 50 mph, it seems to work perfectly OK.

I have instrumentation that allows me to monitor the transaxle temperature in my NHW11 (2003 Prius) and so far, my in town, towing has never driven transaxle temperatures into +75C range.

Bob Wilson

 

Bought a (Green Tea) '07 CRV in Nov. '06 to do twice weekly battle with moose & log trucks in the mountains on the Maine/Quebec border. Loved the car & it was perfect for the intended purpose.

A few months later I was transferred and found myself doing a mostly highway, daily commute of 60 miles one way. The CRV, still a great ride, was no longer practical. Last Sept., we sold it to an in-law (who loves it) and replaced it with an '09 VW Jetta diesel wagon, which I've slowly begun to appreciate (currently 42 mpg).

Had the Gen III Prius been available, it would have been a serious contender. In a few days, my wife, whose commute is less than ten miles, will be replacing her seven year-old Forester with a (you guessed it) Blizzard Pearl IV w/ solar roof. Best of both worlds.

Still miss the CRV, but I see it occasionally. My dogs loved it.

Good luck with your decision.

 

My advice differs from the majority. In 2004 I sold a two-year old CRV and bought the new Prius. My calculation was that the CRV was a popular car with high re-sale value but that depreciation would increase faster in future. At that time it seemed I was right. For a year or two the Prius had zero depreciation. When I finally sold the 2004 Prius a few weeks ago I had probably lost about $2000, compared to having kept the CRV but I'd had five years additional enjoyment which I believe was worth it.

 

How much can you cram in the back? Check out this thread:

http://priuschat.com/forums/newbie-forum/47901-so-how-much-can-you-fit-in-prius.html

 

If you need convinced you're probably not ready.

 

Cool thread...is the 2010 as functional? Mine's seats don't seem to quite fold flat, so sleeping back there might not be possible anymore (at least if you want to be comfortable). Does the front passenger seat fold back like that too? I haven't tried it...the Gen II looks like it might be more utilitarian than the Gen III...

 

If you were born with a silver / gold / or platinum spoon in your mouth; then go ahead and dump your 2 year old car. Otherwise, keep your Honda CRV, maintain it, use it, and when you reach 200,000 miles - then buy an new car.

Frankly, it sounds to me like you are suffering from "I want a new toy syndrome".

Keith

 

Agree. Keep your perfectly good car and consider the few thousand dollar bath you are willing to take as your gas savings.

 

CRVs are reliable, practical, hold their value well and they're very safe. Unless you plan on driving a lot, I'd stick with the CRV. Maybe you could wait on the Gen 4 Prius. By that time you would have a lot of good use out the CRV and it would still be worth a good bit ($7-8k).

 

My vote, stick with the CRV, save a little, and wait until the Prius comes down in price a little. It was just released, so it's currently selling for (probably) the highest it will ever sell for. Wait a little, things will settle, dealers will give better incentives. Plus you might find a great deal on a preowned.