Prius vs VW Diesel for Long commute

given gas prices in my area (portland, or):

doing 150 miles at 40 mpg takes 3.75 gallons of gas. at two bucks a gallon, that's $7.50.
doing 150 miles at 50 mpg takes 3.00 gallons of diesel. at 2.50, that's also $7.50.

so it's going to cost the same amount of money for each car. i recommend you consider the other advantages of a hybrid over a diesel engine before you make your choice.

cheers
sam

 

For a long steady commute, the Prius engine will be running except in the occasional situations that you coast. It should consume less overall fuel because of the 0.26 drag coefficient and lighter weight that most other cars. I doubt the difference in $ would be all that significant over a new civic, moreso with the Avalon.

I owned an Avalon, and it is very confortable for a long commute, for you and also for 3 or 4 friends and their junk in the trunk, which cannot be said with the Prius to the same degree.

At 75, you'll probably get 27 max with the Avalon, 30 at 65.

If your commuting solo, then Prius is an easy choice.

 

My 1999 Jetta TDI just got totaled at 196,000 miles. My work commute is 40 miles each way with most being highway driving at 65 to 70 mpg. I kept detailed mileage and repair information on an Excel spreadsheet (attached). Pay particular note to the repair costs. I also believe that diesel prices will stay high in relation to gasoline for the long term. I've had the TDI... my Prius will arrive the end of January.

 

I know you meant to use mph, but i'd love to do highway driving at 65 to 70 mpg!!

 

What kind of transmission did it have?

 

great info in that spreadsheet!

I did a trendline of a plot of fuel cost over time! --yikes!

 

The calculations from Dr. Fusco are almost exactly what I got with factory tires.
At 66k on my 04 my repair costs are just my oil changes and a set of tires at 40k miles.
Also consider resale value in the true cost of ownership. From what I see on traderonline.com the Prius are holding their value pretty well.

 

Prius is AT-PZEV. Even with good fuel economy, diesel particulate matter (exhaust) is a carcinogen. Until diesel becomes more efficient (in part by being able to use cleaner fuel to start with), I recommend the Prius.

 

If you set the cruise for 67 instead of 75, you'll probably do
quite a bit better in the Prius. Somewhere centered around 65 mph
seems to be around a "sweet spot" that balances efficient, high-load
running vs. air resistance. Too high, air resistance kills you.
Too low, and you fall off the efficiency curve of engine output
and have to start playing pulse-n-glide type games.
.
_H*

 

I noted the repair costs, what per chance did you spend 10 grand on? that seems a bit excessive. Just curious.

 

Owning a Prius won't save you that 10k in repair costs.

You're still going to pay $400 to $600 for tires.

Any time you want, stop at my house and I'll change your $40 alternator and only charge you $500. That should be a substantial savings over what you're accustomed to.

You basically got ripped off every time you went to your dealership or whoever did all those 160,000 mile service type things.

Go buy a 12 pack of oil filters and a couple boxes of oil. Every 5000 miles, change the oil, top off the window washer fluid and stop paying your dealer $2000 a year to do nothing.

 

Hi Pflow1, you should try renting a Prius for a couple of days. Not all Toyota dealers rent them, so call around first. One of my local Toyota dealers rented a Silver 2005 Prius to me for 2 days at $30/day. I took the opportunity to drive my normal commute for 2 days. Additionally, I drove around to places that I frequent (like restaurants, grocery stores, etc) at day time, at night (to test the HID headlights). I had time to try out the utility of the vehicle (hatchback, folding rear seats). In short, renting the Prius for 2 days helped me determine if the vehicle was right for me. I think renting a Prius could help you make the right decision. Good luck with your research!

 

Manual Transmission. The '99s did not come in an automatic.

 

Take a look at the tab in the Excel spreadsheet for Repairs. Repair details are listed there. Mostly trouble light issues with glow plugs and replacement of the mass flow air meter.

 

thanks, you'll be happy to know that the mass flow air meter on a Prius is $138.78 from my price list (it's a bit dated now so don't take it as gospel) so if you ever have to change one it's not much in the big picture. And no alternator at all.