Hi Everyone, only been here a few days. This has been a great resource for me. Currently I drive a 2005 Avalon with 85K miles. I went to the dealer the other day and they offered me $9,500 for a trade. Not too shabby. I do love the avalon and will miss it and all of the luxury and toys it has. The dealer told me the lease on the PIP is amazing. Actually about $20 cheaper than the regular Prius to lease so that is what brought me here. I drive about 12-15K a year- My work commute is only 3 miles but I do sometimes go on some trips- Then to the soccer field and back and running the kids. Also my home is partially powered by solar electric panels So why am I thinking no on the PIP? Well I think that a purcahse may be better for me than the lease and the the PIP was way more expensive... in addition the lack of a spare tire really bothers me. What if I get a sidewall hazard and I am far from home? Deal Break 1 for me In addition I thought it would be great to plug in and go with no gas usage but- if it is cold out what I learned is that the ICE needs to run to heat the car. Deal breaker 2 for me. Giving up a totally loaded avalon which all of the advanced features hurts- NO auto wipers NO auto Head Lights- Power memory seats, Vented seats remote start etc.... Originally I was excited about the technology of the PIP. Then I learned that the entune is crap and that the entune in the non advanced pip is a little worse then crap- I could not justify the price for the advanced PIP. That is deal breaker 3 I may come back here but my next step is to look into the regular prius and see how it stacks up to my needs. Thanks for everyones help.
Various people have various definitions of what Auto Headlights means to them. I am on my second Prius, each one I turned on the headlights at the dealership and never needed to turn them off or back on ever again. (Although every oil change, the mechanic turned them off, sigh)
How often does that happen? Pretty much never for most of us. If it were to happen, call for help. The size of the tire is so generic, replacement is simple. Do you understand that you'll still get MPG well above the regular hybrid? Since I live in Minnesota and have 3 years of detailed data with my 2010, the upcoming data opportunity with my 2012 plug-in is something I'm really looking forward to. And it's not like winter lasts that long...
Your #1 deal breaker, lack of temporary spare tire, resonates with me: regardless of whatever other features the PIP has. Until they get engineers on it, and sort out a reconfigured battery that allows a spare tire, I'm not interested.
Unless you routinely take your Prius offroading and into the wilderness, it is a 0 problem. Lots of people that have spare's don't even change them. You call AAA (or Toyota since they offer it for free with the PiP) and they come and replace it while you sit inside and listen to your tunes. How many flats do you get? Yeah it sucks when it happens, but it is like not buying a house because the third bedroom's paint colour is really obnoxious.
Interesting what some people think are important....with all the savings on the PiP on fuel, you can buy 5 subscriptions to AAA. If goodies are more important then fuel savings, i dont think ANY PRIUS is the right car for you....Go get yourself a TDI VW. Dan
The PiP is more expensive because batteries are expensive. The longer the range, the bigger the battery. If you want a spare, buy a spare & throw it on the deck. It's a HYBRID. It's going to burn gas. If you don't want to burn gas buy an EV. Plug-in owners NEVER account for the electricity they use as if it is free. A more honest metric would be cost per 100 miles or mpge. If I drive 50 miles & burn 1 gallon of gas in the Prius and drive 50 miles in an EV can I say "I (not the car) get 100mpg? Any car is not for everyone and every car is not perfect. If you can't find what you want now maybe someone will build it in a couple of years.
Whether intentional or not, that's the latest greenwashing trend. Too bad so many focus on MPG alone still. Of course, it doesn't help with all the HIGHWAY promotion we get from the automakers. There's no reference to actual gallons consumed, just a number that markets well. Some of have a different approach... 9,316 miles 109.4 gallons 909.2 kWh 85.1 MPG
if you go to the plug in spreadseet, gallons and kwh are accounted for. cents/mile is a good metric. unfortunately, electric costs vary wildly around the country.
I was going to suggest go test drive a Volt but it seems to fall short in most of the same areas you mention for the PiP.
Thats because for some of us it IS free. Benalexe: The PIP is a great car. I love mine and I would only trade it for a car that got 600+ miles in EV and cost the same or less as my Advanced. Maybe in 5 years right? Regardless, it sounds like you are already reading the plus' and minus' and factoring in your needs. Just keep in mind, no car is perfect for everyone all the time. There will always be sacrifices.
I have had AAA for 9+ years now. They will tow you anywhere you want within 50miles, or to the nearest mechanic of your choice outside of that area. AAA contracts with tow drivers, and they dont care where you go because AAA pays for it. I've used AAA to tow cars across town from driveway to driveway, like after buying a car or something like that. So if you have a flat they will fix it, or you can ask them to tow you to some tire shop 50 miles away. If you are in the middle of nowhere where there is no tire shop for 50miles in any direction, then they will bring you to a mechanic.
One more point. You mentioned "remote start" -- I am guessing you want remote start because you want the AC or Heater to run before you get in the car. The PIP has this. You can turn on your AC from the key fob.
