Reviewing the Prius Plug-In Base after 550 miles

the advanced trim has some goodies to close the gap to what you'd expect in a high 30K luxury car, but i do think Toyota could have gone a bit further with the door quality (feels really tinny), and cabin trim/fit (rattles, squeaks).

 

maybe four better doors was ruled out to save weight, and an mpg or two?

 

Also, to top it off, I finally located my issue of Consumer Reports that listed best/worst car values. From the Feb 2013 issue, the Ford Focus SE was the worst value of all small hatchbacks. Under small sedans, the Focus SE was the 3rd worst one.

 

Based on this info, the Ford Focus costs $400 more per year to own versus the Prius C. Most of this is the cost of gas. That is a negligible difference to a middle class and more affluent person.

Regarding reliability, the operating word is "apparently" since this isn't proven for the Focus since it is so new.

 

I wish there was a more objective measurement of noise in the Prius vs other cars slouch as sound meter readings.

I think tire-road noise is the worse noise given its tendency to drown out conversations.

In city street driving the Prius is surprisingly quiet.

 

If you look at the BEV comparison that Edmunds did, they actually measured noise in decibels at highway speeds. The Focus was ridiculously quiet, almost matching the Model S.

 

Ford designed the new Focus body and suspension to emulate a luxury car's quietness.

 

I almost always have audio on, and never notice the noise issue.

Toyota did not pay attentions to details when designing cosmetic aspect of the car. It gives you the feeling that the car is cheaply made, especially inside. The dash board is unpolished plastic. No rear door pocket/cup holders....

 

I think that would depend on what you consider to be music... LOL For me, I just turn my hearing aids down!

 

Can you imagine the glare from a polished plastic dashboard?

 

The C-Max Energi has a nicer interior, is a PHEV, has a larger battery capacity and has more standard features than the PiP. Although it's not a luxury car, it's much nicer than the PiP IMO. Quieter, more power, better infotainment system, more goodies. The PiP does get better MPG in pure hybrid mode, but the Energi gives you more EV Range, a bigger gas tank, and more power so it balances out IMO.

The reliability ratings for the Focus are for the previous generation model, the newest one based entirely on the European platform is a much better car. The C-Max being a new nameplate in the US is expected to have a higher resale value, my bank pulled NADA Values that showed it's expected resale value to be comparable to the Prius.