Hi all .... I haven't been much of a poster but usually read much of the daily postings on Prius Chat. I had a 2011 Prius III prior to Tuesday of this week. We purchased our Prius a month after we leased our 2012 CTS. Buying a III was prefaced with the idea that the CTS had the large panaramic sunroof, leather, etc. etc., The Pruis would be the "around town" car and the CTS would be the weekend and travel wheels. Well, as many of you know, when you get the Prius bug, it rarely let go. As we put less than 3,000 miles on the CTS in 13 months, we decided to transfer it to our son. So the need of a larger full-time car soon became quite apparent, I saw the Avalon Hybrid and the first couple of months the dealers laughted at discounts !!!! Well in May, along came the Costco Auto Program that now includes the Avalon Hybrid. Thanks for the may great posts I have alwlays enjoyed reading on the amazing things ya'll do with your Pri. I'll be just "around the electron" in "Other Hybrid" corner of Prius Chat... Regards, RadmanGTO
We all have our choices. Have never liked the Blue Oval brand ... Consumer Reports has filed some protest with the Fed in regard to Ford with all of their hybrids not being near the EPA estimates. You can be sure Toyota products do meet their estimates and this Prius site pretty much proves it. I wanted a sedan and not a suv-like Prius V. The Avalon is 40 city 39 highway. I can see the C-Max being even close to it's EPA but most importantly is the Avalon class that is vehicle has always had. Resale values are quite high. Regards and thanks for your opinion, RadmanGTO
Thanks .... it's a beauty .... Blizzard White .... Almond interior is sweet .... AND the bride of 48 yrs really likes driving it .... :>)) Regards, RadmanGTO
We drove the Avalon Hybrid at the Atlanta International Auto Show and I didn't like it at all. I guess it felt like the Camry Hybrid but larger of course. I would rather save the money and get the Fusion Hybrid, or better yet, spend a tiny bit more and get the MKZ Hybrid. I know that the Avalon is supposed to be "luxury" but it just didn't have the feel of it. We liked the Optima Hybrid much better and to an extent the Sonata Hybrid. We test drove a ton of cars, but the Avalon was the only one I couldn't wait to get out of to be completely honest. It just seemed like the longest test drive ever. I guess my impression that it was as large as a Buick.
48?!? wow, you got us by 13. way to go! maybe in 13 years, my bride will be ready to move up from the hycam.
The 2013 Avalon shares the same platform with the 2013 ES300h. After a couple of months of ownership, the ES300h is a super quiet and smooth riding car. It does seem to be a little too large for my taste, but it's the wife's car. She achieves 37 MPG, but I get closer to 40 MPG. However, she yells at me to stop driving like and old man and just drive the car. I can't resist using the techniques learned from my Prius, and if I'm not impeding traffic, why not use the hybrid train to squeeze out as many MPG as possible. Glad to hear that you kept the Prius in the family.
My friend has one and he and his wife love it! The fuel economy is pretty incredible for such a large car with decent acceleration and handling. It looks great too.
Thanks for almost all positive comments ... :>)) It's all about what ya'll want and need, or ,"It's what ever makes your boat float" .... !!! We've had it now for almost a whole 4 days ... :>)) I am pretty critical about my rides and would not change my choice for the $$$ spent. As always others disagree .... if the local folks that look at it gives any indication, it's a pretty looking piece. It rides fine and the buckets remind me of my previous TA RamAir .... great support .... We will be driving from Punta Gorda to Ohio and onto Pa then return PG in a 2 week audicy ... I suspect we will be quite happy with our choice.
I have to agree on the incredible fuel economy. I am currently in the middle of a trip from our home in Punta Gorda, Fl to Auburn Al. then on to Ohio. This morning, we hit I75 N and never looked back. The first 2 hours I "poked along" @ 75mph and the dash readout was reading +/- 40.7 mpg ... wow ... then, I stepped it up and for the next 4 hours I was averaging 79-80mph .... the dash readout never dipped below 39.3mpg .... double wow .... I finally stopped for gas and was expecting the expected let down with the way Toyo economy dash readout is compared to hand calc mpg. Well gang, it was hand calc'd at 39.6 mpg over the dash readout of 39.3! Amazing.... this is the 3rd tank since purchase last week that the actual hand calc was a few tenths ABOVE the dash readout. MAYBE Toyo got something right for 2013... !!! Yes, I am very anal as to how I fuel the Av .... Truly amazing milage for the speed driven .... and it only has ~700 miles on it. AND, for a few ney sayers, the ride is incredible, seats very supportive .... this 65+ bod appreciated the ride for the 9 hours we were in the vehicle today. Regards, radmanGTO
The Avalon looks like an awesome car to me! It's too big for my needs but it sure looks like a great car to drive around in.
Congrats on the new ride (sad in this day and age we are forgetting about being happy for someone's car purchase) I too have never been a big fan of the Blue Oval (or any of the Detroit brands). My best experiences have always been with Toyota, Honda, or Subaru. Also heartened to here the mpg reports so far. Think that it bodes well on the Prius Gen IV due in 2015. Though for myself the plan is to keep the 2012 I have till the Prius Gen V - like riding car note free.
Do u mind listing what the Costco price was? Curious how good their deals are, and how much u can grab one of those bad boys for.
