Prius Owners need to be kicked

I'm debating this now. No perfect answer for my second vehicle currently on the market.

Prius is great for 1/2 vehicles, particularly once it has a plug. Not sure about 2/2 yet. I would love a hybrid Mazda 5, or a smaller Toyota hybrid van. Would consider Escape Hybrid but after owning several Fords we're not a real big fan of their service departments. Might be more tempted by the Tribute version if they make it to AZ. RAV4 EV would be awesome, but don't have the $$$. Have thought about trying to put an HSD in a late 90s RAV4 (actually lighter than Prius, but less aero of course). Other than that, thinking about RWD vehicles I could add one of these & a bunch of batteries to:
http://www.go-ev.com/TransWarP.html

Rob

 

in order of importance

1)I want a plug in hybrid and definitely not anything larger then the prius, if it increases in size id probably find another hybrid to buy.

2)a bit more power too, somewhere in between my prius and the current camry

3)Id def look for bluetooth in my car, now that i have it i cant imagine life without it


#1 is by far more important overall id def want something that gets better mpg then my 2007 prius

id also like a 4WD option

i dont care if its a toyota but id think twice about an american car

 

I've actually been thinking about this lately, as another lawyer in my office has been looking at an '08 Prius. I really don't know what I would do without mine. I could never go back to having only an ICE vehicle. Now I have the Prius and a Nissan Frontier truck, both purchased within two weeks of each other in summer 2006. The Prius has 28000 miles, the Nissan about 5500 miles.

I like the Tesla roadster, but its really a limited use vehicle, and quite pricey. I think the vehicle to replace my 06 prius will either be another Prius, or a plug in hybrid of some kind, hopefully the first year plug in Prius.

I really like the all electric concept, but there's such a limited release at this point. Even the new Honda model will only be released in a very limited market in Cali.

My ideal would be to have an all electric vehicle to drive back and forth to work and let the Prius (plug in?) be my gas guzzler.

I think things will have to develop quite a bit before all electric vehicles would be available to me in this part of the U. S. And I'd like to be able to purchase one, not a limited lease arrangement where it must be turned back in at some point.

So, in essence, an all electric vehicle for 30K to 40K and I'm in. A plug in Prius, and I'm in. A cal car conversion of my Prius? thinkin' about it After all, the only thing better than 56 mpg, is 100 mpg!!!!

**edit: great thread BTW, I think we'll see some very insiteful comments here.....

 

(1) Plug-in Prius, exactly as it is except enough battery to go ~30 miles or so on battery only. Ideal for typical days around town, but can be gassed up and driven as the current prius for days that require more driving or road trips.

(2) Hybrid light truck. Normal truck motor so I can still pull my boat and haul my dirtbikes just fine, but with hybrid features that help during daily driving. Such as motor stops at a stop light, etc.. The key here is you cannot take away from the gas motor power at all. Highway trips with the boat or other heavy and/or non-aerodynamic loads require most of the truck motor power as it is now, so taking away from the gas truck motor would result in a useless truck. But adding hybrid features might make the current motors more efficient and cleaner.

 

I'm hoping my next car will be a fuel cell or something else that has no emissions and uses no gas/coal, etc. (including not having to plug it in and cause emissions at the power plant, unless all power is created by wind or something else)....could be a long time before that happens, but until then, I LOVE my Prius. I can wait....I hope.

 

i think currently the future lies in PHEV, simple convenience is great.

In about a year or so im going to do a PHEV conversion on my prius, i currently have a power supply, i just need a different battery with greater capacity than stock, then i would convert it.

 

quick change car

I want an all electric car with a 100km range 95% of the time. The other 5% I need a car that will carry my family across the country in comfort with reasonable fuel economy.

If a manufacturer makes an electric car I can either have big battery range or in a few minutes clip in a petrol engine which stays home normally. The petrol engine will fit in the space the long range batteries normally fit in.
I don't want to lug a petrol engine to and from work every day if I'm not using it and I don't have the space or finacial means to have a car I use once a year for holidays.

I don't ever see this happening. Manufacturers would never build it.

 

My husband and I intend to get a diesel car and convert it to biodiesel or straight veggie oil. That's really the standard that we wish to get to, but because of where we live now (LA) it's hard to have a biodiesel car, unlike Northern California, where there are a lot more service facilities for such vehicles.

My husband is a surfer, and wants to get a good old fashioned "woody" station wagon, but of course we have no intention of buying into the old combustion engine motif again. We love our Prius like mad, we've owned our 2008 Package 5 for all of 18 days, each better than the last.

We also love this site! Thank you for all the great info, and thanks in advance for al the stimulating conversation!

 

A PHEV capable of 50-60mph on electric only. For me, that would translate to huge MPG in most circumstances. Until batteries improve radically (better than the best Li-Ion), I think a small gasoline or diesel engine and fuel tank are unavoidable for extended trips.

 

This is a fun topic so I'll bite. At this particular moment in time the Prius is already exactly the right form factor for me, so I hope I won't be looking for a new car for a very long time. Looking ahead 5-8 years, I anticipate my criteria as follows:

-Another hatch, or better yet a full-blown wagon about the size of the current Prius. Slightly more dedicated cargo room might be handy in the event of children.

-Improved fuel economy by whatever means available at the time: PHEV would be great, or just ridiculously high ICE efficiency. Improved efficiency at highway speeds would be especially nice.

-Improved ergonomics. This is the one category where the Prius falls short IMO. I don't love the seats, I don't love the lack of a telescopic steering wheel, and I honestly don't love controlling everything through the MFD. It's nice to have a big screen but next time around I'm going to want buttons and knobs that I don't have to look at to operate. I guess I want the Lexus version of a Prius but without more power/less fuel economy.

 

First for me is TOYOTA, all of the cars in my family are toyota and will continue to be.

THe only problem I have with my Prius is it's a little short on room at times. With a family by the time you put the kids and stroller and that kind of stuff in the car there isn't much room for anyting else. Also I traded in my truck for the Prius, which is great for fuel economy. But I miss the truck for tasks around the house, like hauling stuff and Home depot runs.

But on the other hand the Hybrid SUV just doesn't make sense to me..I guess in conclusion I would like to see a Highlander that gets 50-60mpg..

 

Statultra

Statultra, You shouldn't be giving advice to anyone on this forum because you don't even know what model Prius you have. There is no 2005 #9 package. Unless you correct your info, why should anybody listen to anything you have to say? Do some research first, and then maybe someone will listen to you.

 

PHEV Prius for the wifey (assuming Toyota gives us one - don't have the ambition for a DIY or the cash for a pro mod).

Me, on the other hand, I want an Aptera (hybrid version) so bad I can't see straight.

 

Stumpy,
nice find on that Aptera. Interesting concept, it will be more interesting to see if it actually gets off the ground...


Agile,
I noticed no vehicle mentioned in your avitar at all. that was a rather harsh comment from someone with only 42 posts in almost three years... can't we all just get along?

 

Thanks .

They're taking deposits now with a production target of "late 2008".

do not know if you checked out the tech page, but if they can meet their goals this car is going to be mind blowing. Just mind blowing.

On the EV variant they claim approx. 120 miles to a charge, top speed over 85mph 0-60 under 10 seconds, charge to full in 2-4 hours depending on SOC. Approx. $1 to $2 to charge overnight (at CA electricity prices).

On the PHEV variant they claim 40-60 miles EV only, 300+ MPG up to ~120 miles, dropping down to a steady 130 MPG "all day long" beyond 350-450 miles (consecutive, obviously) with the same performance specs as the EV.

Target price point for the EV variant is $26,900.
Target price point for the PHEV variant is $29,900.



It leaves me thinking....Do I really NEED that 2nd kidney?

 

Please be aware that due to the relatively small MG2 and the entire design concept of the Prius with the way the PSD functions, a plug-in Prius will be electric only ONLY at slow speeds and EXTREMELY light power demand. The Plug-in Prius with 30 miles of battery capacity actually uses 50% electricity and 50% gas for the first 60 miles. It will NOT drive 30 miles on electricity only. HSD just is not designed for that and will not do that.

The Aptera looks like a really cool car. But there's a big difference between "taking deposits" and "car exists." Anybody can take deposits on a promise to deliver something. I'd buy one today if it was on a car lot ready to drive away in. But I'm sure not going to give a deposit to a company that has not even gone into production!!! A lot of people have lost their money giving deposits on cars that were never delivered.

My next car:

Since my Prius is not likely to die any time soon, and my Xebra works for in-town driving, I'm hoping my next car will be either a freeway-capable all-electric car with a 100-mile range or greater under the worst possible conditions (highway speeds in very cold weather with the heater on full blast), or a series PHEV (like the Volt concept) capable of driving at least 30 miles on electric only but preferably 50 miles.

 

That's why I quoted "late 2008" .

I know it may never come to be. It is, in their defense, at least somewhat beyond the concept phase and into crash testing on the production design.

Looks kinda neat going down the road too . http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hfv7wMXarig

Some other cool vids on Youtube as well.

 

The next vehicle I'd like to purchase would be a hybrid or (preferably) plug-in hybrid minivan. We use the larger capacity of the minivan (Sienna is our current one) 5 out of 7 days, so it will be hard to do without that size.

Still, it really is very hard to imagine purchasing another automobile that is only ICE powered.