Having a hard time justifying 2010 Prius

I really meant "the same class of hybrids".
The Prius, Insight and Fusion should be considered as direct competition whereas the common interpretation is that the Tahoe isn't. The Prius is currently leading the engineering race given it's in the 3rd generation. As I mentioned before, the Insight's simplicity which leads to lower cost and weight, is quite interesting to watch as it develops.

I would hate to see Honda go the "bigger is better" route in its attempt to catch the Prius.

 

A smaller size and lower weight usually allows more efficient operation.
Honda screwed up somewhat ( I think) based on published mpg numbers but perhaps real world efficiency is different, in this generation of the Insight by under shooting the Prius published mpg and thus losing the bragging rights in this round.

But then I read threads such as this one and say hmm... there is more than meets the eye.

http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...8-10k-mpg-check-not-impressed.html#post977883

 

"Nice" (loaded with luxury features) means less affordable to the mass market
and uncompetitive with humble non hybrids.

 

Guess what? That's ultimately what drives the decision of most car buyers, but few will admit it to themselves for some reason. Nothing to struggle over...

 

My thoughts are gas will be at LEAST 3.50 a gallon average for the next ten years. I had to pay well over 5$ several times last year.

But anyways i hope i will get over 150,000 so the average car seems to get about 25mpg, i get 53 so...
25mpg car at 150,000 miles= $21,000
prius at 150,000 miles= $9,900
Thats over $11,000 in gas savings over the life of the car.

Total price paid 24,300-the savings in gas= Means i should pay $12,200 for the car.

I also ready all kinds of mags, or look on the internet and the prius is one of if not not the most realiable cars made. It comes wth everthiing i need, and is pretty safe, I'd rather be in a prius than a Yaris in a head on colission.

PURCHASE JUSTIFIED!!!!! lol

 

OK, not quite sure what's incorrect or false about saying Gen3 is in the $20's? In my area, a base III is $23,750 + 750 delivery + tax/fees = $27,500 And just about all the III's that I've seen have at least some options on top of the base models. :focus:

 

Agree to both interpretations and no arguments as to whether Prius is a good car or whether it has good marketing.

My issue is in its price, but this is a free market economy, so make as many as people are willing to buy and charge as much as people are willing to pay.

After seeing so many people's responses, I am probably the one of the few that think this thing is an over priced and souped up Yaris/Corolla. You never know tho, I am actually trying to buy one.

 

There will a time where hybrids will not be significantly more expensive than non-hybrid counterparts making the decision of buying them financially prudent. Unfortunately, we are not quite there yet. Until then though, while buying a Prius is often a poor financial choice, we, owners, at least get credit for stepping up and making the smart environmental choice.

 

I justified mine financially. I had a nine year old Honda Civic, with 161,000 miles. I was looking at a catalytic converter and pipe replacement, timing belt and water pump replacement, transmission flush, tune up, four tires and brakes. My criteria was having enough room in the cargo area to carry my two Pelican cases concealed. I planned on getting a RAV4, Forester, CR-V, or the Santa Fe. At the recommendation of a friend I decided to look at a Prius. Cargo space was more than enough on the Prius, so I took a 2005 Prius out for a ride. Came back and signed the papers for a 2010 Prius. Costs were within $1,000 to $2,000 of all four vehicles after factoring in all the options I wanted.

 

Prius V is more comparable to the Fusion Hybrid, both with 17" wheels and mid-size interior. Prius actually has more interior room compare to the FH (more cargo, less passenger room but overall more).

Insight is not in the same class. It is a subcompact and Toyota is coming out with a Yaris based hybrid to compete.

Honda's IMA is not scalable beyond a compact car size. They are working on two MGs hybrid architecture for larger hybrids.

IMA does not save weight nor cost less. HCH weights as much as Prius despite have smaller interior. They both costs the same as well.

2010 Insight weights about 200lbs less than 2009 Prius because it is a smaller car based on the Fit platform.

2010 Prius weights 300 lbs more than the Insight because it is bigger and a more upscale car that ride and handle like one.

2010 Ford Fusion weights 700 lbs more than 2010 Prius and 1,000 lbs more than Insight.

 

My Civic lasted nine years and 161,000 mile on it. If I wanted to replace the catalytic converter and pipe replacement, timing belt and water pump replacement, transmission flush, tune up, four tires and brakes, I believe I would have gotten three more years and another 60,000 miles. Hope I have as much luck with my 2010 Prius.

 

That's a great MPG for Prius V with 17" rims considering him getting the same MPG as the 04. He should get better MPG in the winter with the Prius V. He is in CA so I guess we'll never know.

Other users are reporting winter experiences though.

 

I put 200K miles in my previous 03 Civic with just regular oil/filter and tire changes... nothing else.

 

Prius (like Civic) is a popular model so there will be abundant of after-market parts for replacement/upgrade options.

I have 109k miles on my Prius. The suspension is getting worn out. I will be upgrading to an after-market one for better handling. I am still on the original brakes and brake fluid. I changed the transaxle fluid at 60k (for cheap insurance) and coolant at 100k miles. The car is still rock solid.

2010 Prius does not have any belt so there is one less thing to worry about.

 

Considering about 20% of the sold prii are V's, I wouldn't consider it uncompetitive. Sure offer base units to the masses, but there are a crap load of people out there that want a loaded car that gets good milage. For most people in the IV and up, it's not really about the money.

 

Well, I too think most Toyota's are overpriced for the content, but I still buy them.

 

Some people see the Prius as an underpriced Lexus.

 

The IMA should be well suited to the compact car category. Agree that it is not as scalable to bigger vehicles but for fuel efficiency, bigger is definitely not better.

The Prius being in its 3rd generation had more time for the technology to mature and be weight optimized.