Does the Toyota Prius still matter?

That 55.1 mpg was likely more like 50, due to Toyota's fudging of the in-dash display of mpg. Obviously it still trounced the competition.

Sadly though, until you have an easily portable, independent method of analysing mpg, you're at the mercy of the both manufacturers honesty. A ScanGuage plugged into each vehicle's OBDII port would do, but it's fussy, you'd need to reconfigure some internal settings for each.

Now, if mpg displays were required to be accurate...

 

speedometers are required to be accurate or high If the spedo is high (per regulations) then you also fudge mpg as being high. Regulators seem to want car companies to over report mpg.

 

That doesn't compute.

 

and the 17 is more like 15.

 

Maybe. Depends. Honda's mpg gauges were slightly pessimistic, in my experience.

 

Its doubtful an accura read more than 6% high, but honda is accurate.
Why Your Trip Computer Isn’t Giving Accurate MPG Readings (And How to Fix It) – Feature – Car and Driver | Car and Driver Blog

Because of the vapor traps you probably need to test over multiple tanks to see real versus reported.

 

Mirage 3-cyl turns out more power than Prius C 4cyl, and it has to move car 500lbs+ lighter. It may loose in MPG (combined 40), but it more than makes up in other costs (insurance, purchase, etc)

BTW when you say "ICE vehicles that proclaim to offer 40 mpg, this is the "highway" proclaimed MPG" "Prius more competition to a scooter" it should be specified in USA. There are many diesel cars outside of US which would dwarf Prius efficiency.

Another aspect: with current gas prices 40MPG vs 50MPG (Mirage vs Prius C), saves <$17 a month. Hard to justify for young buyers.

BUT I agree with you; the question "Does the Prius still matter?" is incorrect one. The correct one is "where is the car which could make Prius obsolete and irrelevant?"

 

in bob klutz's fantasies.

 

When a friend test drove a Prius at a dealer, the display said 21mpg at the end of it. These results from such test drives are pointless. First, many need time to get use to the car, and learn its quirks, before they can get the best fuel economy. Then there are the uncontrolled variables. Same trip, but was the Sonic warmed up like the Prius was?

I'm not claiming that the Sonic would come close to the Prius, but 17mpg for the Sonic from a test drive is just as relevant as a 21mpg reported for a Prius.

As to the mpg display themselves, they can be as accurate as the manufacturer wants them to be in terms of over or under reporting. They are measuring how long an injector is open on one cylinder for the amount of fuel used, and the computer can use the actual speed, not what the speedometer reports, for distance.

 

For really bad lutz/burns gm predictions

GM to Put 100 Hydrogen-Run Vehicles on the Road in 2007 - Los Angeles Times

They expected 100,000 by this year, and still have only produced the original run of 100.

 

Source: Toyota projecting record profits, thanks in part to weak yen

Somebody has been voting with their wallets.

Bob Wilson

 

I haven't driven the Mirage...so I can't speak as to it's driving feel. I drove a 3 cylinder Geo Metro..decades ago...and yeah...it actually wasn't too bad. ( Company Car).

To me The Prius with it's 4 cylinder engine, augmented and working in conjunction with the HSD system, offers me plenty of power. It doesn't have a weakened or "3 cylinder" feel to me. For example, my Honda Fit, felt a little quicker off the line, and perhaps more "agile"....in body feel and steering feedback. BUT The Prius feels as powerful or perhaps more powerful. I admit this is subjective to me.

But my basic point regardless of how you may feel about the viability of a Mirage is the same...there aren't a lot of "combined" 40 mpg purely ICE vehicles on the market.

 

why so much mirage hate in this country, is it not everything it appears to be?

 

Well... in the land of plenty where bigger is always better, should you ask? It's all we stand against.

Read this opinion on Mirage and how it compares to other basic wheels:
Why One Young Woman Bought A 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage: Frugal Shopping

Personally it was on my short list for commuter car, alone with C, Mazda2... should suppose add fit and spark.Dont like Honda; Spark looses in everything. My insurance is cheap so Mirage and C 5-year ownership would cost about the same. C handles better and is better overall, good discounts. If could wait would wait for 2016 Mazda2. If Elio was around might have been #1 on list.

 

My brother has a Cruze with the 1.4 turbo and he's never gotten fuel mileage in the city that was lower than the 20s.

 

Different lyrics, we've heard this tune before:

• Bob Lutz calling the Aveo (aka., Sonic) the same as a Prius.
• VW calling the Jetta TDI the same as a Prius.

Our Prius can play the 'framing' game by choosing City MPG:

• 27 MPG - Aveo (aka., Sonic)
• 24 MPG - Jetta TDI
• 53 MPG - Prius c

I know you didn't start the threads about non-Prius cars. Just we've heard this same spin so many times before:

This was a 2006 interview . . . same tune, different words.

So this is what I did with our Prius and a single tank, in 2013:


Bob Wilson

 

How GM wanted to market Malibu!

 

Anyone with enough money to buy an energy monopoly won't be satisfied with just "making a decent profit" from it.

 

You won't see 53MPG in city in C on short trips, but I have no doubt that Prius has better real life MPG than anything else sold in US. Convinced enough to vote twice with my $$.

Thing is that if you pass MPG game and look at overall ownership costs, Prius isn't there. It needs less gas but it costs more to buy and more to insure. Prius C is especially in disadvantage b/c insurance rates for young are very high. Here is break down on costs (Mirage isn't there but it will better Spark and Mazda2):
Compare 2014 Toyota Prius c vs 2014 Mazda MAZDA2 vs 2014 Chevrolet Spark vs 2014 Toyota Prius - Kelley Blue Book