Is it worth buying prius c than normal car??

batteries are made to last 300,000 miles, so yeah, it makes sense... if you check Prius resale prices, they sell quite well.

 

The answer to your question will be answered by how many c's fly off the lot. The price, proven design, mpg and if gas prices climb will be a sales home run or should i say grand slam. I got 3 things to say about toyota corolla, camry, prius and that is just the car side.

 

I have been watching the battery issue for a long time. With Prius, the simple, bullet-proof driveline (no mechanical shift, no friction coupling) makes up for whatever extra cost exposure the traction battery represents in the out-of-warranty car. Battery failures appear to happen at such a rate that they can readily be supplied by wreck salvage.

Many other hybrids have cone-and-belt variable ratio transmissions. The main mechanical parts in those take a big beating, and I suspect that manufacturers push these because shifting automatics last so inconveniently long if properly handled.

Simply put, Prius makes sense for those who keep the car a long time and to very high miles! Whether or not the disappointing gas mileage predictions for Prius C mean that one might as well have the larger, nicer standard Prius is another question! (Perhaps not for someone deciding between Prius C and an econobox.)

 

People generally prefer buying new vehicles over used because of newer amenities, a warranty and because a used car is a car somebody didn't want (which increases the chance that there's something wrong with it). The big issue for hybrids is the battery and other parts of the hybrid system.

Prius prices do take a hit once they are past the hybrid warranty, but if you take care and have the vehicle checked by a qualified tech it actually makes financial sense to buy one because the batteries, on average, last much longer than the warranty and the rest of the hybrid system lasts longer. People buying used often have cash-flow limitations that mean they would have difficulty paying for a battery replacement and that means they find it difficult to take the risk, and therefore if you do have the cash-flow you're ahead of the general market.

 

By "many other hybrids" you mean Honda.

It's actually because they are Japanese and CVTs are well-suited to Japanese driving and combine easily with hybrid tech. However, Honda is the only hybrid manufacturer to sell one with a manual transmission (the CR-Z).

Honda's CVTs aren't particularly reliable. Nisasn's are the best and rock solid but they are expensive ($1500 option) and use expensive, proprietary fluids that force you to use their dealers for maintenance.

:focus:

 

If the price of gasoline this year goes to the $5.00 per gallon mark and above you will see all the Prius models sell completely off the lots so fast they can not be restocked in time.

Now, if the price of gas goes to $3.00 and below per gallon, a cold chance in hell on that one, you will see a lot full of the Prius models on the Toyota car lots not selling.

The price of gas is the true main reason for most people owning a prius. I remember when the price of gas was real low there was 13 Prius at the local Toyota dealer which is a small dealer.

al

 

If the Prius C price is comparable with a high end corolla the answer in my opinion is yes.

If you like technology like I do, the Prius C is worth taking a close look at.

We have a 2010 Prius, we purchased in mid May in 2009, one of the first ones. Now we have 66,000 miles on it and the only problem we have is the cd player no longer works, however the naviagation system works great, the display etc.

MPG are great in summer 53-58 mpg claculated true. Winter, not so much, last fillup with a lot of short trips with rain and wet roads was calcualted 43.9 indiated at 46.7mpg.

The lowest calculated mpg was 40.8 and the highest over 62 mpg the low was in the coldest part of winter and the highest in summer with dry roads and temps 70-80 degrees.

I think we will keep our Prius but the Prius C may get a few more new purchasers that may not have bought a regular Prius.

alfon

 

Yes, particularly if you understand the minor risk and big gains. More so if you drive it a lot.

 

Yes for me. I want that 53+ high MPG and the new tech that comes w/it

 

Ford Fusion is a cone-and-belt, is it not? The drawbacks you so succinctly describe sound like deal-breakers to me! (August `12. I subsequently found out that the Ford Fusion and C-Max are very admirable power split hybrids.)

 

Fusion is a planetary gear set very much like that of Prius. Not cone and belt.

 

Where did you get that 300,000 mile figure? Seen it estimated more like 180k miles, although I've heard of the 400k taxis on original battery. Time is a factor for those who don't drive so many miles, like 8k / year.

 

If the Prius c is anything like the Prius HB then its fuel efficiency advantage (over a conventional gas or diesel vehicle) depends on your average daily commute trip's time, distance, and driving temperature/weather conditions.

1) IF you are driving in more often than not in cold temperatures (<=45 F degrees) , your average commute is less than 30 minutes/7 miles THEN a conventional gas or diesel vehicle might provide better fuel efficiency unless you have and use a engine block heater(EBH) on the Prius c. At very short distances in very cold temperatures, the overhead for the Prius c's partial zero emission system which cuts into its fuel efficiency is extended by the colder temperatures so you won't get the rated EPA MPG levels. When an engine block heater is used to raise the engine coolant to atleast 90F degrees before the ICE is started this temperature penalty is lessen(and together with grill blocking), and the trip time/distance needed to mitigate the warmup cost is cut in half (see item 2).

2) IF you are driving in more or less warmer temperatures (>55 F degrees), and your average commute is less than 12 minutes/3 miles THEN a fuel efficient conventional gas(e.g. Yaris/Fit/Accent/Focus) or diesel vehicle(TDI Polo/Jetta) or an battery electric vehicle (e.g. Leaf) might provide a more competitive overall cost effective solution. At very short distances, the overhead for the Prius c's partial zero emission system will cut into its fuel usage/efficiency so you won't get the rated EPA MPG levels.

3) IF your daily commute involves driving for long distances (>15 miles) at hi speeds (>55mph) THEN a regular Prius HB will probably deliver better fuel efficiency. At high speeds the Prius HB's better aerodynamics should provide better fuel efficiency over the Prius c lower curb weight.

4) IF your daily commute involve driving distances over 35 minutes at low speeds (0mph to 40 mph) at temperatures above 60F THEN the Prius c should get better gas mileage than any conventional or hybrid (not plug-in) vehicle out there. In addition, if the Prius c is hypermiled I expect it will deliver nearly the same fuel cost as most BEVs and PHEVs at half the cost.

Possible Prius c competition??? - the Honda Fit Hybrid ( sold only in Japan) and the Ford Focus Hybrid (sold only in Europe).

 

theory is cool, you need to check Prius c reviews... Danny was easily getting 60 MPG at 70 mph. Lowest any reviewer said they got was 46 mpg (i read around 10), and everyone said 50 mpg was easily achievable... So real life mpg of Prius c seems to be a lot better than of G3...as it should be with smaller engine, newer system and 20% less weight.

 

In his highway test, Wayne Gerdes got 84.758 mpgUS.

CleanMPG Forums - View Single Post - Toyota’s Prius c And another PHEV in Detroit

He hasn't done an extended test yet, but he's certain that in city/suburban driving it's worth over 100mpg. The reduced battery size wouldn't make much difference to him, since it's pulse and glide.