Prius' getting some heat from other manufactuers?

check out what Ford of europe can do with some small changes to an ordinary but fairly large car . Current mondeo is longer than a an E class merc.

Ford Mondeo Econetic CAR review | Road Testing Reviews | Car Magazine Online

 

A step in the right direction but still a diesel and still a manual and still

the test drivers didn't match the claimed mileage. If it was a Prius, they would have expressed outrage.
Are the economy figures in UK gallons?
Is diesel still 20% more expensive than petrol?

Please don't get me wrong, I love the race for the most fuel efficient motor vehicle on the road or in each class of car and I look forward to seeing many other contenders. I even look forward to the current Prius getting knocked off its pedestal, I just believe Toyota will be the ones who do that.

Bring it on!!

 

Oops

 

I, for one, welcome the other carmakers into the high US mpg market. More choice is good for EVERYONE. Ford and GM have long had vehicles in europe that are small and get good mileage, bring them here!

The big difference of course is to compare the cost of diesel fuel and REGULAR unleaded.. not to mention that none of these cars turn the engine off and run on electric! That is by far the biggest advantage of the Prius for me.. not the mileage per se, but the ability to NOT RUN THE ICE AT ALL at certain times... you don't idle.. the value of that is immense in my opinion.. as for the ford diesel.. it's cool! Bring it.. hopefully it'll cost way less than the Prius and allow lower end buyers into the market of very fuel efficient vehicles. Now.. where are the practical electrics?????

 

Will be Toyota , Mazda, and Nissan, also Honda. but I doubt GM will be a player. GM is in serious straits now and near bankruptcy. They say if they cannot pull the stock prices up within 11 months all of GM is gone. ALL OF GM.

Catastrophic for the US economy.

 

That about sums it up.

... Brad

 

as a friendly reminder ... here's this thread's original post to which i'd like to comment ....

here's hoping the Prius DOES start facing serious "competition" in the near future! as to the future of MY "beloved hybrid" i foresee this:

on a very personal / individual level ... in two or three years, when our yet-to-be-received 2008 Prius is two or three years old and has, probably, less than 30,000 miles on it, we'll be trading it in for what we construe to be the BEST car that meets OUR needs - in terms of high mileage, lower pollution / lower emissions, practicality of standard and optional features, passenger compartment size and comfort, storage capacity and versatility, price, etc. - at that time.

the general info you provided - regarding the 2010 Fiesta - seems TRULY promising ... but it ALSO seems that the 2010/11 Prius which, on MANY sites, is purported / projected to have an EPA-MPG rating of anywhere from 75mpg to 100+mpg will CONTINUE to be the torch-bearer - and, our most likely choice! - at that time ....

then, somebody "else" who is driving some car-or-other that is only getting 20-35mpg will be able to trade THEIR car in for the 2008 Prius that we just put "on the market" by virtue of our having just traded IT in ....

 

While I love my Prius, I would buy one of these ASAP if I had the chance.

Honda FCX Clarity - Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle - Official Web Site

This is THE answer IMO. But like many already have pointed out it won't be mass produced for a while yet (if at all).

 

Every Diesel...even with the best particles-filter, blow out micro-particles that bring a nice chance of cancer to your child!

Yes, diesel engines are a cause of cancer...

Andreas

 

To the people that think "stirring the pot" should be censored. Give your heads a shake. What the hell are you afraid of? Dissenters need a voice. I'd rather there were more sh!t-disturbers and less sheep on this forum. Malorn, where are you?

 

More competition and choice is always a good thing. I'm sure there are people on this forum who's first choice was fuel economy,but their choice of hybrid cars was limited.I'm sure there are people here for whom the Prius isn't their perfect car, but they choose to use it anyway because the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. I love my Prius, but when time comes to replace her I will test drive other hybrids as well before I make a choice. Hooray for the Germans. They are really joining the party. Sehr Gut!

 

i've been following, to the best of my ability, the development and initial "distribution" of the Clarity for many months now. sadly - even if they WERE available in my area / if the "infra-structure" WERE in place - i fear that a Clarity's price would be WAY beyond my means; i'm guessing the car - in its "initial public offering" - will have an MSRP of AT LEAST $50,000 ... perhaps much MORE than that ....

( i sure wish Honda would release some form of "presumed / eventual" MSRP info! all i know at this time is that the Clarity is currently being leased for $600 per month ... maintenance and insurance included .... )

still ... i, too, believe that Fuel Cell vehicles are the BEST solution in the comparatively short-term ... meaning in the coming 5 to 20 years. one can only hope ... that the Clarity - or a similarly fueled vehicle - might become widely available fairly soon, and that we - my wife and i - will have won some sort of lottery by then; that's probably the only way we'd be able to afford one ....

 

There are enough "dissenters" with false information and personal opinions in the world. Why do we need more here? It's has nothing to do with being sheep. It has everything to do with bringing facts to the table not just politcal driven opinions and worldviews. I'm all for different opinions but don't come here and spew nonsense and think you're being funny or cool because your friends on another forum are watching.

 

I acknowledge that it can be a pain in the butt letting in all opinions, but censorship is not the answer. If some newbie writes something dumb in their first post that I find annoying, I say, let them do it. If I have the time I might tell them why they're wrong and then they usually discount my argument by some lame logic, never learning a damn thing and we move on. Others that read the thread can decide for themselves who's argument was better. Overall, knowledge is disseminated. Censorship maintains the ignorance.

 

In a world without trolls I agree. When they are here specifically to troll then circumstances change and they are simply and annoyance, particularly when they post the same crap that 5 other trolls have already posted. I agree that censorship is not the real answer but short of going to each of their houses and beating them down for being troublesome what can you do?

 

I don't think it is dissenters that are bad, it is bad information.
Incorrect information should be corrected.
Those that spread incorrect information on purpose are the real trouble makers.
Those that just believed bad info hopefully can learn.

 

Aye, there's the rub: How many people will bother to refill the urea tank except immediately before an emissions inspection? It is to be seen whether the EPA will accept this mechanism. Perhaps the EPA will require shops to refill them at every oil change and inspection. And oh by the way: it unavoidably produces a boatload of CO2 along with the H20.

OK, *now* you sound like a troll, or someone with more money than sense.

 

We can only censor you. Ideally I would much rather just hit you in the mouth a few times hard. Come visit Central FL sometime? Isnt this troll flamed off yet?

 

I believe the hybrid is a gap filler, but a very good one. My money is on fuel cell designs but that is a bit in the future due to the fuel delivery issue. All electric would be great for those who have limited distances to drive each day. So I'll be happy with my 08 Prius until something better comes along - my guess is it will be a few years though.