Prius - Obsolete?

Welcome to PriusChat, rematore! You will save several tons of CO2 being dumped into the atmosphere with your wise purchase now. In addition, I'm not sure you, or anyone else, has the specs and delivery date of the next Prius. It's a great car to drive now.

When you trade it in for the new 2009(?) model, someone will get a chance to buy your well-cared-for 2007 model, perhaps trading in or junking their old beater that was blowing blue smoke.

The Prius is NOT the best or final car. That's probably electric or hydrogen powered. But the one you now own is the best one on the road right now. Have fun! Drive happy!

 

if the current model car goes obsolete, so does the rest of the car industry. I don't see that happening.

 

I struggled with the same issue, and then I realized the following:

• A 93 mpg 2009 model is a RUMOR and nothing more. Toyota has stated no major changes to the Prius until 2010.
• Buying a Prius now means that much LESS CO2 I dump into the atmosphere.
• It's just so much fun to drive!

The world constantly changes. The computer you buy is obsolete in 6 months, the food you buy spoils, everything has a limited lifetime. Enjoy what you have while you have it.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(rematore @ Apr 18 2007, 01:06 AM) [snapback]425125[/snapback]</div>

IMHO the only way you'll see a 90 mpg Prius in a few years is if it's a plug in (PHEV). With current Prius PHEV conversions, if you count in the energy content of the the grid electricity used to charge the car, you get the equivalent of about 85 MPG on a cost basis or 75 MPG on a carbon-emitted basis (based on CalCars' experience with theirs, which of course is dependent on their driving patterns). But, as stated above, that's still a rumor, and you have to be ready to plug in your car to get that kind of mileage.

If you focus on the here and now, you'll see how much more efficient the Prius is than almost anything else on the road. Last year I asked this question: what's the most fuel-efficient six-passenger motor vehicle I could buy (major manufacturers only), in America? Answer: two Prii. Based on what the EPA was publishing at the time (and given that the Insight was no longer in production), the Prius was so much more efficient than anything else you could buy that you could run two of them at the same time and still burn less gas than any new six-passenger vehicle then sold. (Not sure if that's still true with the new EPA numbers, but it'll certainly be close).

So if Toyota comes through with a PHEV Prius, yeah, you'll be obsolete in the sense of not having the most fuel-efficient vehicle currently being sold. But you'll still be ahead of 99+% of the US fleet.

 

Even when the next generation Prius is released, your car will still be getting better fuel mileage and will be more technologically advanced than virtually any other car on the street. No, it won't be obsolete.

 

"I just bought a prius on saturday after much consideration, but I'm still not sure if it will be worthless next year when the 93 MPG Prius III comes out. On other threads people said the current prius will still be way ahead of other models, but that doesn't change the fact that the new prius is supposed to be cheaper and get almost double the mileage as the current one.

Anyone have any thoughts?"

Well--- If Toyota provides a Backfit-Kit for the new Lithium-Ion Batteries (those are likely in Prius III), then you may presumptively expect to reduce your annual Prius II gas bill by 50%. However, Prius II already has taken me from 17 MPG (a 6 cyl Chevy Blazer, average for 96 months of ownership) to over 48 MPG (average for 16 months of ownership).

What is a further 50% improvement worth, at today's gas prices (under $3) after recently obtaining a 180% mileage improvement? Prius II is already good - but perhaps the 'Western World' needs Prius III more than I - Prius performance is surely more stable than the 'Oil Rich" Mid-eastern or South American Governments, and $7 to $10 per Gallon prices are somewhere ahead in our future. Think I'll wait until they arrive before trading my Prius II or buying a backfit. There will always be lots of non-Hybrid based transportation ready for retirement, between $7 and $10, and Prius II will remain popular in the vehicle market that makes Prius III 'must-have' popular.

Come to think of it - there already is a LI Battery Backfit Kit for Prius II - I've seen it on some internet sites - fits into the spare-tire well - they advertised 150 MPG - you got to throw away the spare, and use 'run flat' tires. Don't know the price.

Bill (525Mi_on_9.6Gal)

 

Just get out and drive this prius more. Put on 100,000 miles in the first year, 75,000 in the second year and you'll be ready for the new one when it comes out.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(daronspicher @ Apr 18 2007, 07:11 AM) [snapback]425226[/snapback]</div>

To the OP: if you really need convincing regarding the wisdom of your purchase, just click on Daron's lifetime stats link in the above post. And look at how much money he's saved on gas in one year of heavy driving.

 

Waiting for the new Prius is like waiting for the next generation computer: There will always be something a little better on the horizon. If you insist on waiting for the "best", then all you will do is wait. You made the right decision.

Tom

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(MegansPrius @ Apr 18 2007, 07:57 AM) [snapback]425236[/snapback]</div>

Results may vary, driver on an open and raging chicagoland tollway course...

My page contrasts as if I would have kept my prior vehicle which was a Diesel F250 Ford, rather than the typical "Prius compared to if you bought a plain jane stick shift civic" savings model.

Between fuel cost savings and the roughly 50% of a tax credit that I got 50% gipped out of, I did pretty good on spending less dollars last year to get to work and back.

 

We had just purchased our Pri in March 07 , I do not feel that in a few yrs this will be outdated, one way to look at it is this, you have a new car it saves fuel, it cuts down on c02, it's fun to drive, now if they do create a battery pack capable of long range it most likely will be able to convert into your 07 prius. Also when paid off you will still have a newer car than what you traded in for unless you tradeda 07 ?

Plus right now fuel prices here have gone up 40 cents per gal. since we bought our prius it is saving us more already even in the short term.
drive your new Prius and have fun and know it is making a difference .

 

I sincerely hope that every 'next generation' car is such a great improvement that it renders all previous cars 'obsolete'.

 

I'm staking my money on what's the best right now, not whatever the guys in marketing are promising in the future. Marketing guys make politicians, in terms of promises, look like paragons of honesty.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(daronspicher @ Apr 18 2007, 05:11 AM) [snapback]425226[/snapback]</div>

I certainly hope you're joking. You're suggesting that because someone bought one of the most fuel efficient cars on the market, they should go out and drive it more??? Yah, I'm putting out half the CO2 as my neighbor, therefore I'll drive it twice as much. I suppose you also buy low fat potato chips not to reduce your fat intake, but so that you can eat twice as many chips?

Drive as much as you normally drive, and feel good knowing that you've greatly cut back your CO2 footprint. Going out and driving unnecessary miles defeats the purpose of why you bought the Prius in the first place.

 

I usually buy something when I need the service it provides; I'm sure the next Prius will be better than the current model.

Thing is, mine will continue to get me from one place to another, even after the next gen Prius comes out, and the one after that...and, for me, that's what matters most.

 

I'm sad our cars have not gone obsolete faster - it means progress is slow.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(daronspicher @ Apr 18 2007, 07:11 AM) [snapback]425226[/snapback]</div>

That's pretty funny.

 

Rematore, if you were worried that today's Prius would be obsolete in a year, then why did you bother to buy one today?

Be realistic, as others have said. We make our decisions to buy what's available today. You can wait for all that Buck-Rogers stuff to show up in the future---if ever---or you can have transportation today.

And today's Prius won't be obsolete: it just won't be the latest and greatest. Big deal. As long as gasoline is available, it can't become obsolete.

 

I'd almost bet Toyota has what they need out of the regen system and the ICE. Their mileage improvement will come when they can go the first 40 miles without starting the ICE. Plugin overnight + just a better battery to get to 100mpg. I imagine a retrofit on the previous models (ours) won't be cost effective, or as cost effective as just trading ours off and buying the new one.