Why not get a Corolla?

but Corolla is not a Prius.
This is the same as if you would say why get Corolla and not Echo.

 

The Corolla is a great car. If you want to go gas-only then it's the best choice to make. I thought about it when I had my last Corolla. That 50 mpg isn't THAT much better than 36 (which is what my automatic got in the summer). Still, I'm awfully glad I got the Prius and haven't regretted it at all.

 

I think a more accurate car to compare the Prius to is the Camry, and when you do that the cost differential is less severe.

Also, most people do not buy a car based on cost alone else we would all be driving Kias.

I seriously considered cars like the Corolla, Camry and Echo before choosing the Prius. In the end it was the Prius's low emmissions, great fuel economy, roomy interior and great gadgets that won me over.

The Corolla is a great car, and if you do a lot of hwy driving and it speaks to you, by all means get it. Buying a car is usually a mix of logic, praticality and emotion.

 

Clearly, you haven't actually done a test-drive comparison. My parents have a Corolla. I get to drive it fairly routinely. There is a night & day difference. Prius is most definitely a more refined vehicle. I think they are sick of me pointing out all the details of why Prius is better.

Basically, you get what you pay for. Corolla is indeed a very nice car, just not as nice as Prius.

 

Very good point. The Prius is NOT a corolla. And if Toyota then why not echo? And if Echo why not KIA? And why buy new when you can buy a used one? People don't buy cars to save money we buy cars we like. To me the Prius is a rather upscale car for the price tag, it has almost all the features I was looking for a relativley low price tag. Much more so then a corolla. It also is a slightly better car for the environment. Driving the prius is a statement of where I want the car industry to go.

It's funny how many people don't hesitate to buy leather seats and upgraded stereos for thousands of dollars but paying the same for a really cool electric motor technology that also happens to be environmentally sound has to make the money back right away. This is the coolest technology in any car on the market. You get all that for a price between 20 and 30k. That is NOT bad it;s actually really COOL!

To your 2nd question: The tax deduuciton this year is much better then last year buy the way. This year you can deduct 3000+ on your taxes (as long as you don't get into AMT land, and you are one of the 60.000 first hybrid customers from toyota

 

The Corolla is fun to drive. It's quick, agile and I considered it very comfortable. You're right, the Prius is more refined and it's more accurate to compare it to the Camry but the Corolla is fun. I could manuever it through anything.

 

I have sat in the Corolla and my head scrapes the top of the car and my knees are a tight fit. When I sit in a Prius, I can put my fisted hand between my head and the ceiling and I have plenty of leg room. I'd get a Corolla for my daughter(she's 6) assuming she doesn't reach my height(6'2").

 

First of all, I would stop believing in everything Edmunds says.
Second, what you get for MPG is affected by many conditons, such as terrain, temperature, style of driving etc.
EPA's numbers are not "accurate", or don't reflect the actual numbers people get because of the conditions I listed and the way the EPA testing is done.
Third, refinded more than Corolla, we were comparing Corolla to the Prius

 

The civic is an excellent car that provides the same over all gas milage as the Prius (see http://www.greenhybrid.com/compare/mileage/). It comes down to preference. I choose the 06 Prius as I liked the "I drive a hybrid" design better. Part of the appeal for me is to make a statement and the Prius makes that statement to the general public more then the sneaky civic. Either car is a good choice. In real life I don't think the Civic gets better highway milage then the Prius, they are both equal.

On the hybrid side the technology is quite different. The Prius has a more complete hybrid system and can drive in EV mode for longer distances. In this generation it doesn't make much difference but for the next generation that will likley be a plug-in this will make a difference as the next generation hybrids (say in 08) will probably offer true EV mode for many miles as long as you charge it over night. Here is seems the Prius has an advantage (and there are currently a private company developing aftermarket plug-ib capability for the Prius).

 

We own both a '00 Corolla and '05 Prius. The Prius is much bigger inside, has a hatchback, has much lower emissions, gets better mileage and has more safety gizmos.

The Camry is similar to the Prius in passenger area size. The Corolla gets better mileage than the Camry, but is noticeably smaller than the Prius.

Real world, my Corolla gets about 30 mpg in mixed driving. It never got much more than about 33, even when it was pretty new.

Besides the better mileage and more space, Prius owners are also supporting reduced emissions and advanced technology. Right now there's no way to do that by buying a Corolla.

 

By the way I agree with your refined car choices and I would put the Prius as at least as refined as the cars mentioned

 

Talking about edmunds... didn't they say 05 Prius is better than 06 Civic Hybrid?
http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Drive...rticleId=108445

I guess I'll stop reading their stuff.

 

For me, the decision was based on the fact that I like the Prius much better than the Corrolla. The Corrolla seats are just not comfortable for me. The Matrix, based on the Corrolla, is better in the seat department, but it is much noisier and less peppy than the Prius.

The Prius is really comparable to the Camry in terms of interior room and comfort. And, for me personally, the Camry is not that comfortable. And the tax credit puts the Prius Package 3 at less money than the Camry ($24,044 minus whatever the credit is ... say $3,150). Mileage is better too, but that was a secondary consideration for me.

I drive 40 miles each way to work every day, so the comfort angle means a lot to me. High mileage, above 30 mpg, was also one of my criteria, but there are quite a few cars in that category. My second choice is actually a Chevy HHR; cool car, quite comfortable and fairly quiet, but not as peppy as the Prius and overall quality is probably lower.

I pick up my new Prius in about a half hour.

 

no battery failures that were't attributed to abuse (plug-in modification, running out of gas and running on electric till the battery quit, etc) replacement cost stands at around 3-4k, last i heard.

toyota's spent a lot of effort to spread the word that you DON'T have to plug the car in. i think it'll be a while before the do a plug-in. either way, then you're burning coal not gasoline. and who's to say that it'll be cheaper sucking power off the grid instead of the gas pump?

the prius comes with an 8yr/100k warranty on the hybrid powertrain.

diesels are so dirty, but they do get good mpg. it is possible to get better mpg in a prius if you're willing to learn the mpg-maximizing strategies.

 

Why not a diesel hybrid? As galaxee points out there are some diesel emission problems but I think low sulpher fuel and diesel engine technology can solve those problems.

 

Low-sulfur diesel only gets it along the line of what gas was before it became low-sulfur. So don't expect a SULEV rating without really good special cleansing equipment.

A hybrid system that uses diesel would suffer from the engine on & off, since the efficiency from diesel relies on heat (and so do emissions). Of course the more EV use is expanded, the cooler the engine will become while off. So it is not an ideal solution.

 

This thread contains a good discussion of diesel hybrids. scroll down to post 15, by frank hudon. he says the electric engine can't have enough power to spin up a diesel before ignition because of the compression.

that said, diesel hybrids with a good design and lower emissions would probably be a powerful combination for mpg.