Looking to buy a Prius in the next week or two. We need a second car. Have 3 kids (13, 9 and 9) so need a roomy backseat. We’ve got a minivan now and sis in law has a Porsche Cayenne parked at our house that we use the 9 months or so that she’s not in country. So, it’s a second car and after we use it a while may trade in the mini van (we rarely use it for more than 5 people or more than city driving). My mother had another stroke and has to stop driving. She’s got a 2008 Prius but looks like her 90 year old husband wants it, but that got us thinking of a Prius. We took a test drive yesterday. I’ve ridden in lots of Prius’ as taxis or shuttles, but this was the first time I drove. It was fine. Lots of room in the back seat. A lot more for example than the Audi T5 China Wife has been eying. Oh yes, the eldest China Bambina is 13 so this will likely be her car sooner or later.
So, likely to buy a new Prius (unless my step father changes his mind and we can get the 2008 at blue book). Maybe a 4 because China Wife wants the built in GPS.
That said, any dopers with Prius’ that would recommend something else?
Any hybrid/EV owners that would recommend something other than the Prius?
Not sure what you mean - I have the one with the solar roof panel/GPS combo. I love the prius, but disappointed in the GPS - it is no better than the Nissan I had like 8-9 years prior. Slow and annoying, but still rather have it than use my cell phone.
I usually am riding by myself or one other passenger - have had my nephew in the back a few times in a car seat. Still gets lots of questions (do I plug it in?) followed by “wow this seems to ride pretty well” (the hidden sort of thought being - I thought this was a go cart). And of course how many mpg do you get? (50-52 I think). Also when it is running on electric - people think this is really cool - as it is close to stealth mode on KITT.
I am very happy with it and think the only downside is price, and shitty gps (which in fairness haven’t seen many other built ins - but my cell phone is way better). Have had issues with door locks, but other than that - don’t think anything else. I like the keyless entry/starter - but lots of cars have that now I think.
ETA: oh - you mean a “iv” - not sure why my brain didn’t translate that
The wife got a Prius earlier last year, and she loves it. Sounds like we got the same package as DataX, but the wife has no complaints about the GPS - we can’t compare it to any others as it’s our first, but it works fine for her.
It’s a smooth ride, incredible mileage at 51 mpg, and so far there’s not a problem in sight. She commutes about an hour each way, and is still enjoying the car very much.
As for roomy, we haven’t tried to fit more than four in it, but I’m a bit on the big and tall side, and the shotgun seat is TARDIS-like. Plenty of room for me, despite how big it looks. When we had four, the other two were kinda stupid, and the tall guy sat behind me while the tiny woman sat behind my wife. Nevertheless, he had adequate leg room.
And in fairness - part of my issue is the voice guided part - not really the GPS itself.
Instead of saying “go to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue” and then “ok” to confirm it is some think like:
“Destination”
[hitting the button repeatedly to get it to shut up and take my next instruction]
“Address”
[more button hitting]
“Washington DC”
“Washington DC?”
“Yes”
“street number?”
“One-six-zero-zero”
“One-six-zero-zero?”
“Yes”
“Street name?”
“Pennsylvania”
“Pennsylvania?”
“Yes”
Then two more steps to confirm
And god help you if the person doesn’t know the name of their city.
For Christ sakes - it’s like 25% of people don’t know the real name of their city. I am using gps - yes if I had a decent one - it wouldn’t care the name of the city, but mine does (if I am driving - doesnt if I am standing still) - go to fucking USPS.gov and learn your REAL city name and not what name you like to call it.
I have been on the phone and said “nope - it isn’t comin up - what does the post office call it?” - and they literally don’t know the real name of their city. It’s the city printed on all the junk mail you get!!!
Loved my Prius. I bought a 2005 from a friend in 2008, and averaged around 47 mpg over five and a half years. Wrecked it, and got another 2005 Prius. (For some reason, it’s only getting about 44-45 average mpg.)
The Prius is comfortable, gets great mileage, is attractive, and has plenty of room.
I have a 2008 Escape hybrid, and I love it to bits as well, but the mileage just isn’t in the same category as the Prius at all. It does beat the Prius all to hell if you’re planning to go off-road, though!
And our built-in GPS is kind of like this, too. It also uses CDs for maps, so you have to change CDs as you drive cross-country, and it would cost hundreds of of dollars to update the maps, so the whole system isn’t exactly up-to-date anymore. I’m thinking that current systems wouldn’t depend on ancient technology like that.
We have a 2011 Prius IV and like it a lot. No GPS and no $4,000 solar panel option for the roof. No sun roof, either. We didn’t want any of those options, so our cost was reasonable. It still has a JBL sound system, cruise, keyless entry and ignition, power windows, mirrors, and locks, heated front seats, leather, climate control, etc. With the back seats down, I can put 8’ sticks of lumber in without a problem, and we haul our xmas tree home in it each year. It handles well and has decent acceleration.
I bought a 2010 Prius IV a few months back and still am very happy. I beieve the Prius has the top owner satisfaction among Consumer Reports subscribers. The 2010 had leather seat option, and my daughter has complained about the slickness of the leather, but now the deluxe seats are synthetic. The room in back was fine for her 6’4" boyfriend.
The deluxe stereo is the best I’ve had in a car, but it’s also my first deluxe sound system.
My favorite thing about the Prius is the plethora of energy use gauges. I’ve largely abandoned video game playing (as a low benefit time waste), but enjoy watching my real time mpg, and the record of 5 minute mpg figures. There are half a dozen easy ways to improve mileage, and it’s a kick to employ them appropriately. I’m still searching for the perfect routes to and from work.
It’s a fun comfortable car and getting a 10 gallon fill-up is nice.
I have a C-Max Energi. The regular C-Max hybrid does not get quite the mpg of the Prius but still does quite well and drives much better. You may want to give it a test drive. The Energi is a plug-in. Unclear from your title and op together if you are at all interested in determining if any of the plug-ins would be a good match for you.
I have a Prius and I like it a lot, but you have to be willing to be a Prius owner. My husband has an E Class Mercedes (I guess its our own little version of household carbon credits). So we regularly joke about Prius drivers who want to pass him, beat him around the corner and pull ahead of him, and otherwise drive like they are driving - well, a Mercedes (or even an American muscle car). Prius driving is zen driving. You don’t get jackrabbit starts and stops and great accelleration - not without putting your mpg down in the tank at which point you might as well drive a Jetta.
I would consider it a little small for five - we have four and take his car whenever we need all four of us in the car - its OK I guess. I also sometimes wish for a minivan so that I could take kids, skis and friends - I have no car that does that. I can take kids or friends, or kids and skis, but not both.
I’ve got a Ford Fusion hybrid and love it. Really love it. The “My Ford Touch” screen takes some practice, but I figured out a lot of the functions I use can be accomplished with the buttons on the steering wheel, without jabbing the screen.
So far, I’m averaging about 36 MPG. Not the 40-some they use in the ads, but much better than the regular gas combustion engine of my previous midsize car. The best MPG happens when driving under 62 MPH. Freeway driving and blasting your heater will lower the mileage you can achieve.
The battery recharges off the heat of the brakes, so you learn how to nurse the most energy out of applying your brakes. It gives you a braking score on the dash cluster. It’s also fun to watch the efficiency leaves grow.
Given what you’re looking for, I’ll join the chorus of love for the Prius. We have a 2010 and are very happy with it. (agree the GPS can be a minor hassle to program, but it works well once it’s navigating) Room for 5, good cargo space, consistently great mileage. I also have a 2012 Volt, but it wouldn’t meet your needs, as it only seats four.
I’ve had my Prius about 3.5 years. I have around 70,000 on it. It has preformed well and my gas mileage with heavy highway use is** around 46 mpg**. I actually do better in the warmer weather getting around 48 and 44 in the winter. It is not the roomiest vehicle but will handle 2 adults and 3 kids with ease and the hatch allows for easy and excellent storage for a smallish car.
One caveat, a friends son is already 6’4" and he does not fit in the back seat of my Prius at this point. But up to 6’ is no problem for the back seat.
I’m probably going to give this Prius to my daughter next year and buy another, though I will look at some other high gas mileage cars.
Oh, I have a heavy foot, I am prone to quick starts though I’ve gotten good about slower stops and my gas mileage is still awesome. If you are the type that drives close to the limit and take easy acceleration, the mileage should go to 50+ mpg.
I think the break even # of years that you must drive a hybrid to make it economical is something like 13 years. That is the present value of the fuel savings from high MPG, vs. the increased price you pay for the hybrid engine. That doesn’t even account for the replacement battery if you do have to replace that prior to your 13th year.
If you’re gonna drive it for 15+ years then it might make sense.
Unless you are looking at it for reasons other than straight ROI, which is how I looked at it.
I wanted to support the idea of alternative fuel vehicles. The Prius isn’t what I want long term - but when we bought, electric cars were not vaguely realistic. And I’m not sure that where we are they are realistic yet. So the Prius was (and I think still is) one of the best ways to support a still emerging technology change.
And yeah, it has other issues - the pollution involved in battery creation and disposal for instance, but some of those issues may be able to be solved over time - if the investment is made because there is a market.
I feel pretty strongly that we can’t burn gas forever, we are squeezed between climate change and it being a finite resource. This was my small contribution to nudging the industry to do something else.
I don’t think the Prius cost any more (certainly not much more) than a comparable car with similar features. It’s under $30K, and depending on the package, quite a bit under. In fact, it’s cheaper than some cars, and would thus give you a good ROI even if you never saved on gas.
The break-even point also depends on what kind of driving you and obviously how much of it you do. The Prius hybrid system excels in stop-and-go traffic and so if you do a lot of urban miles the break even point is a lot closer. That’s why Priuses have been popular with cab fleets, despite the space constraints in the back seat and trunks. Some of the other hybrid systems are more effective on the highway, though, so that’s one thing to keep in mind while shopping.
