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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / General Car Topics / March 2004Toyota Prius Gotcha?
I've been considering buying a Toyota Prius for its fuel efficiency. I happened to mention this to someone who may or may not know what he's talking about, but he said that because of my driving habits -- I drive mostly on the highway at 65 MPH, 25 miles one way, 25 back, daily -- I will not see the claimed fuel efficiency because at highway speeds the car will be using the gasoline engine exclusively. Is this true or is he full of horse hockey? Thanks  Signature"Please God, help me cleanse the computer of viruses and evil photographs that disturb and ruin my work ..., so that I shall be able to cleanse myself." -- Rabbi Shlomo Eliahu >I've been considering buying a Toyota Prius for its fuel efficiency. >I happened to mention this to someone who may or may not know what [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > >Thanks I think you should get what the EPA Sticker says under ideal conditions. I don't thing they can say something like 58 and in real life you only get 30. Just saying the ovious, tom ***************** Check Us Out ***************** http://www.CarFleaMarket.com Post your low-cost Photo Car Ad Today! >I've been considering buying a Toyota Prius for its fuel efficiency. >I happened to mention this to someone who may or may not know what [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > >Thanks Yes, some of the benefits of the Prius will be lost under your driving conditions. We are in exactly the same situation. The wifes commute is 25 miles one way on a dead flat lonely section of 101 here in California. Add a 20 mph tail wind on the way home and we are usually getting 35mpg in a '96 Taurus Wagon. Around town driving , well ...1/4 to the Safeway with no lights and er, a walk to the Pharmacy. I really dig the idea of the Prius though but really a diesel (no smog check here in Ca) would probably make more sense. >>I've been considering buying a Toyota Prius for its fuel efficiency. >>I happened to mention this to someone who may or may not know what [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] >I really dig the idea of the Prius though but really a diesel (no smog >check here in Ca) would probably make more sense. Great point about the diesel. Per mile way cheaper than gasoline, long term operation way cheaper to maintain than gasoline engine, and I've heard diesel fuel is more plentiful than gasoline. nice, tom ***************** Check Us Out ***************** http://www.CarFleaMarket.com Post your low-cost Photo Car Ad Today! On Sat, 27 Mar 2004 20:03:27 -0500, junkmail01 wrote: >>I really dig the idea of the Prius though but really a diesel (no smog >>check here in Ca) would probably make more sense. > > Great point about the diesel. Per mile way cheaper than gasoline, > long term operation way cheaper to maintain than gasoline engine, and > I've heard diesel fuel is more plentiful than gasoline. I've thought long and hard about getting a diesel powered car. With one comes the *possibility* of avoiding the pumps entirely because you can refine used vegetable oil and run the car on it unmodified. The trouble is that here in Connecticut diesel prices are very squirrely; sometimes higher priced than high-test, sometimes lower priced than low-test, and it doesn't follow the price trends of gasoline. Another problem is that we've just re-started emissions testing here, including diesel powered, and there have been many problems with the new testing system. I'd like to avoid emissions tests all-together. Lastly, the only time I could get my hands on large amounts of used vegetable oil would be just after Thanks Giving day, and I'm not crazy about my exhaust smelling like turkey (but it could be fun to fuel up on turkey fryer oil just before going to the emission testing facility...) Thanks for the responses. Signature"Please God, help me cleanse the computer of viruses and evil photographs that disturb and ruin my work ..., so that I shall be able to cleanse myself." -- Rabbi Shlomo Eliahu >On Sat, 27 Mar 2004 20:03:27 -0500, junkmail01 wrote: > [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > >Thanks for the responses. Actually I thought hitting up McD's and BK for their used oild would be kewl. The smell for french fries is nice. tom ***************** Check Us Out ***************** http://www.CarFleaMarket.com Post your low-cost Photo Car Ad Today! >>Thanks for the responses. > >Actually I thought hitting up McD's and BK for their used oild would >be kewl. The smell for french fries is nice. > >tom Sorry Tom, but those fast food joints already sell their used fat to rendering companies so as they can make other things like womens make up and dog food. ...Ron -- 68' RS Camaro 88' Formula Bird http://www.frontiernet.net/~rscamero Some are wise and some are otherwise You want a Gotcha? Just ask what the warranty is on the custom battery pack used in the car, prorated or not prorated for so many years. Then go to the parts department and ask for replacement cost of the battery. What you save in gas you may be more than paying out when it comes time to replace the battery. > I've been considering buying a Toyota Prius for its fuel efficiency. > I happened to mention this to someone who may or may not know what [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > http://www.newsfeed.com The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! >100,000 Newsgroups > ---= 19 East/West-Coast Specialized Servers - Total Privacy via Encryption =--- >You want a Gotcha? >Just ask what the warranty is on the custom battery pack used in the car, >prorated or not prorated for so many years. Then go to the parts department >and ask for replacement cost of the battery. What you save in gas you may >be more than paying out when it comes time to replace the battery. When I was looking at getting a Prius, I was told under ideal conditions, even with the cost of a battery replacements, averaged over 10 years, the gas savings verses a normal car is $500.00 per year. So, is 40 dollars per month worth very financing options from the factory verses a normal car? Can the car last, structurally on normal road commuting for 10 years? I'm guessing only in hind-sight we will know. So, I'll wait awhile before I even think of a hybrid for myself. We'll see. later, tom >> I've been considering buying a Toyota Prius for its fuel efficiency. >> I happened to mention this to someone who may or may not know what [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] >> ---= 19 East/West-Coast Specialized Servers - Total Privacy via Encryption >=--- ***************** Our Sites ***************** http://www.CarFleaMarket.com http://www.FindMeShelter.com http://www.FreelancingProjects.com http://www.VirtualLotteryPool.com http://www.VoyeurJunction.com - Adults Only! *************************************************** >>You want a Gotcha? >>Just ask what the warranty is on the custom battery pack used in the car, [quoted text clipped - 15 lines] > >later, True, true. Anyways I thought I would chuck this into the thread: Who would buy a car that required premium gas? I mean I am not "price sensative" (just cheap LOL) but that stuff is $2.30/gal. around here! > You want a Gotcha? > Just ask what the warranty is on the custom battery pack used in the car, > prorated or not prorated for so many years. Then go to the parts department > and ask for replacement cost of the battery. What you save in gas you may > be more than paying out when it comes time to replace the battery. Battery pack on US Prius are under warranty for 8 years or 100,000 miles, whichever occurs first. No pro-rata amount, full replacement. If you're talking about the 2004 Prius, and you're in CA, ME, MA, NY, or VT, the battery has an additional warranty for 10 years or 150,000 miles, whichever occurs first. Considering that you can get used battery packs from junkyards or off of eBay motors for <$1000 today... Price in Japan for a reconditioned pack is ~US$1400. New pack will cost more than double that. Of course, that's if you are replacing the entire pack, and not just the bad cell within that pack... Meanwhile, there's no starter or alternator in a Prius, and with the regenerative braking, there's less wear on the brakes, and I don't usuallly see those costs included in price comparisons (much like I do not see the cost of a new transmission or engine listed in price comparisons with other traditional vehicles, either...) > I've been considering buying a Toyota Prius for its fuel efficiency. > I happened to mention this to someone who may or may not know what [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > Is this true or is he full of horse hockey? A little of both. Because of how the CVT is set up, the gasoline engine must be turning at highway speeds. On the classic 2001-2003 Prius, that was over 42mph, but I think the speed is higher on the 2004s. However, that does not mean that the gasoline engine is burning any fuel at those speeds (like on a gentle downhill grade or even some flat areas where you'd be coasting). do note that the EPA "highway" test has an average speed of 48mph and a max speed of 60mph, over 10 miles, done in laboratory conditions simulating a flat, level ground at 68-86^F, without the use of the heater or AC. http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/info.shtml#estimates does this sound like your definition of "highway" driving? The EPA tests are only good for comparing one car against another, and not for telling you what your particular real-world MPG will be. "Your mileage may vary." If you are lucky, an area dealer in the TRAC program (Toyota Rent A Car) or maybe even some rental car agencies may have a 2004 Prius available for you to try out for an extended test drive. Try it out on YOUR driving pattern. Depending on your driving patterns, you may find that you'll get better MPG in highway driving with your Prius than your city driving! Here's what Toyota has to say about the EPA numbers: http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/toyota-prius/message/71431 >> I've been considering buying a Toyota Prius for its fuel efficiency. >> I happened to mention this to someone who may or may not know what [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] >or maybe even some rental car agencies may have a 2004 Prius available >for you to try out for an extended test drive. Try it out on YOUR driving pattern. Wow, that is great advice. I have a friend that wanted a Prius, he got one, but the dealer wasn't as friendly to allow long drives or even negoate price or finance chages. Just not enough Prius's being built to meet demand. So grabbing a rental is a great idea. later, tom >Depending on your driving patterns, you may find that you'll get better >MPG in highway driving with your Prius than your city driving! > >Here's what Toyota has to say about the EPA numbers: >http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/toyota-prius/message/71431 *************************************************** http://www.Intertainia.com *************************************************** |
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