To Prius or not?

[PandaBear]

You haven't told us what is the reason you want a new car (did the 08 Yaris rusted out? Growing family? Just want to reward yourself? Passing the car down to a kid?)

How long is your commute? You may not get much benefit of a hybrid if you drive less than 50 miles per day, and they also rust like a normal car if rust is a concern.

If it is just a simple small car for commuting short distance, Corolla
If long distance commute, Prius
If government pays you to charge the car and let you ride carpool lane to avoid traffic, plug in or EV.
If you need a bigger car for a bigger family (2 small kids), Camry.

 

[glock19]

Originally Posted By: surfstar
Yes, but the case for 95% of people who buy "suvs". If I needed ground clearance often enough, we would have bought a Subaru most likely. I'm still way more likely to take my wagon on many more dirt roads than the average CUV/SUV driver.


Where did that statistic come from?

I'm glad that you don't need ground clearance or the capability of a real body on frame vehicle, but to suggest that no else does is kind of silly.

 

[pandus13]

Originally Posted By: glock19
Originally Posted By: surfstar
Yes, but the case for 95% of people who buy "suvs". If I needed ground clearance often enough, we would have bought a Subaru most likely. I'm still way more likely to take my wagon on many more dirt roads than the average CUV/SUV driver.


Where did that statistic come from?

I'm glad that you don't need ground clearance or the capability of a real body on frame vehicle, but to suggest that no else does is kind of silly.

Guys, Guys,
this is not a p@@@ssing contest.
Surfstar was just relaying his experience also relating to average US driver.
you (Glock19) relayed the experience related to having fun (compared to average US driver); also like that we (normal bitogERS) find out about things and stuff not on the dealers floor to make what's on the dealers floor more enjoyable/ to a purpose

SOOOO, beer/cold one on me?

 

[pandus13]

Originally Posted By: PandaBear
You haven't told us what is the reason you want a new car (did the 08 Yaris rusted out? Growing family? Just want to reward yourself? Passing the car down to a kid?)

How long is your commute? You may not get much benefit of a hybrid if you drive less than 50 miles per day, and they also rust like a normal car if rust is a concern.

If it is just a simple small car for commuting short distance, Corolla
If long distance commute, Prius
If government pays you to charge the car and let you ride carpool lane to avoid traffic, plug in or EV.
If you need a bigger car for a bigger family (2 small kids), Camry.

Panda, i see you think like a project engineer (all possible scenarios) and thank you for that.
i will consider all of them
reason for change would be: utility (yaris even in sedan form is really tiny inside when you have some projects; but also my projects are not 100% of time, so you may have a point that renting something bigger for short time will fix that), growing kids (ok now, but not in 2 years)

 

[funflyer]

Originally Posted By: pandus13
Hi Bitogers,

first, please no toyota bashing!!!
I'm open to other options too!

the local dealer sent me a promo email with:
- corolla advertised at $17,800 and 0% for 72 months,
- camry advertised at $20,800 at 0% for 60months or 0.9% for 72 months
- prius two advertised at %24,885 at 0% for 72 months

now i can:
-sing "money in the bank" all day for the next 2 years (yota yaris will be 10 years old in rust territory) and use the 4 oil filters and jugs of 10w30/5w30 remaining
-buy maybe a camry or prius and hold for 8-10 years (or recommend alternative)
-buy something else for 5-8 years (or 10 if really lucky). preferably at least midsize, functional will also be nice(i was so itching for a brand new 2015VW sportwagen for $15,000, but kitchen re-do prevailed)

so BITOG motorheads, what say you?

many thanks for a civil thread

P.S.'08 yaris is paid off


The sooner you buy a Prius the sooner you will start seeing 20+ MPGs more than any of those others mentioned, including your Yaris. Depending how you drive and your commute speed, you could even see 30 MPG more. Gas will only go back up after the election as it always does. If you want the real facts about the Prius and not from those on BITOG who are just shooting from the hip, go over to priuschat.com.

 

[PandaBear]

Originally Posted By: pandus13

Panda, i see you think like a project engineer (all possible scenarios) and thank you for that.
i will consider all of them
reason for change would be: utility (yaris even in sedan form is really tiny inside when you have some projects; but also my projects are not 100% of time, so you may have a point that renting something bigger for short time will fix that), growing kids (ok now, but not in 2 years)


If you have growing kids (I have 2 BTW), I think you should not go too small.

The day before my 2nd daughter was born I bought a PriusV of previous model year that a dealer was trying to get rid of. I got it for $5k under MSRP and has been very happy with it. At 40mpg and $21300 before tax, I think it is a good choice for my wife commuting 80 miles a day.

If you don't already have a big car, and not drive too far (less than 80 miles a day), I'd take a look at the V or the Camry.

 

[supton]

Wife stepped up from a Civic to a Camry, and we've found it works well enough for our family of 4. Wide enough if we have to put 3 across in the back, even if an adult has to sit back there. Large enough trunk for weekend trips as a family too. It works "good enough".

I have not sat in a Prius V but I did sit in a C. Wife thought it underpowered (I expected that) but I really disliked all the LCD's and gizmos. Great concept but ultimately a horrible cockpit. Not sure if a V is like that but I know I prefer a more old-school interface with the vehicle.

Utility trailers can be annoying, and take up space, but do allow one to move large things without involving the car interior.

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Originally Posted By: glock19
Originally Posted By: surfstar
Yes, but the case for 95% of people who buy "suvs". If I needed ground clearance often enough, we would have bought a Subaru most likely. I'm still way more likely to take my wagon on many more dirt roads than the average CUV/SUV driver.


Where did that statistic come from?

I'm glad that you don't need ground clearance or the capability of a real body on frame vehicle, but to suggest that no else does is kind of silly.


As I age I find its EASY to get into and out of the taller vehicle. I had a Chevy Cruze recently for rental and I felt like I was crawling out of hole in the road. I will say The Tall CofG does ruin handing.

Last time I looked at Jettas they had components built in many iffy locations like Yugo making the engine and chjina making the trans and Brazilian robots welding the body stampings and doing major component integration. Is the wagon "W" built car like GTI?

I cant imagine you can find new sportwagon for 18,500 these days. I may be wrong I will look on line now..

 

[supton]

I have to wonder if CUV's will hold up on dirt roads better than a sedan. Both use the same unibody structure (good thing? they can be as stiff or floppy as the designer wants, usually more stiff than BOF--but is stiffness a good thing under high vibration?); but more importantly, both are the same passenger car struts and components.

Where I live the paved roads can be nearly as bad as dirt. Washboard aside, frost heaves and potholes do a number to the road surface. What annoys me is that as soon as they pave they find a good reason to cut a ditch under the road to do culvert work. One winter the road I lived on had a bad spot where I had to drive my Jetta so as to highside it--I thought I was dangerously close to dragging. After that winter I found some suspicious drag marks on the oilpan--I guess I got closer than I thought...

Not sure I want to go back to sitting on the ground in my next car. Good for handling, lousy at intersections where you're the smallest vehicle and can't see around people.

 

[IndyIan]

Originally Posted By: supton
I have to wonder if CUV's will hold up on dirt roads better than a sedan. Both use the same unibody structure (good thing? they can be as stiff or floppy as the designer wants, usually more stiff than BOF--but is stiffness a good thing under high vibration?); but more importantly, both are the same passenger car struts and components.

Where I live the paved roads can be nearly as bad as dirt. Washboard aside, frost heaves and potholes do a number to the road surface. What annoys me is that as soon as they pave they find a good reason to cut a ditch under the road to do culvert work. One winter the road I lived on had a bad spot where I had to drive my Jetta so as to highside it--I thought I was dangerously close to dragging. After that winter I found some suspicious drag marks on the oilpan--I guess I got closer than I thought...

Not sure I want to go back to sitting on the ground in my next car. Good for handling, lousy at intersections where you're the smallest vehicle and can't see around people.

Comparing my two "wagons", the Focus does ride a bit smoother but is more likely to get onto the bumpstops than the CRV, which I don't really recall bottoming yet. After driving the CRV though, the Focus is a much more satisfying drive. A throttle cable and mtx is a big part of that, but the lower CoG makes corners more of a pleasure. I've also got more extreme tire choices than average on both of them and I can feel the difference between 13/32 of offroad/winter tread vs 8/32 of high-ish performance summer tire.
As a commuter and daily run about I take the Focus every time though, even to take the kids and I and our bikes somewhere nearby. For longer family trips the CRV tends to get the nod even though they have the same cargo space. The passenger space is slight wider and there's an arm rest on each front seat instead of a central one, a minor detail but I noticed it. Also we tend to go out into the country so I like having the option of going down a rough road or trail if I like.
The mileage difference is atrocious though, for some reason our CRV seems to be stuck in the low 20's mpg even for mostly hwy driving. Fuel isn't that expensive at the moment but its a bit annoying just how inefficient it is.

 

[supton]

MIL has an 03 CRV and I think it too only does mid 20's on the highway. Old 4AT design I guess, old setup altogether.

I've been wanting another car very bad of late; gas may be cheap but the AT in my truck is driving me bonkers. Plus, I recently got the chance to drive my Camry, and my first impression, hitting the highway, was "wow, this feels like a sports car!" that's pretty bad...

 

[surfstar]

DC area dealers seem to have the best Sportwagen pricing:
https://www.cars.com/for-sale/searchresu...archSource=SORT

Our last two tanks were 39 & 40 mpg ('hand' calculated), loaded down with camping and climbing gear, going from sea level to over 10k ft, 74 mph cruise, and a few low speed, short trips from the campsite to climbing/lake.
I recently added Air Lift 'bags' to tame the rear end sag from the load. Worked great. No squat, no high aiming headlights.

Long term average is creeping up, now at 36.85 mpg, with 86xx miles.

A great value, at under $19k. Actually, if you can find a Limited Edition for ~$20k, those have many 'fancier' options. Although the 6AT and 17" wheels just seem to lower mpg, which I wouldn't enjoy. I like my lowly 'base' model TSI S Sportwagen.