Anyone here drive a hybrid?

[feistydem]

I am looking into buying a Toyota Prius and would like some first-hand accounts of their performance, pluses and any minuses you've discovered.

I've read that the replacement battery can be astronomically high priced if it needs to be replaced (after the warrantee runs out).

Please share your thoughts.

Thanks!

[cyberpj]

1. We've had ours since 2001 - love it!

Get good tires - the cheap ones wear out quickly due to battery weight.

We consistently get 45 to 50mpg - and it seems to me it runs about half time gas and half time elec.

As for battery replacement - we'll probably just extend our warranty when the time comes.

At any rate, it is serving us well and my husband drives an hour each way for work.

ps - some people have published articles on how they converted their Prius to a plug-in at home with additional battery for 100mpg.

pps - we live in a condo and since we got ours, no less than 4 neighbors have purchased Prius hybrids and so far all of them are very very happy with theirs too.

[feistydem]

15. How is sitting in the back seat?

I haven't test driven one yet because they are rarely on the lot.

They seem fairly low to the ground, so I thought maybe the back seat could be bumpy.

I plan to drive it to work, errands, meetings mostly --so I will probably not need to stick anyone in back often.

[cyberpj]

19. Dunno. Never sat there. Sorry. BTW, Ours is 2001, the new models

are styled much differently (ours has a trunk, the new ones all look like hatchbacks) so telling you about our back seat might not matter to the new models' back seat anyway.

[skids]

20. No complaints.

It's a smooth ride up front. Never any complaints from back seat passengers -- some of them pretty heavy guys.

[midnight armadillo]

21. If you're getting new tires...

And you're going to be driving in snow, slush, and ice this winter...get Nokian tires. They are Finnish. Their WR is the finest all-season tire for snow performance in existence (I use 'em on my Subaru). I have a set of their RSI snow tires for our Saab and they are unstoppable when the going gets tough.

Nokian WR. Accept no substitute... (oh, and they do great in rain & dry too. Perfect for a Prius!)

[catmother]

2. hybrid

i've heard the same thing. my husband was talking to a woman who drives one and she said it's not that great -- that the gas mileage is about 43. of course, toyota claims it's more.

[Beaverhausen]

23. They have a 5000 mile break in period. The MPG goes up steadily

I got mine in May and I'm getting around 48 MPG- I don't even have 5000 miles on it yet...should hit that mark next week.

[kestrel91316]

3. A friend of mine is on his second Prius. He got one the first year,

and then he got a new 2005 last winter. He LOVES it! Says he gets about 48 mpg on average, does a lot of city driving.

[catmother]

5. prius

sounds like the woman my husband spoke to gave him wrong information. he's been thinking about buying one as he's only getting about 15mpg. i drive a mazda miata and i get 25.

[skids]

4. 2002 Prius.

Usually 50mpg. It varies by season, appliances run, etc.

My only advice is 1) buy a small solar panel for the back window to keep the tiny 12v lead-acid battery charged when parked for long periods with no use and 2) apply some chemical defog film to the front windsheild. I don't know about the newer models but mine fogs up easy.

Not worried about the batteries. Not even halfway through the warranty on those yet. If they ever go, I'll do a plugin mod. Read a lab report paper and Toyota's battery management engineering is extremely conservative -- they baby that battery pack with velvet gloves. Honda wasn't so great on that point. Don't know about the Ford SUV either.

[feistydem]

8. I had a Toyota Tercel that fogged up horribly, but I was living in Seattle

at the time... Rain-ex worked wonders.

Is the solar panel easy enough to find & use?

I live in the mountains. Does the Prius climb hills okay? What about passing acceleration?

Sorry if that's question overload. :)

Thanks

[skids]

18. Radioshack sells them I think.

I've been meaning to get one.

Unfortunately you can't just plug them into the cig lighter in the Prius, you have to wire them to the battery yourself (don't bypass the diode! :-) ).

[Catbird]

6. First generation Prius

I have been driving a Prius for almost three years, so this is one of the first generation ones. It's comfortable and easy to drive but not especially powerful. I am told that the current models do better at acceleration, etc. (as well as getting better gas mileage). I have been getting about 40 mpg in mostly urban driving. It's had the recommended maintenance but has not needed any additional repairs.

It takes a little while to get used to the gas engine shutting down when not needed at stops. Your first reaction is that your car has stalled. It's also the only car I've ever owned that has attracted much in the way of attention. People have even asked me about it while we were both stopped at lights. And I love the color (ice blue).

[feistydem]

11. Have you had any problems finding a certified mechanic? Or do you

just take it to your Toyota dealer for service?

I was looking at a black one last week. It looks like a stealthy bullet! I love it.

[Catbird]

17. Toyota dealer

We take the Prius to the Toyota dealer for complicated work. They have had one certified Prius mechanic, which once created some delay in having the car worked on because he was working on another Prius when I brought it in for routine maintenance. It goes to a local Firestone place for oil changes and tires and such like. We have not gone on any long trips in it, so I'm not sure how easy Prius mechanics are to find in the boonies.

[WildClarySage]

7. My sister loves hers so much that when it was time to trade in her

husband's SUV, they went and bought a second Prius. I wish I'd bought one instead of my last Toyota, a Solara. My next car will be one.

[catmother]

10. prius

they are nice looking -- looks real sturdy. toyota makes great cars. we've owned quite a few and never a problem.

[Jed Dilligan]

9. Yes

It's a hybrid of my feet and various trains and buses.

[catmother]

12. hybrid

it took me a minute to get that. very funny.

[feistydem]

13. So, you have webbed feet? or what?

just teasing

[Jed Dilligan]

14. If it walks like a duck... n/t

[catmother]

16. speaking of cars

i have a friend who owned a 1986 nissan stanza. she drove it for 16 years, 306,000 miles and when she traded it for her toyota echo, they gave her $300.00. think she got her money's worth?

on edit: when i told this story to another friend who drives a 1989 civic with 102,000 miles he said his was just a teenager.

[hatrack]

22. 2001 Prius - very satisfied with performance & mileage

Caveats - I'm 6'3" and about two more inches of legroom in front would be nice. Back seat has been OK for passengers, but it's still a compact car. The trunk could be a little bigger, but that's about the extent of my complaints. A new Prius would indeed be nice, but I just can't justify it.

Other than that, it's been great - about 43-45 mpg during the winter, and about 48-50 in the summer - this is about 60% city, 40% highway. It's a little slower than some cars pulling onto the highway, but at speed, acceleration is pretty good for a small car.

Service issues -

Power steering rack replacement, summer 2002 (Toyota paid) - this was specific to the 2001 model.

Accelerator sensor replacement, spring 2004 (Toyota paid).

Also, if you're using Bridgestone Potenzas (which are low-rolling resistance tires), expect to get at most 35,000 miles out of them.