Is the Prius Profitable?

[erpowers]

Does anyone know if the Prius is actually a profitable vehicle? I have heard conflicting accounts. A few years ago I thought I heard that Toyota had turned a profit, but yesterday I read an article that claimed the Prius was not profitable. Which account is right?

[Fumesucker]

1. Source? n/t

[erpowers]

7. Not Saying he is Right

I am not saying the author of this article is right, but he makes the claim and I am trying to determine if he or those on the other side of the issue are correct.

"Toyota has sold about a million of the cars and is still widely believed by analysts to be losing money on each one sold."

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/6138042.html

[Fumesucker]

24. The wording is vague and non specific..

It would be interesting to know the truth.

[Possumpoint]

2. Another Question

How many people are prepared for the cost of replacing the batteries ($2200 +/-) after 90K miles?

[w4rma]

3. The warranties are 10-year/150K miles and 8-year/100K miles. Not 90K miles. (nt)

[spinbaby]

11. My warranty is for 100,000 miles

And even if I had to put out a major investment for batteries after 100,000 miles, is that more than, say, a transmission repair?

I love my Prius.

[LostinVA]

16. I have to spend approximately 1k every 60K on my VW Golf diesel

I get 40-50 mpg and can run the thing for hundreds of thousands of miles before it dies. That's worth the cost of replacing timing belts. As is the Prius battery. I would have got the Prius, but it was a bit too much for me. My next car will be a hybrid.

And, the transmission analogy is right on the button!

[TheCowsCameHome]

22. A tune up, tire rotation, and transmission replacement

The story of my wife's Chrysler van.

Scheduled maintainence in the 90's............

[dysfunctional press]

25. chrysler mini-vans in the 90's had a plastic gear in the transmission that almost always failed.

everyone i know/knew with one of them(including me) had to have their transmissions replaced eventually.

[spinbaby]

29. We had a VW diesel once

It was a beige VW Rabbit, bought in 1978 in response to Carter's energy-saving message. It cost less than $4,000 brand new. We needed to keep a heater in it during the winter and the fuel lines kept breaking. I was not particularly impressed, although I've heard diesel passenger cars have improved since then.

[YOY]

4. That's funny.

Seriously. News from the edge of logic. Next thing you tell us is that you heard a rumor Hummer was profitable after all.

[erpowers]

8. See Response #7 n/t

[hlthe2b]

5. I'm assuming the question is whether it is profitable to Toyota

A basic Google search, seems to suggest that it is:


http://www.google.com/search?q=Is+prius+profitable+to+Toyota&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a


I have no first hand knowledge....

[DainBramaged]

6. Not profitable enough to sustain Toyota

They told their stockholders that their net profit for the year will drop 70+ % to about 5 billion US due to the downturn in the sale of PROFITABLE vehicles as their trucks and SUVs are.

Look at their lineup and you'll see where the vehicles are weighted. They aren't towards little econboxes.

[depakid]

9. Maybe in the US, but not abroad...

[BeFree]

10. Is GM making a profit?

Ford? Chrysler?

Is any car profitable?

The Prius, it could be said, is profiting the environment more than any other car, if you look at it away from just money profits.

[DainBramaged]

12. Jeep, Jeep is very profitable. Yes it is. And more popular than the Prius

[BeFree]

15. So

Chrysler is doing great then? And how does the Jeep compare to the Prius on gas mileage?

[DainBramaged]

19. The conversation is about P-R-O-F-I-T

:eyes:

[Selatius]

13. Profits in the industry for cars dries up during heavy economic downturns.

Toyota's stock was downgraded from AAA to AA by Fitch's Rating Agency due to deteriorating market conditions. The same company downgraded the value of US car company stocks as well.

[TheCowsCameHome]

14. Which automaker(s) will show up next looking for govt. loans?

[Kalyke]

21. I don't know, but Honda's CEO is asking the Japanese government to weaken the yen

so their profits aren't slashed:

http://blogs.businessweek.com/autos/autobeat/archives/2008/11/will_japans_car.html

Of course, with no one yet projecting losses, the problems aren’t in the U.S. Big Three’s league, as Ford and GM’s results on Nov. 7 will no doubt highlight. Still, that didn’t stop Honda chief Takeo Fukui calling for the Japanese authorities to intervene to weaken the yen earlier today. Speaking at a the launch of the Honda Life, a minicar for the Japanese market, Fukui told reporters the government should step in after the yen’s recent surge against the dollar and other currencies. “Of course (the government) should intervene,” Reuters reported Fukui as saying. Fukui’s comments were before Toyota’s weak forecasts.

To some extent, Fukui, who isn’t against the U.S. government aiding U.S. automakers, has a point. On Oct. 27, the yen surged to 90 to the dollar and is currently at 98. Back in 2003, when it was at a relatively weak 103, Japan stepped in to ease the pain. Against the euro and other currencies the rise has been even more pronounced. And there is little doubt the speed of the current surge is painful. In Toyota’s case, analysts say a one-yen appreciation of the Japanese currency against the dollar reduces earnings by around $450 million; a one yen appreciation against the euro costs $80 million. The numbers aren’t as brutal at smaller Honda but they still have a big impact.

That's kind of a "bailout" in a sense.

[natrat]

23. prius sales dependent on high fuel prices

toyota should do a "fun" hybrid

[Tesha]

17. Because money is fungible, you can never be certain whether a given program...

within a giant corporation is profitable or not,
but I'd assume that the Prius is running "close
to break-even" on one side or the other, so no
great losses or great profits. But it adds a tremendous
"halo effect" to Toyota as a whole, so is probably
well worth it to the corporation.

Tesha

[midnight]

18. It has been a profitable car for my daughter. She fills it up

about once a month.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

20. Must. Not. Make. Copycat. Involving. Priapism. MUST! NOT!

[jemsan]

26. Check this article out...

http://www.hybridcarblog.com/2008/09/next-prius-hugely-profitable-and.html

[jemsan]

27. Or this one...

and there is your answer.


http://www.hybridcarblog.com/2008/10/toyota-prius-us-automakers-cant-handle.html

[DainBramaged]

28. No sources, just hyperbole on a blog

NO ONE knows if the Prius is profitable, because Toyota, like ALL of the Japanese manufacturers, refuses to disclose financial information that would give their competitors an "edge".

I worked for the Japanese for over a decade (1983-1994). What is truth is a lie and what is a lie is almost truth. And yes means no.