Drove a Prius today . . .

the · 12-21-2008, 12:25 AM

Put some real miles on a Prius today. Wow, that was a bit of an eye-opening experience, not at all what I expected.

First, the thing is slow. No torque at all. Granted, I did have a couple passengers, and I do drive fairly spiritedly in normal driving. But I had the pedal to the floor quite a bit.

Second, is the engine built by Toyota, or Briggs and Stratton? Just wonderring.

A smaller complaint, but you can feel when the engine kicks in and out.

Overall, I guess it works for those who are really penny conscious with fuel costs, but the thing is absolutely no fun at all. Truly a transportation appliance for people who have no car-enthusiast leanings at all.

Also, I wonder if you could come close to that mileage with a small turbodiesel engine, on equally skinny, high pressure tires and aero shape.

dial 911 · 12-21-2008, 02:25 AM

i love the prius! save the earth!

Turboo934 · 12-21-2008, 04:10 AM

50 MPG 1977 VW Scirroco.

onewhippedpuppy · 12-21-2008, 05:13 AM

To regain your manliness, you must now go drive either a gas guzzling SUV or horribly impractical sports car.

ben parrish · 12-21-2008, 05:22 AM

Prisu's are a scam and sham. The "carbon footprint" of these things is misleading. Gas mileage is not that great considering it is a tuna can. Remember when it came out..reported to be getting 61mpg...now rated at 43mpg. Mind you that is still great, but I bet that those with them do not see that mileage.
The battery material has to be mined in N. America, shipped to Europe for processing, shipped to Asia for assembly and then shipped back to N. America. And then, what happens to the batteries when they need replacing in a few years?????
Every time I see one of those UGLY FREAKING CARS I want to scream. Seriously, could it be any uglier.
I applaud the effort Toyota has made and it will lead to truly better cars for the future. I just think this car is a bit misleading and UGLY!

onewhippedpuppy · 12-21-2008, 05:29 AM

Funny that the "revolutionary" Prius gets the same MPG as many '80s economy cars. But lets face facts, the Prius is about making a statement.

KNS · 12-21-2008, 07:28 AM

Try to get a hold of one of those Honda CRX HE (or something like that). Nice little cars that get mileage in the 50s. Dead simple, gutless but fun to drive, just difficult to find one these days.

rouxroux · 12-21-2008, 07:45 AM

Don't you just love the lima bean/baby piss green ones that Toyota makes (they have this color in some of their other hybrids)....

Did they give you a "Nuke the Gay Whales" bumper sticker for driving it?

strupgolf · 10:24 AM

Lots of small cars from the 70's and 80's got mileage in the high 30's to 40's, but people didn't care about them too much. To replace the batteries on a Prius cost around $6000, or so I've heard. So much for the savings.

jmshepard · 12-21-2008, 08:38 AM

British satire

TOP GEAR BMW M3 VS TOYOTA PRIUS:

ben parrish · 12-21-2008, 08:50 AM

It does seem that those who own a Prius consider themselves to be more eco conscious than those that don't. Such BS. Really speaks volumes about most of them being sheep, following the advice of experts like Al Gore.
I am all for hybrid cars and total electric but this car falls very short of the mark for my taste.

vash · vash's Garage

my wife wanted one. i drove her brother's and almost puked. i know clowns that wont ride in one.

i put my foot down and bought a mazdaspeed3 for our economy car.

KaptKaos · 12-21-2008, 10:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the

Put some real miles on a Prius today.

Did you feel morally superior?

Z-man · Z-man's Garage

Um ok - so after you drove the Prius did ya go take a shower?

I suspect that as a car enthusiast, you'd feel a little dirty after driving one...

-Z

pwd72s · 12-21-2008, 11:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ben parrish

It does seem that those who own a Prius consider themselves to be more eco conscious than those that don't. Such BS. Really speaks volumes about most of them being sheep, following the advice of experts like Al Gore.
I am all for hybrid cars and total electric but this car falls very short of the mark for my taste.

So true...I had trouble keeping a straight face when Cindy's nephew showed up in one a few months ago. He's the typical Portland leftie...weird beyond description.

RWebb · RWebb's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by ben parrish

Prisu's are a scam and sham. The "carbon footprint" of these things is misleading. Gas mileage is not that great considering it is a tuna can. Remember when it came out..reported to be getting 61mpg...now rated at 43mpg. Mind you that is still great, but I bet that those with them do not see that mileage.
The battery material has to be mined in N. America, shipped to Europe for processing, shipped to Asia for assembly and then shipped back to N. America. And then, what happens to the batteries when they need replacing in a few years?????

This post is chock full of distortions and is highly misleading.

I advise anyone interested to do some research -- you will find most claims above have been debunked.

re batteries - they last quite a while and can be easily recycled - there was an article on this just this month but I don't recall where - could have been Cons. Reports or NYT

Looks are subjective. I like the way it looks -- resembles a small hi-tech bullet trian or transit vehicle.

Unfortunately, Toyota has delayed its 2nd generation Prius.

I don't drive enuff to make it worthwhile, but if I were in the market for a high mileage car, I'd probably get a TDI and run it on biodiesel. Here, we can get true post-fastfoodplace biodiesel for a very reasonable price.

RWebb · RWebb's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by strupgolf

.... To replace the batteries on a Prius cost around $6000, or so I've heard. So much for the savings.

- see comments above

pwd72s · 12:01 PM

Best mileage I ever personally witnessed was in one of there...we had the hardtop in place for better aerodynamics, kept the tach right on the torque curve. 48 MPG!

Hugh R · 12-21-2008, 11:58 AM

I have an 08 Camry Hybrid and I really like it as a DD. I drove a Prius and tried to make myself like it and couldn't. My Camry gets 36 mpg to and from home to Burbank. I ordered it and bought it directly from Toyota USA (a brother-in-law works for them). I paid true dealer cost with the JBL soundsystem w/ Bluetooth, and leather. Out the door for $26.6K. At a dealer it would probably have been a little north of $30K.

SLO-BOB · 12-21-2008, 02:12 PM

I drive a Honda Fit hybrid. Like the Prius, it's really slow but gets about 37-40 mpg which makes me feel superior to non-hybrid car owners. They did a nice job on it though - half the price of a Prius, more interior room, and I'll be damned if I can figure out where they put the batteries.