Excellent thread subject so here is my response.
After our 91 Camry (32 MPG + $12.9k new) was lost, we needed a second car. I drove my wife's Echo while we shopped.
We looked at:
- Ford Escape (32 MPG + $28k)
- new Prius (48 MPG + $27k)
- Scion xB (32 MPG + $16.4k)
- bought a 3 year old Prius (45MPG + 17.3k)
I was hesitant about buying a hybrid-electric until I realized the battery myth was being spread by the hyrogen-fraud fools. They were so wrong about every other subject, they had to be wrong about hybrid-electric battery life. It took a little over a week to find and buy our used Prius via Ebay.
Quote:
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Originally Posted by PriusGuy04
I have found that a fair amount of people (friends, co-workers, perfect strangers) on finding out that I own a Prius, feel it quite important to inform me how ignorant I am to have bought one, as they are not cost effective. I ask where they got this information, and the typical response was that the read or heard about it in the news.
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I've noticed that at work too and have solved it by:
- discussing the purchase choices we faced
- sharing my mileage, 48.7 MPG
- pointing out my per diem mileage pays for my gas . . . all of it
- tossing my keys to those who ride 'shotgun' back from lunch
- showing my inverter installation
I don't get any Federal, Alabama or local tax or fee benefits. The 3 year / 36,000 mile warrantee had expired before I got the car. But then I didn't suffer 'driving off the lot' depreciation and there were good reasons for taking this risk:
1) lower mechanical stress - unlike the 108 hp gas-only versions of the 1500 cc engine, I knew the same Prius engine never worked harder than 70 hp.
2) lower motor stress - electric motors have no parts beyond bearings to wear out and no impulse stresses or combusion products.
3) residual 8 yr / 80,000 mile battery - we had, 30,000 miles remaining so it was a safe bet (but I don't share that with the skeptics.)
As soon as I'd bought the car, I ordered the maintenance manuals since there was no 3 year / 36,000 mile warrantee. Since I picked up the Prius, I'm finding it a fascinating engineering project.
There remain a number of efficiencies, additional capabilities and tweaks that can improve the car. In February, I achieved hyper-mileage status by exploiting the hybrid-electric characteristics measured from our Prius.
Bob Wilson