Toyota Prius

[kaitlyn]

I was just reading the post on gas prices and was wondering if anyone here happens to own the new gas/electric Toyota Prius. Tell us what you think about it. I figure soon oil will be so expensive that we'll all have to start riding bikes or buying these "alternative" type of cars.

[Tanya]

er, I dunno about newer cars. I'm trying to find an old 85/85 Celica GTS for the gas mileage ( 36mpg in my old beater )
I'll just walk when gas hits $5.00 per gallon, yes, I am THAT stubborn

[sloopercat]

One thing to consider on the Prius is that the batteries need to be replaced, and that's expensive. Plus, who would want to buy one used without a warranty? Resale is going to be next to nothing.

If you add it all up, it's probably cheaper to by a gas powdered econo-box.

[trdmkii]

we have had no issues with the hv battery, they do not need replaced. The auxillary battery that is 12 volts needs to be replaced just like the normal battery and isn't that expensive. The new 2004 prius's are actually very nice and quite powerful compared to the last ones and you get better gas mileage.. If you ever purchase a prius get a 2004 or newer. The 2000-2003 are ok, but was toyotas experiment with the hybrid technology. I would buy one if i had money and did a lot of driving...but i'll stick with my supras....hehe.

if you have any other questions email me....

[sloopercat]

From: corolland.com

Post #226 - REAL Costs of Ownership!
By Phyton
I have been a "gung ho" Prius owner, but have recently been awakened to the truth. We own both a 2001 and a 2002 Prius. Enjoy driving them greatly and have averaged better than 43mpg over about 50,000 miles. However, DON"T own one of these little babes out of warranty! Replaced the rack and pinion on the 2001. Cost if you had to pay for it: $3,500. Had to replace the computer in the navigation system on the 2002: Cost if we weren't in warranty: $4,100!! I considered trading the 2001 Prius in for a Tundra or Tacoma pickup truck. Offer for the 2001 Prius with 31k miles: Between $10,500 and $11,500!! Half of what we paid for it! BE CAREFUL!! Savings on fuel costs can be minor compared to other costs.


Even at today's prices, gas is a small part of total ownership cost.

[rumptis]

I have heard alot of great things about these cars I have even thought about buying on. Go for it.

[Dave A.]

The 2004 Prius is basically a much improved version of the earlier model. Toyota introduced their "Hybrid Synergy Drive" in the Prius this year which has a higher output battery pack, more powerful electric motor and gas engine. The EPA "estimated" MPG for around town city driving is 60 MPG, but I read a review in Motor Trend magazine that states somewhere between 45-48 MPG to be a more realistic figure. The battery pack has an 8 year warranty and I've yet to hear any bad things about the actual battery design.

OTOH, I drive a 2003 Honda Insight part of the time and I average about 48-49 MPG with combined highway and city driving. The Insight recently made a trip from my place here in Ruskin, FL to Delray Beach, FL and got 51 MPG on the way there and on the way back. Not too shabby! The downside to the Insight is that the sealed battery pack is only warrantied for 2 years and stop and go driving tends to drop the MPG a tad.

Another thing about the hybrid cars is that some peeps get discouraged when they buy a new car and the MPG is lower than advertised. As with most cars, the engine needs to break in and loosen up a bit before you start to see more realistic MPG numbers. The Insight that I drive averaged about 43 MPG around town when it was new with only 5.7 miles on the odometer. The car now has 7,340 miles on the odometer and the MPG has increased about 6-7 points now that the drivetrain has had a chance to loosen up a bit. I need to pull the valve cover and check/adjust the valve lash and see if that will bring the highway MPG up closer to 52 or 53MPG. 8)

I've owned Toyotas most of my life and I was real hesitant about deciding on the Honda instead of the 2004 Prius, but the price was right and the new Prius hadn't yet made it to the showroom floors. :? Would I trade the Insight for the Prius? Probably so, but only if the Prius can yield as good or better MPG than the Insight once it's broken in. :lol: The 5-speed Insight gets better mileage than the automatic CVT version. Low to mid 60's as opposed to low 50's for the CVT version that I drive.

[scarletlizard]

My thinking is this....
They pretend there is a shortage ( 70's gas crisis ) and raise the price.
Laws are implemented to make cars more fuel efficient. Crap, nobody buys as much, better raise the price.
Just what would happen if everyone drove hybrids ??????
Again, oil would become what it always has been. The cheapest commodity on this planet.
Gas is going to cost as much as the market can stand.
Dont like 1.00/gallon - then dont pay 5.00/gallon for pop.
It is an absolute tax and we are all puppets hanging by the petro strings.
Petro companies = government = votes = etc.etc.
I know I know, America invaded Iraq because they were so concerned with everones well being.
Do you know how much fuel an aircraft carrier uses ??? How about a shuttle/rocket launch ??? Forgot to mention all the dipolmats that drive around in 7,500 lbs bullet proof SUV's just to go from their office to lunch.
I could go on and on and as Tyler Durden would say,
" I want you to hit me as hard as you can "
Think about it

[DannyG]

A few days ago I happen to be watching the Spike channel. Motor Mayhem month thing they have going on. Well I was watching those 2 guys on Car & Driver. One of the critics went for a test drive. Talking specs like 65 HP and 295ft/lbs of torque. So I was thinking how fast. Well I think he said something around 0-60mph in 11+seconds. And didn't like the steering when cornering. But says it has really improved. Also Toyota is taking a risk on these hybrids. And is making the least amount on the Prius. From cost and engineering etc. What I thought was pretty cool was the energy that was being transfered from the brakes. And you can visibly watch from inside the cars computer screen how the cars responding.

IIRC its the 04' Motor Trend Car of the year.

Our local news recently brought up the safety issue on these Prius's. And if jaws of life ever came to play. Theres a bright orangey wire youre not to touch. Like around 500 freakin' volts. :shock: & something like 20 times the shock you would get from a normal battery. Also the local Fire Dept. was showing in the front where to shut off first. My worry is what if the front end is too far in from head on impact. Who's life is it now :roll:

My 4afe does great, averaging 30 mpg+ in city. Had it since new. Spent nothing on engine problems, except starter & timing belt. And I drive it hard. I have never sold a Toyota as of yet. :D

[batmobile]

The car is the most technologically advanced car there is out there right now. You are looking at like 20 CPUs for this thing. Its like one big computer. The only battery that needs replacement is the memory battery. Pretty cool car. If I had like 20 grand I would go out and buy one!

Theres a lot of hotrodding that can go into this car. Bigger electric motor, Better electronics for the CPU, updated at least every week. It just really hasnt been discovered yet. In like 5-10 years people will start digging and rodding these cars. If one person could run all these things off of a very efficient computer, running all the programs the car uses, this could be one sweet ride.

The car mostly runs on electric for normal acceleration, but when you floor it the engine kicks in.

If I was gonna rod this car out, I would lighten it to the max, fiberglass body kit for it to save some weight, take off the traction control. Upgrade brakes, and everything else, and make it a hybrid race car. I think it would be cool.

There are quite a few electric dragsters out there now, ive seen electric motorcycles too.

The future offers sweet tuning for these cars, they may seem like economical cars, but they can easily be pulling fast quarter mile times with the right parts.

[Gage006]

that's true...can't wait until electric motors get more mainstream. it's gonna lead to some very cool things, IMO. question though...what happens if it gets flooded?

[batmobile]

Nothing, Let it dry out then take the cap off and clean the brushes, then put the cap on and test it. Should fire up no problem. I have some motors that are HUGE they run on 36 volts of power, 3 car batteries, and produces about 10 horsepower, but has insane amounts of torque. This motor would be ideal for a pulley driven system, or possibly a gear driven system. The bonus to these cars are they are quiet and green, and they are a step in the right direction.


In the near future lies, hydrogen gas cars, that drive by themselves, so experiment with what you can while you still can. There wont be any street racing. In twenty years these self automated cars will rule the streets.

The personal cars that everyone owns will probably become illegal due to the high amounts of polution in the atmosphere. Im sure these laws will take effect in 20 years or so. Ever since the 70s there has been steps to reduce gas consumption and polution. The 70s cars were struck hardcore, and they didnt have much power. Then the 80s they became more efficient. There will be a new law coming out soon that will have cars consume 10 percent less gas and polute 10 percent less as well. I recently read this in a popular science or mechanics magazine.

Electric cars are definitely cool tho. Its all about the gearing. Im sure that these cars will have multiple gear setups, Like a tractor trailer because of the high amounts of torque the motors produce. Anyways im done rambling and its late.

[Gage006]

so i can buy a prius to tow around my supra? :evil:

post #4:20

[Emohawk]

Electric cars are definitely cool tho. Its all about the gearing. Im sure that these cars will have multiple gear setups, Like a tractor trailer because of the high amounts of torque the motors produce. Anyways im done rambling and its late.
Far as I've heard, electric cars don't need gearboxes at all. In fact, I think their torque curve looks something like this:
_________________________________________________

Whatever motors you have probably have very different design goals from ones you might find in a car. GM's EV-1, for example, produces it's maximum torque (110lbft) from 0-7000 rpm without variation, and maximum power (137hp) from 7000-13000 rpm. Pretty wierd, if you're used to internal combustion.

[Gage006]

i need to go to a dealership and bs my way into a test drive with one of these. i just HAVE to try it.

[3000cc MK2]

you can always test drive a PRIUS anytime... just be alarmed that it would be a big shock in driving the Prius than your regular vehicle... SO DIFFERENT


as a toyota technician in a local toyota dealership and we have talked about eh Prius since it came out and I have chat with our Prius technician and said that the Pruis's HYBRID SYNERGY DRIVE and HV Battery would cost as much as $20,000 so this is basically the ony thing you are paying for the PRUIS... Toyota really PRICED it cheap for the public to buy.

[3000cc MK2]

the NEW 2004 Pruis has a much higher volt rating from the 2001-2003 it is close to 200,000 volts on the ORANGE WIRES

[Dave A.]

the NEW 2004 Pruis has a much higher volt rating from the 2001-2003 it is close to 200,000 volts on the ORANGE WIRES

:? 2 Kilovolts? Nope! Closer to 500 volts DC. Still plenty enough to electrocute you though. :shock:

[Dave A.]

IIRC its the 04' Motor Trend Car of the year :D

Indeed it is!

[Dave A.]

[quote=batmobile] In fact, I think their torque curve looks something like this:
_________________________________________________

GM's EV-1, for example, produces it's maximum torque (110lbft) from 0-7000 rpm without variation, and maximum power (137hp) from 7000-13000 rpm. Pretty wierd, if you're used to internal combustion.


Pretty amazing when you consider that the electric motor in the EV-1 is no larger than a 1 gallon paint can. 3-phase AC w/frequency drive really makes that little motor come alive! Heck, they even heat the car interior by capturing the heat that's produced by the electric motor. BTW, the original GM electric (the Impact) was featured in the TV series "Providence". Pretty cool! You can also find one of the original "Impact" cars and the EV-1 at Epcot Center at Disneyworld in Orlando, FL.

[trdmkii]

Did you know that the new Prius has a storage tank that can store hot coolant and keep it hot for 72 hours...i think thats pretty cool..

[Dave A.]

:lol: No, I didn't no that. That's pretty cool and downright clever! I've heard that the Japan version of the 2004 Prius can parallel park all by itself w/o a driver. :shock:

[trdmkii]

now thats pretty crazy...i don't like the idea of cars that drive themselves.

[Dave A.]

I just finished watching "60 Minutes" on TV where they did a commentary on how people that are buying hybrid cars are complaining because they aren't getting the "EPA approved" MPG. The Honda Civic Hybrid apparently averages 36 MPG around town rather than 48 MPG. The same was said about the 2004 Prius, 38 MPG around town as opposed to the "EPA estimated" 60 MPG. :shock: I think the EPA needs some newer technology to calculate MPG instead of just splicing a probe into the fuel line and running the car on a dyno. :?

[trdmkii]

no i think people need to lay off the gas pedal and not floor it to the speed limit.....We had complaints at our dealership from the previous generatoin prius, but on the new one we haven't...in some cars i've serviced i've noticed them getting around 48 avg mpg, epa rating is 52 highway, 60 city....so its not that far off...if you accelerated moderately and followed the speed limits i'm sure you would be in the 52-60 mpg range.