Toyota Prius

[troutsqueezer]

I think Houstonscott must have lost a drag race to a Prius sometime in his past and has never gotten over it, judging by his obsession with it.

 

[IslandTractor]

I think Houstonscott must have lost a drag race to a Prius sometime in his past and has never gotten over it, judging by his obsession with it.

I suspect it is the association of the Prius (or Pious as we like to tease) with Green or environmentalist causes that puts a twist in his panties. The Prius certainly isn't for everyone but it is just silly to argue that it isn't a highly reliable vehicle with very low operating costs. Perhaps the total cost of ownership isn't much different than for a Corolla but it sure beats any BMW.

 

[MossRoad]

For longer distance driving, a diesel is more economical. Our VW TDI gets 45-49 mpg on trips and up to 54 mpg on trips that are low speed.

A lot better driver than any Toyota. Toyota makes nice appliances called cars and pickups, but they aren't too exciting to drive. I know. I have had 2 of their pickups and have test driven a Prius and have driven several Toyota rentals/lease cars. Had a Corolla for 4 years in Singapore.

Ralph

I test drove a Jetta. Nice feel, power and handling. Way more fun than a Prius. If I was going to purchase a car for efficiency, I'd lean towards a TDI. However, I can't fit in a Jetta. My right leg hits the console and there's only about a half an inch clearance between the brake pedal and console wall once I put my foot down there. I was bummed. I have yet to test drive a Passat. Maybe its roomier?

 

[IslandTractor]

I test drove a Jetta. Nice feel, power and handling. Way more fun than a Prius. If I was going to purchase a car for efficiency, I'd lean towards a TDI. However, I can't fit in a Jetta. My right leg hits the console and there's only about a half an inch clearance between the brake pedal and console wall once I put my foot down there. I was bummed. I have yet to test drive a Passat. Maybe its roomier?

The Passat is way more roomy than a Jetta. The back seat and trunk are equivalent to full size cars. Frankly, given the relatively small difference in price, I don't know why anyone would buy a Jetta TDI sedan rather than the Passat version. Maybe a $2K difference in base models but with more goodies standard on the Passat. The Passat actually gets slightly better mileage despite being bigger due to the added urea system and different tuning of the same basic diesel engine.

 

[txdon]

For longer distance driving, a diesel is more economical. Our VW TDI gets 45-49 mpg on trips and up to 54 mpg on trips that are low speed.
Ralph

Economical???? Wrong word Ralph. The correct phrase is "More Fuel efficient". Diesel is consistently about 70-90 cents higher per gallon here in Texas making Prius the winner in dollars (economical) per mile winner. How is the VW in repairs, remember not one (not even brakes) for the Toyota 130K miles.

 

[cqaigy2]

This zombie thread has been one of the more interesting ones on TBN. There are a number of things to take into account as far as the cost of owning a vehicle and one i just learned of recently is the cost of drafting the vehicle in front of you. My BIL drives a Honda Insight and being very competitive, he is always trying to get the best mileage he can. So one day he got a ticket for drafting a semi-truck and trailer on I-5. His mileage efficiency way pretty good but his mileage economy suffered somewhat.

 

[IslandTractor]

This zombie thread has been one of the more interesting ones on TBN. There are a number of things to take into account as far as the cost of owning a vehicle and one i just learned of recently is the cost of drafting the vehicle in front of you. My BIL drives a Honda Insight and being very competitive, he is always trying to get the best mileage he can. So one day he got a ticket for drafting a semi-truck and trailer on I-5. His mileage efficiency way pretty good but his mileage economy suffered somewhat.

Do the drafting laws apply to trucks too? I always thought that was an accepted practice amongst truckers. Maybe I'm just remembering Smoky and the Bandit scenes.

 

[tcartwri]

The Passat tdi is definitely the way to go. We have a 2012, and a 2005 Jetta tdi. The Passat is twice the car.

I have driven numerous Prius's from our work fleet pool.... we bought and drive Volkswagens, nuf said.

 

[MossRoad]

The Passat is way more roomy than a Jetta. The back seat and trunk are equivalent to full size cars. Frankly, given the relatively small difference in price, I don't know why anyone would buy a Jetta TDI sedan rather than the Passat version. Maybe a $2K difference in base models but with more goodies standard on the Passat. The Passat actually gets slightly better mileage despite being bigger due to the added urea system and different tuning of the same basic diesel engine.

Urea system.... yikes. one more item to maintain.

 

[tcartwri]

Urea system.... yikes. one more item to maintain.

yes it's very scary

 

[IslandTractor]

Urea system.... yikes. one more item to maintain.

No more complex than adding windshield washer fluid once every 10,000 miles. Fear of urea is grossly exaggerated.

 

[MossRoad]

No more complex than adding windshield washer fluid once every 10,000 miles. Fear of urea is grossly exaggerated.

Thanks for clearing that up. How much does it cost every 10,000 miles?

 

[aczlan]

Thanks for clearing that up. How much does it cost every 10,000 miles?

$5-15/gallon depending on where you buy it, how much depends on how you drive (drive more aggressively and you wont need as much, poke along or idle a lot and you will use more)

Aaron Z

 

[IslandTractor]

Thanks for clearing that up. How much does it cost every 10,000 miles?

Free from VW for the first 36,000 miles. I just searched urea price and got $5-10/gallon from autopart stores. I imagine prices will stay low as it is dirt cheap to manufacture. More through VW though. It is poured into a tank in the trunk.

 

[MossRoad]

Well geez that's a non-issue then. How come the jetta doesn't need it but the Passat does? I thought it was the same engine?

 

[tcartwri]

Slight variation on the emissions equipment, and the Passat motor has a water to air intercooler, jetta's are air to air. There have been some issues with the latter.

 

[txdon]

Slight variation on the emissions equipment..... There have been some issues with the latter.

nuf said...

 

[IslandTractor]

Slight variation on the emissions equipment, and the Passat motor has a water to air intercooler, jetta's are air to air. There have been some issues with the latter.

I haven't followed it closely but I thought the freezing issues with the air-air intercooler were worked out a few years ago. They still use the air-air version on the Golf TDI which doesn't have problems.

 

[cqaigy2]

Well geez that's a non-issue then. How come the jetta doesn't need it but the Passat does? I thought it was the same engine?

Yes good to know. I'm in the market after hitting a deer on the way home yesterday. I got slowed down pretty good but i don't think the deer was too happy about it. So the Passat is interesting.

 

[IslandTractor]

Yes good to know. I'm in the market after hitting a deer on the way home yesterday. I got slowed down pretty good but i don't think the deer was too happy about it. So the Passat is interesting.

I'm pondering such a purchase as well. VW reliability is way up over the past five years and the folks in Chattanooga are doing a nice job. Real world mileage tends to be higher than EPA figures too with averages in the high thirties combined and high forties highway. Now, if only it looked like the new Mazda 6....