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CNET News' Martin LaMonica, an early buyer of the 2010 Toyota Prius, finds that the car gets good mileage but there's clearly more to learn.
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Simple, but it WORKS
Hoo Roo
I still drive my 2000 Intrepid and still get 32-33 mpg on strictly highway driving and I know how to use math to compute the mileage after I tank it back up. I dont bother with trip computers that add a few MPGs to the displayed amount like every Prius driver out there.
And No there is no sludge since I always change my oil every 3,000-3,500 miles since the very first used car when I was 17 years old so dont be slamming my 2.7 liter Mopar V6 motor (dont drag up that MYTH that all MOPAR motors are built by Mitsubishi (that 1st gen Minivan had the optional Mitsu motor) but that issue ended MANY years ago
-Why am I dragging this old fact up???
Just to show that old stories and old prejudices live on forever in the most illogical manner.
I wont be buying any Japanese cars no matter where they are made when I still have a choice to buy something that generates some profit that will stay in our American economy. Until we have a world where we all are brothers and there are no country boundaries, that is the way I see it as far as my spending dollar.
Unfortunately the realities of hybrids don't pan out and frankly the author would have done better buying a new VW diesel. Great gas mileage and without the expense and issues of a hybrid.
The author could also have leased a car for the next xxx years as a way to postpone a car purchase which would give him time to determine the viability of future models.
All this shows is that the author suffers from SVS (Silicon Valley Syndrome). Usually this is when a person in IT feels that their abilities increase based on their proximity to Silicon Valley. But for this author, I believe that he too feels its effects because of his smugness and need to brag about his new purchase.
Oh and for the record... I'm still driving my old 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Its got 110K on it, and well since we have to transport dogs and haul lots of things, its got plenty of room. Since we live in the city, I and my wife can walk to work, and even walk to the grocery store unless we're doing a major shopping trip. Meaning we don't have to drive everywhere. Unlike the author who lives in the Californian sprawl and the LA motto "Nobody walks in LA" is pretty much true for the entire state. By keeping my old car on the road and limiting my driving, I actually have less of a carbon footprint than the author, even though he drives a new hybrid. Sure I understand his need for purchasing a new car. But had he lived in the city, then his car would have been in the garage. Or instead of buying a new car, he could have just switched to a car service like Zip cars. But no, he has to drive everyday to get around.
I ask that the author go to hulu and see the South Park episode on Smugness.
You can lookup pollution scores of vehicles at http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/sbs.htm and see what they translate into at http://www.epa.gov/greenvehicles/detailedchart.pdf. You can also go to t http://www.epa.gov/greenvehicles/. Select Look Up, check both checkboxes and select 2009, California. Sort by air pollution score. You'll see the Prius and many other hybrids and non-hybrids do VERY well in the air pollution department (doesn't include greenhouse gas emissions).
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Having not owned a car for several years, I have rented dozens of different vehicles over that time, and I'm happy to say that the new 2010 Prius it a really great car. I'd be happy to own it even if the fuel economy was nothing special. Test drove the Jetta TDI as well before chooseing. The Jetta was nice enough but lacked the hatchback and looked rather spartan inside. (IMHO of course.)
Also, if your toyota/honda hybrid breaks down, you better have a H/T dealership nearby because most mechanics wouldn't touch that powertrain with a 10 ft pole. The technology is too new. Whereas, diesel engines are very simple, and any mechanic would work on them.
Mercedes and Volkswagens are all emission certified to be sold in California.
The diesel cars are very quiet. My co-worker has a Mercedes E-series diesel that is so quiet, you have to listen carefully to discover it is a diesel powered vehicle.
Enough said.
On the other hand, the VW diesel you and other commenters have promoted has a dismal record of reliability. I know someone who had to replace the entire engine in his diesel 2000 Golf tdi and the car was only 7 years old!
No thanks, I'd rather have the mileage AND the reliability of a Prius.
I believe that Toyota distributes their level of quality to all of their cars, not just the Prius. So, Island girl, Toyota diesels are practical and reliable and get better real world gas mileage than Toyota Hybrids. Is that apples-to-apples for you?
Diesels have superior low-end torque when compared to gasoline (standard gas or hybrid gas) engines. This should mean alot more to those of you in the mountainous regions of america.
Diesel technology is very viable, and due to our enormous amount of HWY driving, a better option than a hybrid.
One of my friends owns a prius and he manages to get a milleage over 60 in summers. Winters is harsh in Minnesota but he still manages 48.
He's a very calculated person and researches everything. The trick to get a higher milleage in Prius he says is all in the braking. The braking power on the wheels is actually converted to the charging power for the battery. So if you start braking slowly from a long distance till you come to a stop, you would have transferred that entire energy into the battery and nothing goes to waste. Brake too hard and only a part of the energy is transferred and the rest is lost. Also, try driving as much on battery as possible. On his car, upto 37mph, the car runs completly on battery so in city he tries to keep it within that speed limit.
The best milleage he has got so far has been 632 on 9.8 gallons of fuel and he drives a mix of city and highway.
Global warming is as much of a threat as Y2K was. It?s a fantasy. Building an economy on fallacies only leads to disaster. The entire plan is pathetic and a waste of time and money.
The Post office, nearly out of business is only able to remain in business by delivering several billion pounds of junk mail a year or in other terms A MILLION TREES.
The US is simply a disposable nation. Just about everything is made to last a very short time. It all contains plastic.
Billions of water bottles litter the US yet we have not banned them. Billions of plastic bags from trash to grocery bags clutter the land fills. We?re beyond the point of no return. And yet they still mass produce these items. No bottles smaller than 2 liter should be legal. All else should be can or some other disposable container like cardboard.
Paper bags should replace plastic bags. Paper is RECYCLYABLE.
Some id10ts think building huge wind farms is the answer. Sure if you looking to destroy the wild life. Other then that it?s simply an ineffective eye sore.
This is only surpassed by the brilliant idea of football field size mirrors. LOL sorry I had to wipe the tears out of my eyes. LOL
Some of these are reasonable ideas if applied properly. I hate to break the news to you but wind power has been tried time and time again and guess what. IT FAILED. Solar power can be used effectively but only if applied on a home by home basis not the STUP1D PLAN they?ve come up with. If it we?re a law that each home contain a solar grid to produce hot water or heat we could reduce the elec use by 1/3. This is a fact and proven in Israel. The US use to be a leader now we?re simply wandering around like ret@rds. It?s quite sad to see what has happened over the last 25 years.
One thing is clear. The US is in it?s last days as the worlds greatest nation. Nice knowing ya.
http://www.hybridcars.com/faq.html#battery
If you have some real arguments about why the above is invalid, present them, but don't just repeat easily debunked myths.
- by islandgirl45cv July 13, 2009 2:58 PM PDT
- "by randallhsmith July 13, 2009 2:17 PM PDT
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- by randallhsmith July 13, 2009 3:19 PM PDT
- You just don't comprehend well. Any mechanic can work on a diesel. Is that a hard concept? No electrical ignition system in a diesel...very simple. I don't challenge Consumer Reports; I use them for car purchases myself. I just won't buy a hybrid because the technology is too new and complex.
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Showing 4 of 5 pages (211 Comments)Nice to know that Hondas and Toyotas are bulletproof. Islandgirl needs to get off that island. All cars break. All I said is that Mercedes and VW diesels are all emission certified in California. If your "bulletproof" honda or toyota hybrid breaks in the sticks (according to Islandgirls, this is purely hypothetical and has no basis on reality, especially since all H/T owners are religious in maintenance and care of their cars) you are screwed."
randallhsmith needs to calm down and take his meds.
If your diesel breaks "in the sticks," you're likely to be just as screwed as the guy I know who paid half of the cost of his original car to replace his diesel engine with a "new," read scavenged, diesel, and was without a car for three weeks. Go to Consumer Reports and compare used car reliability records yourself. I didn't make them up.