Tap Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 I am considering getting a Prius for my next car (within a year). I have a Honda Accord right now and it gets about 22mpg for city driving, which is my primary use. I bought it 8 years ago when gas was much, much cheaper LOL. With 3 kids in schools without bussing options, I fill up about every 4 days. I leave the house about 8 times a day to drive them around. I pay about $400 per month in gas! :svengo: If you have one, do you like it? I need a full size car (two tall teens and a car seat). Preference in models? Is it worth buying used? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redsquirrel Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 I was about to buy one, but then the dealer screwed me over. Long story. But, it is very close to a 'full size' car. Test drive one before you do much else, to see if it will be big enough for you. When I sat in one, I was surprised at how big it is. It holds its value very well, to the point where you might as well buy new, at least around here. I ended up with a Mazda5 (long and stupid story) and I like it a lot. But, my next car is going to be a Prius. My driving pattern would be perfect for one, we would save so much money! I have lots of friends with Prius, and they all love them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest inoubliable Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 I used to work for someone who had one. The guy was 6'7" and I don't even want to guess at his weight - but he claimed his Prius was an incredibly comfortable ride and he had two small children in bulky booster/car seats in the back. I'm guessing you could fit a family in there just fine. I hope you get to test drive one! There are never any available in my area, or we'd be looking at one, too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GSOchristie Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 We only have one car, but when we need an extra, we always rent a Prius from Toyota. The trunk is pretty big and I think you would have plenty of room for your kids. The gas mileage is amazing. Our Toyota Sienna gets 25 mpg and it gets 50. I like the push button start, and when you get close to it it unlocks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 We love it. Teen and two car seats fit fine in the back. Rear-facing seats behind me (5'8") are a bit much, but we don't put ds in the Prius often. Ours is a 2007 nearing 300k miles. We will probably be buying used next time, now that we know how hard we can drive it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 My mom has a Prius and my dad a Camry Hybrid, and I have to say that for a family car, I much prefer the Camry Hybrid. It doesn't get quite as good mileage (around 40 mpg. vs. around 50 for the Prius). However, it is much roomier and has better acceleration on the highway. Now, there is the new Prius V that I don't really know much about. That might be as roomy or roomier than the Camry Hybrid. But I wouldn't recommend the original Prius. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrincessMommy Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 I love my Prius. One of the reasons I chose it was because I wanted something that was roomier than a Matrix (another high mileage car) or Civic. I've been very happy with it. I have to get gas about every 4 days too, but that is because the tank is small. I usually go about 400 miles on 8 gallons of gas. There's a great website & forum for gathering information about the Prius: http://www.priuschat.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dm379 Posted October 11, 2012 Share Posted October 11, 2012 Love, love, love my Prius. We have had it since 2007. Zero problems. Not sure how it would do with car seats and tall kids though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Socalmom Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 We replaced our 12 yo mini-van with a Prius in Feb. I love it! We even went on a 2000 mile road trip this summer with all 4 of us (me, DH, 2 girls) and it was great. We bought a new one (original model) because the used cars were not much less. Margie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sasharowan Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 We rented a Prius two years ago when we flew to NYC for a wedding out in the Catskills. I loved it! Very comfortable to drive, handle great. I had all 4 kids with me, oldest was 14, then 10, 9, and 4. 4yo was in a booster. Kids complained that they were cramped and crowded the entire time. I think it is just because they are used to a minivan and being able to spread out. Out last trip before that, we rented a 12 passenger van since we had DH along too. The Prius had loads of space for our luggage too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elizabeth in MN Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 Love our four year old Prius. The only drawback we have is that with an original model it' had to get a full sized bike into it with only two people in the car (front seats). It'd be easier if we had a bike rack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blessedchaos Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 We have a 2009 Prius that we purchased used in 2010. We saved about $7K by buying used, so it can be worth it if you find a good deal, but they do hold their value so shop carefully. We like it fine. It is mainly Dh's car for commuting to work. It gets fantastic gas mileage and we save a bundle in that way. It is not good for winter driving as it is light and slides easily on ice. Also Dh gets very frustrated by how often he gets gas but the tank doesn't fill all the way (it is a "balloon bladder" where it contracts and expands depending on the weather), so even though the gas pump stops, the tank is not full. It is too small for our family of 5 to go anywhere all together in it, given that my children are older and our oldest is big in stature (bigger than dh), but our other vehicle is a Toyota Sienna so we often take that when we go places together. The only other issue we have experienced is that recently (past 4 or so months) the check engine light will come on and then go off on occasion. We've figured out it must be something to do with a bolt in the trunk and it always goes off on its own but it is still irritating. Overall, I would recommend it; dh probably would not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jar7709 Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 (edited) When car shopping this summer, we narrowed it down to the Prius V (the bigger one) or the VW Jetta Wagon diesel. We ended up going with the VW, but not because of size. The Prius V is really roomy! ETA: One thing to consider (if you haven't already) is your driving patterns. Because we mostly do freeway driving with little stop-and-go, the diesel engine is actually more practical for us than the hybrid, which maximize their efficiency in city driving. I have city-living friends that love them, though. Edited October 12, 2012 by jar7709 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 If I were car shopping, I would try for the Volt. It's more costly than the Prius. We have friends who have both, and they are preferring the Volt. Before the economy tanked, Dh had a company Prius. I enjoyed driving it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maddykate Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 I do not own Prius, but have had two friends that had to replace their batteries in theirs and it was over $3000.00 to do that. I don't know the details, but they were complaining that though they did save money in gas, the savings was all eaten away when the battery had to be replaced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted October 12, 2012 Share Posted October 12, 2012 We went car shopping about 8 months ago and drove the Prius and the VW Golf TDI (diesel) and we preferred the VW as well. Similar gas mileage, and since it is a diesel it should last a good long time. We did NOT buy though! We still have 2 cars that run well. Our 3rd car is faltering, but still drives with issues. I don't think we will actually get a car until next year sometime. Dawn When car shopping this summer, we narrowed it down to the Prius V (the bigger one) or the VW Jetta Wagon diesel. We ended up going with the VW, but not because of size. The Prius V is really roomy! ETA: One thing to consider (if you haven't already) is your driving patterns. Because we mostly do freeway driving with little stop-and-go, the diesel engine is actually more practical for us than the hybrid, which maximize their efficiency in city driving. I have city-living friends that love them, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted October 13, 2012 Author Share Posted October 13, 2012 When car shopping this summer, we narrowed it down to the Prius V (the bigger one) or the VW Jetta Wagon diesel. We ended up going with the VW, but not because of size. The Prius V is really roomy! ETA: One thing to consider (if you haven't already) is your driving patterns. Because we mostly do freeway driving with little stop-and-go, the diesel engine is actually more practical for us than the hybrid, which maximize their efficiency in city driving. I have city-living friends that love them, though. We went car shopping about 8 months ago and drove the Prius and the VW Golf TDI (diesel) and we preferred the VW as well. Similar gas mileage, and since it is a diesel it should last a good long time. We did NOT buy though! We still have 2 cars that run well. Our 3rd car is faltering, but still drives with issues. I don't think we will actually get a car until next year sometime. Dawn :D Dh drives a VW Golf TDI. I have never liked it. I don't like the interiors of VWs and the vibration in the stiff seats irritates by back. I test drove a VW Jetta TDI when I bought my current Accord. I didn't like it any better that the small Golf. I wanted to like it, but I didn't. While I drive around in my Accord his TDI sits in the garage, because he drives a company car (just because I don't like it. LOL). :leaving: Dh on the other hand, doesn't want to get rid of the Golf, because he loves it so much. We used to have a VW Westfalia that I loved, but I wouldn't want one for city driving. I primarily drive in stop and go city traffic, with short trips on the freeway. I have Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted October 13, 2012 Share Posted October 13, 2012 Sell it to my husband so he will shut up about it already! :D Truth be told, what he really wants is some BMW something or other, but the VW is the one he is "settling" for. He does have a few others to look at before buying though. He gets discounts on any GM product and any Subaru product through is work (employee discount). We haven't looked at anything but the Volt in those. Dawn :D Dh drives a VW Golf TDI. I have never liked it. I don't like the interiors of VWs and the vibration in the stiff seats irritates by back. I test drove a VW Jetta TDI when I bought my current Accord. I didn't like it any better that the small Golf. I wanted to like it, but I didn't. While I drive around in my Accord his TDI sits in the garage, because he drives a company car (just because I don't like it. LOL). :leaving: Dh on the other hand, doesn't want to get rid of the Golf, because he loves it so much. We used to have a VW Westfalia that I loved, but I wouldn't want one for city driving. I primarily drive in stop and go city traffic, with short trips on the freeway. I have Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denisemomof4 Posted October 13, 2012 Share Posted October 13, 2012 I do not own Prius, but have had two friends that had to replace their batteries in theirs and it was over $3000.00 to do that. I don't know the details, but they were complaining that though they did save money in gas, the savings was all eaten away when the battery had to be replaced. :iagree::iagree::iagree:This is why dh refused to buy the Prius for his commuter car. They really do have a lot of room inside. It is surprising. The Volt is also so expensive that really, where is the savings? Clark Howard had comparisons about these cars on a show a few months back. Maybe try a google search for his name and cars/hybrids, what ever. Dh ended up getting a Honda Fit, brand new for 16k. I was shocked it cost so little! It shocked us both when we realized that he is averaging 40 MPG! He was filling his Camry practically every other day. Now I have issues spending so much money on gas in my Pilot.:tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LibraryLover Posted October 15, 2012 Share Posted October 15, 2012 :iagree::iagree::iagree:This is why dh refused to buy the Prius for his commuter car. They really do have a lot of room inside. It is surprising. The Volt is also so expensive that really, where is the savings? Clark Howard had comparisons about these cars on a show a few months back. Maybe try a google search for his name and cars/hybrids, what ever. Dh ended up getting a Honda Fit, brand new for 16k. I was shocked it cost so little! It shocked us both when we realized that he is averaging 40 MPG! He was filling his Camry practically every other day. Now I have issues spending so much money on gas in my Pilot.:tongue_smilie: Why is the Volt so expensive?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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