Is it worth it?

[Lcut81]

I'm seriously considering buying this car. But, want to get a few questions I have out of the way from actual Prius owners.

Please be as unbiased as you can.

Why go buy a Prius when you can just purchase a Matrix or a super eco car for like 14k that gets about 35 mpg?

The Prius cost about 27k new. If you buy a Matrix for about 18k, even with the high gas prices you still save money.

So what is the big deal?

I would love to hear some great points in the big debate of "Is The Prius Worth It?

[a priori]

Welcome to PriusChat!

I'd give you plenty, but I think your time is better spent reading through the many, many threads that address this subject.

Or . . . you could wait for Bill Merchant's answer.

[Bill Merchant]

It's all a huge mistake, a mistake made literally a million times. I wish I could get a steam car fueled by coal. Global warming is a myth and man's activities have nothing to do with it anyway. The price of gasoline is going to drop, just see malorn's thread.

[JRGris]

If you get on the Toyota web site you can compare Matrix and Prius. Price of the Prius is $4000 more that the Matrix. Mileage of the Matrix is 25/31 Prius is 48/45. At 15000 miles per year you burn about 200 gals. more in a Matrix. So about $800 more per year depending on gas prices. It will take 5 years to make up the $4000 or possibly less the way prices are going. Matrix is slightly bigger than Prius. Prius probably has better resale. So it is a mixed bag.

[TravelBliss]

I'm still waiting for delivery of mine, but I think it will be worth it with gas prices soon to top $4 by July....

[rfruth]

Most new cars are a waste, get a used one !

[Boo]

Originally Posted by TravelBliss

I'm still waiting for delivery of mine, but I think it will be worth it with gas prices soon to top $4 by July....

July? National average was $3.93 yesterday May 25. My guess is that it'll reach $4 by Wednesday May 28.

[RhythmDoctor]

Originally Posted by rfruth

Most new cars are a waste, get a used one !

Much easier said than done. I looked for a used Prius for 4 weeks. They were all more expensive than a new one, or salvage titles. My only choice was to buy a new one. I probably would have gotten a better price if I just bought a new one to begin with instead of wasting my time looking for used (as demand picked up).

[cruizerstylin]

The residual value of you Prius will be 71% if not more in 5 years when gas is at $8+ a gallon. I get 50mpg and could do better once I get use to driving the hybrid.

Since you are in LA... I am sure you are familiar with stop and go traffic... well the PRIUS is designed to do it's best work in the city with the regenerative breaking. The only way I would say that a Matrix has a chance is if you only do highway driving at a constant 55mph.

[Prius4ever]

Are they worth it? Wow, as gas keeps rising I truly don't understand why anyone would buy any other car. I did the math too prior to the purchase of my Prius. But what you can't figure in is the added advantage of having almost a midsize car that is roomier in seating and cargo capacity than those $15,000 cars.

But it really is about the math. Even though I don't need to fill up every week like I was used to doing even in my Honda Civic (which my daughter inherited), it only has been costing me about $20.00 with the Prius. It is rare when I drive up to a pump that I ever see the previous customer spent less than $50.00 for their gas.

The gas mileages you read from Prius owners are true. Remember, there isn't a better car on the market for gas mileage. Why give any more money than you have to to oil companies and producers? You won't be sacrificing anything when you purchase this car.