Article on the 2010 Prius

I see no indication that they ever drive the cars. If you just let it sit in the driveway every day, it would be impossible to ever 'pay back' the upfront costs.

I drive mine a lot, so I 'make' over $1000 a year versus a comparable non hybrid Toyota in gas alone.

 

These types of article never tell the whole story. Everyone has to take their own situation into account including purchase price, seating & cargo, expected reliability, expected mileage and perhaps the biggest factor of all - pride of ownership.

I fully expect to see any extra purchase costs paid back in under 4 years. And even if I am wrong, and it's a little more, at least I have the satisfaction in knowing that I burned as little of a non-renewable natural resource as I can.

 

It's not clear, how they arrive at their figures. It seems they presume steep depreciation. That is not the case in the USA. Is there some way that a high first cost generates yearly license renewal costs in Australia?

 

This is the same Prius FUD that's been going around for over 6 years .... Payback. Um, maybe the auther should enlighten us on when the "payback" is on an SUV. What's the payback on a Vett? ... how 'bout a Harley. Earth to Barry Bark ... earth to Barry Bark ... come in please. When he gets back from Neptune, someone let him know ALL cars have no pay back.


Mr. Bark doesn't get it. The airlines continue to buy MORE & MORE expensive jet liners because they are more & more fuel efficient, and eventually, that means there is a greater efficiency, that make it worth it. Perhaps Mr. Bark would like us to go back to the DC 10.

If THAT isn't silly enough, he then compares the Prius, with all of it's way cool techno goodies, to the cracker box below.




Well heck Mr. Bark, you SHOULD have compared the Prius to a moped then. THAT will REALLY make the Prius look like a waste ... in your OWN mind.

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Ok lets use his "new math"

I replaced my E320CDI Mercedes with a Prius. The Mercedes cost $60K new and got 29mpg combined plus diesel costs 15-20% more per gallon.

So do I get credit for a better comparison vs his dumb one. As another poster said using his logic he should compare it to a moped or public transport. This is an insane article as cars are not investments they are transportation and we trade off cost, convenience, value, reliability, pride of ownership, environmental footprint etc, etc, etc.

If I could we would have one car - a Prius - and I would use public transport to get to work, but that is impossible in most of Dallas.

 

From the article:
"The study's figures, released today, show the Prius will cost more than $222 a week to own once factors such as purchase price, servicing costs, fuel, tyres, insurance, resales and even the cost of renewing a driver's licence over a five-year period are taken into account."

It must be nice for drivers of other cars to not have to worry about things like renewing their driver's license or buying tires. All that stuff is usually included, right? I also like that somehow a Prius is deemed to be a failure unless it can essentially pay back its purchase price in fuel savings. What other car is held to such a ridiculous standard?

Granted, I got a Prius V with AT package, so I paid for a lot of superfluous technology. Still, a baseline Prius is only marginally more expensive than a VW Bus or Jeep Wrangler, which I also priced when car shopping. Just because actors drive them doesn't mean they're actually that expensive. The money myth is turning out to be almost as resilient as the "Dust to Dust" study of a few years back. I wonder if Hummer drivers ever repaid their "Hummer premium."

 

The base price in Israel is similar to that maybe 1-2K higher but all cars here cost a fortune.
The hybrids enjoy a tax reduction so as to encourage people to purchase Hybrids.
If taxed at regular rates it would go for close to AUS $ 60 K (US$52K)

A new Corolla goes here for about US$43K and a little Hyundai Getz US$22.

I figure that w/o effort I will save at least $1250 on fuel so after 8-10 years I will save the difference between the Prius and the Corolla and hopefully the value will be higher.

Are there any incentives to buy Hybrids in Australia?

Danny