Lemon-Aide Car guide claims against Hybrids

I can think of several replies, but if I include any of them the mods will ban me for awhile.

Tom

 

I can shed absolutely no light on "why." Nor do I care. What he said (based on what you've quoted) is so ridiculous and so easily debunked that there's no point in wasting time on it.

 

It is part of a very sophisticated Toyota marketing program to avoid troublesome customers. Folks who read "Lemon-Aide Car Guide" have a very low threshold and often complain about ordinary things (aka., "Complaint: Sun rises in the East and shines through my window and wakes me up" or "Complaint: My car is too quiet.") By seeding such stories in media read and followed by 'difficult people,' they don't buy hybrids and Toyota avoids a lot of unnecessary warranty calls.

So 'technoratic', you enjoy "Lemon-Aide?" Been reading it long?

Bob Wilson

ps. My apologies to anyone who may have been sipping a beverage when they read this note.

 

May want to call up a couple of Toyota dealers and find out what a batter pack costs and how often they have replaced them so far.

You certainly have been reading the mileages people been getting here with their Prius, right? Yes, the EPA numbers before the most recent change was off but it was off for all cars by that %.

Good thing you ask questions and not accept what you read.

 

I'm not familiar with the author, but his claims are fabrications. Not only did the assclown repeat the $5,000 lie (and a quick search of the forums will show a new pack price of around half that), but he raised the ante by making it $8,000.

A 30% "hype" in fuel economy would mean about 35 mpg real world. Finding a Prius that averages only 35 mpg would be challenging. But the dimwit wasn't even satisfied with that sort of fabrication. He had to claim "at least 30%"--so if he was right any Prius getting over 35 mpg would be a rarity. I've driven three so far, and none got below 40 mpg even when I was flogging them. What this means is that not only does the author not know what he is talking about, but he is making s*** up as it suits him.

A guide like that is probably best reserved for the bottom of a bird cage.

 

Well, we like our Noritz tank-less system, it's saved us a bundle after 3 years already ... but I digress.

Did you read the sticky above by any chance?

http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-hybrid-news/30974-prius-vs-hummer-exploding-myth.html

It applies to more than the title states, and covers a lot of your issues. You never know, the poor author may have simply believed the first stuff he read, and got stuck in that sort of closed loop w/out doing any further research.

 

This forum's search function works well. That's one of the "debunking" tools. Battery cost and Prius reliability (among a variety of myths) have been covered extensively.

For additional, objective, and more extensive reliability data, check out Consumer Reports or TrueDelta.

 

Oh, and all 'non-hybrids' are perfectly benign, aren't they? Nobody ever got killed by one of those. Even if your first instinct after an accident is to lick up all the oil and antifreeze.

Sorry, Phil. You blew this one big time. Not all hybrids are created equal.

 

Oh c'mon, who hasn't tried drinking antifreeze? It's very sweet, just like Kool AId, and who the hell needs kidney's anyway? They are highly overrated

ATSDR - MMG: Ethylene Glycol

Getting back to the Lemon AId crackpot, does he discuss the danger of airbags to EMS personnel?

 

Welcome to the Club!

If you haven't guessed, we're mostly harmless but do love a joke or two. <grins> I'm glad you came back ... you'll have fun with your new Prius.

Good luck!

Bob Wilson

 

Most Americans driving a second gen Prius (2004-2009) average 46-48 MPG which is almost -exactly- what the EPA rate the car at. In Canada we still use the old rating (converted to metric, of course). We DO NOT or CAN NOT get the mileage rated. But we CAN get within 10% or so of the rating. I get in the range of 4.5-4.6 l/100 km (summer). The ratings are done at ambient temps of 20C, which is about what we see in summer on average.

The traction battery lasts pretty much the life of the car (most people get bored with a car after 5-7 years anyway), and in taxi service the battery will last well over 200,000 mi. But if you really want to replace it the cost is in the $2700 range plus install. I've read of quotes on this forum ranging from $4000 to $5000 installed (as with anything, some batteries have failed and some have done so out of warranty - warranty is very generous, being 5-7 years). You could install it yourself with ease. Toyota will give you $200 for the used battery, though you could probably sell it on e-bay for $500 without any trouble.

In an accident the high voltage battery is -totally- disconnected from all cabling external to the battery steel case. I have -never- heard of anyone being injured by the high voltage in -any- circumstance. It is ground fault protected when on, and when the car is off it is totally isolated inside the battery steel case.
The electrolyte is potassium hydroxide and water, which is -not- toxic. It can burn you just as sodium hydroxide (lye) can. Simple washing with water will stop this. There is less danger than from sulfuric acid, the electrolyte in all other car batteries.

The antifreeze used in the Prius is propylene glycol which is also not toxic.

I'm sad to hear Phil has gone so far downhill. He was once the only trustworthy word on car stuff.

 

I used to think that the Canadian numbers were impossible too. This year however I am getting surprisingly close. I have had a number of 30 minute or so trips where I have averaged high 3's and with other shorter trips in the high 4's my overall average is running around 4.3l/100km over the last 30 days. I put this down to three things; warmer weather, the car has more than 20,000km on it now, and I am getting better at driving it. Note that I do not go to what I consider to be extremes e.g. pulse and glide, and I do use the cruise control when appropriate.

 

nope but not surprised at the comments made by an obviously uninformed technical neophyte...

i am surprised that you even bothered to post this especially considering what you already know to be true based on the personal real life experiences of the thousands of Prius owners on this site

**edit**

oops... ok, guess i should have looked at your profile first and noticed you have not had a lot of time yet to absorb the extremely unwieldy amount of info that is available here.

 

I've heard this guy on the radio. I think he's a Canuck. He's published the lemon-aid guide for decades. He has always crapped on smart cars and hybrids. His advice isn't always this bad, but when it comes to hybrids he is really, really mis-informed. Eventually he's either going to die or recant. I'm looking forward to either.

 

That's a great line!

 

One thing's for sure ...

The Prius is front and center in American's conscience.

I was at a truck parts counter today. Couples dudes are talking about high cost of tankless water heater installations. One of the guys says 'it's like a Prius which costs more, but you earn the money back.'

Seems like everyone knows what a Prius is.

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Little off topic, but I have to agree with Edmunds.com reviews on the Prius. They are very clear that the Gen2 Prius came with compromises in key areas which I very much agree with.

Fortunately, edmunds.com now says the 2010 is the total package with virtually no compromises.