Difference between 2010 Corolla and Pirus

Prius Hybrid System Net Horsepower is 134hp.
Also, you should not compare apples to oranges.
Corolla is compact and Prius is midsize category.
Prius has more standard features, such as rear disc brakes, VSC, TRAC and others.

Ken@Japan

 

qoute.
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MSRP 16100 22750 prius is a bigger car with more acc.
Fuel Highway 35mpg 48mpg prius wins
Fuel City 26mpg 51mpg prius wins
Horsepower 132hp @ 6,000RPM 98hp @ 5,200RPM prius is 134hp

Any Repairs any body shop(Cheap) only dealer (very costly) no need for repairs on the prius its a toyota just like the corolla
Battary life N/A not advisable to hold the car after 100k load off.........b
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prius wins

 

Corolla get 29 mpg combined.
Prius gets 50 mpg combined.

5 yrs and 15K miles per year at $3.00 per gallon.

$7,759 Fuel cost for the Corolla
$4,500 Fuel cost for the Prius

$3,259 advantage Prius with $3.00 gas.

Gas goes to $4.00 -> $5.00 the Corolla gets blown away.

Resale is also much higher on Prius over a Corolla.

 

Corolla only wins if you drive it very few miles... crashing it often along the way with no insurance.

Prius not Pirus
Battery not Battary

 

The only thing I'll say, is if GM ever did build a Prius in cooperation with Toyota, my vote is that they call it The GM Pirus...they could use a Piranha as the emblem.

 

Overall Prius maintenance will be lower: there'll be 80% less brake wear-n-tear, no starter or belts to fail, no complicated transmission to fail, less wear-n-tear on the engine during warmup (and overall, for that matter), etc, etc.

Yes, you do have to electric motors and a battery that the Corolla does not have, but electric motors and batteries are fairly simple mechanical devices to begin with, and working in cooperation with the gasoline engine, all parts will be working with minimal stress (and maximal efficiency). Net big win.

As a bonus, guess who's not going to have to get an emissions inspection?

On top of that, the Prius gives you more tools than the Corolla to increase your mileage if gas prices shoot up and you decide to get serious about gas costs.

 

Solely from a cost perspective, I think the Corolla will win if driven 15,000 miles. The reason for this is the difference in price.

Prius II - $23,900 (assuming 5% tax)
Corolla - $16,000 (they sell for well under MSRP)

That's $7900. Interest over 5 years will run that to about $9,000. The Prius will save on gas and be worth more after 5 years, but it wont be enough to make up the price difference. ALG has the Prius with a 60 month value that's ~$2000 higher than a Corolla LE. Gas saving over 5 years will be ~$600/year or $3000.

$9000 - $3000 - $2000 = $5,000.

$5k / 60 months = $83/month.

 

I thought about including this, but Corollas (and Toyotas in general) are very cheap to maintain...especially during the first 125k miles.

 

To the extent that this it correct, "solely from a cost perspective" is the key. Solely from a cost perspective, you should only buy a used car, only get clothes on sale at Walmart, and only eat tuna fish on white bread.

The other thing in your calculation is being realistic about the parameters of your calculations. We know that gas prices can spike dramatically, based on world situations beyond out control. What if you decide five years down the road that you need to keep the car for another 3 or 4 years? What if you need to get a new job that's twice as far from home as your current job? What if you pay the loan off early and don't have all that interest?

If everything cooperates to stick to the band you define, the Corolla wins -- though I'd say by less than you calculate. I don't think it takes much of a change to throw your calculations off, though.

I think the gap will be smaller than you think, in the first place, but I'm also willing to pay 1/3 more money to get car that is, for me, much more flexible and enjoyable. Obviously, someone might make a similar argument right up the car price scale into 6 digits, and you have to settle on what you can afford. After that, I just don't think that price alone is the way to make a car purchase decision.

As a last example, it makes no sense to get an automatic transmission, cost-wise. It costs more upfront and it costs more (in gas and maintenance) over time. A lose-lose situation, financially. Unless you get caught in traffic jams on a regular basis, in which case the financial argument goes right out the window.

 

Insurance cost varies depending on the area and the company, but insurance companies may start taking away the hybrid discounts and adding a surcharge instead, because hybrid drivers have been shown to be more accident prone and the hybrid cars cost the insurance companies more money to repair.

Isn't the resale value higher on the Prius higher only because the initial cost is much higher? Total depreciation dollars is what matters, not the dollar amount of the cars value at resale time.
If you drive 12K miles per year at $3 per gallon and only keep the car for 4 years (not uncommon) gas savings will not be that great.

 

I believe that that article that stated that the Prius owners get into more accidents said that is because in general, Prius drivers drive more. Does it say if the Prius owners are at fault in all of these accidents? My insurance calculates the rate based on miles you drive, as I would think most do.

I currently drive a 2003 Corolla. it's a nice car and I really like it, but it has a stick and I am ready to move on to an automatic. I was going between the 2009 (at the time) Corolla and a Prius. I was not sure about the Prius because I was leary of a hatchback since we use the trunk to store cases of water, etc. I rented a 2009 Corolla last year and I was not that impressed. The only feature that it had that I liked over my Corolla was the auxillary plug.

In doing research on the Prius, I saw how much room there was for storage as well as the cover. I was sold. I test drove one and fell in love. I'm a gadget lover and the car has so many features that I love.

The inside felt bigger than my Corolla.

I cannot wait to get our Prius!!!!

 

If you can't spell "Pirus" you probby shunt try driving one...

 

Your right if you only own a Corolla or Prius less than five years. That is one thing people never learn is you lose your nice person trading in a car every 3-5 years. You save a whole lot of money owning it ten or more years. The worst depreciation is in the first three years.
I don't get rid of car before at least ten years or 200,000 miles.
The 2010 Prius I'm buying in the next two weeks I'm hoping to get at least 15 years and 150K miles out of.

 

Wow....

You need to put in a lot more work than that ....

How about....

2009 Matrix base model w/ 1.8L engine, 132HP, Low $19k MSRP

2010 Prius , 134 HP net HP, $22,950 (w/ CF)

so, the price disparity is not that great.

both have 4 doors, hatchback, Matrix has a bit more cargo room due to roof not sloping down at back

Prius front seats (2010 that is!) positively better than Matrix (more generous legroom)
Prius rear seat legroom a little better than Matrix (given front seat at same legroom adjustment)
Prius has 1 door smart key, traction control, VSC, Matrix base, none of this.

about all my brain can come up with at the moment.

Like said, don't compare a sedan to a hatchback.

 

Have you driven both? (Comfort, room, versitility) Prius wins!

 

First show me the $$ necessary to add all of the Prius II features to the Corolla. Then there are the features you can not get on the Corolla for any amount of money. Start with:
- SmartKey
- Planetary gear transmission
- Auto-down on all windows

Your argument is weak. I could save a LOT of money if I buy a used bicycle for $35 instead of a 2010 Prius II. OK, they aren't comparable, but it is all about the purchase price, right?

 

Hence the reason I said "solely from a cost perspective." If saving money is the end goal and the Prius and Corolla both meet your needs/desires - obviously, the Corolla will cost much less to own.

If your needs/desires include smartkey, a planetary gear trans and auto-down windows, than obviously the Corolla isn't the right car no matter how cheap it is.

 

Many of the variables that go into buying car can be manipulated to make one car seem like a good or bad value. Seeing that I can't predict the future, all I can do is give estimates that I believe may be correct. YMMV.

Gas could spike to $5/gallon, but then again, it could stay in the $2-3 range for a couple years.

Personally, I was in the same position as the OP and trying to choose between a Civic LX auto and the Prius II. After running the numbers, I found that the Civic is likely to cost me ~$50/month less over 5 years. However, I like a lot of the features on the Prius like stability control, active head restraints, additional backseat room, flexibility of the hatch, unique looks/tech and the quieter/smoother ride. Thus, I'm willing to spend a little extra and buy the Prius.