Is Prius for me?

First, some drivers should not own a Prius: http://priuschat.com/forums/newbie-forum/94450-considering-prius.html#post1334003 Your commute may be too short for best mileage.

1. My 2009 has worked everyday. It has 70,000 trouble free miles, so far with no repairs but fluid/filter changes and new tires at 55,000 miles.

3 Tires.

5. newer is better.

 

4 mile trip would probably get you about 35-40mpg. Lower in the winter time. The Prius get its best mpg when the engine is warmed up. Since the engine shuts down when you come to a complete stop, it takes longer distance to warm up.

 

2. If you use the right tires, snow/ice is no problem. I suggest Nokian WRg2 tires from Finland. I use them year around.

JeffD

 

I've heard a lot of myths but I have yet to hear that they turn themselves off when they hit a bump or pot hole. If that was the case with mine here in Michigan, I would never get anywhere!

 

It has to be driven consecutively not 2 miles here then 3 miles there. Once you stopped, the engine cools down and you have to start over. So, 2 miles here gets you 30mpg, 3 miles there gets you 33mpg. Soon you'll end up with 300 mile tank instead of 500 mile tank like everyone else. In your situation, you'll benefit from plugin hybrid instead of regular hybrid.
Also, com'n seriously? hit a bump and it shuts off? where did you hear that from? some guy or from a national news? Do you think they would let Toyota get away if the Prius shuts off when it hits a bump? The media would eat that up, law suits would pile up. The only bump related defect related to the Prius is .1 second of loss of brakes. There's already a discussion about that and there's already a fix for that.
Prius is just like any other car. There are happy owners and there are lemons. Almost all the owners are happy with it. Still, there are a few owners who're not happy with what they got.
If you're serious about buying one, I'm sure the dealer will let you test drive one. I'm not too keen on Gen II. All I know is that 04 and 05's ODO is limited to 299,999 miles. 06 and up fixed that. 04 and 05 use low res screen while 06 and up use high res screen.

 

1) Reliability is pretty average IMO, from my experience on working on my friend's Gen II. The failures are very predictable and repair costs are comparable to your Camry.

2) I would get snow tires, but then again I don't have snow in my area.

3) Engine water pump ($400-$500), struts ($800-$1000), inverter water pump ($400-$600, not sure how well the updated version holds up), left front axle seal ($300-$500), frequent HID bulb replacement ($50/bulb) and MFD screen ($400-$600 for used one from eBay). Don't let those scare you away, as not every Prius will have these issues, but these are the common issues that you may see on a < 100k mile Prius.

4) See if any of the issues listed in #3 have been corrected.

5) 07 and newer, for the safety equipment reasons that others have mentioned. Reliability seems to be about the same for most Gen II years.

6) Hard to say, but the market for fuel efficient cars is still tight right now. Prices are fairly high.

7) I believe it's 04-07. It is a service campaign, not a recall.

 

Yep. Never heard that myth before. Perhaps the OP's confusing it with Ford issues prompt fix for Fusion Hybrid brakes (which reared its head during the 3rd gen Prius SSC-A0B brake firmware "uproar").

 

Even at $5/gallon for gas, a car getting 20mpg compared to a Prius getting 50mpg (which could be a stretch given your short commutes) would take you 6666 2/3 miles before it'd cost you an extra $1000 of gas.

Given that gas isn't $5/gallon, you've mentioned money's tight and you're only doing 10 miles per day I'd say keep running your Camry, particularly because efficient used cars are expensive right now.

Consider your position again in 6 months or a year. Japanese production will be back to normal, there will be plenty of the newer efficient compacts and subcompacts out there to help suppress used car prices and a resolution in Libya would help relieve some of the pressure on NE gas prices.

But, keep an eye on those used car ads, since if your older car starts giving you trouble the maintenance costs can really shift the balance.

 

Maybe they were referring to the overly aggressive ABS system which is known to briefly "STOP" applying breaking force to the wheels when you hit a pothole.

 

that happens to me all the time Freyd. somewhat annoying.

 

I drive mostly very short trips, and my mileage sucks compared to others here, but it's still twice as good as any car I had before. Now, with the amount of driving I do, maybe I'm not saving enough gas to justify having bought a Prius, from a strictly monetary point of view; but for me, that's not the only or most important reason to have one.

The Prius is near the top of the reliability ratings in Consumer Reports, IIRC.

No, it doesn't turn itself off when it hits a bump, or at any other time. It does turn the engine off frequently, though, which could seem freaky if you're used to that meaning "stall". Personally, I enjoy the silence.