COMPARISON - '08 Civic Hybrid vs. Prius

If you want looks, luxury, and speed, checkout the Lexus LS600H. But if you want to save fuel and the planet ... either one of the Prius or the Civic Hybrid will provide you with plenty of satisfaction.

BUT, if your friend is not desperate or in an urgent rush to get a new vehicle, I would wait until January 2009 to see the new hybrid that Honda will unveil.

 

The Prius is the first Toyota I've owned. I have owned several Hondas and Acuras. My wife has a Civic. I've always regarded Honda as the best car in terms of value and reliability. Prefer them over Toyota in terms of styling, handling and reliability.

But the Prius is in a class by itself. In my view, it is a Toyota engineering triumph. The best selling hybrid by far--way beyond the Civic hybrid. Honda recognizes they need a more distinctive hybrid, and will soon come out with something more competitive. You know it will be good. But Prius has the advantage as the market leader.

 

I have to say that I, too, have always preferred Honda over Toyota. But when we were looking at the Civic Hybrid and Prius, there was no comparison. The Prius won easily and I'm glad we chose it. The folding seats and hatch alone make it a far far superior car IMO. Still, I CAN'T WAIT too see what Honda does with it's next hybrid. If the hype is to be believed, it will be better than the Prius. GO Honda!! Keep this race alive! It will help us all.

 

There is not good reason to get a Civic Hybrid instead of a prius, IMO. If Civic style is what you like and you hate prius dashboard for whatever reason, you should just get a civic, it is cheaper and the fuel eco is great.

I choose prius over other hybrid
1) best FE
2) hatchback, more cargo space if i need
3) roomy interior compare to corolla,civic..
4) fuel eco gaming console (MFD) yeah i call it game console, everytime i drive my prius i want to get as high "score" as possible
5) Prius means Hybrid to many people oh and you can always tell them you cant compare prius to other non hybrid because, there is no non-hybrid prius

 

I've owned Honda's for years, and still have a couple Honda motorcycles but when I got my 05 it wasn't even close. The previous generation HCH was SLOW and heavy and didn't get that much more improved mileage.

As for the differences now, the Prius is still bigger and available with more technological geegaws over the HCH. Plus if you don't drive a butt load of miles even a $1000 difference in price between the HCH and the standard Civic. My calcs show break even at $4 gas is about 34,000 miles.

 

Thanks HighBreed, appreciate the support

 

The nav systems on all Toyota products, including Lexus, are pretty much the same. That does not make it a luxury item. The cruise control stalk is the same on the Prius, Camry, and Lexus ES, that does not make it a luxury--as a matter of fact, cruise control belongs on the steering wheel, like in the Civic. The Prius has a long ways to go to even get close to a luxury car. Where are the heated/cooled memory seats? I'd even settle for seats that are half as comfortable as those on a Civic. The main attraction of a Prius is the mileage, period. Just about everything else is a compromise. The only thing you can get on a Prius that does not come on an HCH is the rear-view camera, BT, and leather seats. The rear-view camera is more of a necessity because of limited rear visibility. BT is OK (We have it on the Tundra), but hardly necessary, and you can get leather seats if you are so inclined.
The Prius hatch is nice, and I personally like, but most Americans don't care for hatches--few manufacturers offer hatches here, even though they sell the same models as hatches in Europe--Civic is an example.

 

My dad has an 05 Camry, and the cruise control stalk on that is exactly like all the Priuses I've tested, as well as on our Tundra. The 07 Lexus ES I checked out also had the identical stalk. I really don't care for it--ergonomically, it is not well designed. Natural reaction is to push the button to set speed. Even after putting some miles on the Tundra, I keep turning CC off! Of course, now in the HCH after driving the Tundra for a while, I keep feeling for the CC stalk!

 

Sounds like Per is very defensive about his choice of the compact HCH over the larger Prius. Maybe because he feels he made a mistake. Oh well, live and learn. I realize the Prius is not a luxury car, but more upgrades are available to bring it closer than a civic ever will be.

 

Thanks Tideland, error fixed. I own a TCH also, just a typo. :bounce:

 

Not at all defensive, just pointing out some of the differences that may appeal to different buyers.
The CC stalks may look slightly different, but they all function the same. Push button in for on/off, stalk down to set, push up to accelerate/resume, and pull to cancel. Actually, I added several CC systems to cars in the 70s, which were all on stalks, but I like CC controls much better on the wheel.
The Prius is no larger than the HCH where it counts for me, which is in the driver's seat. I originally wanted to buy a Prius, but could not get past the uncomfortable seat, the long reach for the steering wheel, and the poor design of the cockpit. If Toyota can see their way to correct those areas, which to me are big defects, I will be very interested in the next generation Prius. Of course, I will have to see what Honda will do with the CR-Z as well.

 

One thing I have noticed lately in the HCH/Prius comparo though, is that the Prius seems to do better on mileage relatively than the HCH when running heavy AC. Our temperatures here in S.A. have jumped to the middle/upper 90s, and I'm having trouble getting much more than about 40 MPG with the AC running full blast. With the rented Prius in Las Vegas last August, we got 48+ MPG with the AC at full blast, and driving gently. The HCH uses a electric/engine driven AC compressor, and with the dash fan going at full speed, the mileage suffers. But we would rather have the mileage suffer than us!