2013 Prius Two vs. 2017 Corolla LE

Well in this case, I would favour the Corolla.

• This generation of Corolla came out in 2014 so it's still relatively new (body structure, safety standards)
• Has TSS-P. Once you have radar cruise control, you don't want to go back. I have it in my 2010 Prius and it's awesome. The Corolla's DRCC is more advanced as it will bring the car down to 0mph (e.g. if there's a jam on the freeway).
• It's a spacious car. It's no longer a cramped economy car
• LED low beams as standard equipment (Multi-beam LED if you opt for the XSE). The halogens on the Gen 3 Prius are pretty good for halogens but LEDs are better.
• It's really economical. I've driven the 2014 Corolla and used cruise control on a flat road to get some FE numbers. At 38mph, it got 60mpg. At 50 mph, 50 mpg. At 62 mph, 42.7 mpg. In mostly city driving, 32.7mpg. In mixed city/hwy (hwy was a mountain road), the tank average was 35.6 mpg. Ok yes it's not the same as the Prius' 45-50 mpg in the city or highway but depending on your commute, you can get some great numbers.
• With the Corolla, you can keep it as long as you want to. A friend of mine's mother still drives her 1990 Corolla LE 5-spd manual as her daily driver. I still see 92-97 Corollas on the road. You choose when you want to upgrade with a car like the Corolla. Maintenance is also as inexpensive as it's going to get.
• The 2017 Corolla has the latest 6.1" Display Audio system with better graphics and a faster processor. The 2013 Prius has a, umm, well it has a 6.1" Display Audio system by HK with Garmin-like graphics. It's ok.
• Oh and Toyota regularly has great deals on Corollas (whether it's cash discounts or 0% financing so wait for those)
• The Corolla is quieter on the highway than the 2013 Prius

The Prius has its merits so I'll list those

• Way better city fuel economy
• Depreciation is already taken care of (though I'd try to negotiate a bit off the listed price)
• Hatchback flexibility - more useful than a trunk if you're in the stage of life where you're carrying large things (like a bike or a snowboard or moving stuff around)
• I prefer the CVT in the Prius than the one in the Corolla (based on my 2014 Corolla driving experience).
• If gas spikes to $3 or $4/gal, your expenses will increase much slower than with the Corolla
• You'll save money on brake pads. We never changed the brake pads on our 2005 Prius. They last so long because of regenerative braking
• Tires are cheaper on the Prius (15" vs. 16" on the Corolla LE)
• You may have to replace the HV battery some day but we're talking many, many years down the road (you could be looking for a new car by then for all we know). The warranty is 8 years or 100,000 miles so check the in-service date of the Prius and add 8 years to that for the end date of the hybrid battery warranty. After that, budget about $3,000 for parts/labour/taxes for a replacement of a *new* battery. (You can take the refurbished route as well or salvage route to save on the cost of parts). You probably won't need it but with any car, put money aside for repairs. You can then choose to use the money to repair the car or use it as a downpayment of a new vehicle when the time comes

 

US. I converted from L/100km. I almost never use Imp. MPG (except when talking with our UK members).

I prefer to use L/100km as there is no ambiguity in its value. (The only issue is that it only has one decimal place. I prefer two as one gets washed out in rounding errors easily. US MPG is a finer scale)

 

That is correct. The "MPG" figure listed in any Canadian brochure is imperial MPG. However, in all ads and marketing material, L/100km is used. Imp. MPG right now is just a legacy item for those who still use imperial MPG.

So remember, if the U.S. ever decides to switch to metric, it will not be instantaneous. It's been nearly 50 years since Canada went to metric and some things (like Imp. MPG) are still around. That being said, it's ok to use either (lbs. versus kg) but there can be advantages. We still use hp/lb-ft for power measurement rather than kW/Nm for example.

Likely not. 2018 would be the 5th year of this current generation so it won't be until 2019 at the earliest. It'll depend on when the factory in Mexico will be up and running as this will be the last generation of Corolla built in Canada for North America consumption.

 

Yeah during the 1970s under the older Trudeau.