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wicastawakan · Mar 18, 2009

I strongly considered the Honda Civic. I like the car very well & it is an outstanding vehicle. I handles better than a Prius from the standpoint of cornering/changing lanes, etc. Definitely a more "nimble" feel. But.....
I do not have a family but like the larger vehicle. I do haul quite a bit of stuff around & live in the country, so always needing sacks of this & that, boards, boxes, feed, etc, etc. I also travel a bit & I can sleep in the vehicle if needed. I can haul a lot of "souvenirs" etc.

It has a longer wheelbase & makes for a lot more comfortable ride & increased stability. It is also considerably quieter than the Civic. I also have the capability to haul four adults comfortably & still have plenty of room for luggage, etc.

Those factors were the swing vote for me. Well, I kinda like the hybrid thing too...... Bottom line, I have always wanted a Prius & finally got one & extremely happy!!!!

snead_c · Mar 18, 2009

donee said: ↑

Hi squeege,

Your leaving out maintenance variation. Even if you plan to sell the Focus in 3 years, the resale will be less due to the cost of maintenance required on a standard car, versus the Prius. So a lifetime cost evaluation is what I did.

In normal usage Prius brakes should last 125K miles (less in the mountains). Also, with a Ford you might want to consider alternator and starter repairs over the ownership life as well. Prius does not have those, and the electric machines and electronics that provide those functions should last the life of the car. Factor in those costs on a per 1K mile basis and it will reduce the total cost of ownership difference.

Right now, however, the Focus may be a cheaper car in a vehicle lifetime evaluation. But, its smaller and noisier. So, you get what you pay for.

Do not forget to put in cost of money issues. If your buying on loan use the loan rate. If by cash, include lost interest (interest rates are pretty poor right now). I evaluted on cash purchase either way. But, if your buying the Focus by cash, but would need a loan for the Prius, that needs to be figured. Also, do not forget state sales tax.

If you really want a Prius, but cannot buy one with good economics right now, then maybe a used Civic or Corrola (or Fit or Yaris) or something like that would work. This allows you to put money in the bank over the next few years, and then buy a Prius. Or maybe even the new small HSD Hybrid Toyota is talking about. If you get one of the cars mentioned, it may still have some resale after you put get it up to 100K miles.
Click to expand...

Be sure to factor in the federal tax write off os state and local sales for new purchases during 2009.:cheer2:

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