Is the Plug in Prius worth it for me?

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nah. the thrill is in the charging and electric driving. twice a week will leave you wanting more! next thing you know, you'll be stealing your neighbors electricity!

 

who told?!?!?!?!?!

 

if you're only travelling 12 miles a day, a regular Prius would only give you 35mpg. I had a 2010 Prius, traveled 2.7 miles to work twice a week only got 35mpg. A plug in solves that problem for me.

 

because of the larger battery and li-on tech, you probably get 10% better mileage, but that wouldn't justify the extra cost for most people.

 

you might do a bit better with a 12 mile commute. mine is 14 and i got 50mpg in winter and 60 in summer with my genII 08. of course, that's an average including all my driving.

 

The PiP is perfect for your scenario IF you can charge at least once every 12 miles. Most of my trips are between 2 and 10 miles, and I have gone weeks without using any gas at all. The Prius is at its worst on short trips such as your (I presume) two 6-mile daily trips. In short, if you can charge the car daily, you should get the PiP. <Heresy> If you can't, it almost doesn't matter what you get, since for the amout of driving you do, even the gas saving of the standard Prius will be unlikely to pay you anywhere near what you will save by saving a less expensive car. </Heresy>

Richard

 

I didnt even read your first post but the answer is yes. Its always yes. Buy a PIP.

 

awwww......it looks like Jimbo69NY is drunk.....and I could use a drink, lol

 

Scotch, Scotch, Scotch, down into my belly.

 

If you can only plug in twice a week, it's not worthwhile.

 

No, stick with the Prius Liftback. Even if you can charge everyday you don't buy the PIP for economic reasons.

 

Oh wow, if you're going to get a 5 AT then go for the PIP. At least test one anyway. Or consider a Volt. Since you can charge at school you'd be able to build up a buffer to help you get more driving. Test the Volt and PIP.Oh stick. Never ,mind.

 

Have to agree, if you can only charge twice a week a plugin is probably not for you. Regular Prius will be a huge improvement on what you're driving now. Plugin will make an incremental improvement, but hard to justify the cost if you're charging so infrequently.

Basically every time you use up the charge in the battery (~12-17 miles electric driving) you offset about 1/4 gallon of gas. If you only do this twice a week, that 1/2 gallon a week or 26 gallons a year. If you could do this every day, or better twice a day, then your talking 75-150 gallons a year. Even then it may not pay for itself vs the cost of the regular Prius, but its easier to justify the other non-financial benefits when it comes a little closer to paying for itself. Of course everyone has to make that call for themselves, in terms of the value of the benefits of using less gas vs. the cost difference.

Rob

 

I'm really confused, first you were comparing a base model Prius to a PiP, then decided to get a Package 5+AT because the PiP Advanced is too expensive??

First of all, as you can find in the forum, the base PiP is somewhere between a Package 3 and 4. Second, where are you located? In some states, PiP will give you access to the carpool lane even when driving alone, as well as incentive rebates that lower the price further.

What car do you have now? I find it hard to believe that you get 15 mpg. My 15-year-old Honda Accord, even when used only for short trips, would get more than 20 mpg.

Here's a comparison: let's say your current car gets 20 mpg. Let's say you live in California, where gas is now $4.20/gal. Your yearly mileage is under 4400. Your 20 mpg vehicle has an annual fuel cost of $900, a new Corolla will cost $550, a new PHV will cost $350, and the PiP would cost you ~$150 in electricity if you could charge it daily. Note the diminishing returns here. A souped up Corolla will still be cheaper than a Prius while costing only $200 more per year in fuel costs (which would probably be offset by a difference in the insurance cost). But if you're in a more "normal" state, the difference will be much less pronounced since gas will be cheaper.

At this low yearly mileage, don't choose a car based on fuel economy – choose it based on the amount of money you have and what's important to you to have in the car. I, personally, still haven't decided what I want more – a solar panel roof, which is only available on the PHV, or the ability to charge from a plug and accelerate harder in EV mode. Decisions, decisions…