Old car for Prius..

You'd do best to surf around the various forums and read a lot of posts. Everything you're interested in has already been asked and answered. Usually several times. There are also links to various websites also explaining a lot.

Start with the "stickies" at the top of each forum.

 

Hi Robert

12 - 18 MPG seems really low for an Altima. Do you drive mostly short trips? If so, then you won't get the best mileage with the Prius either, but still way better than 18, at least double.

I have had my car just over a year. The lowest mpg was 40.1 on the first tank, the highest was 51.9 on a trip through the Napa valley after the car was 6 mos old. I typically get 48 - 49 on my commute to work (about 12 mi) although on this tank, I am over 50 with 322 miles on this tank. I think I am still seeing improving mpg with 16k on the car.

Maintenance costs are low - mainly oil changes every 5k, filters every 15k

Other than great mileage and low emissions, the car has a lot of nice features. SKS (smart key system) is my favorite feature on the car - once you have this, you won't want to go back to a regular key.

Its also faster than you think it is. I sometimes like to dust jacked up 4wd trucks at stoplights, but I'm starting to get over the novelty of it, and would rather just get better mileage.

Stuff to complain about:

My car was out of alignment as delivered. The dealer didn't want to/didn't know how to fix it. I was able to fix it with the help of others on this site, namely Galaxee.

Visibility out the back could be better. I feel this is an acceptable tradeoff for the outstanding aerodynamics. This car can coast a very long way.

Headroom is marginal for me, so if you are tall and/or have a long torso you need to check this out. A lot of people (including myself) feel that Toyota should have included an height adjustable seat.

That's the major points I can think of.

 

Hi iRobert1989, welcome to PriusChat! Godiva's right, it's all on here with even the slightest amount of research. Most of what you know doesn't apply to the Prius. Most of what you want to know has be posted many times. Have fun reading.

Let's see, 12000 miles a year/16 mpg average x $4 a gallon = $3000 a year. Prius, 12000 miles a year/44 mpg x $4 a gallon = $1091. What do you want to know?