Drove a Prius today....

[Teseo]

How much OP saved in gas?

[Hotrodheart]

Originally Posted by Impureclient

What kind of weirdo would own 3 Prii?

Yes, "prii" is correct.... http://content.usatoday.com/communit...1#.VatBqvlVhBc

I only had one Prius.

[torqdork]

I mentioned my Prii Gen. II (bought/sold 14 of them) experience to my local twin buddies at a couple of track days.

It's all about the tires, you know, the same family of Primacy's that are standard equipment on the twins that many like for their lack of grip. I always replaced the stock tires with performance rubber on Day 1 and they transformed the car for the better, even more of an improvement than putting the same rubber on a twin.

Anyway, during my Prii investment period from 2004-2007, I netted $7K+ on each one counting Fed/State tax incentives. That's right, nearly $100K profit tax-free over four years, not bad for a hobby and made my utter contempt for CVT's tolerable.

The world has changed and the new normal seems to be acceptance of gas over $3/gal. accounting for trucks and SUV's as industry leaders.

Yes, the twins hit the sweet spot in almost every way, but to compare them to a Prius makes no sense. It's like comparing Ellen DeGeneres to Hannah Davis.

Still, there's hope, and I'll be getting one: The 2016 Prius is rumored to have a much lower CG with the TNGA chassis, smaller motor/gen set and LiOn battery pack, gained power up to 150 hp, dropped 150-200 lbs. and improved fuel economy to almost 60 mpg. That would approach power to weight numbers of the last Celica GT, no slouch on an auto-x course. They actually have a decent launch if you stand on the brake and gas, wait for the engine to spool to stall speed and then let the DC motor instant torque "rocket" you to the first cone.

After I get the 2016 Prius, I'll wait for gas to reach $5/gal. again and laugh all the way to the bank.

[radroach]

Originally Posted by Tromatic

One of the big ones, the Prius V.

FYI the Prius V has had a recent recall for about a half million vehicles. You might want to tell your sister.

[kcarlson_sf]

Getting back in our Corolla after three weeks of driving my new FR-S made me feel the same way. The steering is AWFUL! Don't get me wrong, I love Corollas because they last fucking forever: you can totally neglect them and they just keep coming back for more punishment.

But once you've driven a car like the FR-S, you realize that most cars provide SO much power steering assist that you have absolutely no idea what the tires are doing on the road. In the Corolla, the pressure the wheel is exerting against my steering is exactly the same, whether I'm gently turning at 10 mph, or at full lock. It makes me feel like I'm driving a hovercraft.

[BRZBot]

I traded in a gen 2 prius for my brz, all the jokes about the twins being slow are lost on me

[soulreapersteve]

Well written, sir! Though not as shitty as your experience with the Prius, I take my old Corolla out for a spin once in a while just to see how much of an upgrade the FRS was for me.

Taking into consideration that its a 15+ year old well-maintained ecobox: brakes are crap, steering is crap, etc. How I managed to drive that car without crashing into anyone or anything is beyond me. Sounding like a broken record, people who hate on the Twins are simply missing out.

I'll get another fun toy in the future. But for now, I'm more than happy with this one.

Originally Posted by Tromatic

One of the big ones, the Prius V. I borrowed it from my sister to drag my seabag to my new compound. Jeebus, that thing sucks. If you are starting to wonder about the awesomeness of your FR-S/BRZ, drive almost anything else to be reminded of how friggin' lucky we are to have it.

The Prius is totally isolated from the road, or at least as good as it gets in a Prius. The steering was amazing on the freeway. Here's a turn, "ten degrees left rudder". WTF, nothing is happening. "20 degrees left rudder!" Now, all of a sudden, you get all 20 degrees and bunch of roll. Now you have too much rudder on and a serious list. Correct a bit to the right. Shit! Nothing is happening! A bit more right rudder! And again, you get it all at once. I used to think Prius drivers were NDF's (Non-driving Fucks) but I am now willing to concede that the car itself is an NDF.

Passing lane? Great, I can get around this brain-dead Prius driver. Wait.... All head full! WTF. I said ALL AHEAD FULL! WTF. ALL AHEAD FLANK! Finally, with great dignity, we begin to gain on the car ahead. When finally ahead, repeat the flappy-tiller steering. I will no longer blame my sister for causing me to white-knuckle it when she is driving. It's not her fault I'm seasick and we are going so slowly that we are going to be run down by a brodozer, it's the car.

J. Clarkson was right when he said everything about the 86 is immediate. It responds instantly and predictably to the smallest steering input, and you can feel it in both the steering wheel and gut. The car rotates around my ass like my MC does. It IS like a 250cc bike. The gas pedal will not save you, and if that is the only tool (or fun you have) "you bought the wrong fucking car". Throttle response is instant (providing you are in the right gear or not in the "torque dip", and if you can't do either you suck, get a Prius). You can feel trailing and off-throttle, and you have real engine-braking. You can feel what the car is doing, unlike the totally numb Prius. Seat of the pants vs. I have become comfortably numb.

I almost crashed because of the brakes. Unlike my fellow Oregonians, I'm looking two or three cars ahead, not at the bumper of the car directly in front of me, or better yet, a cell phone. Brakes on, three cars ahead! I'm already braking before the dolt ahead notices and I was still almost too late on the brakes. I'm just short of panic-braking, and I'm thinking this must be how it feels to crash an oil tanker. Stop, you fuck!

The FR-S/BRZ/86 is a fucking BRILLIANT car. I've said it before, and will say it again, knowing full well it will bring out the 'tards: this car is a taste of supercar for us plebes. It really is a miracle it got built at all.

[daiheadjai]

I was hoping the Prius C would be better, having heard comparatively good things about its handling...

[Jegan_V]

Originally Posted by daiheadjai

I was hoping the Prius C would be better, having heard comparatively good things about its handling...

No, it unfortunately doesn't handle much better than a Yaris does and the Yaris is as generic as a car can be. A huge minus for the C is the interior. Its probably Toyota's worst interior currently simply due to the low quality and depressing nature of it. There is zero soft touch plastic, all of it is easily scratched hard plastic or cloth insert. The regular Prius is worth the extra simply to avoid the C's terrible interior. The Prius V is ok in the context of, if you wanted a Prius but need a wagon or hated the stupid rear spoiler blocking the rear vision.

If you wanted a car from this category and the mainstream range that isn't horrid to drive. Its going to have to be either the Nissan Leaf which is very normal to drive or the Chevrolet Volt which I actually think drives reasonably well.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by radroach

FYI the Prius V has had a recent recall for about a half million vehicles. You might want to tell your sister.

for what? ...I mean the recall, not for telling his sister.

[torqdork]

Originally Posted by Jegan_V

If you wanted a car from this category and the mainstream range that isn't horrid to drive. Its going to have to be either the Nissan Leaf which is very normal to drive or the Chevrolet Volt which I actually think drives reasonably well.

Isn't Leaf full electric with <100 mile range and Volt hybrid <400 mile range? Prius hybrid range is >600 miles with no recharging needed, Plug-In Prius not sure, EV rated 95 mpg for 11 miles but needs 1.5-3.0 hours (120v-240v) recharging time to resume EV mode.

I haven't driven the electrics though, just going by 'net reviews. Prius hybrid is from personal experience with no hypermiling.

I guess we'll need to embrace these type of cars in time with the US CAFE mandate of 54 mpg on the horizon.

WEC, F1, and soon other series will be racing hybrids to podiums. Soon we'll be debating types of battery construction, energy densities and specific power outputs.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMjsAMlXGBI"]Rhys Millen Wins Pikes Peak First Electric Car Victory - YouTube[/ame]

[dnieves]

Sounds like the Titanic did a better job of avoiding the iceberg than a Prius V would.





To be fair... must be nice never having morons wanting to race you and since there's no chance of spirited driving even less reason to tank up & buy tires as often.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by torqdork

I guess we'll need to embrace these type of cars in time with the US CAFE mandate of 54 mpg on the horizon.

WEC, F1, and soon other series will be racing hybrids to podiums. Soon we'll be debating types of battery construction, energy densities and specific power outputs.

Don't worry, they'll be just as fun. Maybe even more so.

[torqdork]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

Don't worry, they'll be just as fun. Maybe even more so.

Less worry than concern that those who can least afford it will be forced to pay thousands more and be less safe in smaller, lighter cars when we're facing a glut of fossil fuel inventory.

http://news.investors.com/ibd-editor...ar-mandate.htm

That said, I'm planning to auto-x my 2016 Prius if it arrives in time for the season opener. I think it might do well depending on classification.