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afolander
Joined: 22 Jul 2002
Posts: 74
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 Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2008 4:26 pm Post subject: |
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I rented a Prius last week on a business trip and was unimpressed:
- mileage hoveraged around 40 mpg in city and highway.
- big blind spot from windshield mirror if you're over average height.
- pain in the butt touch tone screen for most of the controls.
- need lots of time to pass anyone on a two lane road.
- cramped interior.
- typical crummy sound system for a rental
I would be surprised if larger sails and masts would fit inside. |
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jp5
Joined: 19 May 1998
Posts: 3394
Location: OnUr6
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| Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2008 10:40 am Post subject: |
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I ride a Harley. It gets 35mpg around town and 50mpg on the freeway. The only problem is when I put a windsurfing board on top of the overhead rack it acts like a wing and makes the front wheel come off the ground. I got a ticket for reckless driving on the 405 because I had done a 15 mile long wheelie. No point in steering now eh?  |
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SWE106
Joined: 14 Feb 2005
Posts: 264
Location: San Mateo
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| Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2008 12:53 pm Post subject: |
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| andrewc wrote: | You might want to wait and check out the VW Jetta TDI (Diesel) Wagon when it comes out later this year. It will blow the doors off the prius in performance/room/practicality with similar real-world economy. Anyone who has driven a modern diesel is amazed at how good they are.
Don't fall for the toyota con-job of selling an image of being green ( questionable as the energy/disposal costs of making a prius are very high) while they churn out gas hog V8 Tundras as fast as they can make them. |
Yes, modern diesel offer a lot of performance, power and agility with a very gas zippy attitude!
However, since when is it an argument not to buy a gas zippy car when the same manufacturer also produces gas guzzlers? VW is certainly not any better with their Touareg, for example, which last time I checked does only 12/17 mpg c/h (V EPA estimate. So according to you, I shouldn't buy the jetta wagon, because VW is also a con! |
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jse
Joined: 17 Apr 1995
Posts: 1460
Location: Maui
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| Posted: Wed Jan 16, 2008 2:05 pm Post subject: |
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| jpbassking wrote: | | I got a ticket for reckless driving on the 405 because I had done a 15 mile long wheelie. |
You should move your mast forward.
Steve |
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rigatoni
Joined: 25 Feb 1999
Posts: 498
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| Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2008 3:17 pm Post subject: prius |
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Jane,
As long as you don't need to make a statement but are more concerned with the mileage, take a look at the Civic Hybrid. It gets really good mileage and seems like it would handle a rack a lot better than the domed top of the Prius.
Chris |
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lexflyer
Joined: 20 Sep 2001
Posts: 21
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| Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2008 4:43 pm Post subject: |
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| isobars wrote: | How long do you keep your cars?
From http://tinyurl.com/yummdb
for the Prius, though, when compared with the Toyota Corolla LE, it would take 13.6 years to break even at 15,000 miles a year, Rosten said. Both cars have similar interior space. [And that's without gear on top.] |
For a better comparison, you need to add a couple of options packages to the Corolla LE, to bring it a little closer to the standard features of the Prius (ABS brakes and power options). At 15K mi/yr and using Consumer Reports' city/hwy mileage numbers, at 1/3 city, 2/3 hwy, $3.20/gal. gas and Edmunds 2008 true market prices (no tax credits), you get 11.4 years to break even. If you use CR's all around mileage numbers, you get 8 yrs.
If you compare the standard Prius to a still lesser-equipped Matrix XR with optional ABS brakes, the numbers are 7 years at 1/3 city, 2/3 hwy and 5 years at CR's all around mileage numbers.
If you subtract 3 mpg from the Prius's hwy mileage for a permanent rack and don't subtract anything from the Matrix, you get 7.5 years to break even.
So, yeah, that's still a long time to break even. I'm also car shopping for a good windsurf car with good gas mileage.
jpbassking, lol. |
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windbetty
Joined: 14 May 1998
Posts: 325
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| Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2008 5:02 pm Post subject: Re: Prius is a good windsurfing car |
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| slidersf wrote: | | I have no problems when I "borrow" my wife's Prius. She has Thule racks that work fine - even with 10' longboards. |
What type of milage does it get with the roof rack? Is it a big difference? I'd hate to get a car for environmental reasons just to have the benefits mainly reduced because of a roof rack.
No matter what car I get, I will definitely need a roof rack. Also, I plan to keep the car for a long time. My ultimate goal is to have a quality car that is better for the environment.
Also, I was unaware of the Diesel option. I'm a neophyte about Diesel cars. If my ultimate goal is to be more environmentally responsible, which car would be best?
Thanks everyone for you input,
-Rebecca |
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windbetty
Joined: 14 May 1998
Posts: 325
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| Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2008 5:06 pm Post subject: |
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| lexflyer wrote: |
If you subtract 3 mpg from the Prius's hwy mileage for a permanent rack .... |
Is 3 mpg a reasonable estimate of lost milage? If so, that's not bad. |
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tomg
Joined: 10 Apr 2000
Posts: 294
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| Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2008 5:13 pm Post subject: more car advice |
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We too are looking at the Prius but the thing drives like a golf cart. Camy wasn't much better. For the same price as a loaded Prius you can get a Nissan Altima hybrid. It has the same "synergy drive", acquired from Toyota, gets milage close to the Prius. BUT, it has 200 hp which means it drive like a nice "sport" sedan. Only down side with this and Camry hybrid is that there is no fold down seats. That means boards, masts maybe more needs to go on the roof.
Tom G. |
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WindsurfUtah
Joined: 08 Jul 2006
Posts: 93
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| Posted: Thu Jan 17, 2008 7:09 pm Post subject: |
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I would just like to add in that new diesels are probably one of the cleanest high mileage options. I am sure a few people are going to start screaming now. I am referring to the new diesel fuel requirements and new diesel engine requirements.
TDI jettas get great mileage. Some users even reporting as high as 55 on the highway.
Although when you pack the roof with boards you will lose 10 or so mpg.
So go with the passat tdi wagon and put everything inside.
maybe with the new regulations honda, nissan, and audi will start importing their diesel cars into the states. |
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