Economy car
Safety Car
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 3,640
Likes: 83
From: . New York
I can neasily get 30 while driving on the highway (and God knows what ? 50 - 60 while coastig) on the instant setting on the DIC, however; I just wanted to see what it got from near stopped to wide open throttle out of the toll plaza ===> 3 mpg 
(sssssssh ! dont tell anyone).
(sssssssh ! dont tell anyone).
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jul 2007
Posts: 799
Likes: 16
From: Kansas City area
You guys should understand that the shining star part of the Prius is heavily congested city traffic; that's where it excels. Many achieve a city average of 50+ MPG. Try to do that with a C5! If you live in any large city and have to commute through heavy traffic jams, you can't beat the Prius. With combined city/highway use, the Prius averages over 46 MPG. That's unbeatable. Would it replace your C5? Absolutely not. Is it a great commuter car? You betcha!
Race Director
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 10,554
Likes: 33
From: Not on either liberal coast.
...and he probably paid a lot of money (more than the increased price of gas) for that import. 
Last weekend we saw one nut in a Prius continually passing cars and tailgating cars in weekend congested traffic in a construction area. At each red signal, he was still in the same relative position to everyone else doing the speed limit...hardly saving any gas that way.
We happened to turn at the same signal light and he tailgated me for a mile of curvy divided two lane. I hope his new brakes cost him a fortune.
Last weekend we saw one nut in a Prius continually passing cars and tailgating cars in weekend congested traffic in a construction area. At each red signal, he was still in the same relative position to everyone else doing the speed limit...hardly saving any gas that way.
We happened to turn at the same signal light and he tailgated me for a mile of curvy divided two lane. I hope his new brakes cost him a fortune.
Last edited by hotwheels57; Oct 24, 2007 at 04:30 PM.
Instructor
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 199
Likes: 0
From: Cali
Sometime people look at my Vette and say, I bet it drinks a lot of gas! I say, Do u think I bought this car to get good gas mileage? Most people never believe a Vette gets decent gas mileage so I tell them what they wanna hear..........depending on how I feel.
Tech Contributor
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 19,384
Likes: 87
From: Horncastle Lincolnshire, England
2023 C5 of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
I hear the batteries on that POS only last 30k miles or so. Apparently they're real problem to recycle so maybe its not as green as everyone thinks.
Great mileage BTW. Wish I could get that on a regular basis with gas at $7.60 a gallon.
Great mileage BTW. Wish I could get that on a regular basis with gas at $7.60 a gallon.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 1,201
Likes: 14
From: Honolulu, HI
This Hybrid technology is just really starting out at the consumer level, and there are obviously some improvements that can be made, and I'm sure will be made. Remember that the first generation of Vette sucked as a sports cars.
At least Toyota had the ***** to try!
Where's GM? What happened to their electric car?
I've actually ridden in a Prius as a co-worker has one. The dash computer has all sorts of cool features that appeal to my computer geek self. The car is also weird when it's moving < 5 mph as it will run silently off batteries.
Lots of room for improvements in the technology...Besides plug-in capability, I also would like to see them put solar panels on the top and let it at least try and charge itself while it sits in the parking lots roasting in the sun.
Last edited by dagon138; Oct 25, 2007 at 01:51 AM.
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Instructor
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 182
Likes: 1
From: Metairie Louisiana
Gas Mileage
I commute about 50 miles a day. I leave for work at 3:30 a.m. so there is no traffic. The trip home is heavily congested traffic and large dump truck dropping debris all over the interstate. I wont drive my C5 in those conditions, my daily driver is a 2007 GMC 1500 Crew Cab. The mileage in the truck sucks and I'd like something smaller, but I just can't accept most compact vehicles. The Rav4 seems to be the only thing that fits my needs, but I can't see myself trading my truck for one.
Administrator
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 368,522
Likes: 24,821
From: In a parallel universe. Currently own 2014 Stingray Coupe.
C7 of the Year - Modified Finalist 2021
MO Events Coordinator
St. Jude Co-Organizer
St. Jude Donor '03 thru '26
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CI 5, 8 & 11 Veteran
Got to love getting performance, looks, and economy in a car. The C5 really delivers.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 2,787
Likes: 139
From: center of Kalifornia
Wait till these cars get to be 4-5 years old and the battery is done. It will cost around $3000+ to replace. Figure that in to the miles per gallon and cost to drive. Nope, the math doesn't work out to be very good mpg.
C5 all the way
C5 all the way
Le Mans Master
Joined: Mar 2006
Posts: 6,072
Likes: 197
From: Arizona
And I wonder how the resale value of ANY hybrid will be effected when it's getting close to the time to replace the battery.
Race Director
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 19,304
Likes: 85
From: San Diego CA
The batteries are warranted for 10 years or 100,000, but typically, battery life should easily reach 150,000 miles. By that time, a new set will cost less than $2000. So let's do the math....
at $3.00 per gallon (regular), an average fuel mileage of 45 MPG, and over a lifespan of 150,000 miles, a Prius owner will have used 3333 gallons of gas, or about $10,000. Subtract $2000 for federal tax credit and you end up with $8,000. A Corvette owner using premium fuel at $3.20 per gallon, getting an average of 20 MPG will have used 7500 gallons, or about $24,000. Folks, that's an extra $16,000 for gas and no tax break!
Okay, now lets look at a typical Corolla that averages about 30 MPG:
Usage = 5000 gallons or $15,000. That's $7,000 more for gas and no tax break, which does make up for any battery expenditures that will be required.
What I'm trying to say here is that if you keep a car like the Prius for many years, you WILL benefit, financially.
Intermediate
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 30
Likes: 0
From: North Carolina
The "Pious"--that's great. And that's exactly why the Civic hybrid didn't sell: what's the fun of driving green if nobody knows how "pious" you are?
Instructor
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 234
Likes: 0
From: San Francisco CA
The batteries are warranted for 10 years or 100,000, but typically, battery life should easily reach 150,000 miles. By that time, a new set will cost less than $2000. So let's do the math....
at $3.00 per gallon (regular), an average fuel mileage of 45 MPG, and over a lifespan of 150,000 miles, a Prius owner will have used 3333 gallons of gas, or about $10,000. Subtract $2000 for federal tax credit and you end up with $8,000. A Corvette owner using premium fuel at $3.20 per gallon, getting an average of 20 MPG will have used 7500 gallons, or about $24,000. Folks, that's an extra $16,000 for gas and no tax break!
Okay, now lets look at a typical Corolla that averages about 30 MPG:
Usage = 5000 gallons or $15,000. That's $7,000 more for gas and no tax break, which does make up for any battery expenditures that will be required.
What I'm trying to say here is that if you keep a car like the Prius for many years, you WILL benefit, financially.
at $3.00 per gallon (regular), an average fuel mileage of 45 MPG, and over a lifespan of 150,000 miles, a Prius owner will have used 3333 gallons of gas, or about $10,000. Subtract $2000 for federal tax credit and you end up with $8,000. A Corvette owner using premium fuel at $3.20 per gallon, getting an average of 20 MPG will have used 7500 gallons, or about $24,000. Folks, that's an extra $16,000 for gas and no tax break!
Okay, now lets look at a typical Corolla that averages about 30 MPG:
Usage = 5000 gallons or $15,000. That's $7,000 more for gas and no tax break, which does make up for any battery expenditures that will be required.
What I'm trying to say here is that if you keep a car like the Prius for many years, you WILL benefit, financially.
Obviously there are many advantages of a Corvette versus a Prius, all non-financial of course.
But the Corolla is a fair comparison. And the $7000 more for gas doesn't consider the higher purchase price of the Prius vs Corolla. Not to mention the time value of that money.
The point is, the economic gain from a Prius is minimal, at best. Most people buy it to be "cool" or so they can show how much they "care" about Al Gore.
