Quote:
Originally Posted by Matt Herring
If you are leaning towards "ecomodical" (nice word...might be the first time I've seen it in print) then I would recommend the Prius in that case. Clearly, it would be an upgrade from your Cobalt.
I can't tell you how many times I've been stuck in bumper to bumper traffic (even on the highway) and had a smile on my face because while everyone is wasting fuel ideling...I'm running gas free and can keep it gas free as long as I use a feather foot and don't engage the ICE. I even hope for bumper to bumper on the highway so I can maximize my time on the highway until I can get back to city driving where I get much better mpg.
Economically, it's probably a wash from a Cobalt to a Prius when you take into account the higher loan amount you would be paying for your Prius (unless you can find a great deal in the same range as your monthly Cobalt loan which I'm guessing was around $13k new). If you spend $3000 a year on gas now you might only see $800-1000 savings over a year compared to your Cobalt (40 mpg vs. 60 mpg).
I anticipate using about 500 gallons of fuel/year less in my Prius than I did in my 4runner so from both economics and ecomodics it was an easy choice for me. If you are keeping the Cobalt for another 400kms...one can only dream.
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I bought my cobalt used for around 11k cdn. At the time the cheapest prius would have been around 4k more, and it would have been older and had a lot more miles.
I'm kind of thinking i'll save up, and get a used 2010 prius in a few years after they come down in price. They seem to do better on the highway, and i'd be willing to bet they'll be just as reliable. Perhaps more so with the better electric drive system.
Every time i look at the insights, reports of problems scare me away. Same with the honda civic hybrid. The Prius though seems to be rock solid reliable.