Priuses(?) on the Highway

[Isaac Zachary]

I paid $300 for mine with around 200,000 miles.

Used cars have gone up, but if you know how to look you can still find deals. It just might take more work to find. Which is a good reason why we all should be posting cheap econo-cars here on Ecomodder when we find them.

[JacobLeSann]

Do you think used cars will go down in price, though?

I don’t wholly *need* a new car just yet but it’s probably best that I get one. My civic is kinda falling apart gradually as I drive it more and more, in terms of the interior. Lots of rust areas too. I feel like it would be best to sell it sooner than later, so I can pass the headache to somebody else, lol.

[redpoint5]

It's somewhat a wash if you're selling and buying at the same time.

In real estate, people get excited by how much they will get for their property only to be faced with similarly high prices when in the market for a different house.

To profit now, you need excess reserve to sell. Buy low, sell high. That's the profit mindset. My strategy is to reduce the likelihood of urgent needs, that way I can take advantage of favorable market conditions.

The practical matter is that if you need something now then you need something now.

My worthless guess is that prices will come down near the end of the year. It all depends on if the market is ramping up production to meet demand, or if they are consolidating in preparation for a sustained weak economy.

[JacobLeSann]

Very true, that’s a solid way to go about it. I follow that mindset otherwise but I was kind of ripped off for this car and only now has it began to show. I’ll contemplate what you’ve said.

[Isaac Zachary]

That's what's I think. Don't trade your vehicle for another unless 1. yours is to far gone to drive anymore, 2. you need a different kind of vehicle (i.e. had kids) or 3. you have the money and just want something more expensive just because.

[RedDevil]

You may also have a look at second gen Insights; their real world economy is not worse than 2nd gen Priuses and they are quite cheap nowadays.
They are slightly smaller (based on the Fit platform) and the rear bench only takes 2 people under 6 feet comfortably, or maybe 3 if they are slender.

There are a few other things to take into account.
The Insight charges its 12V battery very mildly, so when a cell gets out of balance it will degrade as it is never fully charged again. Then if the car sat for a few days the voltage drops to 8-10 Volt and you get a myriad of strange errors as the many systems start detecting sensor readings that are off, instead of recognizing the low feed voltage.
People may get rid of the car for that while all it needs is a new 12V battery!

The 2012 and early 2013 Insights had a piston ring problem, many of those have had them replaced under warranty but you have to make sure that happened.

The CVT may cause problems if the oil has not been changed at the intervals or if they used the wrong CVT fluid (for clutchless CVTs - but this one has a clutch and it will slip with the wrong oil).

Apart from that, it is a pretty trouble-free car.
It is very economical, especially at a constant pace around 55-60 km/h on level ground; on a warm windless day I may see 2.5 l/100 km or about 90 mpg for whole stretches.

It tends to drop the revs to 1100 RPM when driven mildly, and above 55 km/h it will max out the CVT and the revs climb with the speed (so f.i. 2000 RPM at 100 km/h).
When you floor it the revs will quickly go up to 6000, and as you are usually coming from 1100 RPM or thereabouts some people freak out on that, but it is perfectly normal.
It will accelerate well enough when you floor it, but if you are intent to keep the revs under 2000 then it is a lazy bugger (though quite efficient).

At highway speeds the acceleration may disappoint, especially if you are unwilling to floor it for the revving. In town it is quite zippy, as in have patience with the people ahead when the light turns green.

As for economy; my stats show what you can expect when you drive very moderately and stick to the right lane on the freeway. Bear in mind these are winter stats as I haven't filled up since March 1st.

[JacobLeSann]

I’m back. Just pushed my car out of an intersection this morning as it can seemingly no longer shift. I want to keep this car running until car prices drop but at this point I’m worried it’s gonna rattle apart on the drive home.

Been offered a 2008 Prius with 260,000 km for $3500, so might possibly take that. At this point a new car is kind of a necessity, lol.

Funny how similar the 2nd gen Prius and 2nd gen Insight look. I like Honda but I see more Priuses than Insights by far; with all the taxi companies using Priuses I should opt for one to obtain part-outs easily.

[JSH]

Originally Posted by JacobLeSann

I’m back. Just pushed my car out of an intersection this morning as it can seemingly no longer shift. I want to keep this car running until car prices drop but at this point I’m worried it’s gonna rattle apart on the drive home.

Been offered a 2008 Prius with 260,000 km for $3500, so might possibly take that. At this point a new car is kind of a necessity, lol.

Funny how similar the 2nd gen Prius and 2nd gen Insight look. I like Honda but I see more Priuses than Insights by far; with all the taxi companies using Priuses I should opt for one to obtain part-outs easily.

One of the key reasons you see the Prius instead of the Insight as a taxi is size but there is another reason.

The Prius has electric accessories so the A/C stays on when the engine turns off. The Insight still has a belt driven A/C compressor so when the engine turns off you loose A/C. That isn't acceptable in a taxi.

[RedDevil]

With the A/C on AutoStop usually lasts disappointingly(*) short in the Insight, if it functions at all.
If I switch off the vents just before coming to a stop AutoStop will last pretty much indefinitely, even if I flip the vents back on immediately. But A/C won't work indeed.

I would not use an Insight for taxi services; the front passenger seat is decent enough but the bench is not (lacking leg- and headroom). For a frugal runaround it is hard to beat.

(*) for an Ecomodder

[JSH]

I looked at an Insight when we bought our second Prius. I was pretty excited about it because the Insight is built on the Fit platform so lots of Fit performance parts should swap. (That is a big downside to the Prius - an almost complete lack of parts to improve the suspension)

On test drive in the Insight was enough. I lived in Alabama at the time and my commute started and finished with 5 miles of stop and go that took 30 - 40 minutes. No way I was going without A/C in the summer and turning off stop / start defeated the purpose of buying a hybrid.

An Insight body with the Prius hybrid drive would have been perfect. Honda has pretty much done that today with their excellent two-motor hybrids.