Best hybrid for <$13,000?

[Shaman]

The more I think about it, the more I think that a hybrid would probably be the best for my commute and lifestyle. 4.2 mile round trip to work, and 65-100 miles on the weekend, with 60 miles being highway at 70-75 mph. (Anything below 62 mph is stupidity) I find it hard to think 350-400 hp when it won't get put to use.

I know of a few hybrids, but not even sure what I should be looking for. Size would be Prius C to Fusion, with the Escape as an outlier, as I like the looks.

As long as me, and some fishing gear will fit, up to 4.5 feet long, and there is USB, with preferred bluetooth for music and phone, i'm not picky on much else.

Work and home have no way to charge, so plug in won't be much use.

 

[WyrTwister]

Of course , Prius comes to my mind . A cousin had one of the early ons and had pretty good luck with it , until someone hit & totaled it .

I looked at a couple of used Chevy Volts , a couple of years ago , but they were not as roomy inside , as I was looking for . ( I wanted a plug in hybrid . )

 

[Snagglefoot]

Hybrids shine in stop and go traffic as they recover much of the energy used in braking. They don't help much on the highway vs a car with a small engine. You probably won't pay it off with your rather short commute. Having got that out of the way, the Prius is definitely the winner, unless you want more space and in that case I like the Fusion.

 

[NO2]

With your driving pattern a Hybrid isn't going to do much for you. You drive 21 mi a week (presumably city), probably consuming 1 gal of gas.
100 mi highway will consume about 3 gal of gas with a mid-sized sedan. So you use around 200 gal per year.

A hybrid will save you 0.4 gal of gas during the week, and maybe 0.6 gal on the weekend, so around 1 gal per week. It isn't worth getting a hybrid to save 50 gal/yr over a mid sized sedan. That's only $150/yr.

That being said; the older Prius models don't fare well in collisions. The newer models built on the new platform are safer, but are probably too expensive.
I'd probably get a Ford because their higher depreciation makes them more attractive as a used vehicle. The electronics are pretty advanced in the 2013-2016 models. The hybrid system is pretty reliable.
So get a Fusion, or a C-max.

 

[tony1679]

Non-hybrids are not being considered? Personally I love the 35mpg average I get from both my '13 Civic and my '16 Elantra. Both were well under $13k. The Elantra is definitely my favorite, and if something should ever happen to it, I'd replace it with an identical one. 40-42mpg highway is plenty enough for me, and I don't have to mess with expensive batteries

 

[Nick1994]

That's the worst case for a hybrid. 4.2 miles round trip to work? You could drive a 70's dually big block pickup truck and it would probably still take a gallon or less a day. And 100 miles isn't much at all either. Sometimes I do that in a day and a hybrid car still doesn't make sense for me.

 

[supton]

You're driving 6k per year, give or take? Buy whatever you want! mpg really doesn't matter.

Further unsolicited advice: for a 2 mile commute each way, I'd ride a bicycle. Heck walking is probably not that much of a time-suck. Then you don't need a gym pass.

I get the notion of wanting to reduce gas usage but IMO it really doesn't matter for you. I think you'll wind up spending more on vehicle purchase than anything you might save at the pump. Any small hatch or wagon sounds reasonable here.

Anyhow. As a resident Toyota fanboi I'd find it hard not to recommend any Toyota hybrid. But. I'd skip on the C. It's a small car and will likely feel underpowered for you. Unless if you have to deal with tight city parking I don't see the need to go that small. I've not sat in a regular Prius but people do shove bicycles into it so I'd think that would be a better fit. Can't comment on the Fusion but it probably would be cheaper for similar miles due to the way depreciation works, and as such it may be the best bet--you drive low amounts so either will work, so buy whichever is cheaper. Well, cheaper and whichever feels better to you.

 

[Alfred_B]

Volt

 

[ragtoplvr]

Riding a bicycle on city streets after cell phones were invented has become very dangerous. This is not Europe.
Also there is so much hate, Many who have lost their license turn to bicycles (called liquor cycles) so they can still get to work (this should be respected, they are trying to remain a productive member of society) There is a whole class of drivers that want someone to hate and hate the liquor cycles. You get lumped in that category. I find riding a decent bike in normal bicycle gear helps get you out of that category. Then you have to change at the office. And there are just general bicycle haters. So you have to be very aware and careful. I ride on the street but our town is rather small, and I still have had to take a ditch once and a while. When ii rains or snows you have to have other transport or get wet. It is just not practical in most of the USA.

Rod

 

[Shaman]

Originally Posted by tony1679
Non-hybrids are not being considered? Personally I love the 35mpg average I get from both my '13 Civic and my '16 Elantra. Both were well under $13k. The Elantra is definitely my favorite, and if something should ever happen to it, I'd replace it with an identical one. 40-42mpg highway is plenty enough for me, and I don't have to mess with expensive batteries

I am currently in a Chevy Cruze. I average 23 mpg with the above driving pattern. Right now I'm just exploring other avenues.

Originally Posted by NO2
With your driving pattern a Hybrid isn't going to do much for you. You drive 21 mi a week (presumably city), probably consuming 1 gal of gas.
100 mi highway will consume about 3 gal of gas with a mid-sized sedan. So you use around 200 gal per year.

A hybrid will save you 0.4 gal of gas during the week, and maybe 0.6 gal on the weekend, so around 1 gal per week. It isn't worth getting a hybrid to save 50 gal/yr over a mid sized sedan. That's only $150/yr.

That being said; the older Prius models don't fare well in collisions. The newer models built on the new platform are safer, but are probably too expensive.
I'd probably get a Ford because their higher depreciation makes them more attractive as a used vehicle. The electronics are pretty advanced in the 2013-2016 models. The hybrid system is pretty reliable.
So get a Fusion, or a C-max.


I kinda figured that would be the issue. Not worth it to buy a hybrid, not worth it to buy a diesel. I'm too ordinary.

 

[14Accent]

You're the perfect candidate for a Volt. Run on battery all week, use a tiny amount of gas on your longer trips. Assuming you could plug it in at home or work, or both!

Very nice used '15 Volt's can be had cheap, most are still under powertrain warranty.

 

[skyactiv]

https://www.columbusvw.com/certifie...olf-5f3f1fe20a0e0ae9459b8e15cacd2e66.htm

 

[supton]

Originally Posted by ragtoplvr
Riding a bicycle on city streets after cell phones were invented has become very dangerous. This is not Europe.
Also there is so much hate, Many who have lost their license turn to bicycles (called liquor cycles) so they can still get to work (this should be respected, they are trying to remain a productive member of society) There is a whole class of drivers that want someone to hate and hate the liquor cycles. You get lumped in that category. I find riding a decent bike in normal bicycle gear helps get you out of that category. Then you have to change at the office. And there are just general bicycle haters. So you have to be very aware and careful. I ride on the street but our town is rather small, and I still have had to take a ditch once and a while. When ii rains or snows you have to have other transport or get wet. It is just not practical in most of the USA.

Rod

Yeah, but 2 miles each way? Shouldn't need a shower for such a short ride, not first thing in the morning before it gets hot-and that's assuming he works in an office where it's needed. Yeah drive when it's brutal cold or raining.

If it's main street and busy I get that, but without knowing the area I have to assume it might be possible to do. I wouldn't call myself hardcore but I do lunchtime rides on 30-40mph roads that don't have shoulders (ride on the white line or even further in the lane) and I manage. I don't know how the OP's city stacks up but at least in NH I've found it possible. [I do skip rides on the 50 mph roads though that don't have shoulders, those just seem too dicey.]

I dunno, it just seems like a lot of work to drive such a short distance.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted by 14Accent
You're the perfect candidate for a Volt. Run on battery all week, use a tiny amount of gas on your longer trips. Assuming you could plug it in at home or work, or both!

Very nice used '15 Volt's can be had cheap, most are still under powertrain warranty.

OP said no way to charge at home or work.

 

[talest]

Prius
Or Prii

 

[Rand]

Originally Posted by supton
Originally Posted by 14Accent
You're the perfect candidate for a Volt. Run on battery all week, use a tiny amount of gas on your longer trips. Assuming you could plug it in at home or work, or both!

Very nice used '15 Volt's can be had cheap, most are still under powertrain warranty.

OP said no way to charge at home or work.



Which is kind of odd.. no regular 110v outlet? apartment life?

A volt on 120 outlet at 12amps is over 4 miles charge/hour

 

[14Accent]

Originally Posted by supton
Originally Posted by 14Accent
You're the perfect candidate for a Volt. Run on battery all week, use a tiny amount of gas on your longer trips. Assuming you could plug it in at home or work, or both!

Very nice used '15 Volt's can be had cheap, most are still under powertrain warranty.

OP said no way to charge at home or work.


Oops. Missed that part. My fault! Apartment life is so anti-plug in cars. All the newer places I've seen are putting in chargers on the property.

 

[Smokescreen]

Get a scooter.

 

[The Critic]

4.2 miles will not be enough for the Prius engine to fully warm up. The Prius does not deliver great in-town mileage during very short trips; it still fires the engine to get the cats warm and the engine is most efficient once warmed up.

For longer in-town trips (15+ miles), the Prius is king. But for 4 miles, it will still be lousy (but better than most other cars).

 

[SirTanon]

I know you said hybrid, but if I might offer a suggestion - find a nice used 2013-2015 Altima. They've got a solid 2.5 liter 4-cylinder and a CVT, and get roughly 38MPG highway, and around 27-28MPG in city driving. I have two - a 2014 SL with about 66,000 miles and a 2013 SV with 115,000 miles - and both are great cars. Comfortable too!

For what it's worth, I've taken the 2014 on a few road trips to San Diego - roughly 350 miles each way, including quite a bit through the mountains - and actually got a little over 40 MPG each way, each time.

Just as an example, this 2013 Altima SV with about 145k miles can be had for $7000 in Lexington, and this 2015 Altima SV with about 95k miles and NAV is only $10,000, in Louisville.

Both are well under your price and will get you excellent fuel economy and lots of useful features.