Originally Posted By: exranger06
Just because the warranty on the batteries is 8 years/100k miles, doesn't mean that they will have to be replaced at that mileage.......
Perhaps not. But you're running on borrowed time regardless. It also depends on where you live. Here in the desert Southwest heat kills batteries of any type. Just as bitter Winter cold does in Duluth and Fargo in January. And even if you're lucky enough to have your batteries last beyond the warranty, what are you actually saving? Here in Phoenix you've got a better chance of finding a $100 dollar bill on the sidewalk, than you do a 10 year old Prius in a shopping mall parking lot.
It's a proven fact you have to keep the vehicle up and running for over a decade before you start to save penny one on gas, compared to a similar size gas only car like a Corolla. That sure seems like a lot of time driving around with your fingers crossed out of warranty, hoping and praying you make it, until you can actually start realizing any actual savings on fuel. And even then, how much are you going to really save? I'm just not seeing the advantage. A lot of cost invested in complex technology, time and mileage, along with added risk of mechanical failure for what amounts to little, if any reward.
Take a Corolla and a Prius side by side after 150,000 miles. And examine the money spent on gas and maintenance getting them there. I'm willing to bet with all the costs factored in, there is little to no savings with the Prius. People just buy into the technology because they like it. Which is fine. "Green" sells today. But spare me how they're, "saving the environment" by doing it.
And if you go up and down the line with these Hybrids, comparing them to similar size gas only vehicles from the same manufacturer, you'll find some a little better, and many a lot worse. For the most part they all wash out the same. A lot of complexity and expense for a long time and a lot of miles, before any real savings transpire. And I have been looking for data that say's differently, and I can't find any. At least any that would make me regret not buying one. And you can say pretty much the same thing for diesels.
Just because the warranty on the batteries is 8 years/100k miles, doesn't mean that they will have to be replaced at that mileage.......
Perhaps not. But you're running on borrowed time regardless. It also depends on where you live. Here in the desert Southwest heat kills batteries of any type. Just as bitter Winter cold does in Duluth and Fargo in January. And even if you're lucky enough to have your batteries last beyond the warranty, what are you actually saving? Here in Phoenix you've got a better chance of finding a $100 dollar bill on the sidewalk, than you do a 10 year old Prius in a shopping mall parking lot.
It's a proven fact you have to keep the vehicle up and running for over a decade before you start to save penny one on gas, compared to a similar size gas only car like a Corolla. That sure seems like a lot of time driving around with your fingers crossed out of warranty, hoping and praying you make it, until you can actually start realizing any actual savings on fuel. And even then, how much are you going to really save? I'm just not seeing the advantage. A lot of cost invested in complex technology, time and mileage, along with added risk of mechanical failure for what amounts to little, if any reward.
Take a Corolla and a Prius side by side after 150,000 miles. And examine the money spent on gas and maintenance getting them there. I'm willing to bet with all the costs factored in, there is little to no savings with the Prius. People just buy into the technology because they like it. Which is fine. "Green" sells today. But spare me how they're, "saving the environment" by doing it.
And if you go up and down the line with these Hybrids, comparing them to similar size gas only vehicles from the same manufacturer, you'll find some a little better, and many a lot worse. For the most part they all wash out the same. A lot of complexity and expense for a long time and a lot of miles, before any real savings transpire. And I have been looking for data that say's differently, and I can't find any. At least any that would make me regret not buying one. And you can say pretty much the same thing for diesels.
