I've got a 98 F150 and a 96 chevy 1500 both over 250K miles with original motors and trans.

The disparity would be even greater, and the Prius will look even worse!

You got lucky, good for you!

Yikes! Advantage Hummer, for sure! Add that $7000 in to keep the Prius going another 100k and I'll bet that cost per mile stays right about where it was.

No way. They depreciated the entire original cost of the Prius over 100,000 miles to get the cost as high as they did.

The batteries are warranted for 100K, but my understanding is they go about 150K.

So if you put one new battery pack - at $7K (I think it's more like $5K) and spread the depreciation over 300K - then you'll drop the Prius cost by about 60%.

BTW - A Hummer is simply a Chevy Suburban with a different body. So there's nothing highly technical or strongly built about it - unless you are talking about the military Hummer - which would cost a mint to keep going for 300,000 miles.

I'm not a Prius lover - but I want people to be accurate in their comparisons.

A-Men Indy!

The H3 is basically a Colorado Truck.

The depreciation would fall as the cost of the Prius would be expanded over 3X as many miles.

The H2 has a re-inforced suburban frame, and i have heard they use the upgraded transmission 4L65 or 4L80, but I have not substantiated that. Even a standard suburban would have a better chance at surviving most roads these days, i would think. A vehicle designed to handle heavy loads is typically stronger built than a standard people mover.

Anyway, the study is a little skewed, but i think it is a good indicator that perceptions are sometimes skewed as well.

My mother just bought a Prius, i have yet to see it. She is not good at math. Funny thing though, my father drives an xB which is also mentioned in the article, he loves the thing.

Wait? How's the Prius going to fall apart?

Last I checked, Hummers (and Suburban, etc) have plenty of problems keeping suspension components working properly. Are you saying the Pruiss is going to have MORE problems? Or are you implying the Unibody frame isn't going to last 300,000 miles? Somewhat confused.

Regardless, the new Hummers 2's use the 6.2L 400hp engine and 6L80 (6-speed) tranny. And, btw, don't forget the 4x4 system as "wear parts" to the Hummer. That's not something that is an issue on the Prius. And I don't the survey account for the energy used in distribution of the fuel. Don't forget the billions of gallons of fuel (diesel?) used in semi's to transport the fuel to the station. There are LOTS of carbon indirect offsets that are often ignored this these idiocracy (is that a word?) comparisons. The article didn't mention lithium technology, which are the hear future battery of choice.

Which, BTW, Toyota lab testing has the batteries exceeding 180,000 miles.

Furthermore (sorry i'm hopping around here, have to get off to New Student Orientation in a second), as previously mentioned, lithium packs can store about twice as much energy and are not nearly as bad for the environment (if they don't use Cobalt). And before anyone harps on NIMH batteries, they better not be using lead batteries in their vehicles. Lead batteries are MUCHHHH more dangerous to the environment than any NIMH battery is. There are HUNDREDS of millions of lead batteries floating around. Only a couple million NIMH's. Additionally, there are several million MORE golf cars floating around using LEAD batteries than there hybrid vehicles. Point in case, I think that's a poor argument to present. It's VERY easily defeated.

Okie, I got to go talk to a bunch of know-nothing freshman (as I laugh at myself because I was in those shoes a year ago)

Top Gear tests the Prius

Top Gear - Billy Bob and the Prius

Sorry, edited for space.


From my experience, cars don't fair well long term as well as trucks when the roads get a little rough. Struts, lighter duty suspension parts along with steering components of a car seem to wear much faster. But you do have the 4x4 components of the truck to deal with as well. So, really, I do not know which would last longer, and quite frankly, i don't plan to find out.

that's just what I have now, over the past 10 years I've sold dozens of American made trucks with over 200k and trade them back in and sell them again. They just keep on goin'

What do you suppose a 6 year old prius with 100k on it is worth when you know it also is ready for a $5000 battery?

loan value from dealer/bank "black book" : all used values 08=26125, 07=23875, 06=21750, 05=19500, 04=17275, 03=10825, 02=9300. Big drop at 6 yrs.

Note: a 2001-2003 Pruis is a different design... The 04-08's are MUCH better design!

That explains the difference.

Please provide ALL sides of the story. Thank you for being honest!

I did all those calculations for myself on my wife's Hybrid Camry before she bought it.

I determined that the breakeven on the Hybrid system itself - cost wise, not environmental - is at around 60,000 miles for $4 gas, and lower if the gas gets more expensive than that.

The car gets a legitimate 38 miles per gallon around town - whereas a similar Camry would probably get 22-25. It did cost about $4K more than a standard Camry - although the 4 cyl Camry doesn't come with all the bells and whistles the Hybrid has.

The only thing I don't care for is the CV transmission - which I'm not sure my wife even understands what it is, or notices.

We didn't buy it for gas savings, but my wife wanted a new car anyway, so we took a look. Believe me, if it didn't make any financial sense to buy it, I wouldn't have. I also wouldn't have bought a Prius, I think they're ugly, and I just don't like the safety of that size car.