WOW!!!! Awesome website....now I can put the TI-83 Plus away...whew...

 

V1:

Let's assume you drive 12,000 miles a year:

12,000 / 48mpg = 250 gallons (Prius)

12,000 / 23 = 521 gallons (G35)

521-250 = 271 gallons saved

Average price $4.00/gal=$1084.00 a year for fuel savings.

Now, if the Prius is really going to cost you an additional 12k (28k vs 40k), yes, it will take 12 years to break-even. (Under the assumption of 12,000 miles a year). Of course, if fuel continues to rise in price, the breakeven period gets shorter, but you are correct in your initial math--it takes a long time.

Second, how many people drive a car for 12 years? How many cars even last that long?

Finally, you're not doing anything for the environment--someone else will still be driving your trade-in. The argument can be made that for all the carbon-energy it takes to smelt the iron and aluminum to build a Prius, you are actually doing as much harm (up-front) to the environment as you will help over the lifetime of the car. It's about even.

The only people who profit are Toyota and the salesmen.

 

I will start by saying I agree with all of your post except the part boldfaced above. It is very easy to calculate how many miles per year you drive and figure out the difference in fuel mileage. So it may be quicker than he thinks. Although if he only drives 5000 miles per year, the difference would only be 113 gallons of gas. A total savings of about $400 dollars. I do agree better for the environment, etc, etc. But at the normal 12000 miles per year, it will only make about $900 difference. Some would say the fact that he prefers the G35 to the Prius has a cost associated with it. Might be worth $900 a year not to look like a dork!!

 

Assuming:
You get nothing from your trade (i.e. they just pay off the balance)
The Prius costs you $26,500 out the door (incl TTL, etc.)
Gas is $4 a gallon
You drive 12,000 miles a year

Buy a used car.

Even if you buy a used Suburban--which people are dumping in droves--the cost savings up front make up for the better mileage. (And I'm not even calc the additional insurance on a new car vs. a used one!)

Let say you pick a Suburban up for $15,000 and get 15 mpg. It'll take over 5 years and almost 63,000 miles to make up for the extra $11,500 you pay for the Prius. That's best case (i.e. you pay cash and have no interest on a car loan.) Here's the math:

Suburban: 15mpg = .067 gal/mile. .067 x 12,000 = 804 gal/yr x $4 = $3216 yr
Prius: 48mpg = .021gal per mile. .021 x 12,000 = 252gal/yr x $4 = $1008 yr

Prius saves $2208 a year in fuel. $11,500/$2208 = 5.2 years

If you finance the car:

$26,500 for 60 moths at 5% = $500.09 payment
$15,000 for 60 months at 7% (used car higher rate) = $297.02 payment

That's a difference of $203.07, or $2436.84 a year, $228 more than the $2208 a year you save in gas with the Prius.

This is the worst-case Suburban. Buy something with better mileage and the numbers get even better.

 

Or stay with what you have....

 

Why is this in the Major forum?


RB

 

If you want even better gas mileage, and you don't mind driving a lunchbox, the Honda Insight gets about 65 mpg, used ones start around 8,000. The downside is it looks like this:

 

Short term fix: Toyota Corolla or Honda Civic.

Plain ol' gas burners that get 35-40 mpg day in and day out. Proven models. Not as hip as a Prius, but who cares? You can pick up one with low miles for 12 grand, and get nearly as much mileage out of a tank.

To me, the Prius doesn't pay for itself quickly enough to justify its substantially higher cost over the Civic and Corolla.

 

I second the above. Another problem with the Prius... it looks like a turd. And same with the Insight. Man. Someone, please make a hybrid that doesn't look like excrement...

 

you also have to look into maintenance of a piston driven car compared to an electric or hybrid car ... esp with a g35 which has an expensive tune up at around 60k. I used to own 2 g35s and I go through more brake jobs than anyone.