Car appreciation... the aesthetics, the engineering, etc

So I'm thinking of buying a Prius...

Any thoughts?

So I'm thinking of buying a Prius...

Any thoughts?

reasonable but not great mpg and are nice to drive in electric mode ( really quiet and smooth ) , can't drive ( yet ) but had a go in one around a car park a while back.
They do avoid the congestion charge as far as I know so that would reduce costs if you live in london ?

Better to pick up a golf bluemotion or similar. Better mpg and more fun to drive.

No, I live in Canada.

The MPG is the best in it's class...http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/best-worst.shtml

Isn't petrol cheap there?

I wouldn't have a Prius if you paid me. Life is too short to waste a second more than you have to in a miserable parsimonious little minicab like that. Fuel is but a tiny fraction of the cost of running a car. Buy something fun instead.

Yes, gas is fairly cheap. It's not just about money, if I have to
drive I'd rather keep it as green as possible.

Fun isn't on my list of priorities, I want green, spacious, flexible and can get me from A to B at a max of 80mph

Prius seem ok but I'm still not conviced by the green credentials of hybrids or electrics.
I was going to suggest the Focus 1.0l Ecoboost that's recently come out but after checking Ford.Ca it seems you can't get them in Canada.
As an aside, which part of the country are you in? I'm just in the process of relocating to Toronto.

Toronto

Ahh cool. I've been here for the last week and just getting used to the cold.
Craigslist shows plenty of options for Hybrid over here. There's plenty of Lexus (lexii) hybrids on there that seem pretty good value and massively spacious although might be overkill for what you want.
Theres this Honda Accord that looks a good price and relatively low km's
http://toronto.en.craigslist.ca/tor/cto/4271615432.html

Unfortunately, cars don't seem quite as cheap as they do back home. Good luck with the search.

The Prius is one of the least green cars in history - the environmental cost of its manufacture is enormous. It's just cleaner at the exhaust pipe, which isn't the same thing.
If you want green, buy something 20 years old and keep it on the road.

306 diesel ftw

The Prius is one of the least green cars in history - the environmental cost of its manufacture is enormous. It's just cleaner at the exhaust pipe, which isn't the same thing.
If you want green, buy something 20 years old and keep it on the road.

I don't disagree with the second point, and dislike the whole 'scrap your horrible inefficient old car' marketing ploy designed to keep the car manufacturing industry healthy. But all technology development has a footprint (energy, carbon, money, environment) and detractors have used the same type of argument with early LED light bulbs, solar panels and wind turbines. To conclude that the progress is bad - here in the evil form of the Prius - suggests there's nothing wrong with the status quo. The internal combustion engine and our relentless consumption of fossil fuels is clearly not sustainable forever.

No, I live in Canada.

The MPG is the best in it's class...http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/best-worst.shtml

Are they tested or quoting manufacturer figures? Most UK and US tests have proven that actual Prius MPG is much below manufacturer figures.

Also the Prius is not very spacious inside, it's quite a modern interior but I wouldn't say it's a nice place to be.

Didn't mean to break the car thread, to make up for it have some pics of my mate Nige's dolly sprint.

I don't disagree with the second point, and dislike the whole 'scrap your horrible inefficient old car' marketing ploy designed to keep the car manufacturing industry healthy. But all technology development has a footprint (energy, carbon, money, environment) and detractors have used the same type of argument with early LED light bulbs, solar panels and wind turbines. To conclude that the progress is bad - here in the evil form of the Prius - suggests there's nothing wrong with the status quo. The internal combustion engine and our relentless consumption of fossil fuels is clearly not sustainable forever.

The Prius uses an internal combustion engine. And not a very efficient one. The fuel economy is piss-poor for a car of that size and shape. This is not helped by the fact that all those batteries that are dragged 2 or 3 times across the world (how much fossil fuel does a cargo ship use?) before going into the car cause it to weigh as much as a full-size Cadillac. It uses far more fossil fuels than a modern-ish diesel engine and pollutes more whilst doing so. Older diesel engines (e.g. Mercedes W124, Volvo 740 etc) can often run on used cooking oil, which is carbon neutral.

My point is only that you should buy what you want. If that's a Prius then fair enough, but it's hard to make a case for one without tax and congestion charge breaks.

Agreed, love the biodiesel stuff, and not saying the Prius is the answer, but in the same way that Edison's early 'failures' proved a hundred ways not to make a light bulb, all of which were necessary precursors to designing a successful one, it is progress. The way coventional motor vehicles are manufactured benefits from a hundred years or so of streamlining. Of course something new is going to be more difficult, more labour intensive at first. Like the climate change deniers, people (e.g. the linked article, not you necessarily) will go out of their way to find 'evidence' to snub progress if it excuses their lifestyle choices or suits their money-making agenda.

Maybe have a look for a diesel or LPG conversion. Not such a green image like the hybrids but a modern diesel will get excellent mpg on long trips, and LPG is a bit cleaner than petrol and quite a bit cheaper.

Agreed, love the biodiesel stuff, and not saying the Prius is the answer, but in the same way that Edison's early 'failures' proved a hundred ways not to make a light bulb, all of which were necessary precursors to designing a successful one, it is progress. The way coventional motor vehicles are manufactured benefits from a hundred years or so of streamlining. Of course something new is going to be more difficult, more labour intensive at first. Like the climate change deniers, people (e.g. the linked article, not you necessarily) will go out of their way to find 'evidence' to snub progress if it excuses their lifestyle choices or suits their money-making agenda.

I totally agree with your point about development and the need for the technology to progress, but buying a 2nd hand Prius does nothing to aid that. In order to contribute, one needs to be buying new to fund the development of the next wave of tech. If that isn't possible, there are better ways to be 'green' than a Prius, as stated above. Unless it's a statement of course.

You, my friend, should be buying this
Dunno how to link to ebay pics, but it rules.

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2007/01/guy-can-get-59-mpg-plain-old-accord-beat-punk

You, my friend, should be buying this
Dunno how to link to ebay pics, but it rules.

I've seen that. Nice, but pricey.

Diesel or other fuels just aren't an option out here, many gas stations don't have it, and much of Canada is so remote you'd be stupid to take anything other than regular gas.

Diesel can freeze, also- not helpful.

The Panzerwagen is back from Automerc after being given a thorough going over to catch up with 5 years of inadequate maintenance. It may have just cost me the best part of 2 grand, but fuck me, it drives like its brand new now. I absolutely love it. No rattles, squeaks, creaks or other noises, sure footed handling, quiet engine, snappy gearchanges, tremendously eager performance, and no more leaks :-) it's bloody brilliant. :-)

And it's still cheaper than running something new and shite on finance.

Are they tested or quoting manufacturer figures?

They test it