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I just moved from Texas to Maine (insert your own joke here. I currently have a 25-year old Volvo wagon that is absolutely horrible in bad weather (wouldn't you think it would be great being from Sweden?). When it finally dies, I'm trying to decide between a Suburu Outback and a Prius (the one that looks a little like a station wagon). How does the Prius handle in winter?
The prius isn't that bad but the outback is one of the best cars for the snow. But whatever your choice it wouldn't be a bad idea to get some winter tires especially in maine which I am sure gets a ton of snow. I have a RWD car and I was fine with winter tires
If you are interested in a Prius, you might also may be interested in the Ford Fusion Hybrid or Fusion Energi plugin. I own a Hybrid Fusion (2014) and it is one of the best vehicles I have ever owned (I bought my first car in 1964). I like to buy American, so buying Ford made sense to me. Anyway, look at them. Very comfortable/effecient cars, and I know peeps who live in the "snow areas" that find them very functional.
There were issues with the traction control not being to be turned off resulting in customer inability to climb a hilly driveway.
Toyota said the differential could be ruined by wheel slip so no TRAC disable was used although most Toyotas allow TRAC to be disabled when some wheel slip may be appropriate.
I just moved from Texas to Maine (insert your own joke here. I currently have a 25-year old Volvo wagon that is absolutely horrible in bad weather (wouldn't you think it would be great being from Sweden?). When it finally dies, I'm trying to decide between a Suburu Outback and a Prius (the one that looks a little like a station wagon). How does the Prius handle in winter?
We moved here from Virginia last fall, just in time for winter.
We have a 2014 RAV4 that we use as our primary winter vehicle, and a 2006 Prius. Both have snow tires, and both perform well in snow. That said, we tend to take the RAV4 because it has much better clearance than the Prius. Also, on really cold mornings - below zero - we need to make sure the Prius is completely warmed up. Otherwise, it just doesn't want to make it up the hill out of here.
We're retired, so we don't have to drive when the weather is crappy. If I did have to drive to work every day, I would have probably - reluctantly - traded in the Prius. It's not that it's bad in snow, but I'd want something better ... and I'd be giving Subaru a serious look. I'd hate to give up the mileage, tho.
I traded my F250 4x4 for a Prius this past November. I do a lot of driving in my job, some of it over back roads and up long, long private rural drives (some a mile long or so) in Wyoming. The Prius does well on slick roads and on snow that's only a couple inches deep, but it'll high center on 6" of snow! Its 50 mpg rating also seems to be overly optimistic for cold weather. During the first few months of cold weather, I struggled to hit 40 mpg, but now that we're having some spring weather here, mileage is approaching 50 mpg, and that includes 30-35% of it at 80 mph.
I like my Prius, and so does my wife. It's certainly no powerhouse, but it does fine both around town and on the highway. It leaves a lot to be desired as far as a comfortable and quite cabin, but it's just fine as a work car.
The Outback has much more ground clearance and AWD, and it's generally considered one of the best cars made for winter driving.
I picked my Prius because I drive 30-35K miles per year and wanted the best fuel efficiency available. It's good for that. But unless you'll be driving a LOT of miles, I'd recommend the Outback for Maine.
My wife drives a Subaru with snow tires here in NH and has no problems getting around. I have a Toyota Tacoma with four studded snow tires I love these on the snowy icy roads over conventional snow tires. Regarding the Prius, I think they are horrible in the snow or ice. Everyone who I know who owns one hates it in the winter. Unless you do lots of driving the fuel savings is meaningless. Driving safety however is huge in my opinion. Good luck with your move to Maine.
03-15-2015, 01:18 PM
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I wouldn't own one in harsh weather areas. I have a Prius C (guessing by station wagon you mean the V) and it routinely loses traction going over slightly wet manhole covers. There's no way I'd trust it on icy roads.
My lightweight, RWD FR-S handled non-ideal conditions better than the Prius.
And what does NOT lose traction over wet METAL manhole covers? Or, over white plastic strips across the tarmac at intersections? What are your roads, all consisting of men hole covers?
OP, it's your call.
You have 2 options.
Very reliable very fuel efficient mover. And learning how to drive on snow and ice.
Very good on snow and ice symmetrical 4WD vehicle with rather crappy mpg and known engine issues.
YOUR call.
I've driven both. I've lived in Vermont since 1983 and it's clear that Subarus are the most popular car on the road here. They're great on snow, but you pay an MPG penalty for the all wheel drive.
I've had a second generation Prius since about 2009, and I can say that it's fine in snow. I always run good snow tires, and it's true that the clearance isn't as high as the Subaru you're looking at, but I drive everywhere I need to go. This includes almost weekly two-hour drives to court, times when not getting there isn't an option. We do have an occasional issue with the traction control, always in the same spot (a short, steep hill getting into our road), but I don't view this problem, which occurs less than once a month in the winter, as a deal breaker. Like the Subarus, there are tons of Prius drivers here in Vermont.
So overall the Subaru is better on snow than the Prius, the Prius is fine in all but the worst conditions, and fuel economy is undoubtedly better in the Prius.
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