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Here is another idea for a cheap economical vehicle.
The Nissan Versa.
I just bought a 2015 Versa, the base model sedan with a manual transmission. No bells and whistles but at least it has A/C. Bought it brand new for $10K. I'm getting 38MPG and with a 10 gallon tank it's relatively cheap to fill up. It's a nice little car that is great for commuting
As far as driving a Prius. I drive for a living and not a single days goes by without the words "F!@#$ PRIUS!" escaping my lips. Prius drivers are so concerned with getting the most MPG that they fail see that going 55MPH on the highway while driving in the fast lane tend to **** off a lot of other regular drivers.
Hard to beat a Prius. I had one and loved it but the front seats were giving me a backache if I drove more than an hour. No lumbar and no power seats forced me to get a larger car. I have to be comfortable.... Never had a problem with the Prius and I had it 5 years.
Here is another idea for a cheap economical vehicle.
The Nissan Versa.
I just bought a 2015 Versa, the base model sedan with a manual transmission. No bells and whistles but at least it has A/C. Bought it brand new for $10K. I'm getting 38MPG and with a 10 gallon tank it's relatively cheap to fill up. It's a nice little car that is great for commuting
As far as driving a Prius. I drive for a living and not a single days goes by without the words "F!@#$ PRIUS!" escaping my lips. Prius drivers are so concerned with getting the most MPG that they fail see that going 55MPH on the highway while driving in the fast lane tend to **** off a lot of other regular drivers.
How in the world you bought a brand new versa for 10K is beyond me. That's pretty amazing. Never been a nissan fan though but that's still incredible!
They're all great. But with that budget, you'll get a nicer, newer model and lower mileage with the Fit or Civic, since the Prius sells new for a much higher price.
I have a Honda Fit. Bought it in 2011. Not one thing has gone wrong w/it. It's very reliable. For that reason, though, they have a good resale value. The Fit is also pretty cool looking. I get 28-30 mpg in the city (w/o a/c), and 36 on the hwy. The city mpg drops to about 27 with a/c on. It has a good sound system, and loads of room for storage and passengers. The back seats fold different ways for different shapes of loads you carry.
I've not been impressed with the Civic over the years, but can't recall why. Maybe it's just the appearance.
I actually do really like the fit. I have multiple friends that own one and I think it's a pretty cool looking car too. The thing that always gets me is the highway cruising ability. I test drove a manual one last year (2012 model I think) and I remember reaching for a six gear and realizing, wow, that's as high as it goes, ok then, I guess you just rev it real high on the highway, lol. Otherwise, I think it's a great car. I've considered getting one many times but after owning several compact cars, I feel like I want the comfort and safety of a compact... though, who knows I may still end up with a fit.
I am on my 2nd Prius, I bought a base 2007 Prius for about $8k out-the-door with just over 100k miles on it. No issues for the few years we had it. We upgraded to a 2013 Prius with GPS due to my work and safety concerns.
With a budget of $10k, you will likely get a Prius with +/- 100k miles. If you bump your budget slightly, maybe to $11,500-$12,500, the odometer mileage will drop significantly.
I have had zero issues with any of my Prius and will recommend them through and through. They are easy to maintain with low cost. Ton of room and reliable.
It's your money, but what you want but do a fair amount of research and test drive. Try to find smaller, but reliable, dealerships in your area as the big name dealers aren't invested in used cars as much as new cars in my experience.
Personally I like simple & reliable. For me that has meant proven technologies-
This is, perhaps, the best advice and the reason why the Prius is such an excellent option. It's bigger than your typical compact car. If a compact car will do, many of them are reliable and fuel efficient as well
The Prius is a good car with low maintainence compared to other cars. The gas engine does not run as much because the electric motor which means increase engine life. The brakes lasts longer because of regenerative brakes reduce the friction on brake pads. And it's a good appliance car if you like quick starts and decent power and a pretty good trunk because it is technically a hatchback.
Civics are pretty good too, better driving dynamics than the Corolla or Prius. You can't really go wrong with either unless you like true 40-50mpg then you go Prius.
Are you talking about a hybrid Civic? I've talked to a couple of owners of those, and they weren't happy with them. The electronics in them aren't as reliable as with a Prius, apparently. Or maybe by now, Honda has worked out the bugs--those conversations I had were about 3-4 years ago.
OTOH, I know a mechanic who studied the hybrids, and he says Hondas are the best. But I'm guessing the Prius wouldn't be the most popular unless it was really reliable (as Toyotas are known to be). It can't be just the "cool" factor that's causing so many people to buy them.....?
PS. The Prius has been around since 1997... and has sold over 5 million.
And Honda Civic Hybrid's were discontinued in 2015 due to poor sales, possibly making parts more difficult to access down the road as the Honda Civic Hybrid's age.
I normally drive my Prius at 80 mph (speed limit here) and haven't noticed low gearing. It revs like crazy getting up to speed, but once it settles in at cruise speed it quiets down and seems normal.
Well, it has a CVT so there's no such thing as low gearing. It'll rev at the optimal rev range for fuel economy for the given power requirement. Down a hill that might be 0 rpm. Up a hill that might be closer to 4,000 rpm. Unless you have a scan gauge you can't tell as there's no tachometer. Using ye old earometer, it cruises just fine (Gen 3). Gen 2 the engine is audible at 80 mph but not busted grenade. Hauling up a grade with the battery depleted on a Gen2 at 80 mph really sucks, if it can even do it. The bigger, more powerful engine in the Gen 3 helps tremendously. Generally cruises at about 400 rpm less and has that extra bit of power for getting up mountains once the battery is depleted.
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