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I'm curious about this, as we're considering one of these in a couple years. What kind of special service do these cars need (vs. a regular gas engine), and what kind of costs are we talking about? Already familiar with the 0W-20 oil thing, which is no more expensive than the Mobil 1 we already use. Don't know about anything else, though.
Depending on which hybrid you buy, it isn't true at all. They don't have any higher defect rate or maintenance rate than a standard car, and Toyota and Honda warrant the heck out of them to assuage exactly those fears. Consumer Reports gives them extremely good reliability marks for all years (and that's based on repair record), with just a ding for electrical for the first 2 production years.
I wouldn't buy an older one close to end of warranty life, though, just because there are no very long term repair rates on them - it might be the kind of thing where they they run great for 10 years and then so much stuff goes wrong at once it's too expensive to fix. No way to know at this point, as they haven't been around 15 years to get the data on. But, if you're looking for a new or nearly new car, it should be fine.
I used to run an auto shop for a few years, and I've seen/serviced a few of these. I couldn't see anything special on them except for the special oil and that Honda's plastic skid-plate. (Honestly a Passat's was harder to deal with.) That's why i asked.
The main reason we're looking at one is for my wife when we have a child, she stays at home, and doesn't drive more than 5-10 miles to get to places. Hybrid's mileage shines for this type of driving. It would take about 10 yrs to get to 100k miles, or the time the batteries need to be changed. Likely we'd get rid of it by then.
In the fall of '07, you could get a basic used Prius with 5k miles on it for $22k. Letting the 1st owners take the depreciative hit, plus the savings in gas consumption and no special maintenance (I know about) doesn't make this a cost-prohibitive vehicle at all.
I just bought a Prius, but I noticed here in Colorado you get a $2000 tax credit for a Prius, but not the Malibu because the Malibu doesn't actually get crazy gas mileage like the Prius.
hybrids buyers will find out that these hybrids are a ton of money to service and are really not worth what you pay for them.i would just buy a reliable and gas effecient vehicle and move on.too much hype and not worth it.
I've read that Prius' actually come back to the repair shop less than other Toyotas, making them incredibly reliable. Plus a great warranty helps.
Expense? Just wait till it comes time to install a new battery pack in your hybrid.
Mine is guaranteed for 100K miles or 8 years, so it'll never be an option. They're something like $1200 to replace, so even if I kept the car for 10 years and that's the biggest expense I have, big deal. Considering the gas savings (I'm averaging 47 mpg right now), it's worth it.
I bought a Prius last March and have put 30k miles on it. It has been great. There are two reasons I selected the Prius over the Civic. First, the Prius gets better gas mileage. I have averaged 48mpg over the 30k miles. Second, the Prius has a LOT more room. The Civic was out because the back seats do not fold down, severely limiting the amount of crap you can pack into it. I was able to fit an 8'x32" door in the car (flat, rear hatch closed) and still had room for a passenger.
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