TOYOTA PRIUS [merged threads]

[ale828]

I already saw the 1st Gen Prius of GMA in makati a few months back. it had special goverment plates but i don't think it was GMA who was using it.

Hybrid cars are beinficial in places with heavy traffic conditions like manila, its in these places that they get the higher fuel economy compared to other cars like the Gets, Picanto, Jazz, Matrix. In the US and UK where in most people use highways and their traffic jams arn't as heavy as in Manila, the Hybrid cars are just for the popularity of being an environmentalist. In the Show Top Gear they slammed the 2nd Gen prius for being slow and even pointed out that a VW Lupo Diesel was getting way better mileage in mixed city/Highway driving. But put that Hybrid in our christmas season gridlock and compare it with the Picanto and then you will see the difference.
The Price thou of the hybrid might go higher than 1.5M or even reach the 2M ceiling. Very pricey for such a car, since car buyers in this bracket tend not to be fuel conscious. It only other factor is saving mother earth.

[niky]

The Prius is currently the top-selling hybrid, though... turning out in much better numbers than the woefully impractical Insight or the "stealth" Civic Hybrid. People are willing to pay a premium to be able to boast their "eco-consciousness".

It's very expensive, yes, but there are hidden savings and costs. The hidden cost is that of battery replacement, but in the years that the first gen Prius has been out, none have had to undergo this... yet. The hidden savings include lesser brake wear, as the regenerative braking system takes a load off the brakes, and a prolonged engine life... nothing is worse for a gas engine than idling in hot traffic.

For high mileage users, like taxi-fleet operators, the Prius has shown itself to earn back the premium within a year or two, in terms of gas savings, brake maintenance savings, and oil change and tune-up savings. Here, I think it'll work for probinsyanos like me who have to go to Manila a lot. The only true competition in terms of utility would be the Honda City or the Hyundai Matrix Diesel. Which cost much less though aren't nearly as cool. Still, the Philippine market isn't quite ready to support more than a handful of these cars, I think.

The Protege LX actually has a downsized 1.8 liter version of the RS engine, not the 1.6 that is more common around the world. And yes, it's apparently a bit more efficient than our 1.6.

But US highways are very long and straight, and good driving can get you terrific mileage.

I'm still unsure over the exact conversion of their mileage to ours, because conversion using US Gallons seems way off, especially for traffic conditions, while using UK Gallons yields some more realistic figures.

[kyle618]

yeah i think the prius is pretty good investment here in the phil... especially with SLOW MOVING traffic and stop and go cuz of mofo jeep drivers. with slow moving gas then we dont use any gas... just the electric motor. i did a speech about moving towards hybrid cars before.. haha

[number001]

Ever wondered what happened to the famous presidential hybrid car?

Here it is, President GMA's Toyota Prius at Toyota Bicutan.

[carlocaraddict]

Ever wondered what happened to the famous presidential hybrid car?

Here it is, President GMA's Toyota Prius at Toyota Bicutan.

nandyan pa kaya yan sa wed? I havnt seen one. Gusto ko sana makita ng actual hehehe

[gearspeed]

Makadaan nga sa toyota bicutan sa wednesday bago ako pumunta sa petron ..

[number001]

[ale828]

Who uses the presidents 1st gen hybrid kaya? I saw that car last year in glorietta.

[number001]

I read somewhere in this forum that the president has handed it over to the DOE for them to study it.

[niky]

After talking with others in the US, I now have doubts that the Prius is viable here. Like Karding said, the Prius only gets between 20-25 km/l in the US (around 40+ mpg)... which you can get with a Honda City or Jazz... which costs less than half as much and doesn't rely on engine-off gimmicks.

Now imagine a Jazz with a simple engine cut-off and electric assist (minus heavy batteries)? It would likely get 35-40 km/l in real world conditions, and still cost less.

The Prius is good publicity for Toyota, which is why they advertise it blatantly, even if they are not likely to sell it here. Honda, on the other hand, are quietly making more and more fuel efficient cars, and are inviting people to come see for themselves the real world economy of these cars, instead of just advertising them.

[pixelparadigm]

A VW Lupo Diesel can outrun a Toyota Prius in terms of mileage. Plus, it looks like a normal car, runs like a normal car, and has lots of torque for realistic and legal acceleration.

[number001]

I think the Prius would still be there, since the Bicutan dealership is Toyota's new flagship dealership showroom and no better place to display their supposed technological prowress in the shape and form of a Prius owned by Pres. GMA, if not, the Phil gov't.

Although, I didnt ask, I think it (the interiors) is not open for public viewing. May secu pa tabi parati!

:D

[Andrei28]

Pera pa rin ng Pilipinas pina-pang gas dyan.

[picantorange]

At least it's better than Suburbans na pera din ng Pinas ang pinangbabayad sa gas.

[AG4]

If Toyota decides to sell the new Prius here its going to be expensive since it will most likely be a CBU from Japan.

Would you buy a Prius for P1.4M - P1.5M?

For comparisson a conventional Corolla Altis 1.6E M/T costs P765K.

[ale828]

In our heavy traffic conditions in Metro Manila, the toyota Hybrid can easily get better fuel economy than a 1.3 jazz. Its just in places like the US and UK wherein Their bumper to bumper traffic is comparable to our light-moderate traffic here. A 1.3 Jazz would get better mileage in mixed city/highway drives and in full highway mode, but the idea of having the hybrid is for heavy traffic conditions.

[number001]

The Second Gen Prius is said to get 19km/li. Even if the Jazz manages less km. to the liter, it (Jazz) is still the better choice given the price point of the Prius.

[niky]

The Prius will use almost no gas in heavy traffic, true... but the AC will. I'm on a number of foreign boards and talking with those guys, I'm amazed at how their daily commute mileage numbers are equal to our "trip to Baguio" or "mileage challenge" numbers. But then, they have less congestion, and a cooler climate.

The newer Prius has an electric compressor, yes, but only as an auxiliary. If you're in traffic long enough here in the Philippines, the other one will kick in, and it runs off the motor.

Me and a bud attended a mileage challenge and got 23 km/l in traffic. Someone else got 29 km/l in that traffic. I told my pilot that part of our "poor" :lol: numbers were due to his aircon settings (I felt they were too high). So, considering we used 1.9 liters for the whole run and she used only 1.5... two and a half hours of AC in traffic only used 0.4 liters of gas. (about 15 pesos or so). Not bad, huh?

So given 15 pesos a day in savings for the AC (which lowers to 10 pesos a day if it's hot... as the Prius gas engine turns on when you use the main AC compressor instead of the reportedly weak electric auxiliary), and maybe 30-50 pesos worth of gas in the case of bad traffic (could be less... our city numbers were nearly identical to the highway mileage of other contestants)... you'll probably save around 20,000 a year if you drive about 50-100km everyday.

To make up the possible 700k price difference between a Jazz and a Prius, you'll need to drive for 35 years. Both cars would have run into the ground way before then. And before the tenth year mark, you would have to spend a fortune on replacing the expensive and non-eco-friendly batteries.

And Toyota still isn't selling the Prius at a profit, despite the higher price. They write off the extra cost as advertising. I think more credence should be given to Honda for trying to create more efficient gas engines, and for supporting Natural Gas initiatives. Honda's hybrids, the Civic Hybrid and the Accord Hybrid, are marketed by Honda on their assets alone, and are not over-hyped as hybrid. Honda is trying to make hybrids accessible to the more common consumers.

[mazdamazda]

IMO

right now, hybrids only make sense for SUVs and trucks. since they'll gain a more noticeable fuel economy improvement compared to those hybrid sedans.

and there's another problem... batteries... battery technology hasn't advanced over the past few years. imagine in the future that you can use your mobile phone's battery to run your car too! hehehe. in any case, hybrid is not a solid viable option for the long run. fuel cells is still the way to go.

[ghosthunter]

In the Feb 2006 issue of Popular Mechanics, they tested a compact sedan & a SUV against its hybrid twin. Their results would favor a hybrid IF you were buying a SUV hybrid. The price difference and operating cost savings in getting a compact sedan hybrid simply does not make economic sense over the estimated life of the vehicle.