I test drove it a few times at auto shows and really admire it as a great piece of engineering. The smooth but immediate power delivery was refreshing. The driver seat is quite roomy. However, I can’t say I like the car. The brake pedal has that typical Toyota mushiness. Why can’t I have that firm pedal from the Celica? And I don’t need power steering in such a light car to filter out feedback from the road. If this car is all about efficiency, then it should ditch this unnecessary feature. Fix these two issues and I would happily own one
The Cobalt did not have good mileage in it’s class when it was new, let alone now. It is probably not a good benchmark for gas mileage for that reason.
Based on the comments here, next time I purchase a new car I’ll definitely give the Prius an opportunity to compete in the competition.
“…the mythical 35mpg car.”
I regularly averaged 40 mpg in my 1998, 2001, and 2007 Civics. Fuelly reports 36 mpg for the 2015 Corolla.
And ill bet you did a lot of highway driving, too. The Prius in question is NOT a 2014, so why compare it to one? Further, the Prius is a midsize, not a compact like the Civic. Compare it to a non-hybrid Accord, Camry or Fusion of the same MY.
A 4-cyl, 2006 Fusion gets 24 EPA combined; a Camry gets 25; the Prius gets 46.
Guess my guesstimate was pretty darn accurate, now wasn’t it?
“And ill bet you did a lot of highway driving, too.”
And you would lose that bet. I just drove sensibly.
2010 Accord: W.B. 110", L 194", W 73"
2010 Civic: W.B. 106", L 177", W 69"
2010 Prius: W.B. 106", L 176", W 69"
About 32K on mine (2013) and zero issues. Boring- but in the real world of driving like I do where I do I get low 50’s mpg versus about 30 in my 2008 5 speed Matrix. (No issues on the Matrix at 70K either. A mixture of luck, quality build and I’d like to think sensible driving and maintenence.
I agree mean, everyone needs to evaluate their needs. If the size/ performance falls within the range of a Prius, then gas savings becomes an issue. If you are running around by yourself in a truck to commute exclusively, you need to evaluate whether you even need the truck to begin with. Before I personally thought about getting a Prius to drive on days I did not use the truck, I would consider a Corolla/Camry as a comparison, not the truck.