Read Owners forum:

http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/index.php?showforum=52

Main battery pack lasts for >10 years .. failure very rare.

The auxiliary pack used to start engine is more problematic - may (note : MAY) only last 3-4 years .. Repacmeent c £150.. It is not a conventional battery hence the cost..

The Prius before the latest 1.8 model introduced 2009 could only achieve c 57mpg at best in real life. the current one can do c 70 in real life. Lot depends on driving style. The T3 model with 15 inch wheels are 3-4 mpg better than the more expensive modles on 17 inch wheels (and tyre costs are MUCH less).

Expect 5-10mpg LESS in winter.

The Mark4 with Li-ion battery comes out in 2012.. Will do c 100mpg around town as battery capacity increased from approix 1.5 miles to c6.

The most economical ones are those bought more than 3 years old as depreciation is HIGH. Most are fleet cars with over 100k and fsh..

The Prius topped German reliability tables last year.

I was thinking of buying one and did some research.. Anyone who buys one (privately) new has spare cash or no sense in my view.

Edited by madf on 21/01/2012 at 10:28

Sorry - the Kia and VW figures were overall averages during heir lifetimes. But a large percentage of the mileage was on motorway runs - HJ has a combined figure for the 2005 2.0TDI manual of 51.4 mpg - and the DSG is rated 3mpg less on the VW site

Modern diesels are prone to expensive failures which wipe out your saving over a petrol equivalent, the Toyota Prius isnt. It does diesel-ish fuel economy on fuel which costs 10p less per litre, it costs loose change to tax (£10 a year compared to over £200 for some diesels), it has no DPF's or anything else which causes diesels problems. It also has no conventional starter motor or alternator (removing the possibility of two big bills). Toyota's Hybrid drive system has proven to be very reliable, New York taxi variants have recorded over 300k miles with no issues. Its also cheap to insure.

Unless you do mostly motorway miles then i cant see any situation where a Prius wouldnt at least match the daily running costs of a diesel, bearing in mind its a big 5 door automatic hatchback so comparing it to 1.4 Lupo's is folly. Im still surprised they're not more commonly used as taxi's because for consistent urban work they're ideally suited.

Good post that Jamie and a testament to how good that Prius was to impress you, i know you weren't exactly besotted by them so the driving experience must have impressed you.

What i like about them is the top class smoothness of the transmission and the seamless addition of petrol power when the engine fires up with barely a sound.

If you can find an equivalent Diesel with a proper auto box it will be a similar price (but higher VED) and will always sound like a bag of spanners compared to a petrol engine.

+1

sorry added too many zeros should be £150.00 and $50.00