LTLFTcomposite said:
^ I looked at the Fit and the versa note. The Sentra could actually be had for less, and IMO is a nicer car.
You'll never make back the premium you'll pay for the Prius in fuel savings, so plan on justifying that on some other basis, but given that 99% of consumer car choices are based on things other than going down the road as inexpensively as possible that shouldn't be too hard.
I see this stupid argument about the premium all the time from people, but it is just wrong on so many levels. I wouldn't have expected it from people on a BEV forum.
What "premium" is there for the Prius? What is the directly comparable hatchback to where this magical baseline number is measured? It doesn't exist. Additionally the Prius is quiet, smooth, roomy, well built, no starter to wear out, no transmission to wear out, it will start in all temperatures where normal cars' frozen batteries wont turn them over, brakes that are still original at 200K or 300K miles, the list just keeps going on. Add to that fuel economy of 45mpg minimally on the highway (that's what I get cruising at 80mph to 100mph in the Prius loaded with 2 adults and full kit with sticky winter tires) and closer to 65mpg in town while driving it like I stole it. No other car will get you that. Add the utility of the hatch and it is unbeatable. Thousands of pounds of stone, cement, and dirt have been hauled in the Prius. Items like a 55in TV sit flat in the back (not so in the Leaf!), full size bathtubs in full protective packaging slide right in, 10ft and 12ft lumber to build a few hundred square foot deck all fit in the Prius in one trip with the hatch closed, it is a work horse.
Every "premium" argument I hear compares the Prius with a Corolla or something like that which has nothing in common other than being another vehicle with 4 wheels.
I bought my Prius used for about $9K. After 7 years and 80K miles later, I got a CarFax offer to buy it back for $8800 without even negotiating. I was just curious and we were there anyways to buy
another Prius (although we didn't). So my depreciation has been minimal. We have bought another brand new Prius C in 2013 and it is working great. It was also only $2K more than a similar smaller hatchback but with all the features inside (excluding all the "hybrid" parts) it was worth it alone.
Another factor that needs to be considered is that the Prius is cheaper to maintain and insure. For example, because my Prius is on the policy ALL vehicles get an off the top 20% hybrid vehicle discount. They don't offer an electric vehicle discount so the Leaf is useless there. Insuring 8+ cars is not cheap, but getting 20% off of that just because the Prius exists actually makes the full coverage insurance on the fully paid off Prius free and pays me some money every month even if it were to just sit there and never be driven.