Let the jeering begin...

Chippy01

''From the sublime to the ridiculous'' :Pwas one comment....
''Interesting drive - but......'' was another.
''No way?'' ''Are you for real?'' ''I don't believe it!!'':eek::eek: were a few more.
I also recieved more disparaging comments,;) but I won't tell you what they were...

Back in 2006, I took a test ride in a Lexus GS450h.:cool:
It was a long test ride. Best part of 90 minutes I reckon.
It was then that I decided that hybrid technology is a step in the right direction, but the 450h stood higher than my wallet could reach.
So, I thought, I'll just wait until the 450h stooped low enough for my wallet to ensnare.
And wait I did, while all the time driving comfortably in my '00 MKII GS300.

But the best laid plans of mice and men were destined to be scuppered.
By 2008 this 'recession' was starting to bite, and things were changing all around me.
My wallet started moving farther away from my 450h faster than the 450h could catch it.:(:(
I kept my GS meticulously serviced, but I was using it less and less. In fact I came to the decision that I could no longer justify keeping it.
Like all large engined cars of late, it's value had plummeted like a lead balloon.
Of course the biggest draw was the damned road tax!!! Why was I paying all that just to leave it sitting up all week? It made no sense.

So I started looking around for a more viable alternative, but still of the same mindset of 'hybrids are the way to go'.
But hybrid variety is thin on the ground.
The Lexus ones, LS600h, RX450h, GS450h, were still way out of my reach.
Next was the Honda Civic IMA saloon. Nice, and I did have a couple of test drives. Not new ones, but the latest version (2007/2008), but it did have it's limitations, as some posters here informed me when I asked earlier in the year.
The Insight was too new on the scene, and again a tad out of reach for me.
So I starting looking at Lexus's parent company, and the start of it all - the Prius.
Technically identical to the 450h I drove in 2006 (and why wouldn't it be), and to be honest, quite an eye-opener.
It's not the slouch it's made out to be.
It's roomy, airy, comfortable, and of course frugal on the go-go juice.

Long story made painful, a week or so ago I switched my lovely GS for an equally lovely Prius.
A 2007 UK import, T-Spirit model - the one all the toys, with all of 38,000 miles on it.
When/if things turn around, I will once again chase down a nice GS450h, but until then I'll enjoy it's smaller sister.:D:D

Mr Benevolent

You came to the right place if you want to be jeered for owning a Prius, but I wouldn't mind one myself, purely because most of my driving would be urban and I hate manuals. Feck the green credentials, I couldn't be arsed about that stuff. As you say, it's got lots of toys too. Win-win.

johnos1984

I'll not jeer either. Strangely like them but never driven one however I think I'll be forcing my mother into one in the new year as most of her trips are into town and therefore short.

What are they really like to drive? All I ever here is heavy but nice?

squod

Chippy01 wrote: »

Let the jeering begin....

What are we meant to say here? Congratulations OP on choosing some of the worst looking cars imaginable.



That jeering enough for you?

stealthyspeeder

100 moral highground points for you OP. Once you get 1,000 of these points, not only will you be saving the planet, you farts will actually start to smell pleasant!

Mr Benevolent

squod wrote: »

What are we meant to say here? Congratulations OP on choosing some of the worst looking cars imaginable.

Give me a break. It looks a lot better then plenty of cars, including some incredibly common Irish cars, i.e the Mk4 Golf and Tiida.

johnos1984

squod wrote: »

What are we meant to say here? Congratulations OP on choosing some of the worst looking cars imaginable.

Yesterdays man.......

See the future

1948Wolseley

No jeering here either, I love 'em. I took a test drive last year and was well impressed.

EPM

Futures hydrogen if you ask me...well wear OP. Wouldn't be my cup of tea but if you're happy that's all that really matters

Owen

Woo, when the time comes to dump the batteries the environment will love you. Plus, if you'd bought a modern Diesel, you could be getting up to 72 mpg with the same Co2 instead of the Toyota Smug's claimed 5x mpg which it doesn't do anyway. The most pointless car ever.

That enough jeering? :pac:

JJJJNR

Yah! Just what boards.ie needs another fan of the toyota Dynamo, just don't try and tell me that theres anything sporty about driving a Dynamo no matter how far the revs go.

galwaytt

Chippy01 wrote: »

Back in 2006, ....I decided that hybrid technology is a step in the right direction, but the 450h stood higher than my wallet could reach.

...there's your issue, right there: 2006. By 2010 surely we've learned the charade that is, hybrid's ? (of that type, anyway..)

Buy the 450h if you like it, by all means, but not because it's a hybrid.

The Prius is a Fail, on every count: should have kept the GS you had, imho, as I guess you'll find out if the depreciation on the Prius is greater than the tax on a GS.........

Eric Cartman

jeer jeer jeer, i dont think i could stomach going from a gs300 (one of my alltime favourite cars, excellent taste sir) to a prude-us , but i suppose its down to taste personally i think its the worst looking and sounding car 2010 money can buy (yes even worse than my most hated fiat 500, because atleast that has an abarth version)

lets hope the gs450h situation improves for you

cantdecide

I love the Toyota Fellforthemarketing actually. Especially the Easilybamboozled spec model.

That enough jeering??

KTRIC

PaintDoctor wrote: »

Woo, when the time comes to dump the batteries the environment will love you.

Strange, I thought the Prius was powered by the owners smugness and sense of well-being ??

Saab Ed

In fairness a new Prius isn't a bad car , its just that its not the world saver its supposed to be. Like someone else said earlier, a modern diesel in the real world is probably a better bet.

So to summise , the Prius is actualy very good at being a good car but
sh!te at being what Toyota claim its supposed to be ;):)


I'm gonna be slaughtered for this but I think the new Prius looks kinda smart ..... in white.

celticbest

:D:D:D:D

Nah, fair play if your happy with it then why should you car what other think.....

SV

Chippy01 wrote: »

, but until then I'll enjoy it's smaller sister.:D:D

you mean it's smarter but socially retarded inbred cousin surely?

OSI

OSI wrote: »

despite the fact that producing one uses more CO2 than most Petrol cars will produce in their entire lives

Ah c'mon now, seriously? Have you got a source for that?

pajo1981

I actually like the idea of hybrids as an alternative to diesel -320h anyone?

Diesels -even the good ones- IMO, can be unrefined and a little unresponsive -surely a hybrid system would remedy all of that while still returning diesel like economy?

I think the problem is one of image. People just love the hate the prius for some reason - maybe because it looks a bit g*y?

pajo1981

OSI wrote: »

Well you can already buy a Honda Clarity in the states that has a 134BHP and 188ib/ft of torque, no Porsche but not much of a step back for your average family car.

http://automobiles.honda.com/fcx-clarity/specifications.aspx

Did I not hear that each clarity cost around a mil. to build? I'm assuming R&D is included in that figure...

The thing is, James May did say that hydrogen is the future, and who are we to argure with Top Gear's James May?

merc3ps

Well wear.

The Prius might not be the be-all and end-all but manufacturers have to start somewhere and the Prius is proving popular enough to gather good insight into who consumers want/how they feel about hybrids.

Speaking of insight.... here is my hybrid... my best average MPG is 84.1 on a 45mile roundtrip.... currently averaging about 75.

unkel

Chippy01 wrote: »

'hybrids are the way to go'

LOL, who told you that?

Zubeneschamali

OSI wrote: »

Well you can already buy a Honda Clarity in the states

No, you can't: A limited number of these groundbreaking vehicles are currently being leased to select Southern Californians.

knifey_spoonie

I Drive a Prius, but then again i also own a Supra, what does that make me.

No the prius isint a solution but a step in the right direction. Ye all bat on about the CO2 but what about the extra monoxides and cancer causing sh1t that comes from burning diesel.

Won't someone please think of the children.

Mr Benevolent

knifey_spoonie wrote: »

Won't someone please think of the children.

No.

CosmicJay

Ah hybrid's hybrid's hybrid's.

Why didnt you just buy a normal diesel? Cheaper, most likely faster and just generally better.

Servicing is cheaper. Won't depriciate like a brick and the best part is! You don't have to throw out half of the car when it can't hold electricity anymore!

Never mind the lexus RX450.

http://www.carzone.ie/search/Audi/A6/3.0-TDI-/201012197342512/advert?channel=CARS

You can thank me later.

merc3ps

CosmicJay wrote: »

Ah hybrid's hybrid's hybrid's.

Why didnt you just buy a normal diesel?

Strange, I thought this was a motoring forum......

CosmicJay

merc3ps wrote: »

Strange, I thought this was a motoring forum......

It is a forum. What happens in forums? People talk about topics and voice their opinion. I'm voicing my opinion.

Pkiernan

A fact that some people forget, is that while a diesel may return equal or sometimes better miles per gallon a gallon of diesel weighs considerably more (17%) than a gallon of petrol, therefore you are actually using more fuel.

You are also releasing considerably more soot particles into the air when you burn diesel - hence the reason that until recently most diesel cars were not allowed in states with high smog counts.

Yes, hybrid technology is not perfect, but neither was the model T when it first came out. Remember the doctors of the early 1900's who said that the human neck would break at speeds above 30 mph?

shogunpower

according to research a prius is more environmentally damaging that a hummer over its full lifetime

Ali Babba

The domestic appliances forum is that way>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

maddness

Any man with a passion for cars usually stays well away from any Toyota (except the odd supra or twin cam corolla for the lads from the midlands).
A Prius is a poor excuse for a car. Its like a white good. Nilfisk or Zanussi.
A Prius is just terrible.
Why are you even on a motoring forum???
You know that you can get two cups of tea from the one tea bag. Its just not quiet the same though.;)

merc3ps

This is pathetic, from a motoring forum.

Any and all cars should be discussed without fear of ridicule.

Chippy01

:) You guys just crack me up......:D:D

Reading the replies so far has brightened my day. And there's me thinking I was in for a right slagging......;)

But in reply to just a couple of your comments:-

The Prius might not be the be-all and end-all but manufacturers have to start somewhere - True, very true.
Not a sporty dynamo? - I'd better keep clear of Mondello then. :rolleyes:
You mean it's smarter but socially retarded inbred cousin surely? - Just keeping it in the family....;)
Why didnt you just buy a normal diesel? Cheaper, most likely faster and just generally better. - There's a 'normal' diesel out there? Cheaper?, maybe. Faster?, in certain cases. Better?, not judging by some of them I've seen.
It is a forum. What happens in forums? People talk about topics and voice their opinion. I'm voicing my opinion - Ditto.

It's funny though. Some of the replies are worried about what's going to happen to the environment when the batteries fail, and how much CO2 is produced in the car's manufacture.
CO2 is good for plants, which in turn give us O2.
Aren't all vehicles that have ended thier useful life supposed to be recycled by recyclers? If so, how they do it is thier problem, not mine.
Other replies focus on so-called 'image'. Jeez, I remember when diesels were so far down the social scale that you were nearly ostracised for even mentioning diesel and car in the same sentence.

As I mentioned in my opening post, things were changing all around me. No-one likes change, it scares them. But, I had to change. Whether I changed for the good or the bad, only time will tell.

To those that replied with a fair play comment. Thank you.

Mr Benevolent

merc3ps wrote: »

This is pathetic, from a motoring forum.

Any and all cars should be discussed without fear of ridicule.

True, but he brought it on himself by encouraging people in his first post. Generally the regular posters in here are interested enough in cars not to buy a Prius - and that's no reflection on the car itself, which is a technological step forward. That said, your post about you Insight has made me think more about one of those, if only because it's a bit cooler looking and does much better mileage. Pity it's a manual though.

unkel

Chippy01 wrote: »

Some of the replies are worried about how much CO2 is produced in the car's manufacture.
CO2 is good for plants, which in turn give us O2.

So why did you buy a Prius? It officially emits only 104 grams of CO2 per km. A gas guzzler like that Lexus GS 450h or even better, a 5 litrel V8 petrol LS 600h would emit several times that, giving us much more oxygen.

coolbeans

shogunpower wrote: »

according to research a prius is more environmentally damaging that a hummer over its full lifetime

What research?

CosmicJay

coolbeans wrote: »

What research?

A Prius is more damaging to the earth than a Hummer. There is no evidence, but it is scientific fact. :pac:

Chippy01

CosmicJay wrote: »

A Prius is more damaging to the earth than a Hummer. There is no evidence, but it is scientific fact. :pac:

So what?

Stky10

Was in Norway recently, and used a taxi that was a Prius. To be honest I was quite impressed. Ok its outside looks aren't good, but inside it was kitted out very nicely, the drive was very smooth and performance/acceleration was good too. I don't think I'd buy one, but I can see why others might.

merc3ps

Just for interest.... official figures

Typical Irish Golf 1.4:
0-60 mph 12.5 - 14.2 seconds depending on variant
Top speed of 108 mph.
Average MPG 40-43 depending on variant

My Honda Insight 1.0 with battery assist:
0-60 mph 12.1 seconds
Top speed of 112 mph.
Average MPG 83

Toyota Prius 1.5
0-60 mph 10.6 seconds
Top speed of 106 mph.
Average MPG 65

Chippy01

LIGHTNING wrote: »

No to mention if you drive a Prius on a long motorway journey all the fancy battery assisted tech is useless and your MPG drops accordingly.

Crumlin to Wexford town, and back again.
Keeping to the posted speed limits, air-con on and using cruise control -
62.7 mpg

CosmicJay

Chippy01 wrote: »

So what?

I take it they didn't teach you what sarcasm was in school?