If Anyone Doubts The Longevity Of The Prius - Show Them This!

[Grumpy Cabbie]

Just incase you, your friends or family have any doubts about the longevity of the Prius, show them the video on this link!!!

http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20110125/bc_olsen_prius_reliability_110125/20110125?hub=BritishColumbiaHome

Just to convert for you. The mpg figures quoted are for US gallons - 40 mpg US is about 48 mpg UK. Also, 700,000 km is 434,000 miles and 1,000,000 km is 621,000 miles! So when Toyota say the Battery will last the life of the car - they mean it.

[Red Yaris 54]

Impressive stuff!

[Jan&tone]

Just incase you, your friends or family have any doubts about the longevity of the Prius, show them the video on this link!!!

http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20110125/bc_olsen_prius_reliability_110125/20110125?hub=BritishColumbiaHome

Just to convert for you. The mpg figures quoted are for US gallons - 40 mpg US is about 48 mpg UK. Also, 700,000 km is 434,000 miles and 1,000,000 km is 621,000 miles! So when Toyota say the battery will last the life of the car - they mean it.

The link didn't work on my i-pad, i'll try it on the laptop later but with figures like that it means i won't have to argue with the missus in 2 n half years to change my gen3 - i'll just keep this one!!!

[Sagitar]

Just incase you, your friends or family have any doubts about the longevity of the Prius, show them the video on this link!!!

http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20110125/bc_olsen_prius_reliability_110125/20110125?hub=BritishColumbiaHome

Just to convert for you. The mpg figures quoted are for US gallons - 40 mpg US is about 48 mpg UK. Also, 700,000 km is 434,000 miles and 1,000,000 km is 621,000 miles! So when Toyota say the battery will last the life of the car - they mean it.

You can't beat advertising as good as that.

[Chris Dance]

What is good about the video is that it is true not some advertising hype. The Prius is the best car I have owned. I may even consider getting a Gen 3 this year!!!

[r04drunner1]

Cracking video!

GC, I can hear the sound of your ribs popping as you hug yourself with glee.

[sjrainsford]

It's not working for my (the link that is). Saying file not found. Unless that's me on my iPhone.

[dwilson]

It's not working for my (the link that is). Saying file not found. Unless that's me on my iPhone.

It works fine for me on my pc - so I guess it is your iPhone

[Jan&tone]

It's not working for my (the link that is). Saying file not found. Unless that's me on my iPhone.

It works fine for me on my pc - so I guess it is your iPhone

I had the same problem on my ipad, however had a look on the laptop... Reinforces what we saw in Canada over the last two years, pretty much every cab in Vancouver (where that was filmed) is either a Prius or a hybrid Camry

Toronto sems pretty much the same too, so i reckon the Prius, despite some peoples experiences, is pretty much an old school reliable Toyota

[kyber]

The site uses Adobe Flash (like many sites) which Steve Jobs refuses to support on IOS (i.e. the operating system of the iPad & iPhone). Does not look like there is a youtube alternative either (but I did not look that hard) - there is nothing wrong with your iPad/iPhone, just does not support Flash. ( see http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/TopStories/20100430/apple-flash-attack-100430/ )

Really interesting video, thanks for sharing. I ordered a Prius t-spirit just before Christmas as my new company car. Will miss my current cc, a top of the range mondeo (especially the heated front screen - brilliant in the cold weather) but am really looking forward to the Prius at the same time. Delivery date seems to be moving away though.

[cpejk]

Hi Grumpy Cabbie

What an interesting Video. Just goes to show that Toyota can be a reliable if looked after and serviced regularly. Had my 57reg Prius now for one year, very happy with it. Just wish I could fine a good reliable warranty pack. Cheers.

[Jan&tone]

Hi Grumpy Cabbie

What an interesting Video. Just goes to show that Toyota can be a reliable if looked after and serviced regularly. Had my 57reg Prius now for one year, very happy with it. Just wish I could fine a good reliable warranty pack. Cheers.

CPE... your 57 will be only just out of warranty, why not talk to your local Mr T and see if you can go for the extended warranty?

[Red diesel]

Interesting report

I was particularly interested to see how close Kate Houlihans Mark 1 Prius came to matching the fuel

economy a brand new 2000 Mark Prius achieved brand new. 40.4 vs 40.6 i believe - the only questions i have

are

Firstly would i be right in thinking that the Battery life on a Prius is not just governed by mileage but also by age (in terms of years)

and that therefore a taxi doing 735 000 kilometres is not reflective of what a normal (non taxi) prius would achieve in terms of miles clocked

up on a Battery. Realistically how long would the Battery last on a Prius thats doing 12 to 15 000 miles a year

Finally how much does it cost to change one of these batteries at a Toyota garage

Red diesel

[Jan&tone]

Interesting report

I was particularly interested to see how close Kate Houlihans Mark 1 Prius came to matching the fuel

economy a brand new 2000 Mark Prius achieved brand new. 40.4 vs 40.6 i believe - the only questions i have

are

Firstly would i be right in thinking that the battery life on a Prius is not just governed by mileage but also by age (in terms of years)

and that therefore a taxi doing 735 000 kilometres is not reflective of what a normal (non taxi) prius would achieve in terms of miles clocked

up on a battery. Realistically how long would the battery last on a Prius thats doing 12 to 15 000 miles a year

Finally how much does it cost to change one of these batteries at a Toyota garage

Red diesel

One for Kingo I think??

[Grumpy Cabbie]

Interesting report

I was particularly interested to see how close Kate Houlihans Mark 1 Prius came to matching the fuel

economy a brand new 2000 Mark Prius achieved brand new. 40.4 vs 40.6 i believe - the only questions i have

are

Firstly would i be right in thinking that the battery life on a Prius is not just governed by mileage but also by age (in terms of years)

and that therefore a taxi doing 735 000 kilometres is not reflective of what a normal (non taxi) prius would achieve in terms of miles clocked

up on a battery. Realistically how long would the battery last on a Prius thats doing 12 to 15 000 miles a year

Finally how much does it cost to change one of these batteries at a Toyota garage

Red diesel

Firstly, the economy of the year 2000 Prius is quoted in US mpg and a US gallon is much smaller than a UK gallon - 3.7 litres compared to 4.5 litres. As such 40.4 mpg US is about 48 mpg UK and that was about right for the original saloon Prius.

Regarding Battery life, the Battery is for the life of the car and that is put at about 15 years. The Battery does seem to be based on age rather than mileage (to generalise). Some of the original Japanese import Prius (the one not officially sold in the UK) are starting to have battery failures now at an age of about 13 or 14 years old. Be aware that these original cars were basically domestic market (Japan) test mules to see if the hybrid technology worked and they used normal rechargeable 'D' cells soldered into packs and these can be prone to leakage now. The saloon Prius sold in the UK and rest of the world from 2000/2001 onwards used a superior battery type and these versions do appear to be holding up well regarding the battery. After 10 years you would expect any part of a car to fail - HV batteries, engines, transmissions etc. At that age you takes your chances whatever make or model you go for.

One thing I would add is that the battery in the official models (not the original Jap only import) is holding up well with failures very rarely reported - quite a contrast to the what the doom mongers who originally suggested HV battery replacement after 3 to 5 years.

[acetip]

Interesting report

I was particularly interested to see how close Kate Houlihans Mark 1 Prius came to matching the fuel

economy a brand new 2000 Mark Prius achieved brand new. 40.4 vs 40.6 i believe - the only questions i have

are

Firstly would i be right in thinking that the battery life on a Prius is not just governed by mileage but also by age (in terms of years)

and that therefore a taxi doing 735 000 kilometres is not reflective of what a normal (non taxi) prius would achieve in terms of miles clocked

up on a battery. Realistically how long would the battery last on a Prius thats doing 12 to 15 000 miles a year

Finally how much does it cost to change one of these batteries at a Toyota garage

hi grumpy.

read somewhere thhat you can replace individual cells,so having a problem (after many years) replacing a cell or two

may give you many more years.there is always one weak link in a chain.

Red diesel

Firstly, the economy of the year 2000 Prius is quoted in US mpg and a US gallon is much smaller than a UK gallon - 3.7 litres compared to 4.5 litres. As such 40.4 mpg US is about 48 mpg UK and that was about right for the original saloon Prius.

Regarding Battery life, the Battery is for the life of the car and that is put at about 15 years. The Battery does seem to be based on age rather than mileage (to generalise). Some of the original Japanese import Prius (the one not officially sold in the UK) are starting to have battery failures now at an age of about 13 or 14 years old. Be aware that these original cars were basically domestic market (Japan) test mules to see if the hybrid technology worked and they used normal rechargeable 'D' cells soldered into packs and these can be prone to leakage now. The saloon Prius sold in the UK and rest of the world from 2000/2001 onwards used a superior battery type and these versions do appear to be holding up well regarding the battery. After 10 years you would expect any part of a car to fail - HV batteries, engines, transmissions etc. At that age you takes your chances whatever make or model you go for.

One thing I would add is that the battery in the official models (not the original Jap only import) is holding up well with failures very rarely reported - quite a contrast to the what the doom mongers who originally suggested HV battery replacement after 3 to 5 years.

as ive had no experiance of the prius atkins engine.i wondered how reliable they would be,then i know now.never seen the engine hardly mentioned when ive trepassed on this forum.what concerned me was you start off under electric power then when the engine cuts in under load,and the oil has hardly has time to fully circulate before this load is on the lubricated services.but as i ive said these engine seem to last as long as an otto engine.

[Grumpy Cabbie]

The engines basics are the same - Otto or Atkinson. It's how they work that gives the performance/economy. The Prius spins the engine using one of the electric motors upto 1,000 rpm before injecting the fuel. It is also a reason why it uses expensive and rare 0w20 fully synthetic oil.

[Ancient Nerd]

Two things which may help regarding Battery life.

• My last Gen II Prius is still in the family, and is now coming up to three years and 90,000 miles. There is no sign of any fall off in Battery performance or capacity. MPG is also as good as ever - I would expect this to drop off if Battery capacity were reduced.
  
• On the Toyota GB website, they are quoting a price of around 750 GBP (from memory), presumably plus VAT, so a bit under 1000 GBP for a replacement battery. I can't see the fitting cost being too high, as the battery looks reasonably accessible. The last diesel I had with a cambelt (Renault Laguna) needed the cambelt replacing every 70,000 miles or so at a cost North of 1000 GBP. This makes the Prius look pretty good by comparison.
  

Now if only Toyota had the faith to give us early Gen III buyers a proper warranty instead of the Weasel Warranty, I will no longer feel the need to give them the worst PR I can manage.

[Grumpy Cabbie]

Two things which may help regarding battery life.

• My last Gen II Prius is still in the family, and is now coming up to three years and 90,000 miles. There is no sign of any fall off in battery performance or capacity. MPG is also as good as ever - I would expect this to drop off if battery capacity were reduced.
  
• On the Toyota GB website, they are quoting a price of around 750 GBP (from memory), presumably plus VAT, so a bit under 1000 GBP for a replacement battery. I can't see the fitting cost being too high, as the battery looks reasonably accessible. The last diesel I had with a cambelt (Renault Laguna) needed the cambelt replacing every 70,000 miles or so at a cost North of 1000 GBP. This makes the Prius look pretty good by comparison.
  

Now if only Toyota had the faith to give us early Gen III buyers a proper warranty instead of the Weasel Warranty, I will no longer feel the need to give them the worst PR I can manage.

I hear what you're saying about the UK warranty but some consolation is that a 150,000 mile warranty is offered in California due to legislation, so Toyota will have designed the Prius gen 3 to easily meet this requirement. It doesn't help us here but should prove the car is designed to last well.

[acetip]

The engines basics are the same - Otto or Atkinson. It's how they work that gives the performance/economy. The Prius spins the engine using one of the electric motors upto 1,000 rpm before injecting the fuel. It is also a reason why it uses expensive and rare 0w20 fully synthetic oil.

hi grumpy

this gives the oil time to fully get around the engine before it takes up the load then

thanks for that.that answers my concern.

though ive worked on many types of engines,mostly diesel, havent done so with the atkins.only know what ive seen when ive googled the name.

[Ancient Nerd]

I hear what you're saying about the UK warranty but some consolation is that a 150,000 mile warranty is offered in California due to legislation, so Toyota will have designed the Prius gen 3 to easily meet this requirement. It doesn't help us here but should prove the car is designed to last well.

Hi Grumpy,

It's still a Weasel Warranty. I'm still offended that the lack of warranty is going to affect my resale value. And I'm still offended that Toyota don't care one bit.

[Jan&tone]

Ancient, i can understand your comments on the warranty, however you did buy the car knowing the terms that you were buying it under.

I spent nearly 1000 pounds on a flat screen freeview tv some years ago, now they are available for a third of that price....

I spent 3000 on a holiday which, had i waited i could have got far cheaper...

I'm sorry mate, in this world you pays your money and takes your choice, sad sometimes but that's the way of the world, sometimes you win, sometimes you don't and in this case you didn't

[Grumpy Cabbie]

... however you did buy the car knowing the terms that you were buying it under.

I'm sorry mate, in this world you pays your money and takes your choice, sad sometimes but that's the way of the world, sometimes you win, sometimes you don't and in this case you didn't

It's also his choice never to purchase another Toyota!

The crappy warranty for those who purchased a Toyota before they messed things up will affect resale values and it wouldn't cost Toyota much (but would pay dividends in good will) to offer the higher warranty to the handful of customers affected.

To be honest, I didn't realise Toyota had reduced the hybrid warranty on the gen3 Prius until I joined this forum. It only affects a couple thousand gen3 Prius owners between August 2009 and March 2010. Or maybe Toyota know something we don't!?!?

[Jan&tone]

... however you did buy the car knowing the terms that you were buying it under.

I'm sorry mate, in this world you pays your money and takes your choice, sad sometimes but that's the way of the world, sometimes you win, sometimes you don't and in this case you didn't

It's also his choice never to purchase another Toyota!

The crappy warranty for those who purchased a Toyota before they messed things up will affect resale values and it wouldn't cost Toyota much (but would pay dividends in good will) to offer the higher warranty to the handful of customers affected.

To be honest, I didn't realise Toyota had reduced the hybrid warranty on the gen3 Prius until I joined this forum. It only affects a couple thousand gen3 Prius owners between August 2009 and March 2010. Or maybe Toyota know something we don't!?!?

Indeed Grumpy it is his choice. I agree, i didn't know either about the warranty problems/differences either... I suspect a high-up bean counter somewhere has committed hari kiri which is why he is no longer around to change things

[johalareewi]

To be honest, I didn't realise Toyota had reduced the hybrid warranty on the gen3 Prius until I joined this forum. It only affects a couple thousand gen3 Prius owners between August 2009 and March 2010. Or maybe Toyota know something we don't!?!?

Although there have been at least 2 price hikes since the 3 year warranty Prius so you could say that new buyers are paying for the extended warranty in the purchase price. Plus Toyota needed to chuck in some sweeteners to tempt buyers after all the recalls.