Plug In Prius

[dee s]

I have registered myself on the Toyota website for the Plug In Prius. Anyone know what the price will be? They will be selling for more the the current model I believe, the car also qualifies for the Government Grant

[Jan&tone]

The car also qualifies for the Government Grant

So it's at least 5k more than the normal Prius!

What I want to know, is the plug in an optional extra or is it a completely separate car?

[dee s]

What I want to know, is the plug in an optional extra or is it a completely separate car?

Its a totally seperate car, The plug in part is in the front wing passenger side. There are pics on the Toyota website and it has a different Battery. Apparently will do 12.5 miles on Battery power

[kithmo]

The Plug-in would be the obvious choice for me with my 3 mile commute and I was very interested at first, but TBH so far, I'm not impressed by it.

12.5 miles on electric, 2 big batteries, less boot space, 15" wheels & no spare. Factor in the cost of electricity and installation of a charging point plus the extra purchase cost and it's not worth bothering.

It may be slightly different when it actually comes out, I don't know, but if it had say a 30 or 40 mile range, 17" wheel option, 1 Battery and a spare wheel, I would seriously think about it.

Ideally I would like it to be cheaper than the standard Prius (after taking off the 5K government grant) and also have a programmable engine/cabin heater built in for winter.

It would also need some better soundproofing if it's going to run on electric more.

[Jan&tone]

What I want to know, is the plug in an optional extra or is it a completely separate car?

Its a totally seperate car, The plug in part is in the front wing passenger side. There are pics on the Toyota website and it has a different battery. Apparently will do 12.5 miles on battery power

Thanks for that. I assume therefore that there will then be 3 models, the plug in, the current one and the 7 seater... And the various grades of each one too!!

[dee s]

Thanks for that. I assume therefore that there will then be 3 models, the plug in, the current one and the 7 seater... And the various grades of each one too!

4 now I believe. My internet reading tells me a compact model is being planned

[korat102]

Do you need a special charging point? Can't it just be plugged into the mains like every other "electric" car. The choice of location for the charging socket would be a bit of a pain for me - I put that side of the car against the garage wall.

Wonder if you qualify for their grant if you already have a hybrid. I'm sure I read that the grant is "up to" £5000, probably means you have to drop your Hummer to get that while you'll only get £2.50 to swap to one from an existing hybrid...or is that just me being cynical? :)

No spare wheel. That's a deal breaker for me. What is it with Toyota and the loss of the spare wheel these days? They did that with the Rav4 as well. I can see me moving away from Toyota if this trend continues.

[Jan&tone]

Do you need a special charging point? Can't it just be plugged into the mains like every other "electric" car. The choice of location for the charging socket would be a bit of a pain for me - I put that side of the car against the garage wall.

Wonder if you qualify for their grant if you already have a hybrid. I'm sure I read that the grant is "up to" £5000, probably means you have to drop your Hummer to get that while you'll only get £2.50 to swap to one from an existing hybrid...or is that just me being cynical? :)

No spare wheel. That's a deal breaker for me. What is it with Toyota and the loss of the spare wheel these days? They did that with the Rav4 as well. I can see me moving away from Toyota if this trend continues.

No special point, plug it in to any 13amp socket (in the UK) - lets me out, my garage is 200 yards from the house and has no electricity supply!

You won't qualify for the grant with an existing hybrid, the grants are only available upto a certain figure like the bribr a couple of years ago to help the korean car industry sell more cars in the UK.. I recall a figure of 3 million being bandied about...

No spare wheel? What is Club Toyota for? You don't keep a dog and bark yourself, neither do you belong to the AA/RAC and mend a puncture yourself either!

It's probably not just Toyota that are doing away with spare wheels, I suspect they will all disappear in due course. I'm probably tempting fate here, but in 45 years of motoring I have never had occasion to use a spare wheel, in all my cars the spare has been untouched other than checking the pressure now and again!

[Ancient Nerd]

No spare wheel. That's a deal breaker for me. What is it with Toyota and the loss of the spare wheel these days? They did that with the Rav4 as well. I can see me moving away from Toyota if this trend continues.

I agree with you completely. I have had a fair few punctures over time. Mostly, they were, or could have been, resolved by a breakdown service. But not all.

One of the more recent ones, on a nearly new Bridgestone tyre, damaged the tyre sufficiently that it could not have been fixed with the gunge that is usually supplied in place of a spare wheel. I just put on the spare, and replaced the damaged tyre at leisure. Without the spare, it would have been a long wait, probably not the tyre of choice, and no discount.

And on my daily commute, there is a fair chance that you will be out of signal when it happens, so a long walk first.

Another consideration, is that if you use the supplied gunge to "repair" a puncture, most tyre places will not repair the tyre afterwards, or if they do will charge a fair amount for the privilege of cleaning up the mess.

I had a similar problem five years ago. Along with a fair few other owners, I complained long and often, with a Honda Civic. Honda eventually provided most of us with a spare wheel. Their original attitude was a lot like Toyota's over the weasel warranty. FWIW, I had two punctures over two years and 50,000 miles

[Parts-King]

No spare wheel. That's a deal breaker for me. What is it with Toyota and the loss of the spare wheel these days? They did that with the Rav4 as well. I can see me moving away from Toyota if this trend continues.

So what brand are you moving to? ALL cars are or will be moving in this direction in the coming years, call it progress or what you will but its a fact. I cant understand why people get so hung up over it myself. If it is such a problem for certain groups of people then just buy a spare

Kingo

[Ancient Nerd]

I cant understand why people get so hung up over it myself. If it is such a problem for certain groups of people then just buy a spare

Kingo

When you get an unrepairable puncture out of mobile signal, you will understand. :censor:

As with the "subsidised" Battery warranty, and the refusal to provide a decent warranty for early Prius buyere, I see this as just another excuse to extract more money from your customers.

[Parts-King]

Yes I understand that but its not a deal breaker for me. I have been driving 30 odd years and have had a couple of punctures, but I have never been let down and stranded in all that time. I also understand it is an issue if you have a disability or mobility problems, but if it is, wouldnt you just get a spare? Surely it wouldnt be a reason to change brands, when all other manufacturers are going that way?

Kingo

[ian rooke]

Hi I carry a Tyre weld canister because I refuse to put on the wheelbarrow tyre that Toyota supply. It's a different size,tread pattern,and pressure from the other 3 tyres how can it be safe at any speed. If I were to have a normal tyre so different and was stopped by the police would I not get a ticket for having a unsuitable tyre fitted.

[Parts-King]

Space saver tyres are perfectly legal and suitable for the car they are on, they are to get you home at the maximum speed indicated on the rim, until you can get your tyre repaired/replaced the next day

Kingo

[Ancient Nerd]

Yes I understand that but its not a deal breaker for me. I have been driving 30 odd years and have had a couple of punctures, but I have never been let down and stranded in all that time. I also understand it is an issue if you have a disability or mobility problems, but if it is, wouldnt you just get a spare? Surely it wouldnt be a reason to change brands, when all other manufacturers are going that way?

Kingo

I'm glad it's OK for you. It is not for me, Terry and I suspect a lot of others. Just because everyone is going that way doesn't make it right. I've got no objection to Toyota, Honda or anyone else providing a pump and can of gunge, as long as the spare is a no cost alternative.

As far as I am concerned, a car without a spare is unfit for purpose. Being forced to buy one is comparable to paying for "extras" on a well known budget airline. Hence my altercation with Honda, and upcoming one with Toyota over their warranty.

[Jan&tone]

I can see both sides of this - i think...

But fwiw when I go to buy a car, I have, like a lot of people, pretty much made up my mind what I'm going to buy. What options I do or don't pick is my only choice when I get to the dealers, and if the salesman is good he will sell me more. The presence or not of a spare wheel doesn't even come into the equation!

It's a bit like someone having an extended test drive, approving of the car, ordering one and then moaning about the trim when it arrives, they saw the trim before they bought it so why moan when they get their own one.

I'm afraid it is the old story, you buy something at the price and terms offered at the time. You therefore have no grounds to moan if the supplier changes the terms after you have taken delivery!

Buy a Television for 500 quid with a one year warranty, one day later the dealer/manufacturer changes the price - downwards, and increases the warranty to 2 years! Do you moan? Of course not, you shrug and take it on the chin... You bought the item at the terms and conditions you were happy with otherwise you wouldn't have bought it.

[kithmo]

I'd rather have a spare wheel than the gunge, I think it's more economical. I reckon the cost of cleaning the wheel/tyre out after using the gunge and refilling the gunge dispenser would go a good way towards paying for a new tyre.

[Parts-King]

Cars used to have points and would break down on a regular basis, you got out gave them a clean and were on your way. Today we have electronic gadgetry that does the same job, but more efficiently, but if you break down, you are stuck, until rescued. We are all used to spare wheels but do we need them when a space saver or gunk will do for the vast majority? The argument that they dont have a spare so will change manufacturer seems OTT for me

Anyway I'm out of here on the subject this thread has gone wayyyyy

Kingo

[ian rooke]

Hi Parts king I know that the space/weight saver is perfectly legal but it is a cheap option from the manufacturer, having just paid £25000 for a car one decent wheel as a spare should not come into it.It is however a sign of the times that you get less for more money nowadays.

[Ancient Nerd]

I'm afraid it is the old story, you buy something at the price and terms offered at the time. You therefore have no grounds to moan if the supplier changes the terms after you have taken delivery!

Buy a Television for 500 quid with a one year warranty, one day later the dealer/manufacturer changes the price - downwards, and increases the warranty to 2 years! Do you moan? Of course not, you shrug and take it on the chin... You bought the item at the terms and conditions you were happy with otherwise you wouldn't have bought it.

Tony,

You've said this before. It wasn't true then. It isn't true now. There is no comparison between the purchase of a new TV and a new car. I have grounds for complaint if the change in supplier terms affects the value of, and my ability to resell, my car.

Toyota's change of warranty is a kick in the teeth for early adopters, and seriously distorts the second hand Prius market.

[korat102]

No spare wheel? What is Club Toyota for? You don't keep a dog and bark yourself, neither do you belong to the AA/RAC and mend a puncture yourself either!

It's probably not just Toyota that are doing away with spare wheels, I suspect they will all disappear in due course. I'm probably tempting fate here, but in 45 years of motoring I have never had occasion to use a spare wheel, in all my cars the spare has been untouched other than checking the pressure now and again!

I've had enough nails in my tyres over the years and enough split sidewalls (though not recently thankfully) to have a long hard think about a car supplied without a spare. Thing is, it would take me about ten minutes at the most to change a wheel (probably a lot less depending on the circumstances), that's a LOT less than it's going to take Mr AA to get to me. I may not keep a dog and bark myself but I do, in spite of never having had a fire in my house, keep a smoke alarm fitted...for those emergencies you know.

As far as tyre repair gunge from a can goes... The problem is that when it comes to having your tyre repaired, from what I've heard if it's full of sticky goo most of the tyre repair outfits will simply refuse to touch it. You'll have to buy a new tyre. That's a lot of money for a tiny hole caused by a nail.

Having said that, I have had no problems with the tyres on my 2005 Prius in the 6 years I've had it and we don't have spares on motorcycles (!) Guess I'm just so used to having a spare in a car that it seems vulnerable without one.

[korat102]

So what brand are you moving to? ALL cars are or will be moving in this direction in the coming years, call it progress or what you will but its a fact. I cant understand why people get so hung up over it myself. If it is such a problem for certain groups of people then just buy a spare

Kingo

Heh, nice solution but hardly practical because when the manufacturers decide to lose the spare, they also inconveniently do away with the space needed to store it...

[korat102]

Must admit I was quite excited when I heard Toyota were going to make a plug in Prius. Seems we'd get the best of both worlds, an electric car without the shortcomings of other electric cars. Even with a 12 mile range, that's pretty useful for people who have a relatively short commute. Course if we all had electric cars it wouldn't take the government long to shift the fuel tax from petrol and diesel to electricity... Wonder how many of these Toyota expect to sell.

[Jan&tone]

I'm afraid it is the old story, you buy something at the price and terms offered at the time. You therefore have no grounds to moan if the supplier changes the terms after you have taken delivery!

Buy a Television for 500 quid with a one year warranty, one day later the dealer/manufacturer changes the price - downwards, and increases the warranty to 2 years! Do you moan? Of course not, you shrug and take it on the chin... You bought the item at the terms and conditions you were happy with otherwise you wouldn't have bought it.

Tony,

You've said this before. It wasn't true then. It isn't true now. There is no comparison between the purchase of a new TV and a new car. I have grounds for complaint if the change in supplier terms affects the value of, and my ability to resell, my car.

Toyota's change of warranty is a kick in the teeth for early adopters, and seriously distorts the second hand Prius market.

So by the same token, change in supplier terms affecting the value, if mr T had decreased the price of a new Prius (which WOULD affect the second hand price, you would also be complaining?

sorry but we will have to disagree on this, IMO you have no grounds for complaint, the supplier of any item has the right to amend the terms of sale at any time. You buy an item at todays price and conditions, not at the price and conditions that it's offered tomorrow.

As for the comparison between a car and TV, what about those that bought an analogue TV just before digital was announced? Perhaps a bad example but the only one I could think of at the time

Back to the OP's question?

[Sagitar]

Legislative thinking seems to be going in the direction of a mandatory requirement to fit "runflats"; the logic being that they are safer. The next "logical" step is that with runflats fitted you do not need a spare?

The essential consequence of a puncture in a runflat is the highly probable need to buy a new tyre. We may be hopeful that when everyone has runflats, their cost may come down, but I see little chance that we are going anywhere but into a future where handling is poorer and overall tyre costs are significantly higher.