Prius 10 Year Anniversary Edition

[MrMajic]

Hi all

I'm considering buying a used anniversary model as a company car by would be grateful for some advice/information on the following:

Prices seem to range from £18,000 to £23,000 for a similar aged low mileage model from Toyota. Where there any updates with the anniversary model or are they all the same (aside from the "packs" available), i.e. are they all gen 3?

I get 50mpg real world average in my 320d, but I drive for economy. What sort of real world mpg can I expect?

I haven't driven one yet, and I must say I really like my current car's drive. How far on has the drive come?

In buying an anniversary model am I missing a later, better model?

Thanks in advance.

Mark

[wass]

Diesels are strong on the constant higher speed motorway runs whilst hybrids are strongest in urban conditions. It is relatively easy for a manual gearboxed diesel to out perform the fuel consumption of a CVT gearboxed hybrid travelling at 70 mph on a motorway for long distances.

Hybrids can return some very good fuel consumption figures if average speeds are kept relatively low such as city driving or single carriageway A road driving. A 10th anniversery Prius can be driven in such a way so as to return 70 MPG during hot summer months on longer urban and suburban journeys.

I would recommend that you trial the prius along one of the routes which you travel regularly in the BMW if possible.... just to be sure.

Horses for courses would be my conclusion.

[MrMajic]

Thanks wass, appreciated. I'm hoping to make it for a test drive on Monday.

[johalareewi]

Hi all

I'm considering buying a used anniversary model as a company car by would be grateful for some advice/information on the following:

Prices seem to range from £18,000 to £23,000 for a similar aged low mileage model from Toyota. Where there any updates with the anniversary model or are they all the same (aside from the "packs" available), i.e. are they all gen 3?

Yes. All gen3 but with special wheels and only in black or white. It was a special limited edition so there are no updates.

I get 50mpg real world average in my 320d, but I drive for economy. What sort of real world mpg can I expect?

Fuelly is your friend - look at 2010+ for gen3 prii.

http://www.fuelly.com/car/toyota/prius

I haven't driven one yet, and I must say I really like my current car's drive. How far on has the drive come?

Not sure what you mean. Are you talking about the HSD (Hybrid Synergy Drive)?

If you mean what is it like to drive, go and get an extended test drive (for an afternoon say).

In buying an anniversary model am I missing a later, better model?

If you are looking at a Prius specifically then the 10th anniversary model is basically a special edition gen3. Under the bonnet, all gen3 prii have the same HSD. The gen3 Prius had a facelift July 2012ish (slight restyle, daytime running lights, folding door mirrors, touch and go head unit, improved FM radio reception, backup camera now standard,...).

There are some new members to the Prius family:- The Prius plug-in and the Prius+ (7 seater).

If you are looking more at the Toyota hybrid drive, you also have the Hybrid Auris (same HSD as the gen3 prius) and Hybrid Yaris (different HSD). If you want to go upmarket, there is the Lexus CT200H (Kylie not included).

[MrMajic]

Thanks. I'm having a drive tomorrow.

[r04drunner1]

Thanks. I'm having a drive tomorrow.

So how did the drive go?

Another good site for fuel statistics is http://www.whatcar.com/truempg/my-true-mpg

The good thing about the What Car site is that it asks you what your driving style and typical journey mix is. I plugged in the data on my Prius T4, driving style, journey mix and annual mileage. I got a pretty accurate result of around 53MPG. My trip computer reports 57MPG, but since in car MPG can be optimistic up to 10% then 53MPG is pretty close to what I am probably getting.

You have been getting good MPG with your BMW, but I presume the MPG you quote is in-car gauge report. If that is the case, your real world MPG would be lower. It's still pretty good!

As other posters have said, a manual diesel on long, fast motorway trips is pretty comparable with a automatic hybrid. It's the urban environment and/or prolonged stop start driving (M25 in rush hour) where the hybrid really excels. And you have to factor in the convenience and silence of the automatic eCVT and the electric motor. I hate sitting in rush hour traffic with diesels rumbling around me, belching out fumes. The Prius is an altogether more genteel experience.

One thing you will note on the test drive is that the Prius encourages a gentler, smoother driving style. You don't get the bags of torque from the turbo on your diesel, and the Prius sounds thrashy if flogged too hard. It will also be a more tinny experience than the BMW. For me, however, the practicalities and flxibility of the hatchback are a real boon.

As other posters have said, horses for courses.

[MrMajic]

For some reason, I wasn't too impressed. The dealer was a bit lax, which I think was the main issue, and he didn't know the differences between the anniversary edition and the 2012 edition. I'm going to try another, more likely a used 2012 model. Maybe even a plug in. It looks to me that, if I can find a reasonably priced one, the plug in would be a better option. My commute is 12 miles or so with the last 1-2 in traffic.

BTW the BMW mileage is calculated, so I'm fairly light footed already!

Thanks. I'm having a drive tomorrow.

So how did the drive go?

Another good site for fuel statistics is http://www.whatcar.com/truempg/my-true-mpg

The good thing about the What Car site is that it asks you what your driving style and typical journey mix is. I plugged in the data on my Prius T4, driving style, journey mix and annual mileage. I got a pretty accurate result of around 53MPG. My trip computer reports 57MPG, but since in car MPG can be optimistic up to 10% then 53MPG is pretty close to what I am probably getting.

You have been getting good MPG with your BMW, but I presume the MPG you quote is in-car gauge report. If that is the case, your real world MPG would be lower. It's still pretty good!

As other posters have said, a manual diesel on long, fast motorway trips is pretty comparable with a automatic hybrid. It's the urban environment and/or prolonged stop start driving (M25 in rush hour) where the hybrid really excels. And you have to factor in the convenience and silence of the automatic eCVT and the electric motor. I hate sitting in rush hour traffic with diesels rumbling around me, belching out fumes. The Prius is an altogether more genteel experience.

One thing you will note on the test drive is that the Prius encourages a gentler, smoother driving style. You don't get the bags of torque from the turbo on your diesel, and the Prius sounds thrashy if flogged too hard. It will also be a more tinny experience than the BMW. For me, however, the practicalities and flxibility of the hatchback are a real boon.

As other posters have said, horses for courses.

[r04drunner1]

For some reason, I wasn't too impressed. The dealer was a bit lax, which I think was the main issue, and he didn't know the differences between the anniversary edition and the 2012 edition. I'm going to try another, more likely a used 2012 model. Maybe even a plug in. It looks to me that, if I can find a reasonably priced one, the plug in would be a better option. My commute is 12 miles or so with the last 1-2 in traffic.

BTW the BMW mileage is calculated, so I'm fairly light footed already!

Wow. That's impressive mileage. And speaks of a light footed approach that will suit the Prius well.

My Prius has been brilliant for me, it has halved my fuel bills compared to the Jaguar S-Type diesel I used to run. Hope you find the right car for you, but it sounds like you have your head screwed on so I am sure you will.

Best wishes

[johalareewi]

Plug-in would be good for you if you can charge up at home. The problem you might have is getting one at a decent price. They only came out here this year and in very small numbers. Plus MrT bumped up the price to soak up the government grant.

The facelifted 2012 gen3 will be the same HSD as other gen3s so the mpg will be pretty much the same. You will get a few more gadgets as standard (like backup camera).

You can find that dealers often don't know the intricate differences between the gen3 flavours. Best place for that is the internet!

[MrMajic]

Thanks for the replies. I took out a plug-in earlier this morning, but as it hadn't been charged (in fairness to the dealer I turned up un-announced) I didn't used the large Battery. The drive was better than I recall for the anniversary edition, and showed an average 60mpg over a short mixed drive. Now that I've disucssed the plug in with a dealer I realise that the plug in element is really just another Battery, so I'm not sure that the additional price that I'd pay (particularly as they are so new) would be worth it.

Warming to a "normal" Prius though.

[johalareewi]

Now that I've disucssed the plug in with a dealer I realise that the plug in element is really just another battery

That is over simplifying it a bit.

The plug-in is essentially an electric car like the Nissan Leaf (which why it qualifies for the government grant)

that has a petrol engine as backup for when the Battery runs out. Like the Ampera.

You can drive the plug-in in EV mode for many miles at normal speeds (no petrol needed).

The normal Prius is a petrol car with electric assistance.

You can't get very far in EV mode (less than 1 mile) and not above 30mph.

[MrMajic]

Now that I've disucssed the plug in with a dealer I realise that the plug in element is really just another battery

That is over simplifying it a bit.

The plug-in is essentially an electric car like the Nissan Leaf (which why it qualifies for the government grant)

that has a petrol engine as backup for when the Battery runs out. Like the Ampera.

You can drive the plug-in in EV mode for many miles at normal speeds (no petrol needed).

The normal Prius is a petrol car with electric assistance.

You can't get very far in EV mode (less than 1 mile) and not above 30mph.

Thanks.

[timberwolf]

The plug-in has an upper speed limit though which is below motorway speed limit - therefore I don't think it counts as an full electric car like the Leaf because it can not operate exclusively on the Battery even if there is sufficient charge left in the Battery.

[johalareewi]

True.

But to qualify as an electric car for the UK grant, it has to do more than 60mph on Battery power alone which the plug-in can.