Prius maintance

Oil changes and tire rotations ever 5K miles. That's about it, up to

60K miles.

And then?

But *only* if you usually buy a car which costs less than a Prius. (Enough of a difference to offset the gas savings the Prius would provide.) If a person would otherwise purchase a Camry - or its equivalent, spending $21K or more, then it's a different story, & the Prius is economically worth your while.

Cathy

How much do you save at the pump? I had a $12,850 Tercel with an AT that got 44 MPG overall economy.

And I just found out it's worth 3 times what I sold it for! (The value has gone UP $1,000 on both Kelley and NADA since I sold it...)

RTFM, WBMS.

None is required to be at the dealer as you can DIY or have any trusted shop do the maintenance just as with any other vehicle. The only things that I would have done at the dealer is the inverter coolant change as it is difficult to properly bleed the air from the system. Fortunately this only has to be done after the first 10 years/100,000 miles and every 5 years/50,000 after that. I would also have them change the brake fluid every few years as this is an item most people don't do but should since brake fluid absorbs moisture from the air. To see what needs to be done at what interval go to

and click the "NEXT > >" link to view the intervals. The only item that isn't on the list that owners recommend is changing the transaxle fluid every 60,000 miles or so.

Fluid - Type - Capacity

Trans fluid - Toyota WS - 4 Quarts

Engine oil - 5W-30 - 3.5 Quarts

Engine coolant - Toyota SLLC - 9.1 Quarts

Inverter coolant - Toyota SLLC - 4? Quarts

Could only find the inverter coolant capacity for the classic NHW11 not the current NHW20.

Don't have one. Won't have one.

It would?

Do you have any actual facts to back that up?

'Cuz, it ain't true. The Prius wouldn't cost you more than a car the same size with the same utility.

Why Not? Why Not?

See Danny Who Wants to Know's suggestion:

Tire rotations can be gotten for free....

Changing the oil every 6 months (required to change every 6 months) saves at least 70 bucks a year...

As for the fear about batteries... read the following..

How often do hybrid batteries need replacing? Is replacement expensive and disposal an environmental problem? The hybrid battery packs are designed to last for the lifetime of the vehicle, somewhere between 150,000 and 200,000 miles, probably a whole lot longer. The warranty covers the batteries for between eight and ten years, depending on the car maker.

Battery toxicity is a concern, althoug today's hybrids use NiMH batteries, not the environmentally problematic rechargeable nickel cadmium. "Nickel metal hydride batteries are benign. They can be fully recycled," says Ron Cogan, editor of the Green Car Journal. Toyota and Honda say that they will recycle dead batteries and that disposal will pose no toxic hazards. Toyota puts a phone number on each battery, and they pay a $200 "bounty" for each battery to help ensure that it will be properly recycled.

There's no definitive word on replacement costs because they are almost never replaced. According to Toyota, since the Prius first went on sale in

2000, they have not replaced a single battery for wear and tear.

Also, most states give massive tax rebates when you buy a hybrid...

Are you factoring in the thousands that states pay for those who switch to Hybrids?

Re: Prius maintance Group: alt.autos.toyota Date: Mon, Apr 21, 2008, 6:39pm From: snipped-for-privacy@adelphiadotdashdot.net (Cathy=A0F.) Assume for a moment that you made a choice between a Prius and another car that is the same size and offers the same utility. The Prius would cost more, but you save at the pump. You will need to save about 150,000 miles just to cover the increased price that the Prius commands. But *only* if you usually buy a car which costs less than a Prius. (Enough of a difference to offset the gas savings the Prius would provide.) If a person would otherwise purchase a Camry - or its equivalent, spending $21K or more, then it's a different story, & the Prius is economically worth your while. Cathy =3D---------------- I could also buy a corrola (great mileage and alot less $$$) even if I would otherwise buy a camry.. You're digging deep to find an exuse to compare it to a more expensive car. Kinda like some of the arguments Billary is trying to use to get elected..

CP

True

True also

Total BS here. There is a person in the Toyota-Prius Yahoo! Group called Patrick Wong that has had the traction batteries in both his Prius AND his HiHy (shorthand for Highlander Hybrid) replaced under warranty. One of my pet peeves (psychotic hatreds for George Carlin fans) is people spreading false information about a vehicle whether it be good or bad. There is someone on Y! Answers by the nickname "ProfessorPrius" that is commonly wrong about things such as the battery issue. He claims that the only one that has ever failed had a screw driven into it in an attempt to install a subwoofer. Batteries have failed there is no doubt about it but the truth is that if they were dropping dead at the rate that some people claim they are Toyota corporate would have had its pants sued off in a huge class action suit by now. I am a Prius advocate but I know that nothing is perfect. The Prius is just another car and shi...stuff happens. It is a great vehicle but it isn't a flawless gem that will never ever break.

If the states paid hybrid purchasers thousands for each hybrid - along w/the Fed's tax break that was in place, I could've discounted the price diff. between a Corolla LE & a near-base Prius, & bought the Prius in '04. Would've then made sense financially. But I bought the Corolla. Because it made sense financially over the course of a projected 6-year ownership - a savings of approx. $5K. (Bring that down a little, due to the rising cost of gas since then.) Unfortunately, the tax breaks aren't huge, & AFAIK are being phased out - at least the Fed one.

Cathy

Re: Prius maintance

Group: alt.autos.toyota Date: Mon, Apr 21, 2008, 6:39pm From: Assume for a moment that you made a choice between a Prius and another car that is the same size and offers the same utility. The Prius would cost more, but you save at the pump. You will need to save about 150,000 miles just to cover the increased price that the Prius commands.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

snipped-for-privacy@adelphiadotdashdot.net (Cathy F.)

But *only* if you usually buy a car which costs less than a Prius. (Enough of a difference to offset the gas savings the Prius would provide.) If a person would otherwise purchase a Camry - or its equivalent, spending $21K or more, then it's a different story, & the Prius is economically worth your while. Cathy =---------------- I could also buy a corrola (great mileage and alot less $$$) even if I would otherwise buy a camry.. You're digging deep to find an exuse to compare it to a more expensive car. Kinda like some of the arguments Billary is trying to use to get elected.. `````````````````````````````````` I wasn't digging at all. That's just the way it pans out. A Prius is more on par w/a Camry than it is w/a Corolla, interior space-wise. And their costs are comparable - they overlap - depends on which trim level Camry you get & which pkg. on the Prius. Then add in the added mpg...

Cathy

I wasn't digging at all. That's just the way it pans out. A Prius is more on par w/a Camry than it is w/a Corolla, interior space-wise. And their costs are comparable - they overlap - depends on which trim level Camry you get & which pkg. on the Prius. Then add in the added mpg... Cathy

--------- I admit to not knowing (lack of interest) the prius' stats (legroom, shoulder space, wheelbase etc.), but just eyeballing the vehicle and sitting in one, it looks to be a shorter, narrower wheelbase than the camry. I would imagine the ride to be less comfortable and I think I remeber the seating to be as narrow as the corolla. I doubt it has the trunk and rear leg room the camry does..

CP

Speaking of... Texas has a deal going right now to phase out old cars... They pay 3 grand towards a down payment of a new car if the person relenquishes the old vehicle....

the reason is that they are trying to get emissions down or they lose federal money for highways...

Good, because it's obvious you're making a slew of guesses!

Eyeballing it doesn't work. It looks about the same size as a Corolla on the outside, but it's been designed/engineered really well; more spacious on the interior. Is categorized with family/mid-sized cars, not with the Corolla, Civic, etc.

and

Its interior is wider than a Corolla's.

Bzzzzt... wrong again, at least re: the leg room. I already mentioned this in another thread re: the Prius, & one I test drove. I first put the driver's seat all the way back, then sat in the back seat, behind the driver's seat. I have long legs (I always drive with the driver's seat as far back as it will go), & yet I had plenty of spare room between my knees & the back of the driver's seat. Cubic feet of cargo space (with back seats not flipped down) in the Prius vs. the Camry - I don't know; would have to look it up. OTOH, the back seats (of the Prius) flip down to a virtually flat position - not the rather awkward angle one usually gets with the 60/40 fold-down seats for pass-through from a trunk.

Cathy