Would a Toyota Prius or other hybrid be suitable for this type of commute?

My spouse commutes 55 miles one way to work, for a total of 110 per day. The commute has toll roads, heavy merges and lots of other commuters. Would a Toyota Prius or other hybrid be suitable for this type of commute? Please explain why or why not. Thanks.Would a Toyota Prius or other hybrid be suitable for this type of commute?It would be a great car for that purpose.



If you are looking for a stripped-down car with no frills, go for the Corolla that a couple of other people mentioned. HOWEVER, don't compare the Prius to the Corolla and start talking about how long it will take the Prius' fuel savings to pay for the difference -- that ignores the fact that the Prius is a much better equipped car than the Corolla. If you add enough options to the Corolla to make it similar to the Prius, the difference is far less than the $6000 that people like to spout.



The first generation Prius that the former Prius owner mentioned (1997-2000) was a Japan-only vehicle. The first model year available in the US was 2001.



And there are plenty of Prius drivers out there with more than 200,000 miles, still on the original batteries. They are covered by a full warranty for 8 years or 100,000 miles; if bought in a state that follows California emission regulations, then it's 10 years or 150,000 miles. And very few batteries have been replaced outside of warranty anyway; if you're unlucky enough to have that happen to you, the cost is about $4,000 though it can be about $1000 less if you shop around.



And the people that love to suggest VW Jetta diesels...they may be fine, but they don't get 50MPG. Try 42. Calling it 50 is a 19% exaggeration.Would a Toyota Prius or other hybrid be suitable for this type of commute?
A Prius gets 50mpg, while a similar size non-hybrid compact car would get 30mpg. If you drive 100,000 miles, the Prius will require 2000 gallons of gas, while the non-hybrid would need 3333 gallons. So you'd save 1333 gallons over the "life" of the car, and figuring $3/gal for gas, that's $4000. Of course the Prius will be more expensive than a non-hybrid, probably at least $6000, so for a Prius you'd actually end up spending $2000 more over the life of the car. Another way to look at it is if you drive 100,000 miles in 5 years, you're paying about $33 more a month to drive the Prius. For some people that may be worth it. Also, if gas goes back to $4/gal, the $33 goes down to just $11/month.Would a Toyota Prius or other hybrid be suitable for this type of commute?Pros: You feel good about yourself because you think you are doing something for the environment.



Cons:

The tremendous waste of money. You won't ever break even.



When considering a hybrid vehicle you have to consider your break even point. What I mean is the point where you have saved enough money in gas to make up the difference of the added cost of the hybrid option.



Lets consider your two cars.



First, the 2010 Toyota Prius. The price of a Prius starts at $22,000. It gets 51 MPG city, 48 MPG highway. Just for comparison purposes I will average the city and highway mileage which is 49.5 MPG



Then there is the 2010 Corolla. The price for a Corolla starts at $15,350. It gets 26 MPG city, 35 MPG highway. Just for comparison purposes I will average the city and highway mileage which is 30.5 MPG



The price difference of these vehicles is $6,650



Figuring the cost of gasoline using the current national average of $2.47 per gallon. The Prius costs 4.990 cents per mile for fuel. The Corolla costs 8.098 cents per mile for fuel.



So with the Prius you will save about 3.11 cents per mile for fuel. With this 3.11 cents per mile fuel savings you will need to drive the Prius about 231,932 miles to make up the $6,650 price difference and break even.



While driving the Prius 231,932 miles you will need to replace the battery packs at least twice which will cost several more thousand dollars. So you never really break even.



Buy the Corolla. You may not feel as good about saving the environment, but your wallet will feel better.Would a Toyota Prius or other hybrid be suitable for this type of commute?
Do yourself a favor and buy a VW jetta diesel. 50 MPG and feel like a real car.Would a Toyota Prius or other hybrid be suitable for this type of commute?I've had a Prius for 5 years and loved it. I too drove a bit over 100 miles a day for my job.

For me the pros were good fuel efficiency (I averaged 47 MPG over the 5 years), space even though it was a small car it did have a lot of room and I loved the hatchback, it was also a comfortable ride (though spending a lot of time driving it, I did need to add a lumbar support because it lacks it) and it cut my carbon footprint! Oh and the Prius loves traffic, I get my best efficiency in stop and go traffic!

A few things to consider:

Initial cost. Before I bought it I did my math. I was considering a Matrix as well. The Matrix gets about 27 combined MPG the Prius realistically gets 47 combined MPG (some do get the 55 MPG, but it's tough). So the Prius I bought was about $3,000 more then the Matrix. So at $2.49/gal with 100 miles a day the annual gas cost for the Prius would be $1,933 the Matrix annual fuel cost would be $3,366. That's almost a $1,400 difference! So it would take just over 2 years to make up the difference. So if you intend on owning the car for more then 2 years, you'll be on the plus side and save some money over the long haul.

temperature: The Prius operates better at higher temps. It was designed for California. I live in CT where it gets pretty cold in the winter. So I got far better mileage in summer then I did in winter. If you live in a very cold climate, you might not get the bang for our buck.

Last thing I'll mention is that you have to learn how to drive a Hybrid. I kind of taught myself by watching the monitor. It's pretty easy you can look up "pulse and glide" to see what it is. I never read about it, but basically was doing the pulse and glide naturally by just following the fuel monitor.

Maintenance: I haven't had many problems with mine. I did get the extend warranty and was thankful for it as my catalytic converter went at 100,000 miles. But other then that, no problems. Just keep up with it and use synthetic oil 0W 20. It calls for 5W 20, but 0W is better! As for the battery, don't worry and don't listen to the rhetoric. Talk to the dealer if you have any concerns. I'm not sure but I believe the battery has an extended warranty. But talk to the dealer if you have any concerns. Also the safety concerns are also unfounded. There's no risk in a car wash or rain and emergency personnel are trained in how to do a rescue in a hybrid. Although to note, there were concerns with the 1st generation Prius (1997-2001).

Good luck, I hope the Prius fits the bill for your needs.