New Car Shopping List -- Need Advice - Compact/Hybrid???

[Mightymouse13]

UPDATE!!!!! See Post #23

My wife and I are starting to feel the financial pressure of having a child (6 month baby boy). My wife drives an 08 Versa Hatchback and I drive an 08 Toyota Tacoma. I've always convinced myself I needed a truck because I need to pick up stuff from Home Depot, go to the dump, chase firewood, be manly, etc....well my thinking has changed a bit.

I am going to inherit her 08 Versa and we are going to trade my Tacoma in to buy her a new fuel efficient car! We'll get a beater truck to park in the garage for the few times a month we need to drive the next town over for an errand!

Anyways, the gas savings alone moving from my Tacoma (21mpg) to her Versa (35mpg) will save us over $200 per month. Now we just have to pick the car! Here is the list. Our price limit is about $18,000 and we are looking mostly at compact hatchbacks. Sadly, she will only drive an automatic.

1. 2012 Ford Focus Hatchback
2. 2012 Hyundai Accent Hatchback
3. 2012 Chevrolet Sonic Hatchback
4. 2012 Prius C

The Toyota Prius C is the wildcard. I really didn't know about it until today...but I like it! The only problem is that being a hybrid, it is going to cost about $3,000 more than the other vehicles we are looking at. My math tells me it will take 150,000 miles to recoup the costs at $4 gas when compared to the other 3 on my list.

From a dollars and cents perspective, is the Prius C that much better of a vehicle and worth the premium? Anyone have any first hand experience on the other 3 on the list?

[herm]

No one is going to discount a C for a while due to the high demand, so you will have to pay a premium... but dont forget Toyota reliability and high resale value.

How about a used Prius in your budget range?.. the people that usually buy those cars are not wannabe Nascar racers.

[JusBringIt]

Originally Posted by herm

No one is going to discount a C for a while due to the high demand, so you will have to pay a premium... but dont forget Toyota reliability and high resale value.

How about a used Prius in your budget range?.. the people that usually buy those cars are not wannabe Nascar racers.

On the contrary...



I'd say prius C, but look at the warranties that are available. Toyota reliability isn't much of a factor here. Resale values of hybrids in general are higher, so look at the hybrid drivetrain as an investment. As gas prices rise (which they will), the value of the Prius C will be even higher. There was a time when used Prius commanded higher retail prices than when they were new.

With that in mind, you spend a little more on payment, but you'll recoup the investments in gas. What you don't recoup, you will get back in resale value.

[Mightymouse13]

Thank you all for the replies! To answer some of your questions... (sorry this is going make for a long post)

Originally Posted by herm

No one is going to discount a C for a while due to the high demand, so you will have to pay a premium... How about a used Prius in your budget range?.. the people that usually buy those cars are not wannabe Nascar racers.

Our budget is $18k with the trade in of my Tacoma. We might have to buy a 1yr used Focus or Elantra to fit this price range. The Accent and the Sonic we could buy new. We are willing to go up to $20k if it means 10-15+ more mpg. So as long as dealers are asking MSRP we could probably go for a C-1, which is about $20k after delivery and floor mats.

And about a used Prius. I hope I don't offend anyone too much but we are not big fans. We just don't like the look of the thing, never have. The list above is our narrowed down "fuel efficient cars that we would enjoy owning" (and can afford) list. The plan is to keep this car for about 10 years...so we want to make sure we like it!

Originally Posted by ksstathead

How many miles will this car accumulate per year? The c will bury the others on fuel economy, but it needs quite a few miles to pay back on gas savings alone....

The car will be driven about 22k miles per year. My math tells me that at $4 gas it will take 100,000 miles to get a return on the $2k premium if we average 50mpg in the C and 40mpg in any of the other cars. I consider that a moot point though...the money saved per month in gas is about the same as the increase in car payment from the other cars.

Originally Posted by MaxxMPG

Will the car be used within a large city? In crowded or more sparsely populated suburbs? In a rural area? - How is the terrain? Is it mostly level, or are there hills or mountains? We live in the rural suburbs near Worcester and my wife commutes to Boston every day. Its 90% highway but is often unpredictable and can sometimes be rush hour stop-and-go. The terrain is mostly flat with rolling hills.

The majority of Sonics I see on local lots are 1.8L and automatic, and the EPA is a deal breaker. The 1.8L dinosaur engine is out of the question. We would wait for the 1.4L turbo and automatic...due out in a few months. Supposed to be 40mpg.

The Focus is a good candidate but compare the price/value equation since many on my local dealer lots are the loaded versions that command midsize-sedan sticker prices. We've found some in our price range with the options we need. Its on the list because we like the look...its a good family vehicle (its large), and gets "good enough" mpg.

The Accent is a good candidate in that it offers the best EPA estimates out of the Focus/Sonic/Accent selection, and has the longest overall powertrain and bumper to bumper warranties (10/100 and 5/60). Feature for feature, it costs less, too. To be honest, until we knew about the Prius C....this was at the top of our list for the reasons you mention. It is also very large from a family carrier point of view, second only to the Focus.

If you are in a city/suburb commute, the Prius c or a used Prius is the car to beat. If you drive mostly highway, the Accent starts to shine with its lower purchase price and ability to easily beat the highway EPA when driven safely. I've tried but I can't get my wife to drive in a manner that will easily destroy EPA numbers. She doesn't drive like a maniac....but consistantly only gets 1mpg more than the EPA highway. I don't see her blowing the Accent's EPA numbers out of the water

The purchase of the new car will probably be around July-August. So far we are comparing cars "on paper", checking out photos and such on the net, and getting opinions from people like you. The list we compiled is the list of cars we like that get good fuel economy and in our price range. When it comes time to buy we will probably knock a car or two off of the list after we test drive....

Wow that was a long one.....thanks for your advice, and keep it coming!!!

[08EscapeHybrid]

My dad has a Focus sedan with a 5 speed, and its a blast to drive. He hasn't had any problems with it either. I know you're looking at automatics, which will take away some of the fun, but I still think a Focus would be a good deal. Ford also has a great certified used program, so you may save some by getting a like-new one that's 1 or 2 years old. My Escape was a Ford certified vehicle. It looks/drives like new, and I got it for about 1/2 the price of a new one. I even sprung for the 7 year/125,000 mile bumper to bumper extended warranty.

[ksstathead]

How many miles will this car accumulate per year?

The c will bury the others on fuel economy, but it needs quite a few miles to pay back on gas savings alone. I have a '10 Prius which we love dearly, but I hear great things about the c on the fuel economy front. Even the journalists seem to get over EPA in the c, and cleanmpg's journalist was in the high 80's mpg iirc. It will also pollute the least.

That's a fine list, BTW. Cannot go wrong. I have not driven any of them.

[MaxxMPG]

The Prius c may be the star of the lineup.

- Will the car be used within a large city? In crowded or more sparsely populated suburbs? In a rural area?
- How is the terrain? Is it mostly level, or are there hills or mountains?
In a previous post, you mentioned you lived in Massachusetts. Are you still living there? The state can vary between the gridlock of Boston to the mountainous Berkshires.

The majority of Sonics I see on local lots are 1.8L and automatic, and the EPA is a deal breaker. The 1.8L also has a timing belt instead of a chain, so if you will drive long distances, belt replacement costs are a consideration. You can find the scarce 1.4T with 6 speed stick to get the bigger numbers, but that is contingent upon your spouse - the primary driver - wanting a stick rather than an automatic.

The Focus is a good candidate but compare the price/value equation since many on my local dealer lots are the loaded versions that command midsize-sedan sticker prices.

The Accent is a good candidate in that it offers the best EPA estimates out of the Focus/Sonic/Accent selection, and has the longest overall powertrain and bumper to bumper warranties (10/100 and 5/60). Feature for feature, it costs less, too.

If you are in a city/suburb commute, the Prius c or a used Prius is the car to beat. If you drive mostly highway, the Accent starts to shine with its lower purchase price and ability to easily beat the highway EPA when driven safely.

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

Originally Posted by MaxxMPG

The Focus is a good candidate but compare the price/value equation since many on my local dealer lots are the loaded versions that command midsize-sedan sticker prices.

As much as I would love to say "Save the world, hug a tree, you should buy the Prius c" if you're very price-sensitive and can't wait for the Prius c rush to ease off it seems like it's a tough buy. The Focus might be low priced in the real world. It may have a Presidents' Day thing, but Ford and dealers were doing serious discounting last month on the Focus, which might explain why Chris can't see any "normal" ones.

If you can give us some more details of the miles the Prius c will be driven and what terrain it will have to deal with we might be able to shine some more light. Also, it's important to remember that the more awesomely efficient vehicle will also be driven as the shared vehicle.

Naturally, people at this site would like to get you in the most efficient solution, but we are pragmatic idealists.

[xcel]

Hi All:

While the Focus has $3K on the hood, it is the size of the Accent and Sonic. To get the price leader, you are driving stripped vs. a fully loaded 2012 Accent or similarly equipped 2012 Rio.

MightlyMouse, I am speaking to the choir when we talk about the new c as having the lowest "total cost of ownership". It not only pays you back at the pump but pays you back when you are ready for the next vehicle 3 to 10-years down the road and maintenance on the c should be minimal. 10K oil changes and new tires every 50 to 100k miles.

You will not have to pay a premium but you will probably pay MSRP for a while. Do not pay any market adjusted price or extra for pinstripes or rust proofing. If your local Toyota dealership adds anything, tell the salesman to pound sand and call the next closest Toyota dealer. There is not that much markup on any of the B-Segment vehicles to begin with.

Wayne

[Mightymouse13]

I should mention that one deciding factor for the Prius C is the cargo area. It sounds like a silly deal breaker but with a new child comes a rather large stroller, a diaper bag, etc.

My wife's Versa SL Hatch has 17.8 cubic feet of cargo. The stroller barely fits between the wheel wells. There is just enough room left to put the diaper bag and a few grocery bags on top of the stroller. It gets even tighter when we go on a trip somewhere and need to pack a couple overnight bags for us!

The Focus and Accent will easily accommodate our needs as they have 20-something cubic feet of room.

The Sonic and Prius C have a marginal amount less than the Versa, so depending on the design of the cargo area it may be a problem. Both cars are about a foot shorter in overall length than the Versa too...so something's got to give somewhere.

--Another thing that concerns me is that Toyota publishes the Prius C's passenger volume at 87ish cubic feet. The other models on the list are in the 110's. Something sounds fishy.....or the passenger compartment is really cramped even though the leg room, head room, etc are all competitive.