Would you pick a hybrid or an old car?

Question

Hi,

I am 16, going into gr.12, live in BC, Canada, took drivers ed and I just got my N!. I'm in the market for buying a car because taking the bus everyday of my life for 5 years, I've gotten sick of it. I have a budget of 8k. My parents want me get an old hybrid since the rising cost of fuel and I agree. They're looking more towards a 2001-2003 Toyota Prius, its a good car and gets excellent MPG but there so hard to find! I've always wanted an acura integra, I don't care about speed, I'm more concerned for safety and acceleration. Honda Prelude is also an option. Honda civic's and Toyota Corolla's would be on my list but there resale value is so high, even for a 2002/2003. I also haven't decided of where I'm purchasing my car, I could buy it here in Vancouver or I could import it from the US. All my friends have imported theirs because its "cheaper", one of mine even got it transported from Florida to here and it was cheap. So what I'm looking for is

What type of hybrid should I look for with 8k

Where should I buy the car

and any other suggestion's helps a lot

Thanks!

Answer 1

A Prius is not the godsend everyone claims them to be. I tried to talk my dad out of buying one. There were far too many problems with them that Toyota managed to hush up. They would stop for no apparant reason. You could be driving 65 on the freeway and it would just cut out and die. There were dash board fires and many other problems.

But my dad had to have one to do his part of being green. The first thing he found that he was not getting anywhere near the MPG Toyota, or the EPA, claimed. In fact he was getting about 30% less. Then he got in an accident and was badly injured.

The entire front of the car pushed back into the passenger compartment, crushing his legs under the dash. According to witnesses and the police report, he was doing less than the speed limit (30 mph) at the time when another car pulled a u-turn in front of him. To make matters worse, he had to wait for the Haz-Mat rescue to show up and pull him out of the wreck. Regular emergency crews could not do it because of the hazardous materials in a hybrid.

Another thing to consider, the battery pack in a hybrid cost anywhere from $6,000 to $10,000 to replace once it goes bad. And you have to pay a hefty hazardous material dispositon fee on top of that, since the battery packs are toxic waste.

I'm sure some Toyota lovers and eco peole will tell you I'm full of it and extol the virtues of a hybrid. And Toyota puts such a "green' spin on the Prius in their advertising that they have everyone believing they'll save the planet. But I've been in the car business for over 30 years. I know more about every car than most average joes, since it's my business to know my own brand and the competition's. I tried to set my dad straight. It took a serious accident to convince him.

Hybrids are not the saviors of our planet. They contain hazardous materials and toxic waste. They're very costly to repair. And in the event of an accdient, can cost you critical time in emergency medical care that can lead to much worse injuries.

Eventually, with more research and development, hybrids may be key in us getting off of oil dependency and to a greener environment. But that will be at least a few years from now. Today's hybrids are a true waste of money.

As for an older car under $8,000, there are so many good choices out there. If they cost less here in the U.S., I highly recommend you head south, buy your car, then drive it home. Just keep in mind, $8,000 will only buy you an average car, meaning a 3 to 5 year old car that will do you well for about two years at the most before it starts running up costly repairs.

My advice is no matter what you buy, always service your car. Change the oil, wash it. Wax it. Rotate the tires and change the oil, fuel and air filters. Change the hoses every year and the coolant when needed. And always keep the air pressure in the tires up to factory specs. You'll get a lot more carefree driving out of it.

Answer 2

I always vote for a hybrid; you can save costs for the fuel and can help mother earth with less emission. You can try looking up in craigslist or in ebay for the type of car you want.

Answer 3

get a camaro. get a 98-02 ss or z28. you will die in a j*p car. in a camaro, there is a indestructible bar on both door so that if you're hit, you'll still be alive. plus they get good gas mileage with the  powerful ls1 that will last forever..

Answer 4

you may want to check in with the local Prius-Canada group:  http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/Cana...

I cannot believe the fearmongering on Y!A...  The NiMH battery is non-toxic, contains no heavy metals (unlike the traditional 12v lead-acid accessory/starter battery all cars have), and is not a hazardous material.  The high-voltage battery is electrically disconnected from the vehicle when the Prius is off (and any emergency responder would turn off any car when approaching an accident) or if the airbags are deployed.  Hybrid battery replacements are extremely rare in or out of warranty (warranty is 8 years/100,000 miles)...  All maintenance and most all repairs can be done by any competent mechanic, and parts are much cheaper if you go used (scrap/junkyard) but since production numbers were low used parts may be hard to find and you may have to get new from the Toyota dealer...

If shopping used, besides checking on owners' lists to see if one is for sale (usually from an owner "upgrading" to the newer/larger model Prius), also check out the usual places, like craigslist, autotrader, eBay Motors, etc.

If you do import a Prius from the US, warranties will transfer, and Toyota will give you the paperwork regarding recalls that'll allow you to bring it into Canada.  (Honda is known to not provide such recall info, so importing Hondas into Canada is near impossible...)  Do be aware that the US Prius did not have daytime running lights as standard (an option for 2002-2003), so you may need to have such wired aftermarket in a 2001-2003 NHW11 "Classic" Prius, since DRLs are required by Canadian law.

Other used hybrids I would look into:

Honda Insight

Honda Civic Hybrid

(but only Canadian-market ones due to import problems!)

Answer 5

I would import if cheaper and I would get a Grand prix. They are sporty good milage like 30mpg and you can buy a two year old one for about $8000 plus they run forever my ex girlfriend has hers up to 300,000 miles and still runs good. And no thatwasn'tt a miss print three hundred thousand miles orsomethingg you see on the road alot that should be a good give away  

Answer 6

Since this is the Australian Yahoo Answers, not the best place to ask.

The Prius is a wanker's car. I'd go with a Ford Crown Victoria.

SInce I live in Australia though, probably best to find out what others have to say.

Answer 7

get da hybrid. its great on gas, not an uncool car and runs for years.

Answer 8

well if something breaks down in a hybrid youll most likely have to take it to the dealer and that can cost ya, where as older cars you can take anywhere, and if you get a nice older car the value can go up with age instead of decline, but look on craigslist.com for cars its a website where people for your part of town sell cars and what not. hope this helps