Yaris vs Prius

[RABYARIS]

I have owned the Prius as well as the Yaris. These are some stats I collected on both cars;

Yaris - 34 MPG
Prius - 49 MPG

Insurance was the same for both cars.

The battery on the Prius was not an issue.

I prefer the comfort of the Yaris seats and cockpit over the Prius.

I did not like the hatchback door on the Prius. It was heavy and extended so high my garage door could hit it at times.

I actually sold my Prius for a newer Yaris and put over $8K in my pocket. I would recommend the Prius if you are an environmentalist or you are in California and have car pool stickers for the HOV lane. Otherwise, the Yaris is a no-brainer to me.

[Kal-El]

Originally Posted by RABYARIS

I would recommend the Prius if you are an environmentalist or you are in California and have car pool stickers for the HOV lane. Otherwise, the Yaris is a no-brainer to me.

Thing is, an environmentalist who knows what they're talking about realizes that a Yaris is better for the environment than the Prius. You have to look at the whole picture, not just the EPA sticker. One study even concluded that a Hummer was more environmentally friendly than a Prius, although I wouldn't go that far.

The reason for this is the huge environmental hit is is to produce these vehicles that use large batteries and other new technologies. Even producing solar panels is very dirty. And of course much of our electricity comes from burning coal.

The Yaris is in fact one of the cleanest cars available to own from production to disposal. Only other regular gas sub-compacts can compare similarly. The Prius uses much more energy to produce and creates much more toxic materials.

[RABYARIS]

Originally Posted by Kal-El

Thing is, an environmentalist who knows what they're talking about realizes that a Yaris is better for the environment than the Prius. You have to look at the whole picture, not just the EPA sticker. One study even concluded that a Hummer was more environmentally friendly than a Prius, although I wouldn't go that far.

The reason for this is the huge environmental hit is is to produce these vehicles that use large batteries and other new technologies. Even producing solar panels is very dirty. And of course much of our electricity comes from burning coal.

The Yaris is in fact one of the cleanest cars available to own from production to disposal. Only other regular gas sub-compacts can compare similarly. The Prius uses much more energy to produce and creates much more toxic materials.

You make great points...I did consider allot of these issues while I owned the Prius and when I talked with other Prius owners I noticed they did not want to talk about some of the "Hybrid" hype. They seemed happy enough that they were seen as being environmentally friendly. I guess it made them feel good about themselves. In fact, my wife's environmentally friendly Company gave us $5,000 to buy the car. On top of that the Government gave us a $3,500 tax credit. We actually turned a little profit on the car. LOL...

[H3LlIoN]

Originally Posted by Kal-El

Thing is, an environmentalist who knows what they're talking about realizes that a Yaris is better for the environment than the Prius. You have to look at the whole picture, not just the EPA sticker. The reason for this is the huge environmental hit is is to produce these vehicles that use large batteries and other new technologies. Even producing solar panels is very dirty. And of course much of our electricity comes from burning coal.

More importantly, what do you think happens to the 900 pounds of batteries when they go bad? I'll give you a hint...they don't recycle them. I've seen the loads going overseas to be torn apart then BURIED in countries where the EPA doesn't exist. On top of that, prius' are absolutely ass ugly. My $.02. Whatever you go with, enjoy the hell out of it.

[krolos]

Ya it is common fact that a product manufacture whether it is
computer or auto they will provide some recycle outlet for the
consumer , they then sell the material for very cheap or free who knows?
and this overseas taker will make use of very little of this and the rest
goes into the ground and contaminate the water supply, people
get sick , there was a thing on sixty minutes a few years ago
and in this case it was cell phone batteries, so much for the
Prius being Green, oh well I guess Prius drivers still think they are cool
and Hip

[alam99]

Originally Posted by krolos

Ya it is common fact that a product manufacture whether it is
computer or auto they will provide some recycle outlet for the
consumer , they then sell the material for very cheap or free who knows?
and this overseas taker will make use of very little of this and the rest
goes into the ground and contaminate the water supply, people
get sick , there was a thing on sixty minutes a few years ago
and in this case it was cell phone batteries, so much for the
Prius being Green, oh well I guess Prius drivers still think they are cool
and Hip

I did some research on the Prius a while back. Toyota offers $200 to recyclers / junk yards for old Prius batteries.

Views on yarisworld are skewed toward Yaris, naturally. If you want another point of view, check out www.priuschat.com. It'll be skewed in the other direction, but at least you'll get better Prius information and can make a better informed decision. Best of luck and let us know how it goes.