Best hybrid car

[desura]

I am looking to buy a used hybrid car soon. Currently I have an older Subaru Outback.

The choices I'm considering are a gen III Prius, a Chevy volt, and the Ford C-Max. Interestingly, used prices for the cmax and the volt are often comparable or lower than used prices for the Prius despite being more expensive at retail.

I am used to the spaciousness of the outback. I test drove a volt the other day and I found the interior cramped. Looking up information, it looks like it has something like half the interior space as a Prius? But then the advanced hybrid tech in it is appealing and I mostly drive myself and one other anyways.

Thoughts?

 

[Viper GTS]

I just picked up a completely loaded CPO 2013 C-Max Energi for $17,400. It was a $36k car 26 months ago when it was sold. Absolutely insane depreciation. The hybrid models are even cheaper, I've seen higher mileage ones going for $13k (with 80k miles). I specifically wanted the Energi since my <14 mile round trip commute fits nicely within the EV only range.

I suppose I'm taking a risk that the depreciation will continue like that but I figure it has to level out some time. At some point a late model car that is under warranty that you can drive for months without buying gas has to be worth something. Consumer Reports ranking the reliability as poor probably isn't helping resale, but from what I can see that's almost entirely due to Sync related issues at release. I've yet to find anything really objectionable about the most recent version of Sync. Unnecessarily complicated, sure, but it's done everything I asked it to without issue.

The interior space feels huge, in large part due to the high roof - If you're used to an Outback you'll probably like the space.

The other nice thing is the C-Max has a 50% power advantage over the Prius plug-in. It never feels as slow as it is thanks to the bulk of its power coming from the electric motor. Around town EV mode is completely sufficient, but it is definitely sluggish at highway speed in EV mode. Coming from far more powerful cars it takes a driving adjustment. If you're running in Auto mode the gas engine will kick on seamlessly if you go deep into the throttle, so for most people just leaving it in Auto is probably sufficient.

Viper GTS

 

[Yuriman]

Prius Plug-in, or non plugin?

Compared with other hybrids, a Prius will have the best fuel economy when burning gas, and probably the most usable space (unless we're talking about a hybrid SUV). It's less powerful than most (all) other hybrids though, and the plug-in version doesn't have quite enough range to keep completely off the gas tank for most, whereas the Volt does. There are a lot of strong contenders in the hybrid category, but if you value utility, a Prius is definitely not a bad choice.

What vehicle is most economical probably depends more on how much you pay for it.

 

[desura]

Prius Plug-in, or non plugin?

Compared with other hybrids, a Prius will have the best fuel economy when burning gas, and probably the most usable space (unless we're talking about a hybrid SUV). It's less powerful than most (all) other hybrids though, and the plug-in version doesn't have quite enough range to keep completely off the gas tank for most, whereas the Volt does. There are a lot of strong contenders in the hybrid category, but if you value utility, a Prius is definitely not a bad choice.

What vehicle is most economical probably depends more on how much you pay for it.

Not the plugin as it is pretty expensive used.

Yeah, utility is important to me. Then again, horizontal space is probably more useful for most utility than vertical space. Meaning that the volt might still be okay enough for utility despite having less cubic volume.

 

[TridenT]

Not the plugin as it is pretty expensive used.

Yeah, utility is important to me. Then again, horizontal space is probably more useful for most utility than horizontal space. Meaning that the volt might still be okay enough for utility despite having less cubic volume.

Words?

 

[desura]

Words?

Fixed.

 

[Yuriman]

Food for thought, I pull a trailer behind my hybrid. Installing a hitch is cheap and will make any car nearly as useful as a pickup truck.

 

[nerp]

That C-Max is compelling at that price. Consumer Reports has made a lot of really great cars seem "unreliable" because of user idiot problems and clunky infotainment. It's a shame. It's also a shame that the C-Max has not sold nearly as well as it would have with perhaps a different name, better marketing and higher gas prices. Well, higher gas prices is not something I want personally. The rub is that automakers will need to meet ever-increasing mileage standards so low gas prices don't necessarily spell the end of hybrids.

I'd get the C-Max.

 

[heymrdj]

The C-Max would be my choice. As CR noted the Prius family is great, but they are spartan, and it costs way too much money to get any nice features in one. The Ford Sync system is decent, I nor my friends really ever have any trouble with it (Android 4 and Windows Phone 8.1 devices, don't have anyone with IPhones in the Sync cars). It's as stable as any of the other infotainment systems (though the Chrysler family UConnect system is still the best). But the C-Max nails it for fit and finish where the other hybrid makers in the price category don't. It's the same reason I got my Fiesta instead of a Prius C. Even paying 28K for a Prius C, it was still covered in hard PlaySkool plastics.

 

[herm0016]

Volt all the way. We have one and love it. I usually get over 40 miles on a charge. We are averaging well over 100 mpg. The c max can't drive at highway speeds without running the gas engine, like many of the plug in cars out there. The volt can drive at any speed up a mountian without running the generator as long as the battery is charged. We fit a double vanity in ours with the seats down. 8 foot steel fence post and all the parts for a 6 foot wide gate fit in there too. We traded in an outback and could not be happier with our choice. I use between .1 and .3 gallons per day on my 57 mile round trip commute.

The volt has plenty of power even at 80 mph and I have no trouble passing going up to the Eisenhower tunnel at over 11000 feet elevation on I 70. Look for a 2013 or newer as they have a slightly larger battery and hold mode. Any questions please ask.

 

[Viper GTS]

Volt all the way. We have one and love it. I usually get over 40 miles on a charge. We are averaging well over 100 mpg. The c max can't drive at highway speeds without running the gas engine, like many of the plug in cars out there. The volt can drive at any speed up a mountian without running the generator as long as the battery is charged. We fit a double vanity in ours with the seats down. 8 foot steel fence post and all the parts for a 6 foot wide gate fit in there too. We traded in an outback and could not be happier with our choice. I use between .1 and .3 gallons per day on my 57 mile round trip commute.

Unless your highway speeds are over 85 mph the C-Max Energi absolutely can go highway speeds without gas.

Viper GTS

 

[heymrdj]

Volt all the way. We have one and love it. I usually get over 40 miles on a charge. We are averaging well over 100 mpg. The c max can't drive at highway speeds without running the gas engine, like many of the plug in cars out there. The volt can drive at any speed up a mountian without running the generator as long as the battery is charged. We fit a double vanity in ours with the seats down. 8 foot steel fence post and all the parts for a 6 foot wide gate fit in there too. We traded in an outback and could not be happier with our choice. I use between .1 and .3 gallons per day on my 57 mile round trip commute.

It is a nice car....

Unless your highway speeds are over 85 mph the C-Max Energi absolutely can go highway speeds without gas.

Viper GTS

But this. The Energi does 85MPH, the hybrid 2014 and up CMAX does up to 65MPH on battery before kicking in the ICE as long as the battery is charged, and the 2013 models will do it with a software update Ford put out.

Also, I don't know what the OP's budget is, so the Volt is a very good contender. That being said the starting price of the basic volt is 35K, while a Prius C wills tart at 17K and a CMAX at 22K.

 

[herm0016]

I see, thanks for the clarification. You can get a year old volt for under 20k with fairly low miles. The volt advisor team at gm takes good care of the owners as well, even when bought used.

 

[Xstatic1]

We bought a Toyota Camry Hybrid a few months ago and love it. We were on vacation over a week ago and rented a Prius (the get-up and go isn't that great, but once it gets going, it's :thumbsup. Overall, I don't recommend the Prius because while it was great for gas saving$, we were driving in windy conditions (in South Dakota) and didn't like how the Prius felt. However, if you'll be using it for long daily commutes, it may be adequate.

Before we bought the Camry, we did our homework (looked at Consumer Reports; other cars we considered were the Honda Accord Hybrid and Ford Fusion Hybrid), and checked truecar.com and edmunds.com to determine how much we should offer at the dealership.

Also, be sure to test-drive the cars you're interested in.

 

[thomsbrain]

The Honda Accord Hybrid has the MPG of a Prius, the best looks in the category (not saying much), the best driving dynamics of any hybrid in the category, is arguably the most luxurious, has the most advanced hybrid drivetrain on the market (even better than the Volt), and will have staggeringly good resale value.

Oh, and unlike the Fords, the Honda will actually achieve its advertised mileage.

The only 3 reasons to not get the Accord Hybrid: 1. If the trunk is too small for your day-to-day needs (get a Prius V). 2. You can't afford it (get a stripper Prius). 3. You absolutely need a plug-in (get the Volt).

 

[tortillasoup]

We bought a Toyota Camry Hybrid a few months ago and love it. We were on vacation over a week ago and rented a Prius (the get-up and go isn't that great, but once it gets going, it's :thumbsup. Overall, I don't recommend the Prius because while it was great for gas saving$, we were driving in windy conditions (in South Dakota) and didn't like how the Prius felt. However, if you'll be using it for long daily commutes, it may be adequate.

Before we bought the Camry, we did our homework (looked at Consumer Reports; other cars we considered were the Honda Accord Hybrid and Ford Fusion Hybrid), and checked truecar.com and edmunds.com to determine how much we should offer at the dealership.

Also, be sure to test-drive the cars you're interested in.

Any wagon like vehicle is going to suck in windy areas. SUVs, tractor trailers, etc. will get more easily pushed around by the wind compared with a Sedan. If you want utility, and spaciousness, go with the Prius. I don't like the C-max vehicles as they use too much fuel comparatively speaking and they're really not that large.

Check out any of the Toyota based hybrids, even the older Ford Escape Hybrid or Nissan Altima Hybrid which are all Toyota based hybrids.

The only reason to buy a Honda hybrid is to get a manual transmission, otherwise there is nothing special about them.

 

[Yuriman]

The Honda Accord Hybrid has the MPG of a Prius, the best looks in the category (not saying much), the best driving dynamics of any hybrid in the category, is arguably the most luxurious, has the most advanced hybrid drivetrain on the market (even better than the Volt), and will have staggeringly good resale value.

Oh, and unlike the Fords, the Honda will actually achieve its advertised mileage.

The only 3 reasons to not get the Accord Hybrid: 1. If the trunk is too small for your day-to-day needs (get a Prius V). 2. You can't afford it (get a stripper Prius). 3. You absolutely need a plug-in (get the Volt).

This. The Accord hybrid is not a hatch, but it's an incredible car otherwise.

Any wagon like vehicle is going to suck in windy areas. SUVs, tractor trailers, etc. will get more easily pushed around by the wind compared with a Sedan. If you want utility, and spaciousness, go with the Prius. I don't like the C-max vehicles as they use too much fuel comparatively speaking and they're really not that large.

Check out any of the Toyota based hybrids, even the older Ford Escape Hybrid or Nissan Altima Hybrid which are all Toyota based hybrids.

The only reason to buy a Honda hybrid is to get a manual transmission, otherwise there is nothing special about them.

The Accord hybrid is a different story entirely. It doesn't use the same drivetrain as their older hybrids.

 

[tortillasoup]

This. The Accord hybrid is not a hatch, but it's an incredible car otherwise.




The Accord hybrid is a different story entirely. It doesn't use the same drivetrain as their older hybrids.

The Accord hybrid has inflated fuel economy numbers. When it comes down to it, its fuel economy is the same as the Camry Hybrid while being more expensive. Toyota knows how to make a good, reliable hybrid.

 

[PhoKingGuy]

The Accord hybrid has inflated fuel economy numbers. When it comes down to it, its fuel economy is the same as the Camry Hybrid while being more expensive. Toyota knows how to make a good, reliable hybrid.

Bullshit as usual from you:

Accord Hybrid:

http://www.fuelly.com/car/honda/accord/2014?engineconfig_id=8454&bodystyleconfig_id=&submodel_id=

Camry Hybrid:

http://www.fuelly.com/car/toyota/camry/2014?engineconfig_id=8099&bodystyleconfig_id=&submodel_id=

 

[tortillasoup]

Bullshit as usual from you:

Accord Hybrid:

http://www.fuelly.com/car/honda/accord/2014?engineconfig_id=8454&bodystyleconfig_id=&submodel_id=

Camry Hybrid:

http://www.fuelly.com/car/toyota/camry/2014?engineconfig_id=8099&bodystyleconfig_id=&submodel_id=

I don't see the problem... Looks like you proved my point.


I think I can see why you're confused... You looked at the pretty bars and saw that there were slightly taller bars on the right side for the Accord vs. the camry... Here is the thing though, the graphs are with different scales. The Accord fillup graphs top off at less than 40 fillups while the Camry fillups tops off at 60 fillups. When you compare, you can see on the graphs where a lot of the higher MPG fill ups on the right hand side of the graph were for vehicles with less than 10 fillups.

I.e. Camry Owners are more fastidious and took more data samples while the Accord owners got lazy and took less data samples. Truncate the extremes and you'll see the vehicles get very similar if not exact same fuel economy. XLE Camry Hybrid gets worse fuel economy due to tires compared with the LE....just an fyi.


Here is a better graph:
http://www.fuelly.com/car/honda/accord/2014?engineconfig_id=13292&bodystyleconfig_id=&submodel_id=
(Accord hybrid)
http://www.fuelly.com/car/toyota/camry?engineconfig_id=13292&bodystyleconfig_id=&submodel_id=
(Camry hybrid)

That one shows more of a leaning towards the 43mpg as the median fuel economy for the Accord Hybrid vs. the 38mpg for the Camry.

Hard to say how much is attributed to the Camry XLE hybrid vs LE hybrid as the XLE definitely has a 2mpg penalty due to the tires/wheels.

 

[JulesMaximus]

I don't see the problem... Looks like you proved my point.


I think I can see why you're confused... You looked at the pretty bars and saw that there were slightly taller bars on the right side for the Accord vs. the camry... Here is the thing though, the graphs are with different scales. The Accord fillup graphs top off at less than 40 fillups while the Camry fillups tops off at 60 fillups. When you compare, you can see on the graphs where a lot of the higher MPG fill ups on the right hand side of the graph were for vehicles with less than 10 fillups.

I.e. Camry Owners are more fastidious and took more data samples while the Accord owners got lazy and took less data samples. Truncate the extremes and you'll see the vehicles get very similar if not exact same fuel economy. XLE Camry Hybrid gets worse fuel economy due to tires compared with the LE....just an fyi.


Here is a better graph:
http://www.fuelly.com/car/honda/accord/2014?engineconfig_id=13292&bodystyleconfig_id=&submodel_id=
(Accord hybrid)
http://www.fuelly.com/car/toyota/camry?engineconfig_id=13292&bodystyleconfig_id=&submodel_id=
(Camry hybrid)

That one shows more of a leaning towards the 43mpg as the median fuel economy for the Accord Hybrid vs. the 38mpg for the Camry.

Hard to say how much is attributed to the Camry XLE hybrid vs LE hybrid as the XLE definitely has a 2mpg penalty due to the tires/wheels.

I'm getting 38/39 average out of my 2012 Camry Hybrid XLE. 1-2mpg difference is miniscule.

I've had absolutely zero issues with it in nearly 45,000 miles of driving so far. Needs tires right now though, the OEM tires are pretty well worn.

 

[Knavish]

Absolutely insane depreciation.
Viper GTS

.., keep in mind that the Ford Energi cars and the Volt have up to ~$10k in tax credits when sold new. This is good for the initial purchase, but I expect the car depreciates by this amount the instant the buyer signs the contract.

 

[tortillasoup]

.., keep in mind that the Ford Energi cars and the Volt have up to ~$10k in tax credits when sold new. This is good for the initial purchase, but I expect the car depreciates by this amount the instant the buyer signs the contract.

exactly.

 

[vi edit]

I own a C-Max hybrid. I would (or should) have went the Energi route but the hatch space just got too small for comfort with the additional battery pack. It really is a great little car. The fit and finish is incredible. Go climb into a Prius after being in a C-Max and it's a night and day difference. The C-Max is like high class german luxury barge. It's eerily quiet and and just has an incredibly solid feel to everything. The prius is just...cheap. Cheap everywhere.

Head room in particular in the C-Max is amazing. If you don't have passengers in the back seat the leg room up front is incredible. And even with the front seats set, the back seats are still decent for normal sized adults.

I have a few complaints about the car though.

1) Sound system is a serious let down. The head unit destroys sound quality with compression. And for the cost, it should at least have come with a small subwoofer. There's zero bottom end to it. Even the Focus upgraded sony system had a small sub in the hatch area. Very disappointing.

2) Turn radius blows. It turns like a pickup truck. My giant mini van could turn better than the C-max can.

3) Gas mileage. In the summer, and in town it's good. 45-50MPG depending on driving style. In the winter that same economy drops to 36-38MPG. Highway is at best, 40MPG but closer to 38MPG. Not that good.

 

[Xstatic1]

Any wagon like vehicle is going to suck in windy areas. SUVs, tractor trailers, etc. will get more easily pushed around by the wind compared with a Sedan. If you want utility, and spaciousness, go with the Prius. I don't like the C-max vehicles as they use too much fuel comparatively speaking and they're really not that large.

Check out any of the Toyota based hybrids, even the older Ford Escape Hybrid or Nissan Altima Hybrid which are all Toyota based hybrids.

The only reason to buy a Honda hybrid is to get a manual transmission, otherwise there is nothing special about them.

I think the next time we rent a car and there are windy conditions in the forecast, we'll stick with standard or full-size cars. :biggrin: