Do you want a free car ? Silly question, anyone would. Well how about the next closest thing -- a car that actually pays for itself in fuel savings within just a few years of normal driving.

Last night you may have seen as I did one of the current affairs programs run a story on hybrid cars with a comparison between initial purchase cost / fuel savings / payoff time for the new Toyota Prius compared to some small cars running on petrol and diesel. The point of the story was that while buying a new Prius might make you feel warm and fuzzy about the environment, the actual payoff time based on average fuel savings could be 20 years if you factor in the initial cost of buying a new Prius which was much more than the comparison models they used.

While this is for the most part true based on the facts they presented, they added a scare tactic about a 5 year replacement cost on a Prius battery indicating this could be $10,000. Based on the experience of a good contact at a company that has complied and worked on a great deal of Prius's, in reality they see many 1997 to 2001 models still going strong on their original batteries some 7 to 11 years later. In the rare instance where a battery has needed replacement, the cost has been between $5,000 and $7,000.

It is also very important to remember that not everyone buys a NEW car. The 1997 to 2001 model that can be imported is easily less than one third the cost of a new Prius, and based on the fuel savings the payback equation is so much more convincing. In fact, secondhand Prius's are such good value that I am amazed more people are not importing them. Perhaps they don't realise what good deals there are to be had.

Have a look at the potential fuel savings. The 1997 to July 2001 Toyota Prius (NHW10) is the model that can be imported. With fuel consumption claimed to be less than 3.6L / 100 km in ideal circumstances, it is the most fuel efficient car available to the Australian market and has the potential to save thousands each year on the average household fuel bill. The Prius weighs just 2,765 pounds (1,255 kg) and has as much interior space and boot space as a Toyota Corolla.

Let's say you swapped one of the most common cars, a 1999 VT Commodore for a Prius of the same age and price (bearing in mind that the average Commodore of this age would have done over 170,000 kms and the Prius from Japan only 80,000 kms). The Commodore gets about 12L / 100 km in typical suburb driving, going shopping, doing the school run, and the occasional longer trip. The Prius gets its best economy in stop / start city driving, so in suburban circumstances let's say the Prius is good for about 5.5 L / 100 km which is probably being a bit hard on it, but for comparison's sake let's use that figure (so no one complains), and $1.60 per L as the fuel price. Travelling 15,000 kms per year in the Commodore would use about 1,800 L of fuel per year costing approx. $2,880. Going the same distance in the Prius would use about 825 L of fuel costing approx. $1,320. The saving would be about $1,560 per year, which would be close to $2,000 per year if you spent most of your time in city driving where the Prius is in its element and achieves the best fuel economy.

If you travel 30,000 kms per year (576 kms per week) as many people do, then you'd be looking at over $3,000 per year in fuel savings and would be able to completely offset the purchase price of your Prius in just 3 to 4 years. Meaning in that time you'd be financially in front by over $10,000 on having done nothing and instead kept filling up the thirsty Commodore. If you need to replace the battery in this time then so what ? You'd still be well in front.

Of course there are also some very significant benefits to the environment of using less fuel while travelling the same distance. And since your Prius has paid for itself these come for free with a nice warm and fuzzy feeling thrown in. Gloating over friends is optional !

Good examples start from only $8,500 complied, and with the possible fuel savings they can literally pay for themselves within a year or two. To view vehicles available in stock, simply use the Keyword search for "Prius" or "Prius sold" from our main page.

If you are interested to see what else is available at auction in Japan and the sale prices for current examples, why not take a look at the Japanese Auctions to see what is available at auction today. You can also ask us (sales@prestigemotorsport.com.au) for a FREE TRIAL of our automated Auction Search System which delivers auction vehicles of interest to you by e-mail each morning. We promise that you will be amazed !


What is the Toyota Prius?

The Toyota Prius is the world's first standard-production hybrid-electric vehicle (hence the name, which, in Latin, means "to go before"). Prius incorporates all the safety, comfort, drivability, and performance of a conventional compact sedan, while offering high mileage and extremely low exhaust emissions. Powered by the revolutionary Toyota Hybrid System (THS) incorporating both a gasoIine engine and an electric motor, the Prius went on sale in Japan in December 1997 and is the first mass-produced hybrid vehicle in the world to be offered for public sale. The Prius won car of the year in 1997, when it was introduced in Japan, and topped sales expectations.


Prius Hybrid Technology

The highlight of the Prius is that it incorporates the technologies of a clean- burning, high-efficiency internal combustion (IC) engine with a silent and efficient electric vehicle (EV) power system. By using a newly developed advanced transmission and precision power and engine management controls, Toyota has developed a vehicle that bridges both IC and EV systems, combining the best of each. In testing in Japan, Prius delivered fuel economy of 66 mpg (approx. 3.57 litres per 100kms) and emission reductions of 50% for carbon dioxide and 90% for carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxide.


Driving the Prius

The Prius has an amazingly quiet takeoff since the petrol motor is actually not used for low speed driving unless the charge-state of the batteries is low and necessitates that it run. As speed approaches the point where it becomes efficient to switch to gasoline power, that half of the powerplant seamlessly jumps to life and assists with its electrical friend. The smooth orchestration of both halves is a marvellous testament to Toyota's excellent design in this model. The magic is in the use of a planetary gear arrangement between both powerplants. Gearing the two motors appropriately during acceleration in this parallel hybrid is performed by an onboard computer, part of what Toyota calls their Toyota Hybrid System (THS). This computer is constantly scaling the usage of the electric motor to make it either deliver power to the wheels or generate electricity from excess engine power, creating a smooth acceleration pattern up to the car's top speed of 100 mph. The gearing is done by varying clutches which decide how much engine power or motor power enters the planetary gears, and thus gets delivered to the wheels. This makes the gearing unlike any conventional automatic or standard transmission, but acts to the driver like an automatic transmission with just Drive, Neutral, Reverse, and Park options. A big benefit to Prius' layout is the very efficient use of regenerative braking to make in-town stop-and-go driving very efficient. In fact, with the Japanese version in-town driving is more efficient than cruising on the highway, even at a slow 55 mph. (Note that this is based on the Japanese version). Higher in-town mileage may sound strange at first, but makes sense when you understand that as vehicle speed increases, the wind resistance also increases, but in an exponential instead of linear fasion. This means it takes exponentially more energy for a car to sustain highway speeds than to sustain in-town driving speeds. A more efficient car would thus get better in-town mileage than highway mileage if it could effectively capture the energy normally lost during braking, and that's exactly what the Prius does.


STANDARD FEATURES

Velour interior trim
Power mirrors
Adjustable column
Toyota AM / FM / Cassette premium sound system
Power door locks with one-touch open/close feature
Tilt-adjustable steering column with fold away facility
Electric windows
Power steering
Climate control with automatic air circulation
Tilt-adjustable steering column
Illuminated entry system
Interior remote fuel door release


OPTIONS

Leather interior trim
Fog lamps
1 or 6 stack CD changer


SAFETY FEATURES (standard)

Side impact door beams
Tool kit
Ventilated front disc brakes
Collapsible steering column
4-channel Anti-lock Braking System (ABS)
Driver and passenger SRS Airbags
3-point Automatic Locking Retractor / Emergency Locking Retractor (ALR/ELR) for all seating positions
Child restraint anchors
Variable intermittent front windshield wipers with mist cycle
Folding mirrors


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