Luz and Mullaly scratching their heads: I wish I had those problems!

I don’t know about the “midlevel of profit” but it’s definitely still on the toplevel of ugly.

Toyota’s ‘Just In Time’ inventory system also means that they aren’t going to hoard both parts and vehicles until they are sold. My landlord just bought a new Sienna and had to wait for it to be made/finished, despite the extreme slowdown in sales. She only had to wait a week or 2, as it wasn’t a hybrid.

And yeah, Borat, if that’s the worst of Toyota’s problems with the new Prius, then life’s pretty tough. “Oh no, there are too many people that want our new car”!!

This is the best news I’ve heard all week. I’m so glad the sheeple may have to wait for their Prius, because then I won’t see an increasing number of them on the road.

“the third-generation Prius is 30 percent more profitable than the outgoing model” – meaning: It costs us less to make, but you’re still going to pay the same for it, sucka!

Beatus, you hit the nail on the head.

I don’t think they made it look different enough from the last Prius. I see one and sometimes forget it’s a new model, especially when I’m driving behind one going 50 mph in the fast lane. It’s even funnier seeing them act like it’s a sportscar and go over 80 mph totally making the point of a Prius mute since they are now dragging a huge battery and having that little 4 cylinder working overtime.

but donna forget

it’s price decrease 2000 to 3000 than the previous

@ JakeK66
Ain’t it great seeing how people drive those things? You’re exactly right, they either drive and accelerate insanely slow (I understand why, but stay out of the fast lane!) or they drive like a maniac (And wonder why they don’t get the advertised MPG).

Anyways, let the sheeple buy the Prius and the Insight. I wouldn’t bore myself to death to save a few bucks on gas.

^Life’s too short to drive boring cars.

Speaking of boring car lovers, where’s 1115 “insight” on this? I’m always interested to see what he has to say on a car website blaiming us on being “gearheads” wait, I thought this was a car website right? You really shouldn’t be on here if you don’t even like cars.

This car has always had a love hate relationship with a lot of folks around the country. Many of those haters seem to be on this site and while their daily prayers go unfulfilled, the little car keeps chugging along.

1115 has been MIA for days, not that I think he would show up on this thread. There isn’t a whole lot of D3 bashing potential.

Some people think he got banned.

I think that 1115 is stuck down at his local honda dealer trying to find out why his accord was part of the 1/2 million honda cars that were recalled.

If you’re referring to the ones with the bad airbags, maybe it’s worse… Ironic, spend your life bashing D3 reliability only to be killed from shrapnel to the head from a Honda airbag…

Thank goodness. One less idiotic toyota driver on the road for now. I hope a fault line erupts around the acres of the panasonic plant in the middle of the night too! ‘-D

@2wheeled
That would be the recall that I speak of.

“Luz and Mullaly scratching their heads: I wish I had those problems!”

They could have, but when they decided to cut of all R&D for the EV-1 program in 1999, it was the beginning of the end for GM.

maybe Toyota could lease some excess space at the Honda Insight plant to build batteries.

desmints

“They”? In 1999, Mullaly was at Boeing and Lutz was out of a job… Don’t blame them two.

and who’s to say that GM would have eventually produced something that would have been a volume market success. remember the 4-6-8 and various diesel engines they came up with for technology advancements.

keeping fingers crossed the Volt leads to future successes….

I agree with both JakeK66 and 2WheeledSpeed on the Pruis and Insight. I’m all for better fuel economy, sure, but why try to do it in a boring car– and then drive like a lunatic and then wonder why you get subpar fuel economy? Yeah, Hummers are quite ridiculous but generally life is too short for such shenanigans.

Johnny
And in the top level of market whuppass!

Beatus
All the “sheeple” could buy and sell you
Don’t playa-hate!
Appreciate!

Mtema
Error! Error!

DrFill

Dr. Fill, I appreciate the Prius for what it is. But, like 2Wheel and Jake, most of the people that drive it do it so they can brag about it, not because they actually LIKE the car. I don’t hate the car, I dislike the sheeple that don’t understand it.

I’d be a better, more efficient, usable purchase if the sheeple bought me – especially the cute lady sheeple…

Trust me, as I speak from experience
If you don’t understand the car, you won’t drive it, or buy it

People who buy it should brag, because they are ahead of the curve
I still drive stick, so a CVT is like science-fiction to me
DrFill

…or people could buy a used one, oh wait the people that buy these dont even have half the capacity that normal rational car buyers do. Nevermind.

All EV and Hybrid production is limited by “battery production”. Ford can’t get enough either for the Fusion/Escape production. We need battery production to be a major part of the stimulas of this country…not just Japan and China. Nissan has the right idea with their Tennessee battery plant. if this country is serious about ending its addiction to foreign oil, battery patents and production need to be part of our military budget. They have plenty of money I hear. Its all about national security.

Ok, Doc, I have to take exception to your comment: People who buy a Prius are ahead of the curve? Let me guess: People who hang out at Starbucks are also ahead of the curve. People who voted for Bill Clinton are ahead of the curve? Comes off sounding elitist, and to tell you the truth, I never cared much for those people anyway. So, if that means I’m not ahead of the curve, thank God for that!

I do understand the car, but I also understand it’s just another way for people to express a status of another kind. The enviormental status. So, you see, they don’t buy it just for the environment; they buy it for the perception.

I’ve met people who own a Prius yet have ZERO clue how it works. Lots of people buy “high technology” because it is cool, whether it is cars or cellphones or whatever. Doesn’t mean they understand it (They usually don’t if they bought it as a status symbol).

And it’s even worse when they brag about the money they save on gas, when because of their monthly car payments the majority of them won’t see any REAL money savings on that cars for years.

Dr. Fill, I have to seriously disagree with you. I think it’s the opposite, actually. I understand the Prius. I understand how it works, how high the fuel mileage is, how reliable it is (the first Prius is owned by a taxi driver in NY, and he still has it), and how nifty it is. I also understand that it costs much more than cars like the Ford Focus, and even though the Focus doesn’t quite get the mileage, the cost offset doesn’t make the Prius worth the extra cash until at least 10 years down the road. I understand that the Prius is rather weak on acceleration, beating cars such as old Honda Civics and Smart cars (not much to brag about). I understand that the excessive battery weight makes it handle poorly compared to other cars its size. I understand that the interior is extremely boring and not comfortable (what really made me turn away). I also understand that people have a misconception about being “green” and saving fuel – case in point, my parent company has made a rule that whenever we travel and rent a car, we MUST get a Prius, even though many diesels actually achieve better mileage and diesels don’t carry the premium the Prius does. I understand that few people ever achieved the 60 MPG that Toyota claimed the Prius could achieve, and therefore the EPA changed their testing and the Prius dropped to 48 MPG.

When people trade their paid-for cars and light trucks in and buy a Prius because of gas at $4.00 a gallon, it’s perfectly clear to me that

The Prius is nothing more than a status symbol, much like Hummer was before that, and BMW and Mercedes were for several years. Even Ford Explorers became status symbols a while back. The Prius is just the current status symbol fad.

I understand all this, and I STILL don’t own one. Go figure.

* When people trade their paid-for cars and light trucks in and buy a Prius because of gas at $4.00 a gallon, it’s perfectly clear to me that the buyers do not fully understand the Prius.

you know what the real problem here is? why people don’t like the prius and will go to any lengths to justify why it isnt a smart choice or even a good choice for an automobile?

Because it wasn’t built by GM, or another American car company. That Toyota made it, that evil, foreign, unamerican, how did it get to no.1 that quickly, non stoppable, pain in the ass car company made it.

That’s the real stick up people like beatus’ asses and its just a hoot watching people like him whine and try their best to negate an iconic car’s achievements.

^ Nope. You got me wrong, Super@$$. ^

See, I’m not a fanboy for any side. I just find the Prius to be very boring and plain, and the interior just doesn’t justify the sticker price. I actually want a Smart ForTwo instead of the Prius, because it’s less expensive and the interior (and exterior) are far more interesting than the Prius. It’s not the fact that it’s a Toyota, because I love Land Cruisers, 4Runners, the Rav4, the Supra (new and old), even the Celica. I don’t even hate the Prius. I just don’t like the owners because they tend to be idiots. The Prius is not a smart choice when put up against cars like the Jetta TDI and the Focus, which are cheaper and more exciting to drive. It has nothing to do with the make itself, just the final product.

The trouble is when idiots like you try to pigeon-hole people like me into categories with people like NMOFGM. I’m not that guy. I respect anything that’s fast. I even respect the Prius, although I don’t like it. What I don’t respect are fanboys, and you appear to be one. When you realize that not everyone who dislikes a certain Japanese car is a “Buy American Patriot”, then you may have another chance to earn some respect from the true enthusiasts. Until then, kiss off.

Beatus
Is the Prius a status symbol?
Not “Status” in the traditional sense, but an eco-friendly symbol
Let’s face facts
Someone had to blaze this trail
I can’t think of anyone better to do so.

Making 50 MPG cars is a great thing
Having the patience to drive one is borderline divine, IMO
It definitely doesn’t cancel out the MILLIONS who drive F-150’s and DON’T NEED A TRUCK!
I’ll leave it at that
DrFill

Dr Fill, other than the “borderline divine” line, I agree with you (which is why it’s your opinion).

I feel exactly the same way about Hummers with spinners as I do about most Prius drivers, although they are driven with different purposes.

When did beatus EVER mention Toyota the Japanese company as justification for disliking Prius the hybrid car?

Superman next time you try to attack someones argument why don’t you actually attempt to refute what they said, rather than what YOU think their personal beliefs are.

beatus:

earn respect from true enthusiasts? what like you? haha…what a joke. and kiss off? dude, if you are going to try to sound bad, at least try not to make a fool out of yourself. kiss off…lol.

now to your predictably idiotic point about comparing a prius with jetta tdi. only a “true enthusiast” aka monkeybrain would compare a prius to a “clean” diesel car. hmm i want a car thats a little more eco-friendly, I know i’ll go for a diesel, a diesel whose exhaust causes lung CANCER. that sounds like a good plan. **** the ozone or my children’s health, i want to save some bucks and not have to buy a prius god damnit.

keep in mind, under current emission standards for cars and trucks, diesels are allowed to emit more than twice as much nitrogen oxide as gasoline vehicles and 10 to 100 times more particulate matter. these diesels may very well not pass stricter emission standards phasing in over the next few years.

smart choice my ass. hybrid technology is way cleaner – upto 90 percent cleaner than the average new car. i applaud, toyota, ford, and any other company for blazing this trail and leaving idiots like you in the dark ages.

Again, you’re getting me wrong.

If you want to save the planet, I have three ways to do it:

Live close to work and walk.
Ride a bicycle.
Use mass transit – not as clean as the first two, but much cleaner than if everyone on the bus drove their own car.

“hybrid technology is way cleaner – upto 90 percent cleaner than the average new car”
Cleaner than the AVERAGE new car, maybe, but not “way cleaner” than the Jetta TDI. It is only .01 tons cleaner than the Jetta in greenhouse gas emissions. Just because diesel big-rigs are allowed to emit more, doesn’t mean all diesel engines automatically do. Also, you’re forgetting that the batteries of hybrids contain cancer-causing lithium as well.

The thing is, you are assuming I don’t like Toyota and/or the Prius and/or hybrids, and then you’re trying to argue as if I’m the bad guy. You’re jumping to conclusions, and you are very wrong in those conclusions. What I don’t like are the jerks that drive a Prius and tell me how much money they are saving, or how great the planet is thanks to their efforts. And I come back with “My Trek 660 cost $800 when I bought it 20 years ago. It has zero emissions, costs nothing to fill up, has only had basic maintenance, and my legs continue to look great after riding it for 20 years. Talk to me when you and your Prius can do all that.” Yeah, I understand you can’t take your family out of town on a bicycle, and that it takes me about a minute to get to 60mph, but we have to make sacrifices if we are going to save the planet, don’t we? You can’t have your cake and eat it, too, even with a hybrid.

If you genuinely like the Prius, good for you. Buy it, enjoy it, and drive it like you should. That’s fine with me. If you choose to go slower, stay to the right so others can get around you. But don’t come to me and tell me how much good you are doing to the world by buying a Prius. Instead, tell me how much you like it because it’s quiet, or because you get use out of the trunk, or because the headlights are really cool, or because it’s extremely reliable even compared to other Toyotas. Tell me what you LIKE about it, not what a good person you are because you choose to drive one.

I applaud Toyota for blazing the trail, too, and I never said I didn’t. In fact, I came pretty close to buying a Prius, until I took it for a test drive. It just doesn’t feel worth the price to me, so I had to walk away. It comes down to what you think is “smart”. If you want to save the planet, again, ride a bike. Heck, even a scooter is better for the planet. If you want to save money on a car, buy a Focus or a Jetta. If you really like the Prius, and think it’s worth the price, buy it. I won’t hold that against you. But don’t tell me I’m killing the planet because I don’t like the Prius. I have news: The Prius still uses oil, and therefore it still kills the planet, too.

By the way, I’m enthusiastic about the Nissan LEAF. If they keep the price down, the LEAF may very well be my next car. Yes, I know there are still emissions from the power plant (not in my case as my electricity comes from hydro), but like I said before, my “green” is my wallet. I’d much rather “fill up” at home every two weeks for a couple of bucks than spend $50 at the gas station each week. I really like the idea of EVs. Still, I realize that even an EV won’t save the planet.

You did mention something earlier that I actually agree with, but you threw something on the end that made it wrong. You mentioned that I was “angry” because Toyota came up with the technology, and not an American company. In part, this is actually true, and I do agree with you. I’m upset that the home team missed the shot and lost the game. I’m NOT upset at the visitor team for scoring and winning, because I’m not a poor sport. The other team did a good job, and they are to be commended. My team messed up, and now they must work harder to come back and stay in the tournament. So far, some of the home players are starting to play better, and they should be commended for their efforts, too.

beatus, lets just agree to disagree, or agree to some extent. I agree prius is no planet saver and their drivers may be uppety but I applaud the maker’s breakthrough effort in the face of negativity and give credit where its due, which is something I notice a lot of people biased against it don’t do. I don’t care if its made by Japanese, Americans, or penguins, or aliens; a good product is a good product. I also commend Ford wholeheartedly on their efforts.

Honestly, I don’t think we disagree much. My only problem with your first comment was that you got me wrong. It seems we’ve cleared that up, though. Thanks.

I’ll agree on this dispute that I find it highly applaudable that Toyota succeeded in marketing a “green” alternative, but I strongly disagree that the Prius is much better today than many “greener” versions of standard models. My favorite test was a BMW M3 vs. Prius for mpg, the Prius barely won with only fractional differance. Going “greener” can be achieved with HOW you drive, not just by WHAT you drive (doesn’t apply to the 10mpg 50 ton Hummer next door )