Why buy a hybrid when you can have more power, better comfort, similar mileage and a far better looking vehicle for less money? How does one do this you ask? You buy a Volkswagen Jetta TDI that will get 45 mpg. In fact a couple recently broke a world record in which they drove a 2009 Jetta TDI through all 48 states and averaged 67.9 mpg!!!
I found that some Prius owners are upset they are not getting the manufacturers rated 60 mpg, their real world is closer to 43mpg. Also, there is a concern as to how the hybrid would hold up over the years and the cost to replace the batteries.
The warranty for most hybrid batteries is 8 to 10 years or 80,000 to 100,000 miles and the cost to replace the batteries is between $3,000 to $5,000. Some hybrid owners brag about having 80k miles on theirs but let’s see you find one at 200k. Diesels are known to run for a very long time and it is easy to find owners with 200,000 to 300,000 miles, some even have 500,000 MILES!!!
Let’s see a hybrid go half a million miles. With the advances in diesel fuel the sulfur concentration is 15 parts per million or 98.5% less sulfur than diesel from the 70’s. That means the CO2 emissions per mile from a Jetta TDI is about the same as the Prius – cleaner and less stinky.
I often muse why they make hybrids so ugly. The 2010 Prius is better than its predecessor….not by much. The interior mimics the exterior’s ugliness and is filled with cheap materials and uncomfortable seats. The Jetta, on the other hand, has a sporty appearance with handling to back it up. Unlike the Prius, the Jetta’s interior has the quality found in vehicles in the next price bracket. Check out a shot of both below.
For me it’s a no brainer – Volkswagen wins. Yes, Prius might get better mileage around town and you can brag to your friends and family that you are doing your part for the environment, but when you’re taking your 120 pounds of batteries to the land fill at 200k, I’ll see you 300k later in the rear view mirror of my TDI, as its 236 lb-ft of torque kicks in. Bye-brid!!!
Right on! I have been saying this for years. One thing you didn’t even mention is that especially on a freeway, the Prius is far inferior to the VW – both in terms of economy as well as driving dynamics. I love the simplicity of a purely electric car though (which the Prius in not either) – if only the battery technology wasn’t so “out-dated”. Mayeb the fuel cell (hydrogen powered) powered electric car is more of a sustainable technology. In Germany the first 200 hydrogen fueling stations are just being built at 1 Mio Euro a pop. Hydrogen powered cars have been on the road for almost a decade in Germany – even though not many in private hands. Building an infrastructure could mean the breakthrough though … after all it takes minutes (not hours) to refuel a fuel cell powered electric car …