Not happy with tacoma mpg

Also, hit up the Ford forums to see what people with hybrids are getting real world. I thought about getting a Prius since I have a Corolla as my other car, but it's not worth it! The car cost $9k, is paid off, and gets between 35 and 40 mpg. I Could get 47mpg on the way to my last job and around 42 on the way home. New job now and I get around 37mpg until I figure out where I can coast. Meanwhile, seems like I hear Prius owners getting an average 45mpg unless they take extreme measures through radical driving changes or modifications to the car. And it costs $22-$25k! So it's more expensive and gets the same mpg as my all-gas car. Now if the hybrids were getting 60-100mpg consistently, then yeah I'd look into it more. But right now it's just not worth it IMO. Higher sticker price + cost of replacement batteries > money saved from mpg improvement.

 

The efficiency of the hybrid only comes into play in city driving. If you are getting up to highway speeds in excess of 45mph for most of your commute, a gasoline engine becomes more efficient. The Synergy drive is simply a combo that gives you the best of both worlds - the electric motor is meant for the city and the gasoline for the highway. But like PiercedTiger says, you can achieve similar mileage with conservative driving in a Corolla. I would get 40+ mpg highway in my BMW 318ti and still high 20s around town. And of course you have to crunch the numbers and consider your payback period. If it's time for a new car then, sure, a hybrid is a wise choice, but if you are looking to replace a current car that is less than 5 years old you are probably better off, financially, to drive it a few more years. I want to see Toyota follow GM's lead and introduce their Synergy drive to the Tacoma and Tundra. My next new vehicle will most likely be a hybrid family vehicle but that is a few years off! Until then I will be satisfied with my fuel efficient toys - '08 Ninja 250R and '08 Tacoma 2.7L, 5 spd!

 

i've noticed a few unnecessary remarks on here too, sorry about that, most people here are helpful. But i have to admit, what you're saying really doesn't make the most sense. typically you have to choose between performance and mileage. whether its a truck or a sports car, the higher performing vehicles DONT get hybrid mileage. if you want your truck to have torque and hp and the ability to tow and haul then you have to sacrifice mileage. if you dont tow or haul get a hybrid. you'll get the mileage but lose out on the torque you need to do serious work. ultimately the decision is up to you but it doesn't sound smart to trade in a brand new vehicle for an expensive "gas sipper" that is higher maintenance and lower resale value. it doesn't sound like a smart long term move. just my two cents

 

That was a remarkably sober and coherent post!



WHO THE HELL HACKED ND'S ACCOUNT?!?!?

 

ND 2.0 thats who!!!! Viva la revolucion!!!

 

oh ha-ha. Roy just summed up my experience thus far. but I've been inquiring on this forum for the past month actually: before, during, and after I got a tacoma.
And the thing with the 1st toyota dealer - you don't want to go through what I went through with that dealer. Especially if it was the first time with the company. Since they were the closest dealer to me I certainly didn't want to be stuck doing my services there so I got the Ranger. in my area mechanics don't work on japanese cars just american. but there is this one guy I know of that works on Hondas.

 

I agree the Prius is definitely not worth the expense when the corolla can give little less mpg and stay under $20,000. I think if hybrids were getting 60-100 mpg everybody would be dumping gas cars because the expense will be worth it.

 

OK, now you're talking. All I'm saying is to be reasonable. Many of us have been through issues like this before and are trying to help you because trading in a new truck will hurt you financially. Keep it a couple years and enjoy it. Gas prices are going down anyway so I think you'll be fine.

 

Ok, you all should of done this before you buy any new vehicle. I went from a 30 mpg Honda, to a 20 mpg Tacoma. Love my truck, and completely knew what I was getting my self into.

I built this excel file thinking what if gas kept rising (like it was 6-8 months ago) up to a crazy amount, will I still be able to commute, so disregard the 7.50/gal gas prices, but they are interesting to look at. The main reason is I wanted to see how much more I would be spending on gas when I upgraded to my truck.

As you can see I went from paying about $2000/year with my honda (30mpg @ 18k miles), to about $3100/year with my tacoma (20mpg@18k miles/yr).

Thats only $1100/yr difference. Which is less than $100/month. If you can afford a $25,000 truck, then you should be able to afford $100/month in gas.

I do see your point, a Hybrid (@ 45 mpg) will save you $3,000/year, so if you had your vehicle for 10 years (not that many people do), then you will pay for the hybrid (not asuming any maint fees, but at 18k miles a year for 10 years, you will be at 180,000 miles).

If your looking for economy, Tacomas are not it. Go buy a VW rabbit, and turn it in to a bio-desiel.

 

Great post!

 

^That is a good post. Very interesting.

 

+1

 

+1

 

I drive a Prius and a Tacoma, and love both of them. Pretty apples and oranges to try to compare them, however. The Prius got roughly 51mpg for me this summer (it likes warm weather better than cold where it gets in the low 40s, but all vehicles get poorer mileage in colder weather) and that was driving it fairly 'normally' but definitely avoiding the lead-foot, keeping speeds under 70 on the highway.

I lead-footed the Taco, loaded with 800# of stuff on the outbound trip, from western Montana to Minneapolis and back in July, averaged 21mpg over 2800 miles, doing 75-80mph. Not bad.

 

Hardcase: what would u do if you could only have one vehicle....

Taco or Prius?

 

ahhh! My first mod going to cost me $190. anyone know where I can scangaueII for cheaper?

 

even tho i will never own a prius.........they will pay for themselves sooner than everyone is saying because the government gives you a tax break for owning a hybrid.

 

They just had a group buy at toyotanation 150 shipped thats where i got mine. I will get you his info i tried getting the vendor to come to TW

 

3N1 posted a group buy on the scangaugeII