Article Comments - 2008 Honda Fit vs. 2008 Toyota Prius

92 messages, Last post on Jan 25, 2009 at 10:36 AM

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What is this discussion about? Honda Fit, Toyota Prius, Car Comparisons, Hatchback

2008 Honda Fit vs. 2008 Toyota Prius - Thanks to a proprietary function called Edmunds.com True Cost to Own, we can answer the $8,425 question when it comes time to determine the relative value of the 2008 Honda Fit and 2008 Toyota Prius. (more)

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#50 of 92 Re: Makes sense to me ... [kdhspyder] by backy Aug 08, 2008 (5:58 pm)
Replying to: kdhspyder (Aug 08, 2008 5:11 pm) Let me know when y'all decide whether this comparison of a Fit to a Prius is legit or not. First I hear it's not, it's "arbitrary and illogical" etc., because the vehicles are so dissimilar. Then you write a very long post comparing the two cars, the only difference being one is new and one is used. So it appears it is legitimate to compare them, as long as the criteria are to your liking. First this article wasn't talking about 12 yr or 240K miles. Correct. You were the one who introduced the concept of "any time frame you choose." All your lengthy comparison demonstrates is the well-known fact that it's almost always less costly to buy used vs. new, unless there's a huge difference in operating cost. Which I find kind of funny, given the shots that have been taken here about the comparo in Edmunds.com being "stupid" and written by summer interns to take up space during the slow summer season. One might consider a lengthly post that only illustrates an obvious point to be of the same vein. FYI, Edmunds.com isn't the organization that has evaluated both the Prius and the Fit and found the Fit superior overall to the Prius. CR is another one, even though the price difference between the two cars was about $8,000. Must have been a slow month for CR, too. Replies to this message: tiff_c (Aug 09, 2008 3:42 am) skeptical (Aug 09, 2008 6:47 pm)
#51 of 92 wretched car comparos by saabgirl Aug 08, 2008 (8:11 pm)
Interesting thread. I can almost smell the beer and pizza. It seems to me that the comparo is fair enough. The unspoken premise is that your choice is limited to economical, utilitarian, Asian automotive transportation that will provide predictable and reasonable service over X amount of time. The question, "Do I like it?" must not be asked. Because if you do ask that question, it's unlikely you'd take either one of these homely, tiresome creatures to the prom. I realize we're at the end of the Golden Age of Automobiles, but there must still be a market left for those who insist on a bit of fun in their driveway. Here's my idea for a comparo, Mr/Ms Editors -- You have $25K burning a hole in your pocket. What do you buy and why? You could say, I'd take the Fit and keep the change. You could say, I'd take the Prius. Or, you might opt for a four-year-old Audi 6. IMHO, this is the kind of thought process buyers should go through. Just MHO. Replies to this message: backy (Aug 08, 2008 8:16 pm) irnmdn (Aug 16, 2008 1:29 pm)
#52 of 92 Re: wretched car comparos [saabgirl] by backy Aug 08, 2008 (8:16 pm)
Replying to: saabgirl (Aug 08, 2008 8:11 pm) Sounds like a good idea for a Town Hall discussion. Why not start it?
#53 of 92 Re: Makes sense to me ... [backy] by tiff_c Aug 09, 2008 (3:42 am)
Replying to: backy (Aug 08, 2008 5:58 pm) Let me know when y'all decide whether this comparison of a Fit to a Prius is legit or not. First I hear it's not, it's "arbitrary and illogical" etc., because the vehicles are so dissimilar. Then you write a very long post comparing the two cars, the only difference being one is new and one is used. So it appears it is legitimate to compare them, as long as the criteria are to your liking. kdhspyder is a car salesperson. So no surprise about his opinion regarding the cars. Car dealers do not want you to think you can compare dissimilar cars based on THEIR criteria. bottom line I can compare a Ferrari to a Fit if I want to, it only has to make sense to me. Car dealers hate that because they are trained to deal with customers based on similar models Accord vs Camry etc... I also cross shopped a bunch of dissimilar cars and none of the dealers liked it. It's my money! If I want to cross shop based on Fuel economy and not size or price that's my choice. The Fit, Aveo, xD, Yaris, Prius etc... Any hatch or even sedan that is fuel efficient counts if YOU want it to. I can afford the $24k for the Prius, and I certainly afford the Fit etc... But neither car worked out when i purchased and I ended up with a Civic Si. Buy what you like. You don't have to justify your purchase to anyone except yourself, unless you want to. That's my take on it. Replies to this message: skeptical (Aug 09, 2008 6:47 pm)
#54 of 92 my two cents by skeptical Aug 09, 2008 (6:47 pm)
Replying to: tiff_c (Aug 09, 2008 3:42 am) I liked the article even though I do think it rather an ambitious endeavor to compare a Hybrid with an economy car simply because the market is changing so fast in both realms...particularly the Hybrid market. Articles like this need to be kept in perspective and taken for what they can offer.. I think pausing to compare also gives a timely reality check at a time when some have gotten a bit swept away with Prius fever and many are paying well over MSRP (or MSRP) for a car whose mileage may double in a couple of years and is about to meet up with some mighty stiff competition from the Hybrids Hondas in store. The compact car and hybrid markets are changing so fast in fact that I don't know I'd do a five year comparison--I think three years would be a neat comparison. Because for the first time in my life I'm only looking with the next two-three years in mind. And if I had a decent enough car now, I'd hold off altogether for a couple of years. (Of course in four- five years, we'll have even more clarity on which of the newer releases are proving to fare well and which not--buying a car in it's first year of release is not always the best thing to do). In any case, I say kudos to them for tackling the finance issue--clearly their goal was not to cover everything--it's just impossible to tease out all the variables--there are simply too many. Things like whether you will finance the car, whether or not you need the extra money now versus later, your age, your income, how much you drive, whether or not you value paying the extra dough for the comfort or some other attribute or whether you instead value (as I think backy noted) investing that money now toward something else like a retirement fund or a charity.. In the end of course, it's such a personal and private decision ultimately--one that requires knowing yourself, your values, and also knowing that there is no perfect choice and there is no absolute right choice--only what's perfect and right and meaningful for you, at this time in your life. But meanwhile, I say bring on the comparisons--I love 'em!
#55 of 92 Re: wretched car comparos [saabgirl] by irnmdn Aug 16, 2008 (1:29 pm)
Replying to: saabgirl (Aug 08, 2008 8:11 pm) Or, you might opt for a four-year-old Audi 6. This is a great choice is you happen to own Audi service center or you feel indebted to send mechanic's son to college.
#56 of 92 Fit vs. Prius by commofficer Aug 16, 2008 (7:48 pm)
I did this comparison when I bought my car. I bought the 2008 Fit Sport. I didn't want a used car and that pretty much put a stake in the Prius. The Prius is nice and much more sedan like than the Fit but the Fit comes in a 5-speed and has a hatchback which really comes in handy. I read this article in CR and even had people at work come up and show it to me. I think the article is fair. I watched the Edmund's comparison video and thought it seemed fair. I would have some serious reservations about buying a used Prius. How many people do you know that buy a Prius and don't plan to keep it for a very long time? If you do plan to turn it over every 3 years then buy something cheaper like a regular gas Civic which gets better daily MPG than a Fit and won't cost you as much when you lease it. Just my .02 but I like my Fit and would NEVER consider buying a used Prius. Those cars are just too complex. Replies to this message: cbradley (Oct 17, 2008 10:59 am) backy (Oct 17, 2008 1:42 pm) cbradley (Oct 20, 2008 9:21 am) and 1 more... kdhspyder (Oct 20, 2008 3:34 pm) railroadjames (Oct 20, 2008 7:20 pm)
#57 of 92 Battery Pack has 100000 mi warranty, the average Prius last much longer by bryanunder Aug 18, 2008 (6:58 am)
The article states "plus the Toyota will be needing a new $2,585 battery pack when the odometer shows 100,000-150,000 miles". Maybe I'm just lucky but my 01' Prius is still going strong at 190000 miles and 8 years on the origional battery pack! On top of that it still has the origional 12V battery and original brake pads (thanks to regen). The only thing I have done is replace the foot pedal position sensor and the right rear wheel bearing. My general maintenence routine consist of changing the oil and oil filter and rotating the tires every 5000 miles. It has been the lowest maintenence cost and most reliable car I have ever owned.
#58 of 92 Re: Retarged [vvk] by bryanunder Aug 18, 2008 (7:23 am)
Replying to: vvk (Aug 08, 2008 5:42 am) Quote:"The biggest reason NOT to buy a Prius is lack of manual transmission." If you love shifting through the gears yourself then by all means stick with a manual transmission, But, don't forget, the Prius transmission is in a class all its own and is the key to making Toyota hybrid system work. It's single planetary gear set about the size of a coke can is a radical departure from conventional automatic transmissions. It will probably last ten times as long and it allows the car run on in stealth mode at low speed and optimize the RPM of the engine at any speed. Replies to this message: stevedebi (Aug 18, 2008 3:39 pm)
#59 of 92 Re: Retarged [bryanunder] by stevedebi Aug 18, 2008 (3:39 pm)
Replying to: bryanunder (Aug 18, 2008 7:23 am) " But, don't forget, the Prius transmission is in a class all its own and is the key to making Toyota hybrid system work." Uh, close, but no cigar. The independently developed Ford eCVT utilizes very similar technology, except Ford has about 200 additional patents that Toyota does not have available. Not to mention that Ford is VERY conservative with their battery state of charge, with battery pack longevity in mind.