Just picked this up - Prius C

[tk1971]

The wife needed another car. She's been a trooper by not driving the Expedition, but instead driving her old 97 Civic. Saved us almost $2k in gas for almost a year and a half.

She drives mostly city streets in traffic for her commute, so the Prius C makes perfect sense.

We got trim level One, because we don't need all the unnecessary fluff.







It's only 6.7" longer than my 08 Yaris LB, but there's definitely more trunk space under the hatch.

Interior room feels about the same as my Yaris, but with 4 doors, it is much more convenient to shuttle our 2 small boys in and out of school.

My wife is very happy with her new car and suggested that I'd trade my 08 Yaris in for another. But my Yaris is averaging 40-42 MPG, so I don't see the point for me to shell out $22k for a new car. One final thing, I rarely hit traffic on the freeway, so I don't think I'd ever enjoy driving an automatic transmission.

[BEEF]

any way you could take pictures of this beside the yaris? I actually considered this for a while.

[thebarber]

Good buy

[fnkngrv]

I saw one for the first time while in Austin, TX last week. I really like how they went with the styling over the "other" Prius, but I think that you are right in that you would have a tough time justifying selling your current Yaris for it except for the fact that you mentioned the 4 drs and kids.

[tk1971]

Originally Posted by BEEF

any way you could take pictures of this beside the yaris? I actually considered this for a while.

I'll see what I can do.

[edmscan]

A friend of mine has a Prius C .. and I think it is a cool car. It gets great mileage .. even better than a Yaris. But it is a more expensive car .. and it would take quite a few years to recoup the difference in price as compared to a Yaris.

[thebarber]

too bad its autotragic

[Hershey]

. Looks great in white . We test drove a Black C "2" about a few months ago and enjoyed it . Consumer Reports bashes the crap out of the "C" and the new '12 Yaris . Glad we dropped it . Please keep us up to gate with the gas mileage , ride , handling , etc.. Some Toyota dealers are letting the '12 generation 3 Prius "2" go for $20,999 . You made a very wise decision . Gas prices are gonna surpass $5 nationwide sooner or later . Hope you have many years of fun with it .

[Hershey]

Here's a test drive of the "C" at Mpg-O-Matic that you may find of interest . http://www.mpgomatic.com/2012/07/05/...rius-c-review/ . It's about 27 minutes long and another that's shorter . He gets 57.8 m.p.g. combined and 52.75 on the interstate .

[Yar Is Word]

Nice car!
How's the pick up compared to the Yaris?
Do you by any chance know how much storage space there is with the rear seats down?

[edmscan]

Originally Posted by Hershey

He gets 57.8 m.p.g. combined and 52.75 on the interstate .

I know that my friend in his Prius C .. got 63 US MPG (3.7L/100 KM). So better mileage is possible. It apparently has the same engine as the Yaris. But it is tuned to perform better.

[tk1971]

Originally Posted by Yar Is Word

Nice car!
How's the pick up compared to the Yaris?
Do you by any chance know how much storage space there is with the rear seats down?

As for acceleration, I'd say it's not a fair comparison between my manual and the CVT on the C. But it's not bad for city driving (torque-wise). I don't have the numbers for storage with the seats down, but the C is about 6 inches longer and most of that translates to the trunk area only, as the specs suggests the driver and passenger legroom to be very similar (Y: FR-40.3", RR-37.9"; C: FR-41.7", RR-35").

Here are some side by side pics. I have to admit that I was surprised that they look the same to me when I saw them side by side. The C is very slightly longer, but it's hard to capture that difference in pictures. I think the extra length is obvious when looking into the trunk space, because there's just more room behind the C's hatch.

















One more thing, the Yaris is on slightly higher ground, so it looks taller (plus the fact that they're rolling on slightly taller 185/65/15 tires.

[BEEF]

that's awesome. I like the look but not a fan of the tail lights. so about the same size as the yaris.

given the difference in ground height, you would say about the same overall height? I like the extra trunk space. an issue with the yaris but still not bad given you can slide the seat forward (I really like that feature).

[tk1971]

Originally Posted by BEEF

that's awesome. I like the look but not a fan of the tail lights. so about the same size as the yaris.

given the difference in ground height, you would say about the same overall height? I like the extra trunk space. an issue with the yaris but still not bad given you can slide the seat forward (I really like that feature).

Just according to the specs, the exterior heights are: Y-60", and C-56.9". Both have 5.5" of ground clearance. That's a 3.1" exterior height difference.

Interior heights per specs:
FR Head Room: Y-39.4"; C-38.6"
RR Head Room: Y-37.9"; C-37"

My base model Yaris has fixed rear seats (no 60/40 split and no sliding ability), so the extra trunk space of the C was appreciated last weekend on a Costco grocery run.

[Yar Is Word]

Thank you for your answers.

[tk1971]

For the price, it's not bad for the hybrid technology: $18,950 + $225 (floormats... I know, I later saw that they hid it in the sticker price) + $760 destination/handling/aka-bend-over fee = $19,935. That's $22,013.07 out the door. Please keep in mind that prior to buying my 08 Yaris 3-door used, I had quotes for a new 5-door 2011 Yaris Hatchback with manual transmission for about $18k sticker price over the phone (prior to negotiations).

The C's got built in bluetooth, power door locks / windows / keyless entry, digital speedometer, motorized side mirrors with integrated turn signal indicators, projection headlights (halogen, but still nice) and that fancy color screen showing the cartoon of the drivetrain, etc.

I find that the car in general, is very Yaris-like. This is basically a smaller Prius that doesn't look nor feel like the Prius (a plus in my book). Let's hope it will prove as reliable as the Yaris.

[Thirty-Nine]

I actually pick one of these up for review tomorrow.

[ciscobear]

Nice comparison pics.