Prius as a ski car?

[Edd]

The price of gas is starting to bum me out. My work commute is short but my ski drives push the monthly gas bill to the $300/month range easily. Carpooling isn't an option because my girlfriend lives in ski country and you know...

I'm driving an 02 Legacy wagon which isn't the best with milage. I test drove a Prius last year just out of curiosity and didn't care for the way it drove. One review compared it to an appliance; I concur. I could live with that, however, as the milage is close to double that of the Subaru. Also, the space in the Prius isn't bad at all.

But a ski car? Does anyone drive one of these things? How about winter battery performance? Handling in the snow?

 

[deadheadskier]

I imagine they do fine in the snow with proper tires as they are front wheel drive. I'd trust the battery is fine to being a Toyota. I see quite a few of them around Portland.

Trust me, I've had the same thoughts regarding getting a vehicle with better gas mileage to get to the mountain. Alas, I bought a new car a year and a half ago, so it will be seven or eight years (I hope) before I replace it. Hopefully there are vehicles by then they do even better than the Prius does on gas.

 

[Edd]

I've read some accounts of folks who've had trouble with the traction control system. When they're driving up mild inclines with snow the system kills power to the wheels. It's caused some dangerous situations. After years of driving a Subaru I think I'd go bananas if this happened to me. Just wondering if any AZers can give first-hand accounts of this cars' performance in snow.

 

[riverc0il]

Just slap a set of snow tires on it and you'll be fine. Without snows it probably won't have the best snow performance, especially compared to your Subaru. But I think almost any car with snows can be a satisfactory vehicle for skiing.

There are other high mileage vehicles out there without going Hybrid. Corolla or Civic both have excellent MPG without the additional cost and worry of the still developing hybrid technology (that barely gives you enough additional MPG to justify the initial price tag and costs of ownership). I average 35 MPG with snows in my Saturn Coupe that I bought for $8k and have put over $100k with only required and regular maintenance. Hard to be the dollar to dollar all around value of a three to four year old used economy car.

 

[hammer]

Just slap a set of snow tires on it and you'll be fine. Without snows it probably won't have the best snow performance, especially compared to your Subaru. But I think almost any car with snows can be a satisfactory vehicle for skiing.

There are other high mileage vehicles out there without going Hybrid. Corolla or Civic both have excellent MPG without the additional cost and worry of the still developing hybrid technology (that barely gives you enough additional MPG to justify the initial price tag and costs of ownership). I average 35 MPG with snows in my Saturn Coupe that I bought for $8k and have put over $100k with only required and regular maintenance. Hard to be the dollar to dollar all around value of a three to four year old used economy car.

From what I have heard, the car doesn't have all that much ground clearance...shouldn't matter on plowed roads but if you have to travel over unplowed roads that could be an issue.

I agree with riverc0il about looking at other vehicles...hybrids may become the norm at some point (if the battery disposal doesn't become a problem) but at this point I don't think that they are worth the additional cost.

 

[amf]

Met a couple who drove to Killington during the Good Friday Eve snowfall in a Prius. They said thing thing was abysmal... don't know their driving habits, but some cars just flat out s**k in snow, no matter how they are outfitted. One of the best vehicles I ever drove was an old 2wd Datsun (NOT Nissan!) pickup. Just something about weight distubution - I recall cruising down I-91 in a snow storm with cars & truck littering the highway, & we just kept on rolling.

 

[BeanoNYC]

I believe most hybrids get the better gas mileage in city traffic. You're probably better off getting a something cheaper with the same highway mileage like a corolla.

 

[wa-loaf]

I believe most hybrids get the better gas mileage in city traffic. You're probably better off getting a something cheaper with the same highway mileage like a corolla.

Yes, those high miles are for the city where the brakes can recharge the batteries. Don't do that great on the highway. Maybe you can find a used diesel Jetta wagon? They're 40+ miles to the gallon hwy.

 

[mondeo]

Yes, those high miles are for the city where the brakes can recharge the batteries. Don't do that great on the highway. Maybe you can find a used diesel Jetta wagon? They're 40+ miles to the gallon hwy.

I had the same thought, but with diesel being over $4/gallon now it doesn't make that much sense.

My main problem is that I refuse to go back to FWD, and I need something that at least can do 0-60 in under 7-7.5 seconds. I want to be able to drive the car, not just have something that takes me places.

And to be fair, while the hybrid part only helps when you're using the brakes, the Prius does have a smaller drag area and lower rolling resistance tires so there is some benefit. Probably not enough to justify it, and not necessarily the best in those areas.

 

[Edd]

The highway milage of the Prius is in the mid-forties. Yes, it's better in the city, but the highway miles alone justify serious consideration, particularly in a car approaching mid-size.

 

[snoseek]

The highway milage of the Prius is in the mid-forties. Yes, it's better in the city, but the highway miles alone justify serious consideration, particularly in a car approaching mid-size.

The overall milage for my hx civic is over 40 every single time-no matter what. My best tank was 48 and my worst was 41. Honda used to make perfectly fine little cars (vx) that got over 50 without the hybrid technology, I guess you have to pay a premium and buy one of their hybrids now.


So why not do yourself a favor and try to locate an hx or better yet a vx (only made from 92-95 i think) and save 15,000 or so dollars and use it as your long commuter car.

 

[nelsapbm]

I concur with the others about checking out the Civic, or even an Accord. Great cars. Throw a good pair of snows on there and you're good to go.

 

[ckofer]

I think I remember a discussion on the Car Talk about someone who put a bike rack on their hybrid (probably a Prius) and lost a lot of fuel mileage. A quick way to improve mileage to the slopes is to carpool. I suppose a forum like this, where we function as a community, would be a way to facilitate that.

 

[riverc0il]

Met a couple who drove to Killington during the Good Friday Eve snowfall in a Prius.

Did they mention if they had snow tires? No discussion on how well cars handle in the snow is complete without verifying whether a car has snows or not. A lot of cars don't handle well without them but are rock solid with snows.

If going 0-60 in 7.5 seconds is an issue, I think I have identified the reason you are looking for a vehicle with better gas mileage... you are burning fuel needlessly. Gradual acceleration works wonders for good gas mileage even if it isn't as fun.

 

[Edd]

Did they mention if they had snow tires? No discussion on how well cars handle in the snow is complete without verifying whether a car has snows or not. A lot of cars don't handle well without them but are rock solid with snows.

If going 0-60 in 7.5 seconds is an issue, I think I have identified the reason you are looking for a vehicle with better gas mileage... you are burning fuel needlessly. Gradual acceleration works wonders for good gas mileage even if it isn't as fun.

Not an issue with me. I think you're confusing me with Mondeo.

 

[riverc0il]

Not an issue with me. I think you're confusing me with Mondeo.

Oops, that is correct. Forgot how the OP was, my bad!

 

[Hawkshot99]

Did they mention if they had snow tires? No discussion on how well cars handle in the snow is complete without verifying whether a car has snows or not. A lot of cars don't handle well without them but are rock solid with snows.

This is not entirely true. My mother has a Nissan Quest. It is a FWD, and as far as I can tell 1 wheel drive..... When the computer senses that the wheels are spinning at different speeds, even the slightest amount, it kills power till the are moving at the same speed I guess.
I have gotten it stuck in my driveway in 1" of snow. It did have the stock tires, but they were brand new. I had to turn off the traction control to move it up the driveway. Now I know that was just in the driveway, but I have driven it a little on the roads with a bit of snow and it is scary....Even with snow tires I would not want to drive this thing with any snow.

 

[Mildcat]

I always wondered how the heat works on a Prius. Do they have electric heaters or does the gas engine keep kicking on for the heat?

 

[riverc0il]

This is not entirely true.

I re-read my statement and fail to see what is not entirely true. I did not make a blanket statement. There certainly are cars that are definitely not road worthy in less than perfect conditions including snow. "A lot of cars" I think is fairly accurate when discussing the merits of snow tires improving conditions and making a risky ride pretty stable. Sounds like your Mom's Quest is a notable exception, so indeed there are many cars that are best not considered for snowy travel if possible. Mini van would not be my personal choice for driving around in the snow, that's for sure.

 

[mondeo]

Did they mention if they had snow tires? No discussion on how well cars handle in the snow is complete without verifying whether a car has snows or not. A lot of cars don't handle well without them but are rock solid with snows.

If going 0-60 in 7.5 seconds is an issue, I think I have identified the reason you are looking for a vehicle with better gas mileage... you are burning fuel needlessly. Gradual acceleration works wonders for good gas mileage even if it isn't as fun.

To be fair, it's not uncommon for Corvettes to get over 30mpg, and the Lotus Elise is listed as getting 21/27. If you put snows on those (thus getting rid of the inefficient wide tires,) you're easily within range of an Accord. Incidentally, I did see an Elise with snows and a ski rack a few weeks back at Killington. Stopped me in my tracks; I have to appreciate that kind of dedication. And for ski trips, acceleration is a small part of the fuel burn. It's the drives to work and back that kill me there.

A quick way to improve mileage to the slopes is to carpool. I suppose a forum like this, where we function as a community, would be a way to facilitate that.

And second to the carpooling, it's just that I don't have any friends that ski a lot, and those that do aren't at my level (the first issue dictates the second.) Now the forum thought, that I might have to use next year.