Anyone here own a Toyota hybrid car?

[izzy]

I’m thinking of selling my 2014 Camry and getting a new hybrid Camry. I'm retired now and most of my driving is short jaunts around town, so a hybrid would get me much better gas mileage.

Are there any drawbacks to a hybrid, such as less horse power or particular parts that would be expensive to replace or fix? Anything else I should be aware of?

TIA!

 

[RamblingMad]

Slower acceleration.

Otherwise my significant other loved her Prius.

You might want to look at vehicles with a battery for short drives. You should be able to utilize the battery and barely use any gas.

 

[abdmom]

I have a RAV4 hybrid. It has better acceleration than the regular RAV4s. I have one of the first ones made. It's got 80000 miles on it. I haven't had any maintenance issues.

 

[NannyBeBe]

We have a Toyota Prius. The gas mileage is great, but acceleration is slow and it rides like a tin can. I hate it.

 

[tvguy]

We bought a new 2020 Camry LE hybrid in July. Only 2,900 miles on it so still too soon to pass judgement.
Things to know about the Camry:
1) The entry level LE uses a different, lighter, more powerful battery than any of the higher trim lines in the Camry line. It is rated at 53 mpg highway 51 city. The fancier hybrids get 47 on the highway and 44 in the city.
2) The entry level LE uses smaller diameter wheels and tires, plain steel wheels with plastic wheel covers. The higher trim lines use larger wheels and tires and fancy styled wheels.
3) In warm weather, we were getting 52 mpg in warm weather. When the weather got below 50 degrees our mileage dropped to about 47. That's because the gasoline engine is programmed to run more often in cooler weather.
4) The hybrid Camry has a the same 2.5 liter 4 cylinder engine as the gasoline 4 cylinder car, but because of the power boost of the electric motor, the hybrid actually makes 3 more horsepower.

What we don't like:
A) The LE plastic wheel covers are fragile, and expensive to replace. I broke one and a replacement cost $99. I have since discovered there are a number of after market wheel covers that are identical in style, they just don't have the Toyota logo in the center. They cost $25.
B) There are multiple power points (both traditional cigarette light type sockets and USB inside the car, but the car has to be on, or in accessory mode to turn them on. So you can't leave a device plugged in to charge while you are away from the car

This is my first Toyota (I'm 63), my wife in her life has had 3 Fords and 1 Dodge (Dodge was awful). I've had 4 Fords in my lifetime. We have had 2 Chevy Suburbans are our family vehicle over the past 35 years. The last Suburban we had 31 years, so we keep cars a long time. We started our shopping process looking at Ford Fusion Hybrids. We had rented one a few years back for a week and loved it. So much so our daughter bought one, and it has been a great car for the three years she has had it. It's mileage is similar to the higher trim line Camry Hybrids, but the LE does better, and Toyota throws in a few more features than Ford, and the price was the same.

 

[fla4fun]

I have a Prius v (the wagon). I love it! The acceleration doesn’t have to be slow. My car has three different “modes” - Eco, Regular, Power. If I have it on the Power setting, it accelerates too fast for my comfort, much faster than any of my ICE cars. If I have it in Eco, the acceleration is very sluggish. I keep it on the Regular setting 95% of the time, occasionally using the power setting if I am driving in a hilly area. The car drives very smoothly and I have to watch my speed because it’s very easy to drive faster than I intend to.

If your driving is going to be very minimal, it might be worth considering an EV instead of a hybrid. I would have done that if I didn’t have a work commute. But for a 50+ mile round trip commute, the hybrid made more sense. I tend to keep cars 10-15 years, so I imagine my next car will be an EV.

 

[izzy]

We bought a new 2020 Camry LE hybrid in July. Only 2,900 miles on it so still too soon to pass judgement.
Things to know about the Camry:
1) The entry level LE uses a different, lighter, more powerful battery than any of the higher trim lines in the Camry line. It is rated at 53 mpg highway 51 city. The fancier hybrids get 47 on the highway and 44 in the city.
2) The entry level LE uses smaller diameter wheels and tires, plain steel wheels with plastic wheel covers. The higher trim lines use larger wheels and tires and fancy styled wheels.
3) In warm weather, we were getting 52 mpg in warm weather. When the weather got below 50 degrees our mileage dropped to about 47. That's because the gasoline engine is programmed to run more often in cooler weather.
4) The hybrid Camry has a the same 2.5 liter 4 cylinder engine as the gasoline 4 cylinder car, but because of the power boost of the electric motor, the hybrid actually makes 3 more horsepower.

What we don't like:
A) The LE plastic wheel covers are fragile, and expensive to replace. I broke one and a replacement cost $99. I have since discovered there are a number of after market wheel covers that are identical in style, they just don't have the Toyota logo in the center. They cost $25.
B) There are multiple power points (both traditional cigarette light type sockets and USB inside the car, but the car has to be on, or in accessory mode to turn them on. So you can't leave a device plugged in to charge while you are away from the car

This is my first Toyota (I'm 63), my wife in her life has had 3 Fords and 1 Dodge (Dodge was awful). I've had 4 Fords in my lifetime. We have had 2 Chevy Suburbans are our family vehicle over the past 35 years. The last Suburban we had 31 years, so we keep cars a long time. We started our shopping process looking at Ford Fusion Hybrids. We had rented one a few years back for a week and loved it. So much so our daughter bought one, and it has been a great car for the three years she has had it. It's mileage is similar to the higher trim line Camry Hybrids, but the LE does better, and Toyota throws in a few more features than Ford, and the price was the same.

Thanks for the specific info on the LE. That’s the one I’d probably get. That’s interesting about the cold vs warm weather difference. I live in the mountainess part of Virginia, so a good 4-5 months of the year it’s below 50 here. That’s disappointing about the flimsy wheel covers. I’m on my second Camry now and thus far have been impressed with the overall quality.

 

[izzy]

I have a Prius v (the wagon). I love it! The acceleration doesn’t have to be slow. My car has three different “modes” - Eco, Regular, Power. If I have it on the Power setting, it accelerates too fast for my comfort, much faster than any of my ICE cars. If I have it in Eco, the acceleration is very sluggish. I keep it on the Regular setting 95% of the time, occasionally using the power setting if I am driving in a hilly area. The car drives very smoothly and I have to watch my speed because it’s very easy to drive faster than I intend to.

If your driving is going to be very minimal, it might be worth considering an EV instead of a hybrid. I would have done that if I didn’t have a work commute. But for a 50+ mile round trip commute, the hybrid made more sense. I tend to keep cars 10-15 years, so I imagine my next car will be an EV.

That’s great info about the three modes. I would have to watch my speed closely, too!

I would be taking this car on longer road trips for vacations, so unfortunately the EV probably wouldn’t work well for me. I don’t want to have to worry about finding charging stations along the way when I go on one of my 1,000 - 2,000 mile road trips.

 

[RamblingMad]

That’s great info about the three modes. I would have to watch my speed closely, too!

I would be taking this car on longer road trips for vacations, so unfortunately the EV probably wouldn’t work well for me. I don’t want to have to worry about finding charging stations along the way when I go on one of my 1,000 - 2,000 mile road trips.

Maybe a plugin hybrid.

 

[tvguy]

Thanks for the specific info on the LE. That’s the one I’d probably get. That’s interesting about the cold vs warm weather difference. I live in the mountainess part of Virginia, so a good 4-5 months of the year it’s below 50 here. That’s disappointing about the flimsy wheel covers. I’m on my second Camry now and thus far have been impressed with the overall quality.

Just a little perspective, we bought a new Ford Flex in 2018 as our "retirement" trip car. We were going to retire last year. Put it off until later this year. We wavered on replacing my wife's 2000 Mercury Mountaineer with 150,000 miles before retiring, or driving it until it died. We decided to purchase the Camry as a run around town car for my wife, but is certainly capable of being a trip car, just not as roomy as the Flex. Given we keep cars nearly forever, these may be the last cars we ever buy. And one comment, the amount of technology in the Camry hybrid is a bit frightening. Frightening enough that I did buy an extended warranty, although the Toyota warranty is strong, and even stronger on the hybrid components.

 

[robinb]

I had a Prius V. It was pretty pokey. I now have a Honda Clarity plug in hybrid and it’s awesome. I drive on electric only 95% of the time. It is good in electric mode and downright zippy in “Sport mode”. I think the Prius plug in hybrid is similar but smaller than the Clarity.

 

[mrodgers]

To me trading cars isn't about a financial decision, but since you stated it, it appears you think you would save money on gas by swapping to a hybrid. Trading a 2014, paid off I assume, for something that will get just a little better mileage is going to take you 30 years to break even over the cost of buying a new car.

 

[ThistleMae]

I have a 2012 Prius Plug-In. If you do short trips, it will do about 12 miles on electric alone, and the 12 miles really depends on whether you are going uphill vs downhill, so it's not an accurate 12 miles, could be more or less depending on terrain. The battery doesn't last as long in the winter and in the heat of the summer but it's pretty insignificant IMO (electric alone). Without plugging it in, I get about 50 miles per gallon on the highway, and more in town. The one other thing I noticed is the car is slow to heat. The heated seats make a huge difference, and I tried to get an electronic start for it, but they don't make them, at least for my year car. I have about 80,000 miles on her now, and have never, I mean never, had any mechanical issues. I stand by Toyota in regards to $ spent for repairs. I will never go to another make at this point. Total electric is not possible for me due to lack of infrastructure here in the mountains, and the distances I have to travel to get to stores and medical etc. But...I have heard the amount of miles total electric will go is increasing all the time. The other thing is affordability. As there is more of a demand, I'm sure we will see more affordable purchases.

 

[mac_tlc]

We just bought a 2021 Toyota Sienna. All Siennas are now hybrid. Only have about 1200 miles on it but we love it. Mileage is about 31mpg on average so far. We got rid of our 2009 Sienna which got about 19mpg on average.

Plan on driving it to Orlando in April so we will see how the highway mpg is.

mac_tlc

 

[tvguy]

To me trading cars isn't about a financial decision, but since you stated it, it appears you think you would save money on gas by swapping to a hybrid. Trading a 2014, paid off I assume, for something that will get just a little better mileage is going to take you 30 years to break even over the cost of buying a new car.

I am on the record here as saying it is always cheaper to fix a car and keep it than buy new, But we decided in our retirement planning we would have two new cars, Hopefully we will live a long time in retirement, but with our mindset the 2018 Flex we bought new in July 2018 and currently has 11,000 miles and replaced a Suburban we had for 31 years, and the 2020 Camry we bought last July and currently has 2,900 miles on it and replaced a Mountaineer we had 20 years.. will be the last cars we ever buy. We are treating ourselves to new cars in retirement

 

[ThistleMae]

I am on the record here as saying it is always cheaper to fix a car and keep it than buy new, But we decided in our retirement planning we would have two new cars, Hopefully we will live a long time in retirement, but with our mindset the 2018 Flex we bought new in July 2018 and currently has 11,000 miles and replaced a Suburban we had for 31 years, and the 2020 Camry we bought last July and currently has 2,900 miles on it and replaced a Mountaineer we had 20 years.. will be the last cars we ever buy. We are treating ourselves to new cars in retirement

I hope you live a long, long time! I had to laugh at your post. I thought the same thing until I decided I'm going to live past my retirement car. But a 30 year record on your Suburban, good for you!

 

[Praying Colonel]

DW has a Camry hybrid. Personally, I find it sluggish on acceleration and it drives "heavy," and the somewhat better gas mileage (about 35 in mixed city/highway driving) doesn't make up for those negatives. But DW loves her car and would disagree with me. Plus, DW's is a 2011 and the newer hybrids may perform better.

 

[gillep]

That’s great info about the three modes. I would have to watch my speed closely, too!

I would be taking this car on longer road trips for vacations, so unfortunately the EV probably wouldn’t work well for me. I don’t want to have to worry about finding charging stations along the way when I go on one of my 1,000 - 2,000 mile road trips.

You can get something like the Chevy volt. You would then primarily use the battery for your shorter trips and the gas engine for longer ones, no worries about finding charging stations that way. My husband has one and hardly ever has to get gas because he charges it at home and at work, but we can still take it on road trips and just get gas like any other car.

I have a 2020 Rav4 hybrid. we tested both the hybrid and regular versions and didn't notice any differences that prevented us from buying our first hybrid. We both love the car, but it is way too early to tell about maintenance issues and the like.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

The new Venda hybrids look nice.

 

[Soarin4us]

I have a ‘13 hybrid Camry. 100,000 miles later, it still gets 44mpg, has great acceleration, and has had very few maintenance issues. It also has the world’s best seat heaters The only negative is that it slips a bit in the rain, but I’ve read that newer models have improved in that regard.