5 Obvious Reasons A Toyota Prius Is The Best First Time Hybrid

I was one of those people who did not ever want to own a hybrid. I used to think they were not for me. Then I had to start teaching students how they work and operate. It was then I knew I had to learn all about them.

The issue was that there were so many options. To choose one, I was not sure where to start. I bought a couple of Honda Civic Hybrids initially, drove them, and let them go. I drove a Ford Escape hybrid as well, and also a Chevrolet Volt. Every car but a Toyota Prius.

The thing with Prius was I hated the stigma that came along with owning the car. I am none of those stereotypes and knew it, but all the while, I resisted owning one. I will tell you that it was the worst idea I have ever had. Ever since owning a Prius, I have changed my mind about everything I once thought about it.

If I were to suggest to anyone who was looking to buy a hybrid, I would tell you to get a Toyota Prius. Here are my top five reasons why.

The Toyota Prius Is Built Like A Tank
If you have not read my article on how durable the Toyota Prius is, check it out. I discuss in there how the engineers of Toyota created a product that had to withstand the real-world abuse that it would receive from the end-user.

The Prius had to be built tough because it was designed to do several things. The starting and stopping all the time meant that the engine had to be incredibly robust. It has to handle a wide variety of driving styles and still maintain optimal fuel economy.

It also has to be efficient in keeping maintenance costs down as well. The spark plugs, coolant, transmission oil, and brakes are all designed to have an extended life. Extended life means less overall cost to the consumer. It also means that Toyota had to make all these parts and fluids to take a beating.

Everything about Prius is incredibly well thought out. I am not saying they are exempt from issues. Everything breaks at some point. I will say though Prius has a relatively low failure rate on parts and components.

If we were to compare a Prius to a Civic hybrid, Prius would dominate it just in the reliability of the transmission alone. Prius is not a perfect vehicle, but it for sure, a solid one.

The Toyota Prius Has The Best Resale Value Of Any Hybrid On The Market
If you are reading this, you could also be shopping for a good used Toyota Prius. If that is the case, you are probably wondering why a car that has 200,000 miles is still going for 3 to 5 thousand dollars. Here is a hint, they flipping run forever.

I recently sold my 2007 that had 257,000 miles on it for $3,700. The guy I sold it to was thrilled to pay that as well. He said he had been looking around and could not decide on one that he wanted to buy. So when mine came up, it was a no brainer.

Look at all the reasons here in this article, and you will see why Prius has the best resale value. They are the hybrid that brought in the market segment. Without Prius, I know we would not be where we are today with hybrid technology.

Toyota Prius Is A Brand You Can Trust
If you have ever heard the work hybrid chances are, you have instantly thought of Prius. Toyota has made a killing on selling Prius as the brand; that is what a hybrid car should be.

Toyota also is not some fly by night company that has sprung up in the last few years either. They have been around for a very long time. An established company like Toyota has an excellent reputation to uphold, do you think that they would throw a completely new designed car into a world that knew nothing about hybrids? No way.

Toyota has been a company that thinks through what it is that their consumer desires and builds that customer base a car they can trust. Prius had to be a best seller because Toyota envisioned this car to be part of the "car of the future." It is obvious who you can trust when you are thinking of a hybrid vehicle. Toyota.

Toyota Invented The Best Hybrid System On The Planet
Back in 1992, when Toyota asked the question, what is going to be the car of the future, two options were presented. The "before" and the "future." The issue with the car of the "future" is that the technology did not yet exist.

The "before" car is what needed to come first to bridge that gap. Then came Prius. The engineers that made Prius worked tirelessly to bring a vehicle to market that would be studied for the next few decades. They knew that if they were going to reshape the way we think about transportation, we needed to have sufficient data to prove how it could get accomplished.

The hybrid system that Toyota has in the Prius is by far the best. The two motor, parallel hybrid drive system blew the others out of the water. It was more reliable, faster, and more capable than the competition. Without Toyota building the THS or Toyota Hybrid System, we would not see all the hybrids we do today.

The fact is Prius gave us, the proven, tried, and true technology we needed to make hybrid cars a reality. Other carmakers have also benefitted from Prius, using the THS in various forms.

The Toyota Prius Is Battle Tested And Proven
Did I mention Prius can take a beating? Did I say that they can be kicked when down and still come back swinging? Yep, that sounds like a Toyota Prius. There are hundreds of thousands of miles logged on these cars, if not millions. All that data that has been recorded and given to Toyota. It has allowed Toyota to keep improving the product more all the time.

The taxi drivers alone that have put these cars to the test have more than shown us how hard they can be run and still be reliable. Lift and Uber drivers are doing the same thing as well. It just seems to me that no matter who is driving these cars, the owners seem to love them and want to keep them around forever.

Conclusion
If these reasons are not obvious why you should own a Toyota Prius as a first hybrid, reread it. Toyota has the best hybrid on the market period. If you are looking to get a hybrid dive into a Prius. Chances are you will get a car you will love and will treat you right.

Thank you for reading, be sure to check out my other article, Three signs you bought right tires for your Toyota Prius. It will help you this winter season when the roads get rough.

Also Watch New tech means more MPG from your Toyota Prius and Click to Subscribe to Torque News Youtube Channel for Daily Toyota Prius and Automotive News.

Peter Neilson is an automotive consultant specializing in electric cars and hybrid battery technologies. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Automotive Service Technology from Weber State University. Peter is also an Instructor of Automotive Technology at Columbia Basin College. Peter can be reached on Linkedin and you can tweet him at The_hybrid_guy on Twitter. Find his page on Facebook at Certified Auto Consulting