Both Honda And Toyota Slash Hybrid Battery Replacement Prices

Both Honda And Toyota Slash Hybrid Battery Replacement Prices

As I got into my car at my local YMCA recently, I noticed a Prius parked next to me with a For Sale sign in the window. It read: "'05 Prius, $14,999, 97,000 miles." This beige Prius looked to be in good condition. And with gas prices topping $4 a gallon, it certainly seemed like a good deal for a gas-electric hybrid that gets 48 mpg in the city and would cost about $23,000 new. But one question nagged at me: as the odometer approaches the century mark, how much life is left in this car's electric battery? And then an even scarier question occurred to me: if the battery runs out of juice, how much would it cost to replace it? Those concerns short-circuited any interest I had. So I put the key in the ignition of my far less fuel-efficient car and drove off.

Hybrids these days are hotter than a laptop battery, with sales up 58 percent last month. But what happens if the battery on your hybrid goes dead? After all, hybrids have been on the road in America for eight years, racking up hundreds of thousands of miles. Automakers say those big batteries under the seats are holding up well. But when they power down, replacing them will cost you thousands. That thought might have been a caution light for me, but it isn't for the growing gridlock of used hybrid buyers. On the car Web site MyRide.com, the number one search term last month was "Used Toyota Prius"—up 944 percent since January. "People are ignoring the concern about battery life," says J.D. Power auto analyst Michael Omotoso. "Their immediate concern is, 'Oh my God, gas is $4 a gallon. I need a hybrid. I'll worry about battery replacement five years down the road.'"

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07mcs07mcs - 6/10/2008 4:36:13 PM
+1 Boost
gas is now about $4.50 for unleaded


BostonBiosafetyBostonBiosafety - 6/10/2008 8:16:03 PM
-1 Boost

Please call me when it makes sense to own one of these cars.


toolatetoracetoolatetorace - 6/10/2008 10:23:59 PM
+1 Boost
3.94 here


EnnNorakEnnNorak - 6/10/2008 10:55:36 PM
-1 Boost
I'm amazed they finally woke up. High cost of battery replacement made these vehicles a poor investment from the life-cycle cost point of view.


GodfatherSHMGodfatherSHM - 6/11/2008 11:27:22 AM
0 Boost
we dropped to 3.89 in Kansas City yesterday...


autoproautopro - 6/10/2008 5:06:06 PM
+3 Boost
Toyota says the batteries will last the live of the vehicle which is 10 to 12 years.They don't let the batteries fully discharge so they last longer.


StarStar - 6/10/2008 7:00:24 PM
-7 Boost
Right...like anybody with a brain is going to believe what Toyota says.


kut17kut17 - 6/10/2008 7:05:44 PM
-3 Boost
I'm sure that 10-12 years of battery life is an optimistic statement rather than a fact. Most batteries last far less than they are advertised for.


flozel1flozel1 - 6/11/2008 12:09:12 AM
+5 Boost
"Right...like anybody with a brain is going to believe what Toyota says."

Duh, the first generation Prius is about 10 years old already and they're still running. Goes to show you know absolutely nothing.


autoproautopro - 6/11/2008 7:17:44 PM
0 Boost
They give an 8 yr. warranty,and I'm a hybrid expert.


BremboBrembo - 6/10/2008 8:03:09 PM
-1 Boost
$14000?! Would it better to get a new car at that price? Just a thought.


BostonBiosafetyBostonBiosafety - 6/10/2008 8:17:48 PM
-1 Boost

No, it would be better not to buy one in the first place.


ghosthunterghosthunter - 6/10/2008 9:01:25 PM
+4 Boost
as for as i know, there are only less than 0.004% of second generation prius need its battery replaced, and the cost is about 3000 dollars. statistically, 0.004% is such a tiny number that you can totally ignore.


ghosthunterghosthunter - 6/11/2008 1:27:42 AM
+5 Boost
i should have posted my source, sorry about that

http://www.ecomodder.com/blog/2008/06/07/replacement-hybrid-battery-costs-plummet/

just some copy paste
"
Honda says that out of over 100,000 hybrids on the road currently, only 200 have needed out-of-warranty battery replacement. Toyota, on the other hand, has only needed to replace 0.003 percent of its hybrid batteries out of warranty on the second generation Prius"

also
"
It will now cost just under $2,000 to have new batteries installed in you Honda Insight, and just under $2,500 for your Accord hybrid. These are about $1,000 reductions in the cost. Toyota, on the other hand, has dropped prices from ~$5,500 to $3,000"

So. with some real facts, i think you people can stop assuming hybrid cars need replace their batteries as often as you need to go to gas stations. and it don't cost you 8000 dollars to replace it either. with less than 0.002% for honda, 0.003% for toyota. come to think about it, Honda Insight was produced 8 years ago (or so), and only 0.002% needs to replace battery. In my book, that VERY reliable.






enp83enp83 - 6/11/2008 4:10:14 AM
+2 Boost
"Toyota also plans to substantially cut battery prices, which now stand at $3,000 (excluding installation), down from $5,500 on the original Prius."

Note that Toyota did not reduce the price of their batteries at this time, it's been around $3,000 for some time. If they match the price cut that Honda just announced (percentage wise) then a brand new Prius battery pack would cost under $2k...for those .003%


StarStar - 6/11/2008 12:00:13 PM
-2 Boost
"It'll last for at least 800,000 miles."

Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha. Thanks for the laugh. If you pray long enough it might last 80,000 miles.




fuelfoolfuelfool - 6/11/2008 1:10:48 PM
+3 Boost
Nothing like a good ol' racist and fact challenged rant from "Coprius". You know it's absurd when "MichaelTaylor" offers his stamp of approval. The only thing missing was his usual sign-off imploring the rest of us to Barack the vote. You're slipping coprius.


sectorsector - 6/11/2008 1:22:17 PM
-1 Boost
"'05 Prius, $14,999, 97,000 miles."...

looks like the said owner did a lot of praying :)


ChicaneShooterChicaneShooter - 6/15/2008 9:12:52 AM
+1 Boost

LOL! that label better fits the hordes of ford f-150 buyers. which USTA BE the #1 selling vehicle for decades. until gas prices spiked up.

now f-150 sales are like the lemmings, PLUNGING OFF CLIFFS INTO THE SEA!

toyota buyers, otoh, are INTELLIGENT FOLKS who know their cars are all good for at least 15 -20 years before needing replacement. and have the lowest maintenance/repair costs ALL ALONG.

it PAYS rather than COSTS to own a toyota. in all the money saved by NOT NEEDING repairs and replacements as often.







enp83enp83 - 6/11/2008 2:29:15 PM
+3 Boost
"Whatthe" you're comparing a subcompact verse a midsize. Let's just do a far simpler comparison with a Camry hybrid and it's non hybrid version.

Toyota Camry LE $20,685
Toyota Camry Hybrid $25,860
$5,175 diff.
Camry LE 25mpg/avg
Camry Hybrid 34mpg/avg
Camry LE 15k/yr $4.50/gal. = $2,700
Camry Hybrid 15k/yr $4.50/gal. = $1,985.29
diff = $714.71
7.24 "years to see the savings"
I don't know about you but I don't see cars on the road made prior to 2004 anymore.


ghosthunterghosthunter - 6/11/2008 8:04:01 PM
+1 Boost
funny i also sit in my co-worker's civic/prius, and i feel prius is actually bigger than the civic, especially the rare seat.

what really impressed me is the acceleration from stand still. the feeling is incredible for a 1.5L engine (i think that's the one in prius). sure prius won't push you much on the high way, but 0-40 (in sub 5 second) is really... it make u feel like prius had 3.0L engine.




toyfantoyfan - 6/11/2008 4:32:29 PM
0 Boost
I don't know if any of you doubters even read the article. . . 350,000 MILES. . .
ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?!
Is any one really complaining about $3,900 after that many miles?!?!?!
Get real!!!! That's a lot of miles. I would dare ask all of you how many miles you have on your current vehicles and if any of them have 250,000 how much you've spent to keep it running. And then ask yourself what kind of mpgs you've gotten that whole time!!!!
The Prius IS for real. Don't compare it to a Yaris becuase it drives much nicer and it costs less to maintain!
350,000 MILES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


autoproautopro - 6/12/2008 10:06:36 AM
-1 Boost
When you compute how many years it takes to recoupe your money when stepping up to a hybrid,you have to factor rising gas prices and how many miles that person drives.


enp83enp83 - 6/12/2008 7:21:20 PM
0 Boost
The price does not affect both car's equally, it affects the less fuel efficient car more.

Let's car A uses 100 gallons a year at $3/gallons, their annual fuel bill is $300. Now gas is $4/gallon and their new fuel bill is $400. A $100 price difference.

Car B uses 150 gallons a year at $3/gallon, their annual fuel bill is $450. Now gas is $4/gallon and their new fuel bill is $600. A $150 price difference.

In this scenario when the cost of gas went from $3/gallon to $4/gallon it only cost car A an extra $100 per year while it cost car B an extra $150 per year.


enp83enp83 - 6/12/2008 7:59:27 PM
0 Boost
It's a little tricky to find the price difference between a Civic Hybrid and an equal non-hybrid civic trim level because the Civic Hybrid has features not found on any other civic. Also a lot of it's standard equipment lists somewhere inbetween the LX and EX trim levels.

If you go to Honda's website and build an LX, add on the floor mats and decklid spoiler (both standard on the hybrid). At this point the LX is still missing the steering wheel mounted stereo controls, 2 speakers (6 in hybrid, 4 in LX), an extra 12V DC power outlet, and automatic climate control. I would say it's fair to add $500 for those "options" to the LX to make them "equally equipped" for a comparison.

$19,418 for the LX verse $23,270 for the Hybrid, a difference of $3,852. The LX has a 2008 combined mpg rating from the EPA of 29mpg, the hybrid's new combined rating is 42.

15k mi / by 29mpg = 517.24gal/yr.
517.24gal * $4/gal = $2,068.96

15k mi / by 42mpg = 357.14gal/yr.
357.14gal * $4/gal = $1,428.56

A yearly difference of $640.40 in annual fuel costs.

$3,852 / $640.40 = 6.01 <-years in fuel savings to recoup original price difference (and that's with no tax credits being offer and gas staying at $4/gal over the next 6 years).


enp83enp83 - 6/12/2008 9:41:27 PM
-1 Boost
Are you kidding me? Shoot some people finance their car for 6 years now and A LOT of people finance them for 5 years. 6 years at 15k would mean the car only has 90k miles on it by the time you recouped the cost in that scenario. Oooo a Honda with a whole whopping 90k miles on it, better take it to the recycler and scrap it for parts.


enp83enp83 - 6/13/2008 6:12:10 PM
0 Boost
You're logic makes no sense, you talk about wanting to save money RIGHT NOW in the same breath as getting a new car payment. That new car payments not going to save you any money. It's not hard to figure out that hybrids DO make sense financially with gas prices today.


enp83enp83 - 6/14/2008 4:49:34 PM
-1 Boost
You're looking at monthly payments not total cost of ownership. I bet you're someone who got suckered into a 72 month loan because it's less money per month too...


ChicaneShooterChicaneShooter - 6/18/2008 3:25:22 AM
+1 Boost

an old maxim i once gave my penny-wise, pound foolish brother:

You ONLY PAY the initial purchase price ONCE. You endure (or not) the operating costs the WHOLE TIME YOU OWN a given product.
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