In an effort to boost its 2013 Prius Plug-In Hybrid sales, Toyota is reportedly offering discounts (or “financing funds”) of up to $5,000 on the PHEVs. There’s also a deal for regular Prius Hybrids, worth up to $4,000. In addition, buyers can get 0% interest rates for the first 60 months of ownership. Sounds pretty sweet.
Green Car Reports writes: “Until December 3, buyers can get $5,000 bonus financing cash on the Plug-In Prius Advanced model (offer #1239), and $4,000 on the regular Plug-In Prius (#1235).” In addition to all of the above, eligible buyers can still get up to $2,500 in federal tax credits.
With the Prius Plug-In initially priced at $39,525 in October, the above discounts seem to indicate that you can now have the car for just over $30,000, with that extra bonus of not having to pay interest for 60 months.
Toyota sold 9,600 Prius Plug-Ins through the end of October, which is quite good for a plug-in electric vehicle. However, it’s considerably less than its dominant Prius Hybrid older brothers. In 2012, Toyota has sold over 126,000 Prius vehicles (of some model or another). In the first quarter of 2012, Prius became the third most popular car in the world (based on global auto sales).
While the 2012 Toyota Prius has a 50 MPG rating, the Plug-In Prius has a 95 MPGe rating when driving in EV+gas mode. However, the range for that mode is just 11 miles. While the majority of our trips (or even round-trips) are less than that, 11 miles won’t last for every trip. In such cases, the car shoots back to that standard Prius rating of 50 MPG.
For comparison, note that the Chevy Volt has a 38-mile range on battery, and 98 MPGe rating on battery (37 MPG on gas). The Volt costs $39,145 before taxes. A CODA electric vehicle, meanwhile, has 88 miles of range and gets 73 MPGe, and it’s a fully electric vehicle (no gas, ever). Its price is currently $37,250.
Here are details for additional similar vehicles:
SMART ForTwo – $23,686 as a coupe or $27,557 as a convertible without the battery (battery rentals start at $81 per month), or $29,661 for the coupe and $33,532 for the convertible with the battery.
- 87-mile range
- 87 MPGe
Nissan Leaf – $35,200
- 73-mile range
- 99 MPGe
Mitsubishi i – $29,125
- 62-mile range
- 112 MPGe
Honda Fit EV – $36,625 (leasing starting in Summer 2012, sales starting in December)
- 82-mile range
- 118 MPGe (best in class)
Ford Focus Electric – $39,200
- 76-mile range
- 105 MPGe
Over the course of 5 years, the EPA estimates (based on some general assumptions) that a Prius Plug-In driver will save $7,600 on fuel (compared to an average vehicle rated by the EPA in 2012). Not bad.
If you’re interested in buying a Prius Plug-In, you can do so at BuyAToyota.com.
Images via Toyota
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