356driver

I was putting too many miles on the P-truck so I decided to buy a Prius for business travel. The main objectives - prolong the life of the Cayenne, get better gas mileage and enjoy life in the carpool lane (California allows Prius owners to solo in the carpool lane...LA rush hour is one time when a Prius can outrun a Porsche).

My impressions so far:

Gas mileage - Not bad. After five days I decided to fill up the tank, out of curiosity more than necessity. 343 miles/7.8 gallons = 44 mpg.

Handling - Not a Porsche. Unexciting acceleration, normal cornering, blows around some on the freeway at 75 mph.

Comfort - Surprisingly good. The interior has a lot of room and is reasonably quiet.

Quality - Perfect. Not a thing out of place, all electronics work as expected, no squeaks or rattles. Why can't they set up a Porsche factory in Japan?

Fun factor - Still an occasional grin over how well the hybrid drive system works. But definitely not the gut thrill of the Cayenne TT.

Fortunately the plan is to give this thing to my wife in about a year. By then I'll be tired of it. But I have to say that Toyota builds a solid product and they should be commended for such an innovative car.

ltc

Nice write up, but I have to ask the question....

So where do THEY put the "!" on the dashboard?

Funniest thing I ever saw was a Prius on the highway with a trailer hitch installed....little tiny square (maybe 1") receiver. Not sure what 87hp could tow, but it was probably for a bike rack.

People out here are still paying over MSRP for a Prius, not so with Honda Accord Hybrids.
I drove a Ford Escape Hybrid and thought it was a neat little vehicle.

skl

Interesting engineering, but wouldn't a VW turbo diesel do the same thing a LOT easier? Great mileage and a lot less weight and complexity. I assume they don't get the free ride in the car pool lane though! It must be quite a change getting out of the Prius and into either the 356 or Cayenne! (Always have been impressed with Japanese build quality- in fact, Porsche learned from them back in the 80's and 90's didn't they?)

ltc

Yes, they did act as 'consultants' back in that time period.

VAG is supposedly bringing back the Touareg V10 TDI in 2007 when the low sulfur diesel comes to the US.
Now that PAG is 20% owner in VAG, maybe they can kiss and make up over the Pikes Peak royalties squabble, the TDI being the unfortunate victim.....hence the Hybrid Cayenne.
But as I've said, Dr W has said in no uncertain terms....NO Porsche will EVER have a diesel engine.

356driver

Good comments. One of the main goals for me is getting into the carpool lane. I am in sales and am currently traveling the full range of Southern California from Santa Barbara to San Diego. In LA the carpool lanes can save an hour in travel time. Only the Prius and the Civic Hybrid are carpool lane qualified.

One of the criticisms of hybrids is there are other fuel efficient alternatives that cost less. This is very true both for diesel and even certain fuel efficient gasoline cars. California is very restrictive about diesel and it is taking a while for the clean air bureaucrats to catch up with the new clean diesel technologies. So no arguments with the comments above but the carpool lane trumps all.

The 2006 Civic hybrids haven't reached the dealers yet so I couldn't drive one. Sitting in an 06 Civic there is clearly less room inside than the Prius. Both have (reported) equal performance and mileage. Frankly I am not as impressed with the Honda hybrid approach with the electric as a bolt-on to the gasoline-driven drive train.

The Toyota hybrid technology is more complex but extremely well executed. The gas and electrice powerplants are "peers" with dual input into the continuously variable transmission. The ECU's controlling and balancing the drive train are very well programmed. They really get the most out of available power from standing start to freeway speeds. As a software geek I am very impressed with what Toyota has accomplished.

VW and PAG would do well to study this car. It will be interesting to see what they can do with hybrid technology. I still like driving either of my Porsches better than the Prius.

MBailey

Prius qualifies for special lanes??? Isnt socialism great!!!

alex911s

COngratz, I like those cars, comfy
How much tax deduction do you get the first year?

Also youre not gonna like the carpool lane stickers,LOL theyre huge
2 on the left/right bumper, one on the rear

pdxjim

If one put a "bio-diesel" sticker on the Pepper, would it qualify for the carpool lane??

ScottS

I'll drive a hybrid when Porsche makes one....

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...ticleId=107234

ltc

I'm sure they'll have all the bugs worked out of that straight away.
They haven't quite figured out trailer lights quite yet....not sure I want them playing with 300-700VDC battery packs without adult design supervision.

gtdrei

Lewis,

Please enlighten me. I usually live on the GT2/3 board, but have been trying to buy a V10 TDI Toaureg. I've pretty much given up, (prices and availability) and started looking at the Cayenne S again. Was PAG involved in the decision to pull the TDI from the US ? I always thought it was the EPA & CARB.

You can PM me, I don't want to hijack the thread.

Robin

ltc

The story goes something like this........but it's almost 11PM bed check time, so I better type quick (hang around long enough you'll figure that out)

VAG/PAG codevelop the unibody which becomes a Touareg (finished there) or a Cayenne (shipped to Leipzig). Old history.
(I'll skip the whole VAG/PAG family history thing for now, suffice it to say they're related in many ways).
Things are going well.....early on anyways, so both companies begin work on the 'stretched' versions....basically 3rd row seat capable. Always planned since the beginning of both vehicles. No surprise.

Here's where it gets interesting.

PAG wants to know about royalty payments, since in their eyes, it's a stretched Touareg/Cayenne unibody, hence under the original agreement. VAG tends to have a different opinion, stating that the Pikes Peak (now called Q7...assuming Nissan/Infinity allowed them to use the 'Q'...another story) is a different chassis.
There's yelling, screaming...all in German....mine's not that good.
Fallout?
VAG tells PAG to stuff it....and by the way, the TDI they were considering putting into the Cayenne...forget it.
PAG says stuff it....we'll build a Cayenne with a hybrid (somehow) and cancels the whole stretched Cayenne model plan.
Later on, Dr W comes out publically (it's been in Pano and some other mags) and says basically....NO Porsche will EVER have a diesel engine. Huh, wonder why Dr W?

Then PAG buys 20% of VAG (for many reasons...continued supply of most electronics in the Porsches, to keep the comapnies German controlled...it's been discussed.

VAG is planning on bringing the Touareg TDI back to the US in 2007, when the low sulfur diesel is available/required, making it a bit more like European standards.
VW has always been ahead of the curve on interior design, so a nicely outfitted Touareg with the TDI would make a fine vehicle for towing.

Any questions class.
OK, lights out.

ltc

BTW, love the A8L.

Bet you didn't know the same DSP audio amplifier is in both the A8L and the Cayennes (actually all MY03+ Porsches) AND the Mercedes Maybach?

That's your trivia tidbit for tonight.

skl

When the Cayenne reaches 50K miles (which will come before the 4 year limit) I'd look seriously at the Q7 as i driven Audis almost as long as Porsches, and would love it with the TDI- hell, Peguot (sp?), and Audi will RACE diesels at LeMans. I thought seriously about the TDI Toureg but they were in very limited supply and am glad I didn't as I did wonder about our high sulfur diesel fuel with that engine. And to be honest, paying almost as much for a VW as a Porsche would have been tough. Except for the lighting issues towing (don't ask either me or Lewis) I've been very happy with the pepper.

gtdrei

Actually, I did know about much of the electronics sharing, ever drive a Bentley ? Looks remarkably like a Phaeton inside.

Robin