Toyota Prius Plug-In Cost of Ownership
By releasing detailed statistics on the cost of ownership for the Prius plug-in hybrid in the UK, the Japanese car maker sort of disses the Vauxhall Ampera, as they compare it directly to the newcomer.
THe Prius plug-in is a strong player. It offers the near-silent, zero emissions performance of an electric vehicle, being able to run on its lithium-ion battery for around 15.5 miles and at speeds up to 51mph. When battery charge runs low, the car’s full hybrid system – which includes a highly efficient 1.8-litre petrol engine – takes over, so the driver doesn’t have to worry about whether the car has enough power to reach its destination.
Where the Toyota really edges ahead is the base price, which is significantly cheaper than the Ampera. But you know what, the Ampera is cooler!
Toyota stats:
Compared to the Vauxhall Ampera, which uses a petrol engine as a “range extender” to support the electric motor, Prius Plug-in offers a higher specification, more seats on board and can save almost £2,000 on costs over three years/60,000 miles with its greater range and quicker battery charging time. The table below shows how the Toyota cost benefits stack up.
| TOYOTA PRIUS PLUG-IN | VAUXHALL AMPERA | |
| OTR price (including £5,000 OLEV grant) | £28,630 | £32,250 |
| Driving range | 769 miles | 300 miles |
| Battery charging time | 90 minutes | 4 hours |
| Cost to charge | £0.50 | £2.20 |
| Cost per mile fuel + electricity | 3.9p | 4.4p |
| Number of seats | 5 | 4 |
| Navigation system | • | - |
| Rear-view camera | • | - |
| Specification adjustment value vs Prius Plug-in | - | +£4,017 |
| Whole life costs over 3 years/60,000 miles* | £36,272 | £38,130 |
- Data calculation by Kwikcarcost
Independent car data specialist Kwikcarcost also rates Prius Plug-in a stronger proposition for company car drivers in terms of cost-per-mile, compared to the Peugeot 508 Hybrid4 saloon and Vauxhall Ampera. The Toyota comes in at 60.45p, compared to 69.12p and 63.55p for the Peugeot and Vauxhall respectively. In the course of a year – an average 20,000 miles – this will see the Toyota costing £700 less to run than the Vauxhall and more than £1,700 less than the hybrid 508.
