sant

I'm a 3 month proud owner (wife's car) of an 2012 RX 350.

I recently switched jobs and I have to drive 60 miles each way (no easy public transportation). I want a good gas mileage car. I also have a need to drive over long bridges (George Washington or Tappan Zee). So, I'm also looking for cars with stability.

I'm considering CT or Prius. I'm also looking at A3 with Diesel.

Comfortable ride also will be a good factor in my criteria.

Of course I also want it to be fun since I'll be spending more than 2 hours each day.

Any input? I'll be test driving all 3 cars this weekend.

john37

let us know what you think after you test them out.
personally the ct looks the best but being here on clublexus, im pretty sure you're going to get a little biased opinions. will the car only be for commuting? no baby seats/people in the back? just saying back seats are little cramped. if you're planning on buying the car id stay away from the audi, resale value isnt as good as lexus or toyota. i chose the ct for the wife bc it looks the best and i liked the way it drove better than the prius. gluck w/your decision.

Bob259

Well.... the wife has a Prius and I have a CT... some differences

Prius
- Better mileage
- Ride is a little softer
- Lots more back seat room
- Easier to take passengers

CT
- Better styling
- Better dash layout
- Seats 100% better feel
- Better fit and finish (marginal, but seems better)
- Better rear visibility

Audi
- Poor resale Vs Prius or CT
- Reliabilty issues in past

sant

How come no one compares Toyota Camry XLE Hybrid to Prius or CT? Is it Apples and Oranges?

From a price, mileage perspective Camry seems to be in the ball park with a bigger engine/horse power. Some of the reviewers seem to be put off by acceleration time 10+ seconds for 0 to 60 for CT or Prius, Camry seems to do the same in 7+ seconds.

Trexus

I would very much agree with Bob259 and he's got experience with both the CT and Prius.

As with everyone here the CT will hold it's value much better than the Audi.

Tom59

The new Camry should also be explored unless you hate the bland look of it. 200hp/40mpg......same dollars pretty much.
I looked and drove the same cars. Audi A3 I love the looks but was scared of diesel prices and some stations don't carry it. Also it gets about 10 mpg less. It did have more power and was a very nice handler. I always worry about reliability w/VW's .....they are not overall as well built.

Go drive them as mentioned I'm guessing you will make the same choice I did. I'm not biased either I was VERY open minded. The Audi does have more storage space and imo is a very nice looking car. The diesel is what caught my attention -price mostly- you must figure that in as comparing 87 octane to diesel..... 50-75 cents a gallon more depending on area. Add that to the ten less mpg's........that's a consideration.

I already had driven the Prius its god awful on the highway in wind.....lane changer. The one I drove was a 2010. Not sure if they improved?

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

I agree.
The Camry gets up to 43 MPGs which is as good or better than the CT and you have a more more power and comfortable ride along with much more room.You just have to get past the ugly IMO design but it's a great value and car.
NAV,leather,loaded for a $33K sticker which you can lower with a nice discount..

jimmyc13

Same here. Though I'd add that the Prius are a dime a dozen on the highway and not nearly as nice looking inside AND out as the CT.

Sounds like you have to find your happy medium. The CT is fairly fun to drive, but probably not as much fun as the A3. But I'd rather not be in the shop that much and dropping $ on repairs to the A3 and think the CT or Camry is the wise move.

Tom59

Veloster turbo , looks like a fun little hatch too. I drove the base model when it first was released it was nicer than what I anticipated. Excellent interiors and handled very nicely. The turbo might entice further. The bad either you like the look or hate it. Not as good a value.
Dealerships (some) aren't that attentive to customers either and warranty work they are not up to snuff. It's a Hyundai and some folks look down on them still.
VW GTI....4 door.......more food for thought. Camry is very bland handles like a couch.....but hp and mpg....I noticed reports are 37 mpg all around.....it is about 3-5mpg less than a CT. Again reading the scribes pov.

LexusNN

iTrader: (5)

The CT offers a lot. It looks aggressive, its luxurious but not bland, it has outstanding reliability, it is a comfortable ride, and of course the mpgs are great. Plus when you want to have some fun you can flip it to sport mode and then the whole car feels different. It feels tighter and faster along with the cool red accent lighting and the dashboard changes to the rev counter.

CSW

My wife recently got a new job and requires 40 miles each way commute. Like many of you we are also looking for a combination of comfortable and good mpg. We plan to get the car in spring so we still have some time to take a look the upcoming ones. Acura ILK is one of them. Promise great mileage and agressive pricing point ($25K to $30K). And from the pictures I like what it looks like inside out. We also put Prius Plug into consideration. It's interesting and have chance to save even more on gas.

jimmyc13

Wow, never knew Acura was coming out with a hybrid car (ILX), just checked it out here. Though the mileage won't be nearly as good as the CT. I just saw on the Acura site that the estimates are as low as 20 city/29 highway or as high as 35/38, depending on what setup you get. I still don't understand new hybrids that come out that achieve mileage that's not much better than a normal car.

CSW

ILX will have 1.5, 2.0 and 2.4 liter. Only 1.5 is hybrid and go up to 35/38.