Aging hybrid. Am I playing with fire?
Discussion
Having recently changed my wife's ix35 for a Toyota CH-R I've become quite smitten with the hybrid experience.
The auto is giving my failing left knee a break, whipping along silently in electric in town, no range anxiety, LEZ compliant... it's just so convenient.
It's now got me looking at BMW i8s of around the 2015/16 vintage as a useable short commute and weekend fun car. Is this a potential financial disaster? Is it a case of they don't go wrong but when they do... fetch the vaseline please nurse?
The auto is giving my failing left knee a break, whipping along silently in electric in town, no range anxiety, LEZ compliant... it's just so convenient.
It's now got me looking at BMW i8s of around the 2015/16 vintage as a useable short commute and weekend fun car. Is this a potential financial disaster? Is it a case of they don't go wrong but when they do... fetch the vaseline please nurse?
My old Prius gen 2 did mega miles and never needed anything doing with the battery. Currently have a Lexus RX450h.
I think Toyota/Lexus hybrid tech is well proven and reliable. If you get the car serviced by a main dealer you get up to 10 years of warranty and I think the battery warranty is 15 years - as long as you get the hybrid health check done annually.
Beyond this, there's indie specialists who can repair Toyota/lexus batteries by changing individual modules etc.
Other manufacturers I'm not too sure about
I think Toyota/Lexus hybrid tech is well proven and reliable. If you get the car serviced by a main dealer you get up to 10 years of warranty and I think the battery warranty is 15 years - as long as you get the hybrid health check done annually.
Beyond this, there's indie specialists who can repair Toyota/lexus batteries by changing individual modules etc.
Other manufacturers I'm not too sure about
turbomoggie said:
My old Prius gen 2 did mega miles and never needed anything doing with the battery. Currently have a Lexus RX450h.
I think Toyota/Lexus hybrid tech is well proven and reliable. If you get the car serviced by a main dealer you get up to 10 years of warranty and I think the battery warranty is 15 years - as long as you get the hybrid health check done annually.
Beyond this, there's indie specialists who can repair Toyota/lexus batteries by changing individual modules etc.
Other manufacturers I'm not too sure about
I'm currently looking at BMW i3s but I'd look at a Prius but it's a minefield of ex taxi cars or importsI think Toyota/Lexus hybrid tech is well proven and reliable. If you get the car serviced by a main dealer you get up to 10 years of warranty and I think the battery warranty is 15 years - as long as you get the hybrid health check done annually.
Beyond this, there's indie specialists who can repair Toyota/lexus batteries by changing individual modules etc.
Other manufacturers I'm not too sure about
Hugo Stiglitz said:
I'm currently looking at BMW i3s but I'd look at a Prius but it's a minefield of ex taxi cars or imports
Go for a Lexus GS450h ,will never have been a Taxi , mine is Mk3 3.5 V6 age 32 - 35mpg cruising silence or can lift its skirt instantly & take off. Its quicker to 20mph than my TTRS...& better mpg round town.
ked, do try getting on and out of one a few times first. Ask me.how I know.I can definitely recommend an i8, had 2 of them now, and would happily have another on once the children take up less space 
Both of the ones I had were higher mileage, neither of them ever missed a beat. Being able to complete and local journey on electric was great, and when the engine was needed, it still got great MPG as it was the 3 cylinder unit. It always felt a lot faster than its headline numbers suggested.
It drove very well due to it's weight, and made a great daily driver, although parking it could be tricky due to it's doors, and getting in and out involved a sore head on a few occasions!!
Both of the ones I had were higher mileage, neither of them ever missed a beat. Being able to complete and local journey on electric was great, and when the engine was needed, it still got great MPG as it was the 3 cylinder unit. It always felt a lot faster than its headline numbers suggested.
It drove very well due to it's weight, and made a great daily driver, although parking it could be tricky due to it's doors, and getting in and out involved a sore head on a few occasions!!
I'm not big on BMWs but I really do like these. I've tried to talk myself into an i8 a couple of times but it'd have to be the family car and with its size and comedy doors, it just felt like it'd be too much like hard work. They are still fantastic looking things - the peak of BMW design before it descended into the horror show we have today.
Johnson897210 said:
Aging hybrid. Am I playing with fire?
If it includes a battery then yes quite possibly. The Eco loons will try to tell us 2+2=5 though.
It should be a safer bet than many other cars. I don't know how the BMW specifically holds up but petrol hybrids are statistically the most reliable cars on the road. If it includes a battery then yes quite possibly. The Eco loons will try to tell us 2+2=5 though.
Hugo Stiglitz said:
I'm currently looking at BMW i3s but I'd look at a Prius but it's a minefield of ex taxi cars or imports
If I was to buy a used daily driver now, I'd be looking at a Corolla hybrid hatchback. Taxi drivers normally go for the estate version. There's drivetrain choices: a 1.8 and 2.0. The 2.0 is supposed to be quite nippy, obvs you lose some fuel economy but still around 50mpg. turbomoggie said:
If I was to buy a used daily driver now, I'd be looking at a Corolla hybrid hatchback. Taxi drivers normally go for the estate version. There's drivetrain choices: a 1.8 and 2.0. The 2.0 is supposed to be quite nippy, obvs you lose some fuel economy but still around 50mpg.
50mpg from a hatchback is only a little notch better than diesel.50+mpg from my mate's Honda CRV hybrid leviathan was impressive.
Will depend on your mix of journeys. Some people have bought hybrids and been underwhelmed, others they can be a perfect match.
But the difference in fuel cost over a year is so-so compared to the general costs of owning a shiny machine and doing 10k miles a year in it.
It's like a nice bonus, compared to an EV or PHEV being a whole new game.
But even then, finance/depreciation is your major cost unless you're doing taxi/galactic mileage.
If you want one, buy it because you want it, not to save money.
My PHEV Audi A3 etron, while not in the same league as a BMW i8, is now being ran out of warranty as it’s 9 years old and has nearly 103k on the clock (it had an 8 year, 100,000 mile battery warranty).
The most expensive thing to fail thus far was the electric ac unit, which Audi wanted £2000 for the part alone. I found the same unit from a scrapped Golf GTE on ebay for £165, which a local VAG & hybrid specialist replaced for me for something like £400.
Otherwise it’s just been normal service parts like brakes, tyres, etc.
I’ll probs be getting rid next year. Fingers crossed nothing catastrophic happens in the interim. Battery is fine (touch wood), range may be slightly down on when I first got it, but still plenty.
The most expensive thing to fail thus far was the electric ac unit, which Audi wanted £2000 for the part alone. I found the same unit from a scrapped Golf GTE on ebay for £165, which a local VAG & hybrid specialist replaced for me for something like £400.
Otherwise it’s just been normal service parts like brakes, tyres, etc.
I’ll probs be getting rid next year. Fingers crossed nothing catastrophic happens in the interim. Battery is fine (touch wood), range may be slightly down on when I first got it, but still plenty.
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