First off, it does 51mpg. That's a staggering 4.6 liters of petrol per 100 kilometers. Or that each liter of petrol brings you 22.6 kilometers! Given that the new 2010 Toyota Prius comes with a 45 liter tank, that should mean it could practically go 1,017 kilometers before puffing to a halt.
Excellent, excellent car. Of course, there's a lot of pundits in USA especially, about the logical purchase behind a Prius, as it costs considerably more than something of its own segment, and therefore various calculations seemingly from the character of 'Numb3rs' citing you need to travel up to xxxxx amount of miles and drive the car for at least 13 years to make up for the premium price and ya da ya da...
Well, I believe this is the very first time one can feel 'lucky' for buying a car in Malaysia. (Don't kill me yet) As the Prius 'only' costs RM175,000; around the price of a Toyota Camry.
Mind you, it's not a small car either. Look how they compare when the Prius MK3 parks alongside a BMW 5 Series. So, thanks to our tax figures, and the slight tax relief of Hybrids here, it seemed 'reasonable' for us.
Oh, as always, we Malaysians are suckers, and since the government had reduced so much tax from Hybrid vehicles, and yet we're still paying almost twice what Americans are paying for, it's a familiar sight when we don't get as good a spec as other Hybrid owners around the world.
For the record, the new Prius comes with the 'innovative' (Yeah right, for long, it has been an optional thing when you buy an Audi A8 in Europe) Solar Panel roof, which helps cool the air of the car - literally the hotter the outside, the cooler it is inside. This thing alone would've justify the premium price anyone is paying for a car in Malaysia - AND YET, surprisingly, UMW Malaysia is leaving this option OUT.
YEAP, MALAYSIA BOLEH, BOLEH TAHAN PANAS. TAKE A GOOD LOOK AT THE PHOTO BELOW, this is what UMW Malaysia deliberately leave out for us Malaysians, arguably one innovation that's specially designed for us Equatorians.
So what are the other stuffs we're not getting? You guessed it. Saw this colorful screen at the center? That's exactly what we're not getting after paying something for twice the price of what Americans paid, yet not because of import taxes and excise duties.
And this dull little thing here is what we, after paying RM175,000 will get. Oh forgot, we don't get that for buying a Camry as well. (Apparently, a GPS is so expensive that it comes with the premium version of Persona)
Well ,enough. All in all, we're in a market that consumers are always at the loosing end, what to do? Just shut one eye, and think about what you're buying, something as large as a BMW 5 Series, Toyota build quality, decent ride, comfort and handling, that Green image, the cool factor, two engines instead of one, 1,017 kilometers between refill, and costs almost the same as a Toyota Camry. Pretty good deal? Ok lah.... Check out the photo galleries.
