Tesla Model 3 vs Toyota Prius: Lowest Cost of Ownership in 5 Years?

***This Video includes a PAID sponsorship from SPAN***

The true cost of owning a vehicle goes way beyond just the initial purchase price. You have to consider a number of other costs to get the real picture. For example, in our comparison today, the Model 3 purchase price is quite a bit higher than the Prius, but with all things considered and the cost savings associated with electric vehicles, the Model 3 True cost of ownership may actually surprise you. But, are the cost savings enough to make up the initial cost difference? Which vehicle is cheaper to drive per mile over 5 years?

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Image & Video Clip Sources:

1. Thumbnail Model 3 image & other Tesla images and video clips used in the video Courtesy of Tesla, Inc. (where noted in video).

2. Thumbnail Prius image & other Prius images and/or video clips used in the video courtesy of Toyota (where noted in video).

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NOTE: The content found in this video should NOT be regarded as financial advice. I am not a financial advisor, and this is NOT in any way a recommendation or offer to buy or sell securities. While the information in this video is believed to be accurate at the time of recording, no guarantees are being made about the accuracy of the information presented in the video. As of the recording of this video, I am NOT invested in Tesla stock or securities, nor any other company mentioned in this video.

[ABC-wzdb]

Three requirements to own a Tesla AND save the most money.
1. You need to drive a lot.
2. You need a tax liability.
3. You need to own your home or have access to home charging.

[glennm]

There is no way a Prius will have $3000+ in maintenance costs the first 5 years. I have a 2017 LE Prius. I bought Bridgestone tires for about $600 at year 3 with included lifetime rotation, oil changes were free first two years and cost approximately 60 dollars annually after that. Break fluid change at year 3 was approximately $180, and wiper inserts annually are like $20. Engine air filters and cabin filters are cheap and can easily be replaced by the owner annually. The Prius doesn't have an alternator, no starter motor, no serpentine belt, has an electrically driven water pump and AC compressor - all essentially maintenance free. Radiator fluid is due approximately 100k or 10 years and same for the 4 spark plugs. Lifetime MPG is 54 and I get approximately 450-500 miles per tank with it's 11 gallon tank. The Prius with it's internal combustion engine is a huge plus for people who don't want to wait hours to charge or don't have the ability to charge such as the case with city curbside parking (no garage, no driveway) like millions of Americans have in major cities.

[canyondan]

I would say it is actually fortunate that the Prius has a internal combustion engine. So many sad EV owners during the cold this winter due to performance issues. The charging infrastructure is broken and not nearly where it needs to be. So yes very fortunate that the prius has an ICE

[jasonfranciosa]

The part you’re not accurately accounting for is tires. The Prius can use extremely long lasting tires (I get 80-90k miles out of my Prius tires) and they are significantly cheaper than the Model 3 tires which need to be replaced much more often.

Also, if cost is a major factor for the buyer. They want to keep the vehicle as long as possible. The Gen 4 Prius has a track record of lasting 300k miles without issues.

The model 3s reliability is no where near Toyotas at this time.

I own both cars currently, a used Prius is the way to go if you want pure cost effectiveness and practicality. The Prius also is a hatch back, with the Gen 4 having around 27 cubic feet of storage.

[elviralosetskaya]

Prius will last longer then model 3, and if the battery fail in model 3 it’s more expensive than a car itself in terms of putting down payment for new car, so Toyota still ruling….

[kenssto]

It will depend a bit on what your use case is too.
If you do a lot of road trips.. traveling sales, etc. Then the Prius will probably be cheaper.
Cost to charge at Superchargers is about double the rate at home.. pretty close to price of gas per mile, plus the time spent charging does have a cost associated with it.
The 2023 Prius is getting 57mpg I think.. so a little better than the number you cited.
I had an older Prius model. Used it for Gig work.. so 8-10 hrs per day driving mostly city.
I put 223, 000 miles on it in 4 1/2 years.. it had 423, 000 on it total when it finally gave up. Had an engine failure.. rare on Prius, usually it will be battery or other related stuff. Mine still had its original battery.

My cost per mile in the Prius was closer to 10 cent per mile, at current gas prices. That's fuel, all maintenance, and tires. Tires on my Prius were cheap.. about $320 for a set out the door. New Prius will be more.. has bigger rims.
Keep in mind I did all my own service work.. oil changes every 5K and transmission fluid every 50K that's overkill, probably but fluid is cheap and easy to change.
I would not include the tax credit at all.. most middle class people will NOT qualify.
One other thing on the Prius.. You don't really need an XLE trim to get what you need.. It does gets you some things.. heated leather seats I think a bigger infotainment screen, But the tech and safety stuff is all standard. And the Prius has Android auto and Apple car play standard.. You cant get it on the Tesla at all.
The Tesla is going to be way more fun to drive, and has some tech the Prius does not, the Prius will more practical, closer to a Model Y for Storage.
Both are great cars.. It will kinda depend on how you will use the car.

[ardelljenks]

My current car is a 2008 Toyota Prius with 319, 000 miles on it I got it for free did a little work so I have zero initial cost I do the maintenance and repair myself so my costs are fuel, oil, parts and insurance.
I would love to see a cost comparison between a five or 10 year old tesla versus a five or 10 year old Prius.

[JoeWhoJoeMama]

Prius: $32, 886
Tesla: 32, 773
Both $.44 per mile

At 10:32
Man I had to wait all that time to get to those numbers

[daltonknox]

For most of us, the costs between 8 years and 15 years are what really matters. Most Teslas will have been scrapped long before 15 years because the cost of keeping them on the road will become ridiculous once the drive train warranty runs out. The Prius of course will be happily rolling on.

[caf]

Now comes the tiebreaker.... 1hr fill up (and then IT'S still only to 80%) vs a 3 minute fill up.... And RANGE)

[terrencewalker]

The ten to fifteen year would be where the cost of ownership may be heavily impacted.

[busterdouglasiii]

Own a Toyota Prius 2024 XLE. Love it. Great car. I expect to own it for at least 10 years. Can't say anything bad. Gas mileage averages about 54 mpg. Comfy and I love buttons to organize instead of one big iPad screen.

[hfdewees]

Good comparison. It sounds like you are a bigger fan of the Model 3... and that's all good. I've never been a fan of the Prius until this redesign. I think ultimately I would choose the Prius Prime as it really spans the best of both worlds. I can do the plug in for daily driving but I can also avoid range anxiety on long road trip by not having to make special time allowances for chargers... and it's going to work through colder weather. Plus every setting in a Model 3 has to be changed from that iPad in the dash... give me some buttons. 😁

[TekGuy]

Your analysis completely ignores the elephant in the room. I live in the northeast where my EV range drops by 20% in winter so effective EV fuel cost rises by 25% 3 months per year even before you factor in the range reduction / energy cost increase due to running the heater and heated seats. In comparison, my Prius Prime happily chugs along returning over 75mpg average without the worries of a RWD vehicle in snow. While EVs are fast, quiet and "hey, look at me" cool, their prices and slow charging make them impractical for long distance use which is a long term cost that should be factored in by considering... How much is your time worth?

[liminyao]

I own both model Y and Prius, and here are my real world numbers. In my recent trip from San Francisco to Davis California, I added 113 miles with SuperCharge that costed me around $19.00. With Prius, it would consume (113miles / 57mpg) 1.98 Gal of gas. The current gas price in California is about $4.5/gal. So the cost of Prius for 113 miles would be ($4.5/ gal x 1.98gal) $8.90. Tesla advertised “potential saving” is actually twice expensive than a gas car on a road trip.

[jw_nomad]

Quality of Prius is much higher than Model 3. That is the fact.

[richardmarquardt]

I have had two Prius's and two Toyota Camry Hybrids. But just purchased a RWD Tesla Model 3. Your analysis is roughly the way I looked at it - when comparing a Hybrid and EV they are close to a breakeven unless you need a lot of Supercharging rather than home charging. What finally convinced me to buy the Tesla was availability and dealer markups. I got my Model 3 in just two and half weeks after order. You can't get new cars from Toyota and I expect the new Prius will be especially hard to get. Plus most car dealers want thousands above MSRP and unfortunately too many are rewarding them by paying that price. Tesla was by far the easiest buying experience I have ever had. I am paying $60+ a month for insurance from USAA. But I do believe the Model 3 RWD, as you mentioned, will lose the tax credit come March.

[yuxuan]

Prius is killing model 3 left and right, plus no range anxiety for long trips.

[rambokd]

I think you should have used a standard range model 3 instead of jumping up to a LR for Kelly BB. The numbers were so close it appears you were trying to make the model 3 look better. I mean you didn’t choose a higher trim Prius to compare. Anyway thanks for the comparison, the new Prius Prime may be my choice. It’s a good mix and no range anxiety.

[lukebrinsmead]

I’d choose the Prius. It’s statistically proven to be more reliable than the Tesla.