Ford Focus TDCi or Toyota Prius?

I am jumping on the green(er) bandwagon and considering these cars:

A Focus 1.6 TDCi Zetec on a 10 plate £11k with approx 13k on the clock from Dagenham Motors.

A Toyota Prius T-Spirit on a 06 or 07-plate, £9k - £10 k with approx 40k on the clock from a Toyota main dealer, i.e with full main dealer 1 year warranty, 8 years warranty on hybrid system.

My daily commute is Hemel Hempstead - M1- Mill Hill. Approx 19 miles, 6 days a week plus a bit of leisure so approx 300 miles per week.

My head says the Prius will be more reliable with better residuals but boring.

My heart says the Focus will be much better to drive but will suffer in value.
Both cars have a similar claimed average of 65 MPG.

Asked on 23 February 2011 by pgb61

Answered by Honest John
I'd go for the Prius because the reliability record is unrivalled. You won't get 65mpg from either, though. Maybe 55mpg driving the Focus in an ECO manner. Maybe 50 from the Prius. The Prius will be be more economical than the Focus in traffic.
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