On 23 Sep 2016, Mizter T wrote
(in article ):


On 22/09/2016 21:14, Neil Williams wrote:

On 2016-09-22 15:16:38 +0000, tim... said:

it is cheap and cheerful taxi service FFS, not a limousine service

It actually started out as a high-spec limousine type service - UberX,
the "cheap and cheerful" version, came later but is winning the battle.

What's wrong with a 5 year old Mondeo?

Not an awful lot - I do think they are too tight on the spec for UberX.

That said, if I get a minicab from my local companies these days it's
odds on a Prius or similar. Old, knackered Japanese saloons (which
previously seemed the default) seem to be on the out.

Certainly the majority of UberX cars in London are Prii, and many of the
larger minicab firms also have Prii as a major part of their fleet. The
drivers I've spoken to all seem to like them, they seem a pretty
reliable vehicle.

Prii / Priora / Priores etc!
https://www.cars.com/articles/2011/0...according-to-l
atin-experts/

Prius is an increasingly popular choice for private hire drivers (both Uber
and otherwise) and operators for several reasons:

- Increasing availability of 3-year-old models with FSH coming off-lease (or
should that be off personal contract)
- Reliability
- Passenger romfort

.... and above all, reduced operating costs because of low fuel consumption.

One of the local drivers who has picked me up numerous times for trips in /
to / from SE London and the City turned up recently in a sparkling new-to-him
Prius. A replacement for his previous Skoda Octavia, it had come off-contract
a few weeks before. In his first couple of weeks using the Prius he had spent
£100 less on fuel compared with the Skoda, for similar hours and mileage.

And a friend who has been private hire operator for 20-plus years (not in
London) has now standardised on the Prius for company-owned vehicles for
similar reasons. He now has more than a dozen, with a couple more on order.

Ken