test drove a Toyota Prius yesterday.

[elky McElkerson]

wow. where do i start?

honestly, i think a Prius is a place that driving enthusiasm goes to die. it was the first time i drove ANY car that literally felt only like general transportation. zero environmental feedback.

just step on the gas and bzzzzzzzzzzz..it goes. like a golf cart. but with a golf cart, you feel the road..and the wind..

my wife wants one. 50mpg. okay..i get that part. it\'s roomy. great windows for a panoramic view. comfy..great features. even the back seats are damn spacious. i keep telling myself..\"this is the wife\'s potential car\". i\'ll let her buy what she wants..no debating it. her car! but i will need to occasionally ride in it..drive it..be seen in it. it really sucks the car lover\'s soul.

any prius drivers here?

we did drive a Hybird Camry. much much better..only 40mpg, and lots more money. we will drive the Honda Accord hybrid this weekend..even MORE money.

in the end, i hope this buys me some carbon footprint bonus credits, so i can get a big guzzler truck

 

[Swede]

Elky, I know how you feel. The Prius makes a lot of sense, but I just can\'t put myself in one. Maybe if you study, and consider all of the costs associated with Prius ownership, you can get something more to your liking. Compromise with her and get a Mustang V6. You could take it somewhere later and install a turbo for fun. :shifty:

 

[Baby Huey]

I have a Prius as a daily commuter. Avg around 45mpg. My mother-in-law won it at a casino here in CO a few years ago and sold it to my wife and I for $10k, so I couldn\'t pass up that deal! It saves quite a bit in fuel costs. It may not be the sportiest vehicle, but the MPG sure helps save $ to address other financial needs. If it wasn\'t for the Prius, I would have to drive my diesel F-250 that gets around 16MPG and be dropping quite a bit more dough into fuel costs. It is a very good, reliable well built car - you won\'t be beating anyone drag racing, but your wallet will thank you.

 

[Zpd307]

I find it funny, that I am constantly getting passed by prius drivers. and I don\'t go the speed limit.....

 

[bnsafe]

well if i lived in san fran, :haha:

 

[cnelk]

My Harley gets 50mpg. No windows and a great panoramic view with wind in your face.
It\'s sporty, not much can beat it off the line.
Give it gas and there is no doubt about the sound.
It\'s reliable and most of all it\'s cool

There is a Prius in the fleet at work.
I have driven it.... Eh +/-
If you like what it offers by all means go for it!

 

[mtnmutt]

I had a 1984 Honda CRX manual trans for a 11 years. 50 mpg. 1.3 litre engine. Loved driving it, but even the manual trans was no match for that first climb out of Denver into the mountains. I now have a 1998 Honda Civic Hatchback manual trans 38mpg and it can \"recover\" better when it gets stuck behind a slow vehicle going into the mountains.

I know I should replace my Civic with an automatic (left knee worn out), but I will miss having a manual trans. I love driving it on curvy mountain roads.

You just gave me another reason to delay my Civic\'s replacement. I love how it handles. Dang, you really did me in. Now, I just want to keep my Civic forever. I would miss having a fun car to drive.

Perhaps the Civic hybrid is more sporty. Doesn\'t anyone make a sporty hybrid?

What does your wife drive now?

 

[elky McElkerson]

mtmutt.

she drives a subaru turbo forester. it is a blast. i\'ve gone hog hunting with it a few times. the last time, she said, \"maybe it\'s time you get a truck\". i mutilated her poor car\'s interior with mud.

her car is great, but gets 22 mpg on $uper unleaded. jagged pill to swallow.

my wife is pretty ecology minded. carbon footprint stuff.

 

[Deertick]

You had me at \"50 mpg\".

I am not a \"car guy\". A car is a tool, and as such has a specific job. That\'s it. I don\'t care much about either the \"ecological gains\" or the \"sex appeal\" ... Just how well it does its job.

A friend of mine has a GMC diesel pickup and a prius ... neither he, nor I, see a contradiction there. Different tools for different jobs, and they both excel at what they do.

Toyota as a brand is tough to beat, too.

 

[mtnmutt]

Ah, now I see the issue. Your wife\'s vehicle is your backup hunting vehicle. Definitely, the Forester is more practical than a Prius, however, those Prius can fit a heck of a lot of stuff in them. Before I had the Highlander, I frequently drove my Honda Civic Hatchback on unmaintained roads. I could haul 2x4s and 8 ft bookcases in it.

Last September, I stopped by an open invitation elk camp that I knew about from the postings on another site. A woman from Utah told everyone on the forum that she was coming to elk camp in her Tactical Prius.

Give your wife\'s Prius a cool name and slap a BTO or elk decal on it when she isn\'t watching. Throw some sage in the back along with some pine needles. Dab some pine sap on the rear bumper or tires. Then, take it down a muddy Forest Service road to \"baptize\" it for hunting.

If you need a backup vehicle for hunting, the Prius may fit more stuff like antlers than a Camry or Accord. Who cares what you arrive in to get to camp, as long as you make it camp. Driving the Prius to AZ for your deer hunt will safe money for your next hunt.

Yes, I am a hypocrite. I cannot bring myself to buy a hybrid to replace my Civic.

Good Luck in your car search.

 

[cohunter14]

Doesn\'t anyone make a sporty hybrid?

Not necessarily sporty, but the closest thing I have seen to a \'cool\' hybrid is the Tahoe. Not sure on fuel economy or price, but I\'m sure both are up there.