Hi - I have a 2005 Prius. Mileage is good - not 60/51, and really because it's just not possible to get ideal condidtions with the hilly, windy type of conditions here in Kansas City (and NE Kansas in general). You do have to learn to drive it for optimal performance - it's a little different than a standard automatic - I'm still not used to the CVT thing, and you have to basically teach yourself to find the sweet spot where the car runs solely on battery power while cruising (it can be a little iffy). I've also noticed the mileage is getting better as we "break it in" - we're about at 3,000 miles and it's noticeably better.
However, a couple of points. First, the Prius is really not that much smaller than a Camry - it's a big car. Well, bigger than my 1998 Civic, but it's big enough for a small family, and it is our family car. Off the lot (pre-tax), it was around $22,000 - which is not that much out of the range of what, well, a mid-range Camry costs. Aside from the Magic Fairy Dust Engine, the interior is spacious, there's plenty of cargo room (well, for us it's plenty), extremely low cabin noise at high speeds - due to the best aerodynamics of any consumer vehicle (other than the Insight), and looks pretty freaky neat, in my scientific opinion. The hyperbole of dropping another $5,000 - $10,000 just for the transmission just does not hold water. Maybe another $2,000 tops, but that's not unreasonable. I have friends who spend $2,000 on two SLI video cards, a watercooling kit and some paired DIMMS to help them increase their efficiency at pointing a mouse at virtual Nazis. What's sold me on the Prius, though, was the extremely low emissions. Mileage notwithstanding, it simply does not pollute as much as a similar vehicle its size, and to me - who gets cranky whenever I see a huge, rock-hauling semi shit a giant stream of black smoke into the air as it drags itself out from underneath a stopligh - it's great. It's not a perfect solution, and it's got its quirks (the engine shutting off causes a shudder from time to time, and the console is a testament to how /not/ to do minimalist design), but I really just flat-out like the thing. - Jim Ray Champagne wrote: >Honestly, I'd not mind a Prius or the some of the new Hybrid SUV's that >I've seen reviewed in Wired, among other magazines. However here are my >problems with them: > >Not getting the gas mileage that the mfg's assert > >I NEVER would buy a first-year model, too many bugs and recalls, etc > >The cost of maintenance and the lack of expertise of the techs working >on them. (my dad is a mechanic, and he has some horror stories of what >these very green "trained tech" hacks can do to a car) > >They are WAY overpriced in a market where ppl are trying to SAVE money. > Why should I spend an extra $5000-$10,000 when I'm trying to save >money on gas? > >There's probably more, too. > > > ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Purchase Studio MX from House of Fusion, a Macromedia Authorized Affiliate and support the CF community. http://www.houseoffusion.com/banners/view.cfm?bannerid=50 Message: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=i:5:178149 Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/threads.cfm/5 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=s:5 Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.5 Donations & Support: http://www.houseoffusion.com/tiny.cfm/54
