Sheesh, so now Honda has to further segment the mid-size category into the "huge numbers" division? :roll: Frankly, I'll be surprised if their Accord hybrid sales numbers even match the other mid-size but (presumably) puny '04 Prius sales numbers.

Doesn't sound like a huge gain in mileage, but people who are drawn to hybrids are often thinking of the overall environment, not just mileage. A VW Passat TDI, brand new this year, would top that mileage easily . I think the Camry gets about 24 in town and 32 on the highway. The Prius is smaller than the Camry, and I think the Accord is too. The more hybrids the better; it will improve the parts and service availability for all of us who own them, and work to improve the environment for all of us, period.

They didn't design it for optimal mileage. They designed it to be the Hottest Accord available, and still beat any other Accord Mileage by a fair margin.

The Marketing you will see for most upcoming Hybrids (including Highlander and RX) is: "The Performance of a V6 with the Mileage of a Compact Car 4 Cylinder".

The Prius is unique in being designed with a bias toward mileage over performance. Don't expect to see that in most near term hybrids.

Yay! Now Hybrid owners can have their cake and eat it too! We can have our MPG-efficient daily commuter car (Prius), and to satisfy the need for speed/horsepower we've now got the Accord Hybrid (but without the extremely low MPG side-effect of most high-performance cars that get 20mpg at best). 32/38 is not bad at all, especially for a high-performance car (sedan it may be, but with the hp that the V6 gas version has, that's still high-performance). We now can be environmentally friendly and gas-efficient all week, even on the weekends when we want go blowing around the twistiest backroads we can find.

I'm not even going to try to get the first-generation Accord Hybrid, though. Not only will people be clamouring for it as they have for the current hybrids, but first-gen cars have bugs that need to be worked out. I'll get a Prius now, and save for the second-gen Accord later down the road. Have my cake now (Prius), and eat it later (add Accord). Hehe, I like the idea of an all-hybrid lineup in my garage... :mrgreen:

Well, both my partner and my partner's mother are interested in getting hybrids (for environmental reasons, mostly). But they've both been turned off by a number of the '04 Prius' geekier items (i.e., the stuff I love about them.)

Frankly, I think the Honda Civic hybrid (and, I'm supposing, the hybrid Accord) fills the bill very nicely. While I don't think the UI of the Prius is radical, I do understand that it's off-putting to some folks initially; and that having a hybrid that looks just like a normal car from behind the wheel can be a source of comfort and security.

Yes, the gas mileage isn't as good; but the emissions are close to the Prius -- at any rate, way below a normal car's.

So, good for Honda, and for the people buying any hybrid. (OK, except the Silverado :mrgreen

I like the Accord, even without a hybrid system, but *with* such a system.... oh lala!
All we need now is a hybrid S2000! 8)

Oh yeah, baby!! :mrgreen: I agree with both parts of your comment.



Bookrats: Is there any way to convince your partner and his mother that the Geek Tech in a hybrid is not as evil as it seems? We must bring them over to the Dark Side (i.e. Uber-geekdom)... :lol: For me, the geek tech is a huge draw. I am an uber-geek, and enjoy every minute of my gadget lust. :mrgreen:

I know what you mean, Starbug -- the main reason I'm buying a Prius is my full-press geek admiration for the engine. And the gadgets.

And re: my partner, there's still a good chance she'll go with a Prius -- particularly if mine shows up soon. I think the best advertisement would be daily exposure to one. She visited our neighbor (who's leasing one), and checked that her sword bag would fit in the Prius' trunk space. A very important factor!

Though I think it'd be cool to be a 2-hybrid family, with one Toyota and one Honda (as long as I get the Prius). Great way to compare and contrast over time.

Her mom, though, would definitely prefer something "normal" -- and I can absolutely understand her point of view. A hybrid Civic -- or particularly an Accord -- would be a very nice fit for her. And she really likes the idea of something that resembles a normal car (particularly the controls), but puts out low emissions.

^^ whoa, someone's leasing a prius?

Yes, though I haven't got the full story. Our neighbor Bob has been leasing an Prius Classic for the last couple of years; last week, his old Prius Classic disappeared, and was replaced by a black '04 Prius.

Don't know when he "placed the order" for leasing the '04 (or even the package #), as I haven't talked to him yet.

I find the timing interesting, as we're hearing about a number of fleet orders, etc., being filled. Maybe some dealers are using the extra production to fill their leased Prius and fleet orders.

wow, i never heard of a 04 prius being leased, thats cool though

I'm not sure if i would like a Honda... i wonder if they fixed the litle annoyance of the A/C turning off when your engine turns off. If not, then i would still rather drive my prius. Unless actual racing.. i pass traffic all day long. It's not a slow car. The lowest mpg i've been punished with is 42mpg for the whole tank. that's some highway at high speeds.. and racing in city. I don't think i've ever seen mpg below 40... but there might be someone out there.

I believe Hondas work like the pre '04 Prius - engine won't turn off at a stop if the A/C is turned on. And, they can't fix that little annoyance as long as the A/C compressor is engine driven.

I was looking at www.greenhybrid.com the other day. The comparison charts are pretty interesting. The amount of pollution and features included are compaired. I would say the Prius is truly the best buy. It emissions are compairable to the Insight. But, the Insight is smaller and lighter. To have such a heavy car and get that good of emissions is amazing to me. :mrgreen:

Yeah, I considered the Insite at one time (Civic Hybrid just looked too boring to me), but the Prius was simply more geeky with all the features it has than the Insite, so I chose to indulge in gadget-lust and uber-geekdom. :mrgreen: Prius is the better choice, by far (how many other $20-$26k cars do you know of that have all these features?!).

To know an uber-geek when you see one, consider what he/she does.... drives a Prius, X10's their house, mods their computer, shops on Smarthome & ThinkGeek... *is sooo guilty of all the above* Prius is the geekiest car I could find, so needless to say it was love at first site.

LOL, yes sword bags must fit inside! :lol: In my case, it's HO-scale slot cars and RC car stuff that must fit into mine. My swords reside at my friend's house since we spar there. Your partner's resistance to The Prius Side will be futile. She is already weakening, if she's testing to see if her sword bag will fit...

Heh, I would have thought my mom would also go for the "normal" looking hybrids, but amazingly she likes the Prius as well. I think I might be rubbing off on her... 8)