Hi everyone, I am new to this forum. My wife & I have been looking at hybrids for the last few weeks. We want to replace our PT Cruiser turbo which only gets 19.5 mpg in town and 24 mpg on the highway. I have read almost everything that is out on the web on hybrids. I orginally wanted to buy the Honda Civic Hybrid and I liked how it drove. My wife and I could not get past the dull exterior colors and ugly interior colors offered on the Civic Hybrid. Why Honda doesn't offer all of the Civic colors and interiors is beyond me. A friend of my wifes ownes a 2007 Prius. She just raves about it. We have never owned a Toyota (many Fords & a few Mazdas & Hondas) so I didn't know much about them. I went to the Toyota dealer yesterday and they had 2 base model Prius cars that they were going to use in their rental fleet. The salesman gave me the smart key and told me to drive it all afternoon. I put almost 50 miles on the car. Now that is a test drive. I was very impressed. I'm an electronic engineer so I really like the high tech operation and displays. The car seemed large and rode very well. I was really impressed by the lack of road noise (tires, wind, engine). After driving the car for a few hours we returned it. I had read up on the Prius on the Toyota website and decided that I wanted a Barcelona Red Metallic Prius with gray interior and the #3 option package. The only items I did not want were leather interior & the navigation system (I have a Garmin). The dealer didn't have one but thinks he can get one exactly as I want in 10 to 14 days. The sticker is around $24,800. The dealer came down on the sticker a little (I was surprised) and gave me a fair amount for my PT Cruiser. We can't wait to get the Prius. Ok, now after my long post, what do you Prius owners have to say about my selection and the Prius in general? I appreciate any comments. Thanks, Tbirdtony
Sounds to me you are a well informed consumer. You made the right choice and know exactly what you want from a car. I am not sure if Package 3 came with HID lights, but personally...I really wanted that feature on the Prius. Your purchase is timely since gas prices is not going to drop any time soon. Congrats in advance.
You are a genius! I am also a new owner and very happy with the vehicle. Good luck with your new purchase.
Hi N3FOL & la cucaracha, I guess I did do my homework but it is good to know that I chose correctly. I haven't heard many people speak badly of the Prius. This will be my first Toyota.
I think you will be very happy, especially since you got a good long test drive. I have a very short commute to work so I usually only use about one gallon of gas per week for commuting in the Prius. A few months ago my car was in a minor accident and while it was in the shop I wound up renting a PT Cruiser. I only had it for one day but it used about a gallon of gas in that one day. I was so happy to get my Prius back after that. Congrats and enjoy the car.
ny biker - I understand the gas mileage on the PT. I owned my PT Cruiser Limited Edition turbo for 3 years and never got better than 20 mpg around town & 24 mpg on a trip . It was my first Chrysler and I can't complain about the build quality & reliability but I never thought that the gas mileage was good for a 2.4L 4 cylinder with a 4 speed automatic. It also has much more road noise than the Prius. The Toyota dealer emailed me yesterday and said that they should have a confirmation on my car today (Friday). It is in Houston and just got off the boat .
I picked up my new 08 Barcelona Red Prius yesterday. Pictures posted on Newbie Forum under New Prius Owner - 08 Barcelona Red
