Help a friend decide on a hybrid

What don't you get? This is money paid to the dealer by the manufacturer, as opposed to money paid directly to the dealer by you, the buyer.

Tom

 

<Ahem>
I have grown quite tired of people taking my name in vain. My Dad and my Brother have both been cited so many times, especially after clumsy people have struck their fingers with a hammer!

Once again, my requirements have been muddled up ... something her holiness, The FSM and I have found too common today:

First let's get my requirements straight:

• Cheap to operate
• Flexible
• Cheap to keep up
• Low risk
• Affordable

Although my technical expertise has been called into question, my Dad created everything in six days. we have a certain amount of skill in the family. But we also appreciate 'free will' and the entertainment it provides. So we do insist upon:

Warranty - 3-10 years will be enough. We tried running them until the 'wheel fell off' and they did ... but resurrecting an old car soon loses its appeal.
​

We have both City and Highway interests. Also, we occasionally have over-sized loads to tote about so we need:

Flexibility - ranging from up to four heavenly hosts or objects about 6 ft long, 2 ft. across, and though wrapped, sometimes a little dirty.
​

As mentioned, resurrecting older cars has lost its charm ... not that we've lost our charms. So we want something that wont need a lot of fixing and repairs:

Low maintenance - we are interested in the 'free will' efforts of those who seek to avoid passing on future maintenance even if covered under the warranty. No one has the time to waste at a dealership.
​

Now we like a little excitement as well as the next one but it makes more sense to have something that folks have history improving. This minimizes the chance of have to use either the warranty or sitting at the dealership:

Low risk - some history, the longer the better, of the technology with obvious generational changes. Thus one that has gone through say three generations over 12 years would rate higher than some Johnny come lately that has had a limited run including 'pruning' of dead ends.
​

Finally, in times of tight credit and economic hardship, we have to be able to afford the vehicle. Sad to say, many of the things more precious than gold are not a good exchange medium at the dealership:

Affordable - we think $23-25,000 is a fair price. We don't need a bunch of stuff that sits idle in the car, just good basic transportation that won't "burn up" our money at the altar of pump.
​

So please stop taking my name, a_friend, or my Dad's name, or my Brother's name in vain. If you have a hammer, consider replacing it with either a staple or nail gun. Really, we are getting a little tired from the background noise.

Yours,
a_friend

 

Matches the touring wheel *covers*, you mean :_>

 

wait till you drive the Touring thru turns , thats where I notice the difference, I can go faster around sharp turns where not feeling so "floaty" like with my prev 2 base Prius's. I still feel the side winds on highway driving but I like the better handling at lower speeds. Still have to wait to see if Consumer Reports right about 2mpg lower mileage. It still winter in New York and getting 40 mpg , it always goes up in the summer . I think your friend was right to "opt" for the Touring . Plus this is last year for the Touring .
Forgot to mention I got my Consumer Reports April Auto ISSUE and :

DETROIT - The 2009 Toyota Prius Touring edition offers the best value for a new car, according to Consumer Reports magazine.

 

I googled >
Smart navigation
The Prius' navigation system is connected to a DVD player under the driver's seat. The data storage device holds nav system map data that is read in conjunction with the real-time GPS satellite location to yield the guidance information displayed on the screen. The location of the GPS antenna is not obvious; it may be located behind the touchscreen module to enable a good sky view through the windshield.

 

BTW I just remembered and went out to car to check and yep I needed to change the zone (united states) that the Nav was set to, search area from 9 to "8" for new york. Local dealers here never seem to set that . My first 04 Prius drove me nuts why Nav not recognizing my area , search area not set .

 

hope your friend enjoys his purchase. and as polls show, 95 out 100 Prius Owners say they would buy their Prius again even if given the knowledge of ownership and the option to choose a different vehicle.

as far as Nav goes, there is no Nav system that will make everyone happy. they are all different, have strong and weak points based on map accuracy which varies widely from area to area and system to system.

built in Nav systems are cool. easier to see and use while driving. as for me, i have Nav on my phone. its completely integrated with my computer, allows me to preplan a route with benefit of internet searches to find addresses, can enter hundreds (actually dont know how many... most i ever entered was 14 points, but i do have around 50 or 60 faves stored, so thinking the limit is based on available phone memory)

but, its based on celltower triangulation with the GPS signals so it has issues with finding routes if a cell signal is weak...now i can start a route in an area with a signal, navigate thru the area that does not have a signal since the Nav will just switch to GPS and it works fine in that it tells me where i am at and when to turn, etc. but i cant vary off the route, because the Nav will be unable to recompute or redirect me back on my route selected. but it does provide more updates, (hopefully map updates more often) is cheap. (9.99 a month, but in my case, its bundled with a data package so the actual cost is more like $4-5) and i dont have issues with programming it while driving if the need arises.

now, as far as POI's, dont know. had brief encounters with a freinds 2004 Pri which had Nav, drove it a few times before i got my 04 and it seemed average. found a lot of stuff, missed a lot of stuff.

now after saying all that, i did pre-order the gold package with Nav (but only did it because i want the SUNROOF!!)