n00b on board

Hello Prius owners!

I'm new here and *may* be in a new Prius before too long. Why the uncertainty? Well, I caved in to pressure from my wife and cancelled my Prius order and bought a new '07 Toyota Camry V6 XLE in April. I don't know if you've heard it or not, but the new 6-speed transmissions in the V6 Camrys have been experiencing real problems - unfortunately, mine is no exception. I've just had a transmission valve replaced and the thing shifts worse and growls more than before. So, I'm lobbying Toytoa to take their Camry back and get me an 07 Prius instead. I'm supposed to speak with them tomorrow about these problems and what my options are. Yeah, the 268 HP engine was really sweet, but the higher MPG and lower operating expenses (combined with better reliability) are a more powerful draw.

Anyways, I'm really enjoying reading all the interesting material here and learning a lot about this car. Keep your fingers crossed that Toyota will do the right thing and turn my lemon Camry into a reliable Prius soon.

Hey, I'm Just sayin'

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Trevor @ Sep 13 2006, 06:09 PM) [snapback]319238[/snapback]</div>

Hey Trevor,

I just asked her, and here's the list (in order):

1. UGLY!!! She doesn't like the way they look.
2. Doesn't like the idea of having to replace an expensive battery at 100k miles.
3. It's expensive for what you get - the gas savings don't justify the price premium.
4. Safety. It's small and she doesn't feel it would survive a crash as well as a larger car.
5. Power - it's not that fast, so merging with some of the insane traffic around here would be a...challenge.

Anyways, it's going to be my car (she's got a new RAV4 V6 Limited that she loves), so I'm gonna make the final decision this time. Personally, I like the way they look, like the technology and high mileage, am a bit concerned about the battery replacement potential expense, feel it's reasonably safe if you get the side airbags, and think it's quick enough (I drove a '67 VW bug all through college, so I know what slow and unsafe really is).

So, thanks all for the nice welcome. I'll update you as to my conversation with the Toyota regional manager tomorrow...

B)

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(NoSpam @ Sep 14 2006, 07:56 PM) [snapback]319889[/snapback]</div>

First, thanks for the greetings and the link! I read the post and am sold - of course, I was already on board with the Prius. As far as the wife goes, we've gotten to the core issue: she thinks it's ugly. The rest was just a sham. No matter - it's an excellent de-bunking (it was bunk before, right?) of some key Prius myths.

Well, she's got her '06 V6 RAV4 Limited and, pending successful buyback negotiations, I'll have my Prius (which I should have had in the first place).

Marc

 

Tomorrow AM, after I drop the Camry off for the dealer's second attempt at transmission repair, I'm scheduled to spend some time driving the Prius. You see, I'm 6'6" tall and need to see just how much head room these things really have. From what I've gleaned by reading posts on another site, there is no definitive fix for either the 1st gen or 2nd gen Camry transmissions - other than complete replacement with one of the new 3rd gen units (all produced for the '07 V6 models).

If it's what I expect, I'm going to put a deposit down on an '07 Silver Prius with the #06 package (but no touring tires or wing). Ugly or not, here I come!

Marc