wife went from an aviator to a prius...

Yeah, there are certainly times its convenient to have a third row. We have two big car seats in the back so we really can't ever have anyone ride with us. For us it doesn't justify driving that large a vehicle on a regular basis just for those occasions, so we're leaning toward becoming a 2 Prius family.

It does take some getting used to at first, as it is a big shift in perspective. I used to really enjoy cruising around in my Land Rover. After a year when I go back and drive it on occasion I feel really unsafe now. It feels huge and hard to control, and I find myself driving about 50 because I feel like it can't possibly be driven any faster without flying off the road. Thats a bit of an exaggeration, but it was really startling to me how much I prefer the Prius now.

Rob

 

I went from a Navigator to the Prius. The Navigator is the larger version of the Aviator. I gained rear seat legroom and a lot less problems. As much as I liked the Navigator, I was tired of the air suspension going out and the A/C dying twice. One time the compressor seized on the A/C and the vehicle had to be towed because the compressor runs off the same serpentine belt.

Be glad you got out of it before the problems started. My Navigator was a love/hate relationship. I loved it on long road trips, but hated it almost every other time. I literally resented taking it into the shop. It just got old. I actually installed a tow bar on my Jeep so I could just tow the Jeep to the service center to drop off the Navigator and then have the Jeep to drive to work. Yes, the Lincoln dealership always gave me a Town Car as a rental, but I got tired of filling out the paperwork and since I was there so often I just used the tow bar.

I do admit I still have a SUV... but the last 3 road trips my wife and I just adapted to the Prius. We found that we can bring every last thing in the Prius if we spent a few more minutes packing smarter. We now fit 2 adults, 2 kids, 1 large suitcase, 2 small kid suitcases, a DOUBLE stroller, a cooler, a DVD (attached to the seat backs), 2 laptops, and I'm sure a few things I missed on road trips. Our SUV has turned into my 425hp/425tq every other weekend drag race to the bagel shop on Sunday toy.

 

Heck no.....it was an opportunity to have a snappy response, like the first sentence. You are in a great position to work both sides of the humorous options available.

 

We were (still are) a 4 car family. We had a '97 Continental, '02 RX300, '04 GX470 and an '07 Mustang GT Convertible. The RX was my daily driver until I got the Mustang. When the Mustang gets put away for the winter, my 2 kids and I would share the RX and the Conti. The GX was my wife's SUV and she wouldn't give it up for anything. We needed one vehicle that would seat 8 and also pull our boat.

Times changed....we sold the boat and then last spring, my wife was sick of putting $80 in gas in her GX every 3-4 days. We sold the 14mpg Conti and placed our order for a Prius. Almost 6 months later, we finally got the Prius. My wife takes it to work now and we always use it in the evenings and weekends to run errands. She loves it and so do I. She is every bit as comfortable in it as her GX. The GX sits in the garage more now a days. We'll keep it until the wheels fall off, which should be a long time from now. She also feels comfortable that the GX is here for days when the Chicago winter gets bad.

All in all, we couldn't be happier with our Prius. If we ever have to replace the RX, I could definitely see us becoming a 2 Prius family.

 

I used to have a Ford Explorer, which if I'm not mistaken is basically the same platform as the Lincoln Aviator and Mercury Mountaineer. (the Navigator is bigger and based on the Ford Expedition platform I believe).

I haven't had many problems with the Ford Explorer, though even the routine maintenance I felt was a drain compared to the Prius. Every 20,000 miles or so I had to replace the Explorer's brake pads because it's such a big and heavy car and wears down the pads pretty fast, plus the diffs had to be lubed, tranny fluid change, on top of the normal scheduled oil and filter changes. Then there is the outrageous fuel cost.

I am very happy to have replaced the Explorer with my Prius last year. The maintenance costs I save by going to the Prius is amazing in and of itself-- No brake pad change necessary, no diffs to lube. The fuel savings is also a huge plus.

Just about the only thing I miss is the Explorer's roof rack and hatch space. Makes DIY projects like renting a ladder from Home Depot to clean my house's gutters easier when I can haul it on the Explorer's roof rack. Good thing my uncle owns a Jeep Cherokee and lets me borrow it whenever I need to.

 

And now time for something OT:


mrplease, nice motorcycle! Ducati?

My other ride is a '08 BMW K1200GT. Much more a touring bike than yours, but 150 hp with a 600 lbs vehicle does make for some fun!