8 Priuses later...So long, thanks for the memories!

I never thought this day would come. After owning 8 straight Priuses (9 if you ask my girlfriend, who counts that one I flew to California to buy but had to re-sell the following day due to sunscreen all over the leather..), I now find myself Prius-less for the first time since my teenage Corolla years : \

By my calculations, I've driven 137k mi over 5.75 years of Prius ownership, and netted a positive +$2,316 in total appreciation after factoring in all vehicle purchases and sales (no state sales tax has its benefits). These cars have taken me all over the country (14 states and 9 National Parks), across a closed Icefields Parkway in Canada during the winter due to extreme weather (still finished the drive in a Gen 1), and towed countless motorcycles to race tracks all over the West coast. I've fit an entire dining room table with six matching chairs in the car, and managed to squeeze a complete Queen bedframe headboard in the back as well. Seen 116mph on a downhill with the wind at my back. Stealth camped in Yosemite. Taken me on my annual pilgrimage to our country's greatest National Park to summit Half Dome 8 years running now. Silenced many a SUV/Truck/Hummer dudebro critic who've never towed anything or ever seen dirt with their rigs.

I've driven nothing but Toyota's my whole life, so I had to keep it in the Yoda/hybrid family with a new 2022 Corolla Hybrid with the leather package. Cheers y'all and thanks for a decade of adventure and great advice!

 

We decided on the Corolla Hybrid over a 2022 Prius mostly because the Gen 3 > Gen 4 transition is brutal, you give up SO many things: storage space, looks, interior comfort, dash/trim quality and materials, etc. Also, I realized that we drive the Prius 99.9% of the time with just the two of us, and we haul large loads that require the hatchback maybe...twice a year? My folks own our old 2014 PIP so we'll just borrow that anytime we need to haul/move large stuff. The original appeal of the Prius was the MPG's, but now that Toyota has sedans that exceed those numbers for much less money (once you spec out a heated Softex interior, a must for us) it just made a Gen 4 much less attractive. We sold our 2015 Prius Five for $22k (lol) and the Corolla was $27k OTD, no sales tax, with the Premium Interior Package + BSM/RCTA packages...it was just a no-brainer. First time buying a new car for either my gf or myself!

First impressions vs a 2015 Prius: the Corolla is *much* quieter in terms of cabin/road noise, MPG's are scratching 60mpg with normal driving (I've never done hyper-miling, I accelerate relatively quickly, but I always drive in "Eco" mode), auto-EV mode is dramatically stronger and longer-lasting than a Prius: it will climb up a steep driveway <10mph without the ICE kicking on, and also stay in EV mode while accelerating up to 30-40mph much longer than a Gen 3. It has way sportier handling, much less body roll, and is more responsive and tight at the steering wheel. Apple CarPlay is glorious, as is adaptive cruise control! Speakers aren't as good as the Honda Insight that we test-drove, but about the same as the premium JBL package in a Gen 3. Toyota really needs to start placing tweeters in the front door areas (just inside the side-view mirrors), the "music coming from under the windshield" audio quality is about a decade dated at this point.

Dislikes/nitpicks with the Corolla: corded Apple CarPlay/Android Auto rather than wireless, and the USB-A data port is under the front dash, rather than hidden in the center armrest (there is a 12V power socket and USB-C charge-only port in there, at least). Chintzy push-button ODO/Trip stalk poking out of the otherwise-impressive MID ("dash" AKA Multi-Information Display), why couldn't that have been cleanly integrated into the steering wheel or the bank of buttons below/left of the wheel, where you have the other rarely-used buttons? Key fob is huge. No lock button on the rear trunk lid, the way you could lock your entire Prius after closing the hatch by pushing that little button. The cubby forward of the shifter is way too small/shallow to hold anything of use, awkward to reach while driving, it doesn't even fit my iPhone (13 Pro Max) or even a sunglasses case! Heated seats have High/Low settings but the High setting isn't as hot as a Gen 3. The backup camera doesn't move the lines as you turn the wheel. In 2022...really? It should have proximity sensors with the BSM/RCTA package. The $2k Premium Interior Package gives you heated Softex seats but eliminates the seatback pockets..lame/cheap. There is no spare wheel with the Corolla Hybrid version, but the giant styrofoam insert that fills that empty wheel well space is 70% solid styrofoam with some minor cut-outs for a jack and tire inflation tools and a few storage spaces, it could have provided for way more "secret" storage while still supporting the cargo area above it. It's a bummer that the US-spec Premium Interior Package ditches the heated steering wheel, wireless charging mat, and heated rear seats that our Canadian friends receive with theirs. Eh.