A funny thing happened on my way to buy an SUV

Hey all, first post!

I've been in the market for a new vehicle for about a year now. I owned a 1997 Nissan Pathfinder that I bought 2001, and it was a great vehicle but had reached the "one of these days it's going to give up the ghost" stage. I knew it needed repairs, but I also knew I was going to get rid of it soon and didn't see the point in dumping any more cash into it (heck, I was even reticent to get an oil change). After putting it off for a long time, I finally decided to get serious about a buying a new vehicle.

I'm an SUV guy at heart. I love big trucks - old Dodge Rams, big Hummer H2s, etc. I didn't have the bankroll for an H2 and its ridiculous gas mileage, so I figured I'd compromise and get a Toyota FJ Cruiser. Very cool vehicles, and I even test-drove one a while back, but I never pulled the trigger and bought one. My Pathfinder was paid off, and I'd racked up a sizeable amount of credit card debt in the past few years that I wanted to get rid of, so the idea of jumping into what would at least be a $500/mo car payment didn't appeal to me all that much. However, I knew that I needed a new vehicle, emphasis on "new". But I wasn't really feeling anything on the market. What was a boy to do?

About a month ago, a buddy of mine who lives in California was in town on business. His rental car was, of all things, a Toyota Prius. I'd never been in a hybrid before, but my opinion going into it was: "Hybrids are great if all you care about is gas mileage, and don't mind a hideous, uncool little vehicle." To my surprise, I thought the Prius was...cool. The touch screen was awesome, and it had a pretty comfortable ride! I'm a tech geek and love cool technology, and the Prius is all technology. I wasn't about to rush out and buy one, but it did make me me say, "Hmmmm".

This weekend, at the urging of my girlfriend (who has been bugging me to get rid of the old Pathfinder for a while - it has this crazy shimmy that may become life-threatening at some point), I decided to go check out a Prius - just for the heck of it. To make a long story short, I found a slick black 2007 model at a local CarMax, traded in the Pathfinder, and drove it off the lot four hours later. So as of 8pm tonight, I'm a Prius owner! I couldn't be happier. It's a really cool little vehicle, and the fact that I won't be getting 13mpg and spending $50/week or more on gas is gravy! I do have several questions though:

1) Is there any easy way to find out which package my vehicle has? I see people listing what package their Prius is equipped with, but since I bought mine used it wasn't listed in that manner. Here's what the sticker says (maybe somebody can discern it from this list):

ABS, A/C, AM/FM Stereo, CD Player, Cruise, Rear Defroster, Side/Overhead Airbags, Power Locks/Steering/Mirrors/Windows, Alloy Wheels, Cloth Seats, Rear Spoiler, Traction Control

2) The GPS feature isn't added to my touch display. Is there a way I can get the Toyota GPS added, maybe at a dealer? Or is that the best route? I've heard some people complain about the Toyota GPS, mainly that you can't edit your route unless you're stopped, which is dumb. I really want GPS though, since I now have the touch screen to support it.

3) Same question for the backup camera. Can it be installed afterwards?

4) Anybody have experience putting a moonroof on one of these bad boys? I realize it's not a factory option, but that's never stopped anybody.

I know there's forums specifically dedicated to some of these questions, but I figured I would pose them here to get some quick responses before I go to the right places to get the nitty gritty details.

Anyways, proud to be a new Prius owner! "So much for the H2."

-silks

 

BTW, it's a 4-Door Liftback, not a Touring. So that might be my trim right there.

 

That's what I figured. It sounds like the Toyota GPS is a "perfectly fine if you already have it, but don't go out of your way to get it if you don't" kind of thing.

What about the backup camera? Do you think it's worth it to have that? I don't have much problem backing up in such a small vehicle, but since the Prius' rear view is a little obstructed I can see its benefits.

 

Awesome responses all, thanks. Looks like I'll have to look into getting:

1) Garmin GPS
2) Moonroof
3) Backup camera

Now I just have to figure out why I'm getting only 37mpg (no complaints of course, I'm coming from a 13mpg SUV). I think that has to do with my commuting distance - I'm only 2 miles from my office.