celebrating hybrid ownership

John, I am curious about something: Since your 2001 Prius was not yet fully broken in going into its first winter, was it's mileage significantly better its second winter?

I got my '04 in January, dead of winter, and as I've often commented, may have achieved the lowest mpg ever recorded for a Prius by driving a 4-mile commute in bitterly-cold weather and warming the cab for 4 or 5 minutes before driving. (Sorry: at 30 below zero I won't drive before warming the cab a little bit.)

My mpg has steadily improved since then, but how much is due to break-in, and how much due to the warming of the weather, I have no way to guess. I'll be around 5,000 miles as we sink back into winter, and I'm wondering what I might expect for mpg this winter compared to last.

 

John,
Congratulations on passing 4 years of ownership with your Prius. I'm sure if you wanted to, you could go ahead and make it to 14 years without much trouble.
Also, I've appreciated your ability to illustrate the benefits of Prius through with so many different tools on your website...
I've thought every now and then when looking around on your website how nice it would be if all Americans were as educated and passionate as you are about the Prius! There would be a lot less 8 mpg nonsense
Enjoy your Prius or whatever form of HSD you choose for many years to come!

Approaching 2 years this fall:
Silver Strata '03 - November 20th 2002
Salsa Red '04- November 13th, 2003

 

congrats on the aniversary john!!

i for one value your site as my decision to buy a Prius came about in 3 hours.

i went from researching the vehicle (your site provided about 80% of the info)

to getting in my 15 mpg ford pickup and driving down to my local dealer and ordering one. all that was done in time for me to make it home for dinner.

other than the fact that i would have liked to get a few more options, i have not a single iota of regret and still consider it one of the best decisions i have ever made.

 

Educating Us all

Thank you John for educating us all. We learn much from your attention to detail and objective perspectives. I especially appreciate your sharing details on tires, oil changes and general self-service maintenance.

I'm in my 14th year with a Toyota 4Runner (166k mi, 25 mpg) in mint condition. I expect delivery of a 2005 Prius any day now (ordered April 2004) and expect to be able to keep my Prius 10 to 15 years.

As you are careful to point out, regardless of marketing hyperbole, it comes down to individual driving. There is a need for a primer to educate all vehicle operaters how to prolong the life of their vehicles and optimize fuel economy. Preventative maintenance and anticipatory driving go a long way and reap substantial benefits.

 

John:

I wonder... could you buy any other type of car, or after having a hybrid for so long you feel nothing else's worth buying? After experiencing 50-52 mpgs for six months I find it very difficult to downgrade to 20-30 mpgs.

 

LOL... my my john... how quickly we become spoiled!!

 

Wow. I did not have the courage to get a Prius at that time. I have waited and watched. I am glad that I started with the 04 because of the inside size and I understand some of the things you say I am becoming addicted to this car. Because of a insurance screw up I had to drive my old ride for two days. I hated the brakes and I missed the SS/SE. The transmission jerked me around. I do have to say that your web page helped me off the fence.

 

i wasnt in the market for a new car when the classic was introduced here so didnt even knew it existed.

when i decided i wanted to buy a car, i decided that i had $40k to spend and went out to get the best i could buy for that amount of money and that is what i got.

 

I rejected the Classic because my old car was a Civic station wagon and I was not willing to go from a wagon to a sedan. The liftback design of the '04 made the difference for me. Plus the improvements in efficiency and power.

 

I still don't get what everyone's nit is about the power of the classic Prius. It is a very rare occasion for me to be passed by anyone when leaving a traffic light. I actually find my self being held back by the slowpoke in front of me, ambling away from the light as if they are the only person within a mile radius on the roadway. The only ones that typically accelerate faster than me, are souped up cars and trucks, as well as hi-po motorcycles.

 

Can't say for sure, but maybe the worry was more about getting from onramps onto highways??? Reasonable or not

 

I've never been at a loss for power in that situation either, even in Colorado. The electric side of the powertrain adds an element of altitude immunity to acceleration.

 

Congrats and thanks, John... your site has been a big help... I linked it thru my yahoo profile and send my 'gas guzzling' friends there whenever possible... Living in Colorado I must agree with Wolfman, there seems to be no lack of power when you need it.. I haven't tried to street light race and big V-8's...

Bob

 

Wolfman: I should clarify. My reason for not considering the Classic was the body style. I liked the convenience of the wagon style. I never drove a Classic. When the very first reviews came out of the '04, I was attracted by the liftback style, plus I wanted to get the modern safety features. The HSD had intrigued me all along. The reviews characterized the '04 as more powerful than the Classic, yet with better mileage. I was going by the reviews, and liked the power and efficiency comparison. It was an added plus for me.

 

OK I will admit it, my issue was the battery. My name is Henry and I am a battery killer. I was obsessed with battery life. I am obsessed with battery life. I have now (with much help) become satisfied with the issue of battery life. I am now one with my battery.

 

Sure, I can understand the liftback vs. sedan thing. I nixed the new style for the lack of rear seat headroom, as I wanted to insure that adults could get into the back seat. My only test for that, is to sit in the back myself, and see how I fit. If I don't, then the car fails. The classic just barely squeaks by in this little test. Had the hybrid Escape been available then, I would have easily been in one of those over the Prius.

Your mention of power just brought up the old question of what in the world are people realistically looking for performance wise, as I can find absolutely no lack of performance in my car.