Considering 09 - A few questions

Snow: It depends on the snow condition. The Prius has low ground clearance, so over 4 inches will bring you to a halt. If only a couple of inches, or tightly packed, or ice, the Prius is superior because of the combination of ABS, Vehicle Stability Control, and Traction Control. On very steep hills, (more than anything you have on LI), the Prius will have a problem on ice, unless you have good snow tires (the traction control shuts off the drive to keep you from spinning and the car stops dead).

Maintenance: Anybody can change the oil in the car. John's Stuff - Toyota Prius and more > Prius info > oil change

Regular 5W-30 oil will do fine. Fanatics like me, or those who want to go longer between oil changes use synthetic oil. The main secret is not to overfill. Use ONLY 3.3 quarts of oil. Most of us do not use the dealer for oil changes. They overcharge and use lousy bulk oil, and do no better a job than your corner garage.

Price: Sounds OK, but what do I know.

2010: Go check it out at least online. Many tech improvements, better seats, better ergonomics, maybe better ahndling in snow, slight improvement in both milage and performance, higher (unknown) price.

 

Edmunds shows invoice for a Package #2 as $22,636.
So if they are charging 21,129 as the invoice and then taking off 1000 that seems good to me. Let me know if that is what you pay. I might have to visit my sister in NY...

 

But the 2010 will also surely have its share of new-model bugs, whereas the 2009 is thoroughly de-bugged. Rent one for a few days to test drive it.