Forums a little less "friendly" recently

This in fact is evolution. Different generations coming together, different thinking, different attitude.

 

As you wish.

On my less optimistic days it feels more like an aging neighborhood. I was reading the Tesla forum the other day. While I have no interest in the car, I have to say that the membership reminded me of Prius owners from a decade ago.

 

There were. There are! When you're looking at the list of threads in Fred's, click on either 'replies' or 'views', and the list will be re-sorted to show the most popular threads over time, instead of the most recent.

 

Was that "Off" or "Back"?

Still, let's treat hybrid and EV sales versus the traditional car buyer as an IQ test:

Based upon sales, it looks like Prius membership requires a minimum IQ of about 130. Going to an EV, 145 ... or under 55.

Bob Wilson

 

Bob, for me that GRAPH is an IQ test.

 

For what it's worth I think one aspect of this might be evolution.
I agree with this.

The earliest and oldest of Posters remember a time when Prius was far more unique, and much more a niche vehicle.
I think there was a much stronger bond between "Early Adopters" of Gen 1 and Gen 2 Prius.

The Prius today, and by default this forum have evolved. Prius ownership is a far more mainstream experience today, for a greater number of people then it was in the past.

You don't have the bonding or camaraderie that forms when you feel you're in the as of yet greatly undiscovered pioneer wilderness of early adoption of a unique vehicle.

So even for myself, though I've posted for years, I am a product of "Mainstream" Prius ownership as opposed to early adopters.

This may subconsciously create a tension across generations. Being a much more mainstream vehicle now, I would also speculate there is a greater degree of more "mainstream" mundane questions. Less...what/how is HSD working...and more...The Seats aren't comfortable or what's this button for...questions.

It's not going back.

 

Call me picky, but what some are calling 'evolution' is simply migration.
The Green revolution never happened; it just crested for a while when fuel prices were high.

 

Evolution or Revolution?
Either way- I'd like to think it is still in process. But that's really a different debate. The Prius itself alone was never THE green revolution. Only a perhaps a part of it.

But specifically would you deny that just through sheer numbers and years of familiarity, The Prius is by default simply a much more mainstream product than it was a decade or more ago?

Really, I can only speak for myself. And I would say, I remember seeing rare commercials for both Gen 1 and Gen 2 Prius, and never really thinking I would want one, and being very suspicious about the technology or long term viability of ownership.

By the time I got "into" the idea of Prius or Hybrids....the Gen 2 was on the verge of retirement to be replaced by Gen 3, and Prius had been sold to huge success in North America.

And I can't honestly say, that without mainstream success I would of ever been willing to be an early adopter. I needed a tangible history for the product, made possible by the early adopters. I needed to read the reliability history, I needed to know The Hybrid Battery could reasonably be expected to last 8 years +...

I let the Pioneers clear the trail for me to follow in all those regards.

Many of you may dislike me because you perceive me as a late comer to the party. But I have great respect for the early adopters of Prius. They are the ones that embraced a product at a time that came with untested risk. They are the ones, along with Toyota's long term commitment and support of the product, that made it possible for me to walk on a Toyota lot and choose from 30 plus Prius sitting on the lot at the time.

 

Sorry if I am belaboring the obvious here ...

Mainstream did not for the most part come to Prius because they got a clue regarding climate change or energy independence or ecology. That would be evolution. They came because fuel was expensive for a while, and they would be happy to leave if fuel became cheap. That is migration.

Same cows. For a time, a greener pasture

 

Yes, a period with higher gas prices DID result in a lot of people that never considered Prius, considering and buying Prius.

BUT....

The product at that time was vetted enough, by early adopters that a lot of people that did NOT or Would not of considered Prius felt comfortable enough to do so. That's evolution.

If I remember right, The Gen 3 was a huge hit when it came out, and a lot of them (myself included) were sold to "first time" Hybrid buyers, and gas was not particularly expensive at the time.

Evolution of a product and it's ownership base isn't tied to or limited to the motivation BEHIND the purchase. You can never speak for all buyers.

Even with early adopters, there probably has been and always will be a varying degree of reasons WHY someone buys a Prius, not exclusive or limited to respect for climate change, energy independence or ecology.

I think those reasons are among the primary reasons for a vast majority, but usually not the ONLY reasons.

Unless you want to say you're not "really" a Prius owner unless you're buying or have bought your Prius ONLY for those reasons. And again I think it far more a symptom of evolution where we've reached a point where those aren't necessarily the primary reasons people buy a Prius.

I still say The Prius today, and what it is as a product and buying/ownership experience is more a result of evolution than a spike in purchasing due to gas prices,- which did happen,- but wouldn't of happened if the product hadn't evolved at that point. That was an event which caused a migration. But it's hardly the whole story of Prius or hybrids.

And even in nature, large migrations, whatever the cause, are often steps in resulting evolution.

 

Somebody pass the popcorn......

 

I didn't really finish my point ...
I am saying that if fuel becomes cheap again, mainstream will leave Prius, not a whit wiser or changed for the experience.

 

In the USA, likely but then we never saw more than about 3% market penetration. Fortunately, the USA is not 'the world' and it looks like efficient cars have better penetration in other lands. This is not an 'EV1' moment.

Bob Wilson

 

i'm back, i'm flattered you guys noticed i was missing for a while.

 

...and the butter.

This squirrel has been chased before.
If gas were a nickle a gallon...what kind of car would you drive......if you were ultra wealthy would you drive a Prius....etc.

Asked and answered.
The reason that the forum is perceived to be a little less friendly lately is that too many people are more interested in flicking turds at each other than they are discussing things in a respectful way.
Moderates are becoming an endangered species, and everything is very binary lately.

Secretary Gates mentioned this on one of the talking head shows this weekend when they tried to pin him down on Hillary.

Oh yeah....just to squirt a little gas on the fire (pun almost unintended)
No.

If gas were a nickel a gallon or I were to become a gazillionaire---there's no way in hell I'd drive a Prius.

....Maybe a Tesla....

 

Well in an effort to support friendliness...I'm just going to say we disagree...

But first of all it probably all depends on how you define cheap. But I don't think gas is ever going to be "cheap" again. Stable and "Mostly Affordable" for the majority is about the best I think we can expect, and even that is extremely precarious.

Secondly, I think once you've experienced 450+ miles per tank, on less than 10 gallons, you probably NEVER forget that. Even if for whatever reason you choose to abandon it.

I'm looking at the evolution of The Prius as a product.
You're applying "reasons" you think people are buying the Prius or reasons you think they have bought them in the past.

There probably IS always a degree of connection between the evolution of the product and the evolution of the buyers of that product. But I wouldn't feign to speculate as to the what reasons the majority are embracing or even apply what reasons I think they should.

Efficiency is paramount. I wouldn't deny that. BUT everything else is pretty subjective to each individual.

Again speaking only for myself. I got interested or first looked at hybrids/Prius because of the efficiency. But now that I have owned a Prius? There are a LOT of other reasons I enjoy Prius ownership. Perhaps the biggest being that IMO the HSD creates a very smooth and relaxing driving experience. Regular ICE vehicles seem really unrefined in comparison. When I ride in any regular ICE vehicle, I keep waiting and expecting the vehicle to shut off.

Anyway, it would be ironic if I don't just say...have a nice day fellow Prius owner.

I'll admit that's probably true for nearly everyone.
But it's a fictional scenario that is never going to exist. And...

Even if gas became "free"....I'd admit that there are aspects to the entire hybrid driving experience I would miss. Beyond the efficiency

Off Topic:
Saw the new "Mad Max" movie this weekend. Hey, I went with friends...their idea....

But I thought it was funny that in a fictional scenario where resources have supposedly become extinction level scarce, they still show all the vehicles in the movie as being huge gas guzzling behemoths. There are evidently no Prius beyond Thunderdome.

 

How many climate change "skeptics" who bought a Prius due to to fuel prices have changed their opinions on the topic ?
Let's use the PriusChat membership, where they are most exposed to the contrary opinion.

 

Concur....but I'm thinking that there are PHEV/BEVs that could scratch that itch that are either much more expensive than Priuses or aren't quite as efficient.
I'm personally quite interested in getting some stick time in a v 2 - depending on how the improvements to that model pencil out.
Economically?
It's hard to beat a G3 for 10-year reliability and frugality.

 

The apocalyspe took place before the Prius came along.
The Briggs and Stratton hybrid could fit in a Mad Max world.

All its 12volts would probably be salvaged for other uses though.

 

I'm ignoring this thread. Lol