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Just bought a 2006 Prius!

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by daybreaker, Feb 20, 2010.

  1. daybreaker

    daybreaker New Member

    Joined:
    Feb 20, 2010
    2
    0
    0
    Location:
    Kenner, LA
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Since my 96 Jeep Grand Cherokee finally died, it was time for a new car. My choices came down to a 2006 Prius, with 48k miles, for $12k, or a 2006 Chevy Impala with 60k miles, for $11k.

    The Impala was nice, a little roomier (which, space and comfort is important for me since I am 6'), huuuuuge trunk (good in case we need to evacuate for a hurricane), fancy after-market stereo w/DVD player, 18" wheels. However, it felt slow, sluggish, and heavy, despite having a V6, it smelled weird, the seats wiggled a little bit, and the driver-side sun visor wouldnt stay up.

    The Prius had no flaws, only areas in which it was slightly beaten by the Impala. However, my legs still fit comfortably while driving without rubbing against the steering wheel, still had plenty of head room, and the seats felt a little higher up, and not set as far back as the Impala, allowing for a better view of the road. It felt like it handled better than the Impala and the acceleration wasnt that much slower than the Impala. I really like where the info displays, up by the windshield, and the touchscreen is very nice, with the rear camera. The hatchback and folding seats also provided decent enough storage room. Ok, maybe the tiny tires is the only negative I can find, after years of driving cars with 17" or 18" tires.

    All things considered, since it was a second car mainly for me to commute to work, we went with the Prius. The safety and maintenance costs didnt seem too different from the Impala, but the gas mileage difference was HUGE. And I still have a year left on the factory warranty.

    So I'm pretty excited about my Prius. I couldnt feel excited about the Impala either, so that played a big part in my choice.

    Any info I should know as a new Prius owner?
     
    #1 daybreaker, Feb 20, 2010
  2. Patrick Wong

    Patrick Wong DIY Enthusiast

    Joined:
    Mar 8, 2008
    18,200
    6,479
    0
    Location:
    Green Valley, AZ
    Vehicle:
    2015 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Congratulations on your purchase. I recommend that you visit the various 2G forums based upon your personal interests.

    After you've done some homework, if you have Qs about the topics that you are learning about, then post your queries within the appropriate forums. Good luck.
     
    #2 Patrick Wong, Feb 21, 2010
  3. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 4, 2005
    12,544
    2,123
    1
    Location:
    SF Bay Area, CA
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Interesting... perhaps the Impala was a rental? That's interesting/dismaying that despite all these years, GM still can't make proper sun visors. The last two GM cars my parents had (an 86 Olds Cutlass Ciera and 80 Chevy Chevette) both had crap sun visors. They'd either fall apart internally or wouldn't stay up. On the Olds, you had to keep tightening the screws on the visor, but eventually that still didn't help.

    Sounds like you have a year left on the factory powertrain warranty. One area which you'd save on w/the Prius, besides gas is for brake pad and shoe replacement. There are many documented cases of people being past 100K miles still on the original brakes.
     
    #3 cwerdna, Feb 21, 2010
  4. donee

    donee New Member

    Joined:
    Aug 15, 2005
    2,956
    197
    0
    Location:
    Chicagoland
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    III
    Hi db,

    The Prius is a better evacuation car, as its idle/slow traffic durating is about 10 times that of standard cars. In a huricane evacuation, one has to deal with clogged roads, and really slow traffic. Standard cars idle at such a high fuel consumption, they run out of gas in such situations.
     
    #4 donee, Feb 21, 2010
  5. daybreaker

    daybreaker New Member

    Joined:
    Feb 20, 2010
    2
    0
    0
    Location:
    Kenner, LA
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Yep, definitely thought of that. When we evacuated for hurricane Gustav, it took us 13 hours to go what is usually 2 hours, then waited in line for gas (at the first open gas station) for 2 hours to refill before continuing for another 8 hours of driving.

    Total travel time = 23 hours to go what is normally 4.5 hours...

    So, the Prius would definitely have saved us at least a little time, and about $50.
     
    #5 daybreaker, Feb 21, 2010
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