Research project

I bought mine for these reasons!
(1)-Great fuel economy (for todays standards)
(2)-Hi Tech Design
(3)-A statement needs to be made!(World has limited resources and we also need cleaner air.)
(4)-Reliability!(Its a Toyota)
I just love the car! Great ride with plenty of room.

 

I got mine for just one reason, to pick up girls...

 

Welcome Jason. I bought Prius in 2001 to drive in the southern California area, primarily because of its low pollutant emissions. My overall fuel economy for the approximately 90 000 miles driven without a roof rack (etc) installed has been 46.5 miles per US gallon. Thus it has saved some fuel dollars as well. Maintenance costs have been minimal; the time it costs me is to participate overmuch in internet groups such as this one!

Not sure that the Prius says anything about us per se, but others interpret it to mean a wide variety of things. Not all of those are positive! Another interesting aspect is that drivers in search of higher fuel economy will drive in a way that they ulitmately find calming. Much has been written about that.

This link

http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Toyota_Prius_FAQ

will get you started on your research. There are also two discussion groups at Yahoo for Europe and the UK in particular, where some local viewpoints are presented. We are a bit jealous that the UK shops provide champagne to Prius drivers participating in "special service campaigns".

 

Simple obvious choice. My old car got 42 mpg.

I wanted my new car to get better mpg than my old one. Also wanted a hatchback for utility.
Prius is still the only car that meets these two criterion I see out there.

(Note I live in a state where diesels are banned!)

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jfc202 @ Nov 11 2006, 08:49 AM) [snapback]347408[/snapback]</div>

There's not much that can be added to the annual WHICH? car guide of 2006/7 - see page 62, and PriusChat comments.
Some users of the Prius say that they often get asked about it by strangers but that isn't my experience. They are rarely seen in my area but nobody seems to notice mine, or comment. You seem to think they have become 'so popular'. Is that the case in Exeter?
I haven't noticed a 'brand community' here but perhaps I haven't been looking.

What does it say about the driver? Mainly that he/she is an 'early adopter', not a supporter of Jeremy Clarkson, and not a follower of the herd.

 

1. Energy efficiency (good fuel economy) and PZEV
2. Aerodynamic (similar to Studebaker Avanti)
3. Critical thinking in every component (form follows function)
4. Model what I teach
5. Encourage Toyota to offer EV-hybrid 4Runner

 

Hey Jason,

I'll jump in:
1. My Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited was Unlimited on the amount of gas it consumed, I still hear its ghost gulping in the garage late at night!
2. Prius is a good start on a smart future, limited dependency on a limited resource.
3. I had an opportunity to be an early adopter on the new herd. Out here in the Bay Area Prii are just about as common as Beemers, well exaggerating a little bit but they're everywhere!

 

Good luck. The Prius is one of the most technologically advanced cars on the market and the people that buy it are quite diverse in age, gender, economic level and political persuasion. I haven't read of a study being done on race. The only anomoly I've read is that a higher percentage of Apple computer owners own Prii than the general population. Given the cars heavy use of technology, I don't think that's unusual. I'd bet a higher percentage of Prii owners also have flat screen TVs, iPods, DSL, etc than the general population as well.

I bought a Prius because:

My former car was 9 years old and it was time to buy a new car.
I look for a lot of things in a car. I wanted to spend around the same amount of money as my former car but not give up anything I already had. I spend roughly $20,000.
I was looking to move from a manual to an automatic. That is why I chose the Prius over the other hybrids.
I was also looking for the best fuel economy I could get. That put the Insight and the Prius in the top two spots.
My former car (Saturn SC2 coupe 1996) was a two door with a trunk. I hated the trunk and the back seats were useless for passenger or cargo. The Prius had four doors and a hatchback. I had driven hatchbacks for my first two cars (Ford pinto and Nissan 200sx) and love the hatchback. This put the Prius way ahead of the Insight.
My former car got about 25 mpg. I was looking to improve that as much as possible. mpg in the 30s wasn't that impressive.
I liked the look of the car. I liked the way it handled. I liked the quiet. I liked the really great, smooth transmission.
I'm not totally a techno-geek or an early adopter. Since the Prius was a second generation I wasn't that worried about problems.
The fact it has such low emissions was a positive perk and was part of the decision making process. I was looking specifically ONLY at hybrids with low emissions as a factor. The Prius had both low emissions and high mpg. Bingo!
I checked the consumer reports and Toyota had a good reputation.
I didn't want to go on a waiting list. So I checked the internet and contacted internet sales managers in my area. I heard back from a few with the color I wanted. Went to test drive. The first dealer was sleazy and was pullilng some of the no-nos I'd read about to avoid when buying a car. I left. I then went to Kearny Mesa Toyota where Howard Sheehy treated me extremely well. I paid MSRP at a time when others were paying over sticker. A car was on the lot in the color I wanted. I test drove it and then bought it. This was April 2005.

I'm one of the happy owners the Consumer Reports puts in the 92% "would buy another Prius".

I'll never buy another car unless it has everything (including the hatchback) my current Prius has. If I trade up for the new 2009 redesigned Prius it will be because it still has the hatchback but gets even better mileage. (A nice dark blue wouldn't hurt either.)

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Godiva @ Nov 11 2006, 01:20 PM) [snapback]347494[/snapback]</div>

Well put Godiva!

Let's see ... yep lot's of electronic toys, a bluetooth, wired and wifi life that's for sure, and I hang out on BrightHand.com, my son wants me to play Chess after dinner using IR PDA to PDA, however no TV, LOL!

I just couldn't resist, 'Mac to the Core' ...

 

1--Emissions. I became a mother and in turn became an environmentalist because of my son.

This was what made me want a hybrid in the first place, so was the biggest reason for my decision. However, I decided on the Prius itself for a few other reasons:

2--The test drive made me feel like I was Judy Jetson. The car was more technologically advanced than any other I had driven.
3--It was cute.
4--It had lots of leg room.
5--It had lower depreciation than other cars.
6--The tax credit.
7--I could make up the higher car payment with the reduction in monthly gas expenses.
8--I think it makes a statement.

Hope this helps.

 

I'd been thinking about a Prius for a number of years, but had a car that worked fine. My old car was totalled in April, though, so I went car shopping.

Good gas mileage was important to me. I had heard there were long waiting times to get a Prius, so I started looking at cars like a Scion or a Corolla - they felt underpowered to me. The salesman talked me into test-driving a Camry, but it was more money than I wanted to spend and the gas mileage wasn't very good. So I test-drove a used Prius, and fell in love with it.

It was so roomy! I could even have passengers ride in the back seat! And that great gas mileage! I didn't buy the used Prius - it was close the the MSRP of a new one, and it was a color I didn't like, and I detested the salesman. So I went looking on the phone and Internet at other dealers, and found three 'acceptable' ones within a week. So I drove home in a 2005 Super White with package #5.

I hardly even knew what I was buying - the 'gadgets' make me feel like I've purchased a luxury car. I'm so spoiled now, I don't think I could live without the Smart Key System and the bluetooth phone hookup. I could probably live without having the backup camera, I don't have to <g>.

Having the MFD that shows me how much gas I'm using has made me much more aware of driving in a safe, sensible manner but conserving gas when it's possible.

I've spent a fair amount of money for add-ons to my car - her name is Bonnie - because I want ot take good care of it and keep it for a long, long time. My older grandson just turned 5 - maybe he'll want it when he's old enough to drive, and I can 'trade up' to something 'better'.

I don't know what will be available in 11 years - but if for some reason I need a new car sooner than that, I'll definitely consider another Prius.

 

It's the car of the future - here NOW!


fuel ecomony

it's fun!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(barbaram @ Nov 11 2006, 11:41 PM) [snapback]347708[/snapback]</div>

I've been driving Prius for 6.2 years already. The future was back then. Now is, er, I don't know. Tomorrow?



<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jfc202 @ Nov 11 2006, 07:49 AM) [snapback]347408[/snapback]</div>

Be careful what you ask for. Reading the Prius blogs on my website could take you a whole lot longer than you ever anticipated...

 

There is a thread that asks main reasons people bought Prius. I searched but didn't find it....you might want to search for it. I didn't subscribe to it, so don't have it....

for me...

Environment
fuel efficiency
Toyota (service, quality....)
Style and mid-size ..
Hatchback (room for wheelchair).

terri

 

It feels like something we should be driving in the 21st century. Back in '68, watching 2001, we thought cars would be more like this, and the Prius is as close as it gets right now.

 

1) put my money where my mouth is, concerned about global warming and our dependency on oil
2) low emissions
3) uses way less gas
4) feel better buying this car than a luxury car, I feel like I'm helping the world