Thoughts on our Prius, Leaf and C-Max

We’ve had our first Prius, a 2018 model TWO, for about 2 months. Mostly intown driving (2 – 15 miles), maybe a half-dozen short day trips (120 miles total) and one long one (~600 miles). My wife is the primary driver, coming from a 2009 Fusion. I was driving a 2015 C-Max for about a year (now my son has it) and I’m currently in a 2015 Nissan Leaf (got it with under 15,000 miles for just over $10,000).

A few thoughts on the Prius:

+ The Prius is by far the most “high tech” car!
+ Love the Safety Sense package!
+ Really like the Dynamic Radar cruise control.
- Intown mileage is less than expected, ranging from 20 to 30 mpg.
+ Overall mileage is great, ~58 mpg.
- Less truck space then expected.
- The self-expanding cargo cover does provide privacy, but is very flimisy.
+ The view from the rear-view mirror is fine (was worried about the split windows)
+ Have grown to like center position of the instrument panel.
+ Drives like a car (not the “transportation appliance” I feared).

A few thoughts on the Leaf:

+ Love never having to buy gas!
+ No issues charging from home overnight.
+ Got over “range anxiety” pretty quickly.
+ Very quiet.
+ Scheduled maintenance is fantastic. Replace brake fluid, replace cabin air-filter, rotate tires, and a list of items to inspect.
- Trunk is pretty deep, but length and width aren’t great.
- Hate not having a real spare-tire.
- The lowest “high tech” car, looks more like something from 2010 than 2015.
- The A-pillar is rather large and often causes a noticable blindspot.

A few thoughts on the C-Max:

+ Loved the ride-height, which also made entry/exit very easy (we’re young seniors).
+ Happy with the driving characteristic (acceleration, braking, …).
+ Large front and back seats.
- Trunk was too shallow.
- Infotainment system, Sync by Microsoft, is terrible.
+ Mileage was OK (I got over 45 MPG, but my son is getting under 40 MPG).