Trade Prius for Avalon

I got to wondering if I would be happier with the Avalon rather than my Prius since I based my selection decision based upon riding for three days in my brothers Prius last year. So I went to the sole local Toyota dealer and test drove an Avalon. I asked to drive one that had a tire upgrade, since I had vastly better tires put onto my Prius, I wanted to know how a tire upgraded Avalon would compare.

There was an Avalon that came in with the NAV system, but it sold in one day I was told, so there were no comparable Avalon's to my Prius on the lot. I got into a "Limited" and the first thing I note is that the headroom is quite limited indeed, my head is brushing the headliner! The salesman explained that my Prius has more headroom, and that the "Limited" comes only with some moonroof which removes over two inches of headroom from the car. After reclining the seat to a degree of unusual discomfort so as to accommodate my head, we go for a drive. The salesman suggests a short trip around the block, but I head for a nearby short stretch of in city interstate where the speed limit is 70. Well before I get there though, the vibration of the car is readily apparent. "I do not think these tires are round" says I. At speed on the interstate, the constant vibration of dash, etc. shows that, yes, these are expensive and out of round tires. So much for the upgrade, it is obviously money thrown away. (note: get Comfortred from Goodyear for best ride in a Prius)

The engine is responsive, to say the least. The car leaps forward with the merest touch of the accelerator. The salesman keeps referring to the incredible amount of horsepower of the engine, a mantra repeated again and again. I was thinking of possibly trading for more comfort, less noise, but driving a car with several orders of magnitude in horsepower more than I will ever need did not occur to me as a reason to buy. I got the distinct impression that the sales training for this car is oriented around selling the engine HP, not comfort or quiet or technology. It is a sales pitch oriented around 1.40 per gallon of gas so you can blow the SUV's in the stoplight to stoplight race. The sales pitch does not seem geared for present day reality, but I digress.

Considering that my present vehicle seats five, and so does this one, what does less than half the fuel economy really get me? Supposedly there is three inches of more hiproom, but the seats themselves are the same size in the front as my Prius, but there is some more room between the seat and the car door. The headrest is at an unusual angle it seems, I am holding my head off of it to see, well, its the reclining position, there just isn't a comfortable upright position for a guy a little over six feet in this "Limited" version.

The car has the same wind noise as the Prius, more on the right side than the drivers side at speed. I think now that it is the similar positions of the wipers on each car. The passenger side wiper blade just sits up higher on each vehicle, and I can hear the noise of the wind on each one more as a result.

The panel lights were a bewildering array of colors and the yesteryear styled display required a degree of angle of lookdown from the road than what I have grown used to. Oddly enough, the armrest, while wider, is further back and is not as comfortable as mine in the Prius. Its pretty well engineered to provide a spot of support, nothing to rest the forearm on. It slides, and has to be retracted all the way to access an area that seems oddly configured compared to the double row of CD's I have in my Prius.

A short rundown at the end of this experience, it rode worse than my car, is no quieter than my car, gulps more than twice as much fuel, is vastly more cramped in headroom, seats are of the same size, but there is a bit more legroom, but the steering wheel is an acre away. And the car is yesterdays technology. No smartkey, the engine runs all the time, giving a background noise level that is never reduced in traffic, displays that look like something from the early 80's in style and the soundsystem is no better at all, perhaps worse. The trunk space itself is large however, but since I have carted items by laying down the back seat in my Prius, I have carried cargo that this car cannot.

I told him I would not trade if they paid me to take it. After three weeks of reflection, that judgement still stands.

He did say that the present Avalon is the same basic car as the Luxus 430 in the main. And I have been noticing that the Luxus 430 drivers in traffic are sitting lower than me. Yes, these two models are larger on the outside, but not where it counts on the inside.

There is NOTHING sold today that I would trade my Prius for. After 8300 miles, it is still continued motoring enjoyment, much more so than anything else I have ever had.

 

Yup, they get 3,500 over invoice when they have a Prius in stock.

The guy did say that my Salsa '05 would look great on their lot.

The Avalon was a real letdown though, if it had been up to my pre drive expectations...well it isn't.

There are some good reasons why Prius owners are so satisfied with their vehicles (check Consumer Reports)