I've Been Converted, I want a Prius
 

Last week my daughter flew in to spend a week with me. We decided to go to Lake Tahoe and up to Reno for two days. My car is great for local driving, but it only gets 22mpg (gas is over $4 a gallon here). Also, it is starting to have some issues. We decided to rent an economy car. The local Enterprise didn't have anything but SUVs, a pickup, and a Prius. The Prius was more expensive than I wanted, but he gave me a deal (20% off). The Prius advertises it gets 60mpg. Well, we didn't get that kind of mileage, only got 48mpg. We went from San Francisco to Tahoe, to Reno, back over the ski lift areas (over 10K feet climb) back to Tahoe, then back to Reno and home to San Francisco. All in all the trip was 600 miles. The Prius used 12.4 gallons to make that trip. If we hadn't crossed the Sierras twice and the ski lift mountain once, we'd have gotten the 60mpg. All in all, renting the Prius only cost me $25 a day over taking my own car and buying gas for it.

I, too, would love to have a Prius! I've known a couple of people with them and they can't stop talking about them!

I am glad you got good mileage with it. When they first came out we rented one and discovered for the type of driving we do on a daily basis it was not much better on mileage than a regular gas engine.

When we did the math (increased initial cost, increased interest payments etc) we were better off sticking with a gas engine. There also was an issue for us on space, with teens we need lots of leg room and trunk space for gear.

Our daily drive includes a mountain pass.

Dh recently drove from Calgary AB to Vancouver Island just under 700 miles on just over 13 US gallons of gas. A bit better than 50 miles to the US Gallon. Now it is basically downhill, I think he averaged 45 miles to the US gallon on the way up.

We have some friends who do most their driving locally and only need to worry about room for two adults who love their hybrid cars.

We have had one for 4 years. My husband drives it 100 miles a day commuting back and forth to work. As of now is average mileage for the life of the car is 47 mpg. When he worked at a different place and drove on a 2 lane road (so the speeds were lower) he had the average up over 50. With interstate higher speeds he is down a bit, but still excellent. We have had zero problems of any kind with the car and it is nearly the 100,000 mile mark.

My husband is 6'3" and our son is 6'1". Both of them drive it comfortably and our son is often in the backseat with no problems. We have taken it on several trips from Illinois to Nebraska with enough luggage to stay for the week.

Great car. We will likely buy another one when it's time for me to get a new car.

No thanks, I will keep driving a Silverado, longest lasting truck on the road. I like driving a truck, lights don't blind at night and bigger than all the cars on the road. Gas prices have not been that high and really dropping fast now. We haven;t taken a trip in this 2012 but did in old 2003 and 2000. Most small cars are just death traps.

my mother got one when they first came out. i had just purchased a different car [which only gets 12mpg around town!] so i couldn't go out and get one, too. i keep looking at them over the years and drool. finally, i think i'll be able to get one next summer! contrary to most cars, the Prius gets better mileage locally and less on the highway.

Just bought a Prius V for my mom. Love it! Also did the drive from the Bay Area to Reno 2 weeks ago and spend $35 on gas. You know how high gas is here?!? Happy camper.

I agree, I love my Dodge Ram pickup. Her Hemi engine isn't known for good MPG, but this truck comfortable ride in.
We have been thinking about what to replace her with after she is paid off in 6 months, but nothing but another Dodge Pickup comes close. The way our road is during the winter a car won't do. If we had one it would sit in the garage 5 months out of the year, benefit from that is less mileage on it when trade in time comes.
My Dodge pickup is almost 6 yrs old and has less than 57k miles on it.

I've owned a Prius for years, they are wonderful and so comfortable, I am 5'1" my dh is 6"0 my son in law is 6'4 we all fit comfortably and love to drive them. Plus service is wonderful (and seldom needed)

[QUOTE=Chasing Hawk;5603908]I agree, I love my Dodge Ram pickup. Her Hemi engine isn't known for good MPG, but this truck comfortable ride in. [QUOTE]

My oldest son drives a giant Dodge 4 door truck. I don't know the details, but he put some sort of a computer do-dad on the engine and no gets 26 MPG. He can flip a switch in the cab and turn it off for when he needs pulling power. It has made it much more economical for him to drive and still allows him to have his big truck power fix that he so loves.