Thinking about a Prius

[Mommy Of A Little Angel]

So I am seriously considering trading my Highlander for a Prius. We have no real need for an SUV (other than it's nice to have a roomy car). We only have one child and her stuff doesn't take up much room anymore. (One Mac stoller and her car seat.)

I am sick everytime I have to fill up the tank. It's nearly $60 each fill up and I only get like 300-350 miles with all that gas since I mainly do city driving. Does anyone has a Prius? Do you love it? I don't think I will miss the SUV but I haven't had a littler car in a few years.

I have heard good and bad things like the battery not lasting forever and being expensive to replace. I am thinking I will just lease one for now anyway. Does anyone know what a good lease payment would be? I know they don't really offer incentives because it sells so well on it's own.

Sorry this is so long. Any experience would be great. Thanks so much!

[Melanie]

*Love It*!!!

I traded my one-year-old Explorer that I LOVED for it. I couldn't stomach the gas prices anymore, and I drive alot. I have two kids and two kids worth of stuff. I still love it! It's a bummer when I want to do something like pick up shelves, but then I just send Dh with his car w/ the seats folded down.

Batteries are pricey, but don't quote me - check edmunds.com maybe, I think they last 10 years or so. I'm not sure about current pricing as I've had mine for a year. I do suggest you shop around via dealers' websites. I got a variety of eagerness and in the end bought mine for invoice price. Also AAA or Costco offer 'fleet pricing,' so you can use that if your dealers aren't negotiating as you'd like. The hard part, I had, was trying to get a good price on my guzzling-trade-in.

[Mommy Of A Little Angel]

*Love It*!!!

I traded my one-year-old Explorer that I LOVED for it. I couldn't stomach the gas prices anymore, and I drive alot. I have two kids and two kids worth of stuff. I still love it! It's a bummer when I want to do something like pick up shelves, but then I just send Dh with his car w/ the seats folded down.

Batteries are pricey, but don't quote me - check edmunds.com maybe, I think they last 10 years or so. I'm not sure about current pricing as I've had mine for a year. I do suggest you shop around via dealers' websites. I got a variety of eagerness and in the end bought mine for invoice price. Also AAA or Costco offer 'fleet pricing,' so you can use that if your dealers aren't negotiating as you'd like. The hard part, I had, was trying to get a good price on my guzzling-trade-in.

That's what I wanted to hear! I am a little afraid about trying to sell the Highlander, but it's a great car and I am sure someone will want it, right? ;) I am glad to hear that you love it and it does well with two kids! Thanks so much for your reply!

[Melanie]

We've even taken weekend trips in it, but when we went to snow this winter we did rent an SUV to accommodate the extra gear and weather. Though even renting a bigger vehicle occasionally, we still save plenty of money!

I love driving it, too. It's got the back up camera so even *I* can parallel park. :)

One thing that is annoying, and if you plan to have one child for quite sometime it's a non-issue; but they are *really* close to me and the arguing is driving me MAD! I joke I want a surburban so I can put them in the third row where I can't hear their squabbling. LOL.

Seriously, though, the legroom in the back is good for adults, too. We've had fords, toyotas and hondas and hands-down I think Toyota is the best as space-usage.

[shilo]

i drove one for about a month in Dec./Jan when DH's car got rear ended. he took my car b/c the other person's ins. chose the prius for a rental for him and he couldn't stand it. i, on the other hand, really liked it. we do need some sort of small SUV/station wagon for all of our biking and skiing, but otherwise, i'd absolutely consider one.

i had only two gripes the month i drove it...

one, it was much harder on my back, neck and shoulder getting DS in and out of his britax in the backseat compared with my current smaller SUV. and i'm short so it's not a height issue so much as the ergonomics of the lean i guess. the 'fix' was getting him to start climbing in on his own, which he got better with, but didn't always want to in the month we had it. if your DC is old enough/inclined to climb in for you, it shouldn't be a problem.

two, the back-up alarm drove me BATTY. if it only went off while you actually had your foot off the brake while reversing it would be fine. but the thing goes off THE ENTIRE TIME you have the car in reverse. example: if you're in a parking lot and you're waiting your turn to reverse out of your spot and you want your reverse lights illuminated to let others know you intend to back out, it goes off the whole time even while your foot is on the brake!!!! like i said, drove me BATTY. now since it was a rental, obviously we couldn't disable it, but maybe once you own it it's just a matter of snipping a wire, i dunno. but if little alarms bother you in a car like they do me, i'd definitely inquire before purchasing.

for my mixed city(around suburban town)/highway driving i got 38mpg out of the first tank and 44mpg out of the second tank (learning curve?) of gas i had in the month we had the car. both the braking and steering took some getting used to coming from a 'performance' vehicle, but on the whole, i thought it was a great little car.

hth, lori

[turtledove]

two, the back-up alarm drove me BATTY. if it only went off while you actually had your foot off the brake while reversing it would be fine. but the thing goes off THE ENTIRE TIME you have the car in reverse. example: if you're in a parking lot and you're waiting your turn to reverse out of your spot and you want your reverse lights illuminated to let others know you intend to back out, it goes off the whole time even while your foot is on the brake!!!! like i said, drove me BATTY. now since it was a rental, obviously we couldn't disable it, but maybe once you own it it's just a matter of snipping a wire, i dunno. but if little alarms bother you in a car like they do me, i'd definitely inquire before purchasing.


Yes this is very annoying, but you can turn it off...
http://www.wikihow.com/Disable-Reverse-Beep-in-a-Toyota-Prius

[kimberley-k]

My husband has had a Prius for four years, and I absolutely love it! When he is out of town, I drive his and leave my Honda Pilot in the garage. It is really fun to drive, very zippy. I believe in California they warranty the battery for 10 years, and we're thinking that by that time the prices on replacement batteries will have come down. We turned off the backup beep the first day we had it.

-Kim

[ilfaith]

I've never driven or ridden in a Prius (or other hybrid car), so I can't really comment on them.

However, I did read this in the NY Times this morning. The article addresses some concerns regarding electromagnetic fields, but' doesn't really give any concrete answers. DH pointed it out to me since we've talked about getting a hybrid in the future, but he freaks out whenever I put my cell phone to my sons' ears.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/27/automobiles/27EMF.html?_r=1&ref=automobiles&oref=slogin

[Melanie]

A PPer did have a good point about putting kids in/out. I will say it was difficult to have Dd RF in the back in her Marathon once she got older/bigger. I think I kept her RF until around age 2. B/c of the slope of the window/door there was a fairly narrow space to get her in and out and it was hard to do without smacking her head on the car or hurting my back. I'd forgotten all about that! It's not an issue as she is now FF.