Why do people think the Prius should be cheap?

You can't expect the whole world to be up to speed on these things. The first gen. *was* an economy car and that is a niche Toyota is well known for.

You could gently mention some of the other angles that your audience may not know of, say,

*It is the most luxurious economy car I could find.

*This is the top of the line model, it has *everything*

*It is the greenest comfortable four door sedan I could find,

*It is the safest car available in that price range. (This works particularly well if you have piles of kids hanging off your legs.)

Memorize a few throwaway lines and you're all set.

 

Because it's a Toyota and not a Lexus. But what people don't know is that a full boat 2010 has many of the same features found in high end Lexus.

 

Some people I work with have this idea that a Prius is a compact car ... and compacts are supposed to be cheap. I tell them that it is a 5 passenger classed as a mid sized car and NOT a compact.

My boss said he liked the idea of what a Prius was BUT he wanted a car "big enough" to take on a road trip and be able to run at the speed limit. Here in Texas, that means being able to cruise at 80 ... which my 2008 and 2010 both handle with ease ... for hours at a time. He has come around after I have talked of taking several freeway trips ... and still getting over 50MPG.

Some people just like to bash the Prius and have no good reason for doing it. They don't want to hear how comfortable it is or how good the ride is or what the features are ... especially when they are only getting 15 to 25 mpg with whatever they are driving. It's an old trick from public speaking and debate ... if you fail to build yourself up, then cut the other guy down.

 

check the price on a focus hybrid. starts at $27,000. fully equipped around $32,000. btw im not knocking the ford because it really seems to be very well built and great execution of design.

 

You meant Fusion Hybrid, no?

 

oooooops!duh! as usual im a year ahead of myself. thanks for the correction

 

With the Gen2, from the outside, it looks like a small, economy-type of car. And many do not care for the shape of the car. To them, it looks like an egg or jelly bean, etc...

Before someone recommeded a Prius to me, I walked right past it. I thought it was small, expensive for its size, out of my price range really.

Hybrid was just a word to me. Didn't mean much until I test drove one, then it pretty much felt like a priviledge to test drive an advanced technology car.

Here's what to tell them ....

The Prius is the most fuel efficient car sold today in North America.

 

After Tesla's Roadster.

 

The 2010 is a real bargain. Try to even come close with any other car to what you get on a new Prius. Even a base II looks loaded compared to any other car in the same price range.

Then on top of that 50 mpg real world gas mileage.

 

I have only had one person give me hell for the car and the moron drives a big jacked up ford f something monstrosity. He asked me why I would drive something like that and I said I am tired of paying $80 a week for gas....aren't you? He just got a confused look and I drove off.

 

I'd say:

- non traditional look which is considered ugly by many (as price goes up cars usually look better)
- great fuel economy which many associate with econo cars
- below average acceleration and handling
- pretty average interior materials
- At $30k it's about $5k higher than what many think a Toyota car should cost

After talking about the Prius, I hear a lot of "why not just the Corolla/Civic...they're $5-10k cheaper, faster and prettier."

 

Anyone who talks about fast cars and includes Civics and Corollas in there is poorly confused. Those are NOT "fast cars."
Fast cars are Corvettes, and Ferraris, and Lamborghinis, etc...
Basically anything with at least a V-8... or a V-12 for that matter... or at least 300 hp stock.

I can't wait for people to start giving me crap and questioning why I bought a Prius. I'm getting it to get nearly 3 times the mileage I got with the car I just sold. I'm getting it because I like the idea of solar ventilation and because Toyota makes good cars.

I despise arrogant and insecure jackasses in jacked up and unnecessarily loud trucks that ride around while trying to prove something or give off some "tough guy" image. I laugh at them and then feel better about myself for not being like them.

Those with the Corvettes, Ferraris, and Lamborghinis... I respect them. Anyone who needs to pump $10k, $20k, or even more to make their car "fast" has problems.
(Yes, I understand the value and pleasure of customizing cars... but I also realize what "fast" is in the grand scheme of things.)

Once upon a time, I was attracted to "The Fast and Furious" type cars. Now I just feel happy that I grew out of that phase.
I chuckle now every time I see a car that makes more noise than me when I'm the one who is going faster.

Bottom of the line is that the Gen III Prius is the most fuel efficient production car today. That status and functionality is going to come at a cost. Not that I need to mention all the other cool stuff that it comes with. I am getting it first and foremost because of the fuel efficiency... and for THAT alone, starting off at $22k is very, very reasonable in my eyes.

 

After looking up the interior dimensions (head/shoulder/hip/leg room), I'm wondering why the Prius is classified as a mid size and the Corolla a compact? All of those dimensions look exactly the same. Is there something I'm missing?

 

Little off topic, but

I don't think many people comprehend what it is like to average 50 MPG in a car.

I understood that number before buying the Prius because I would track fuel economy on my motorcycles which ranged from about 50 MPG average on a 600cc Yamaha YZF600R bike to 36 MPG average with a 1000cc repli-racer, R1 (ridden moderately).

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Unfortunately, car marketing jumped on advertising Hwy MPG only.

That's what I see in all the ads for conventional cars -

36 MPG hwy
32 MPG hwy

So, customer see's - 36 MPG hwy for a Civic, 50 MPG for a Prius ...

not too much difference, they get a regular Civic DX and save $4k

But the Civic may average only 30 MPG.

 

And those Civic ratings, like most cars, are probably rated pretty high... without A/C on, probably no stereo too, and driven almost unbearably softly. As it seems on the Prius, the 51 mpg rating seems to actually be rated LOW... from the numbers I've been seeing people report here.