HI! I'm glad to have found this place. Name is Jason and just bought a 2012 Prius Four with the Solar Package. It's winter gray with a dark gray interior. I've been looking to buy a Prius for a couple of months now and bought it last Sunday. After commuting to work for the last week (I drive about 100 miles round trip every day), I've enjoyed every bit of my Prius. Probably the best things that stand out to me so far: How much I prefer using my iPhone for music than the radio. In my old car, I always listened to AM radio, but now that I have my iPhone available and can connect via USB, I have been listening to my music all week. Having Spotify in my car with the ability to control the tracks on my steering wheel has been an absolute blast! How much I've changed my driving habits based on the feedback I'm getting. The gauge that provides feedback on whether I'm in EV or Eco mode is something I stare at all of the time. I'm glad it's part of the HUD. It's almost like a daily game of trying to get the best MPG as possible. Getting the feedback when I turn off the car of how much money I spent on gas, how far I drove, and the MPG during the trip is something I look at every time. Having solar panels has been pretty cool. They don't charge up the battery, but they make the car a little nerdy (and I like that). They're a good talking point when showing the car to my friends as well. I like to think that because of the warm winter here in California, that I can tell the solar panels are keeping my car cooler in the sun. Anyway, I'm enjoying it so far. I hope to be an active member on the forums. Glad to join the Prius family. Now back to reading this looooong manual.
Sounds like you got an awesome set of features there. What car did you come from, and was there a gas savings? (*snicker* I know there was...)
I had a 2002 Nissan Altima SE. So I was getting about 24 combined. Not too bad, but nothing compared to my Prius now. I do have to report that I got my first paint chip up front. I guess it's inevitable if you drive 100 miles a day to get to work....
Yep, I drive 80 miles round trip to work, and it didn't take long for me to get that chip either. Fortunately that won't adversely affect mileage.