What other cars did you test drive before picking the Prius C?

Um, approximately...zero. Haha. As soon as I heard about it, I knew it was the car I wanted, assuming I liked it on the test drive. And I did! My car search was pretty simple, I guess.

 

None. I have always had Toyotas, I would buy another brand but it would take a lot. I wanted a hybrid but could not afford the others, so it was this one, basically.

I searched around online, looking at all kinds of cars, considering all new cars under 20K, and also at used hybrids that were less than 20K. Decided this was my best choice.

 

Golf TDI and Jetta Wagon TDI

 

none, but at one point I seriously considered SUVs (Pilot, Equinox, CRV). Then I saw the Prius C on some random news site. I wasn't even considering a Prius, but I liked the look of this one.

 

Just prius C3 only. I have a Honda odyssey and a Toyota Camry for many years and love the reliability of Toyota. Never had any major problem whatsoever for the past many years. The 2004 Odyssey's AC is not working since this summer and will cost close to $2000 @ the dealer. Haven't decided to fix it yet. Hopefully my SRM Prius c3 runs as great or even better as my Camry. So far, love the smooth drive and the great looks of my PC 3/SRM !

 

Toyota Corolla and Honda Fit

Corolla is a fine car, but I didn't like the look of it and it's not that much cheaper than the C. My husband and I did very seriously consider the Fit. However, the deal breaker was that the steering wheel on the Fit blocks half the speedometer, and it drove both of us crazy not being able to easily tell the speed. Other than that, Honda Fit is a great car, but we weren't in love with it. And it's not a hybrid... Prius C, on the other hand, is a completely different story. When I just first heard about it back in March and researched more, I fell in love with the car. I love its looks, I love that it's a hybrid, and SRM color is so gorgeous. My husband and I are so happy with our purchase. It seems like every day we discover new cool things about it, and every time I see it, I think to myself, "What a beautiful car!"

 

First post here!

I didn't test drive anything or even see my car before I bought it. Sort of crazy. I purchased through the Costco buying program and knew by the reviews and information I could find online that this would be a good fit for what I wanted - a small car for commuting that fits 2 adults + 2 kids and gets at least double the combined MPG I was getting before. This was coming from a Subaru WRX with quite a few modifications. Going to one of the slowest cars on the road has been a challenge to my patience occasionally but then I look down at the trip mpg and all frustration is gone. That this thing has very nice road manners and is quite quiet for an econobox is a nice plus. I'm doing my best to avoid tinkering, although I've already removed the Jetsons EV mode speaker and am really wanting some better looking wheels.

 

I test drove the Honda Insight, Honda CR-Z and the Ford Focus.

They all handled well but the Prius C was the one I felt most comfortable sitting in. That combined with the mileage kind of made the decision easy.

 

I researched a LONG list, but test drove the Mazda 3, Prius lift back and the C. I liked the extra power and rear visibility of the liftback but hate that console and the price with some of the features I wanted was beyond the budget. The M3 was nice but felt...."squishy". I just hate the uber streamlined look (Windows like slits....I feel like I'm skulking around with visibility
Iike I'm in a tank!) Real world gas mileage doesn't match their EPA. The fit (price, reliability) and Kia soul (I really wanted to like is because it was the only car that didn't give me claustrophobia with small windows) were under consideration. I really wanted the mpg of the c and I stretched my budget to get the moonroof which gives it a more open feel.

 

This!

I had these grand plans of driving the Prius liftback and a Corolla hatch (both of which I have had in my mind for a year or two as the "obvious alternatives" for when I started thinking about upgrading), but having a good look around the liftback and c - really the c was almost identical in size to the '03 Corolla I traded in and I just did not need a bigger car. I'd done so much research by the time I took the c for a test drive that by then I had more or less reached the same conclusion as Ashley7. Clearly it passed - came back in from the test drive and did the deal there and then. 6 days later I had my c. It's now four weeks since I've had it and I'm still loving it and have no regrets about moving on from the Corolla.

I did have a glance over what was on offer in the small/medium class by other manufacturers and the other hybrids available here, but nothing jumped out at me to pursue further.

 

I stroke* cars all the time, so it's tough to put it into one list that seems relevant. Here are new cars I've driven lately:

MINI Cooper S Coupe
BMW 328i
Audi S4
VW GTI
Fiat 500 Sport [no Abarth's available to drive]
Ford Mustang GT
Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport
Mazda MX-5 Miata PRHT
Honda CR-Z
Subaru BRZ Limited
Scion FR-S [yes, there's a difference between the twins]

Obviously, this is a dynamic list. I don't pigeonhole myself into just one brand or category in the search of good and fun cars. A handful of these cars are worth owning [S4, Miata, GTI, 'vette, FR-S], one in particular I'd avoid like the plague [328i].

Less recently I've driven the Jetta TDI Sportwagen, Mazda2, Fiesta, and Fit Sport a while ago, and while good cars in their own ways, didn't get my wallet dancing. The Prius c is entirely its own character and doesn't pander to popular theming or categories. It's this individual and strong character that intrigues me.



*Stroke is the term car salespeople use when someone test drives a car with no real intention of buying.

 

I went to the Toyota dealer and test drove the C. While I was there, the sales lady insisted I also drive a Liftback to compare. After driving the Liftback, I knew I preferred the C more.

 

i drove a fit bad on the highway so the c was the winner

 

I'm with Ashley7, I knew I wanted a Toyota, I knew I wanted a hybrid, I knew I didn't want the larger, bulky Prius. If the test drive had sucked, I might have looked at the Matrix or Yaris, or even a Scion. The test drive was wonderful and I owned my C2 before the end of the day.