My last car was a 1990 Ford Probe, bought new. It had power seats, but no airbags or even cup holders. It had over 194K miles on it and failed smog for the first time. It was pretty soon in the ownership that I knew my next car would be a 4-door and I really liked having a hatchback. I saw my first Prius in April 2004 at an energy show and wanted to get one since then.
My first car was an Acura RSX. I found I used maybe 80 of the potential 160 horsepower during my entire time with it, so I don't miss the power. I do miss the steering feel and handling though. Man, that thing could conserve momentum on nonlinear trajectories as if it were on rails!
POS 90 buick i bought from my mom, and as part of the deal i accepted responsibility for out-of-pocket expenses to take care of the massive lack of maintenance on it. thousands of dollars in the end. the thing lasted me through high school and college and got me down south for grad school. barely. i thought i'd miss it for sentimental reasons... but it's hard to miss a car that dies at highway speeds 4 times a day and randomly refuses to start, making you late for everything no matter how much you anticipate the trouble. hard to miss a car that cost $125 a month to operate with a 2-mile commute each way, 6 days a week, and the weekly run to the grocery store and target just down the road. yeah we could've fixed it. it's not like we would have paid labor. but the parts alone cost more than the car was worth. love my prius. it's fun, reliable, doesn't die on me, always starts, and costs around $35 a month to run at current gas prices and with much more driving than the old car. plus it's really motivated my husband to get through his ASEs and toyota classes to work on hybrids.
1997 Camry. No problems; but no side airbags, no mfd, no hatchback, no fun and no chance of ever getting 50 miles per gallon.
Toyota 4Runner. Used to tow a travel trailer. Totaled the trailer and decided to get out of the towing game and go green. I'm very pleased with the decision!
Any day now our new Prius will arrive and will physically replace my 1995 Toyota Corolla. The Corolla has been the best car I have owned and it still runs great. Meanwhile, the Prius will effectively replace our 2004 Camry since DH has the longest commute and we'll see the greatest fuel efficiency and environmental impacts by having him drive the Prius more than his beloved Camry. The Prius is my first new car that I got to research and pick out, etc., so DH is letting me drive it for as long as I want before giving it to him to commute 3-4 days a week. I will drive it on the days I drive the same or more than DH's commute. Both of our job situations have potential to change in the near future, so who knows who will be driving it the most.
Our Prius replaced a 2002 Hyundai Sonata with a V-6 engine. The bumper to bumper warranty was going to expire in 6 months. It only got 19 MPG. Along with the tax credit it just made sense to buy thr Prius now.
Mine is kind of complicated... :blink: We had a Dodge Grand Caravan (my wife's), a Jeep TJ Wrangler (mine) and a Jeep Grand Wagoneer (also mine). I was driving the Grand Waggy (10mpg gas hog) when I travelled on business and the cost of gas was killing me. I put together a spreadsheet and told my wife "I'd like to buy a free Prius!" I explained that the gas savings alone would basically pay my car payment. *sold* While we were looking at the Prius on the lot, she fell in love with a 2006 Sienna. Well, we bought the Sienna! So far, no Prius... :huh: Then she started to feel guilty since we were originally looking for a Prius and we went back to the dealer and ordered a 2006. Technically, we traded the Grand Caravan in on the Prius, but I'm also in the process of selling the Jeeps, too. (It's getting to look like a parking lot out front!) <_< So, theoretically, my Prius replaces one Grand Caravan, one Jeep TJ, and one Jeep Grand Wagoneer! Man! I ought to save a bundle! :lol: B)
Mine replaced a 99 Ford Explorer. It was set up for off-roading, and had huge tires. On a good day I'd get 10 mpg in the city and 15 mpg on the highway.
1992 Toyota Camry. It's in mint condition, no rust, only 150K miles, but it's time for a new car because there's no anti-lock brakes, side curtain airbags, VSC, etc. I welcome my new hybrid overlord!
2001 Camry. It was a great car and did OK on mileage, but the lure of the HOV stickers (and OK, maybe the coolness factor too) got me to switch to the Prius.
My Prius replaced my 02' Ford Explorer. Although I still own the Explorer for towing my camping trailer. It's basically parked until the summer camping season. I was spending $25.00+ a week on gas just to go back and forth to work, keeping in mind I only have a 3 mile commute from home to work. Additionally I let my wife take the Prius once a week for her business travel, which is 150 miles round trip. She gets paid .425 cents per mile from her company so we really clean up with her driving the Prius. On the days she takes it, I'm stuck driving the her 02' Chevrolet Prizm. Which being a Toyota disguised as a Chevy ain't all bad. First week of doing this I was shocked when she drove the Prius on her business trip, I drove it back and forth the rest of the week to work, ran the kids to their miscellaneous functions and when I went to fill the Prius up it only took 5.5 gallons. And this is middle of winter in northern Michigan. Can't wait until warm weather is here!
My prius just replaced my 1996 Maxima that had 123.000 miles. Nothing wrong with the car but it had cost me some money to keep runnnng the last two years, lacked ABS, and other safter features so it was time to get something new and more reliable. I bought the Maxima for the sportieness and for a while loved it's 190 hp. But latley I've decided that change (for the environment) needs to start local so I started looking around for cars with less environmental impact. I'm still suprised how comfy and luxorious the small Prius really is and how well it does in both the city and the highway. Setting the speed at 64 mph I got a consistent 50mpg on the freeway and in the city I seen to average a little more (not 60 on average yet though).
Replaced a Ford Ranger 4X4 pick-up. Only got 10 miles per gallon. I have had Ford pick-ups for the past 22 years. I thought it would be hard making the transition back to a car but I would not trade the Prius for anything now.
I'm happy to see how many SUVs this little soab bar is replacing! Oh! and I thought the mini was soo sweet... .until this little space ship came along. It still makes me fel as part of some science fiction film from the 80's when I pull into a parking lot in EV mode :-0. It's not just he EV mode but they whole way the "ship" looks.
Replaced a 99 Acura 3.2TL. The Acura was a great car, I'd still be driving it if the HOV access for the Prius wasn't granted.
Replacing a 1991 Acura Integra LS with only 83,500 miles. However, our other vehicle is a Honda Element, a small SUV that is fun to drive and it has been our primary vehicle for the past 3 years. The Prius will become the primary vehicle and the Element will be used to haul stuff and the dogs since it is much easier to clean dog hair out of an Element than a Prius. Andy