June 1 > 4 Tucson Arizona. "Good trip, great gas milage" Flew from DFW to Tucson then picked up an Avis rental Prius 2017. ECO mode. 1 June drove from Tucson south to Sierra Vista near the border. 2 June - Side trip to Coronado Nat'l Park, then over to Naco, Mexico. Left car on US side and walked cross Mexico border for a beer and lunch. 3 June - Side trip over to Bisbee AZ. Took Copper Mine tour, visited Museum, had lunch. 4 June - drove from Sierra Vista back to Tucson (1 hour drive) Freeway speed limit about 70 mph
Mornings 75's midday 98 - 104 in both Tucson and farther South in Sierra Vista. Humidity very dry 5 - 10%. [late edit] Yes OH MY YES. Had it on MAX blower and inside set for 79°f. In ECO mode the Prius managed the fan speed and A/C temperature quite well. Yes our son has an Acu-rite weather station box on a 15' pole.
There seems to be no end why people love their Preii. I loved my first one and the new one gave me a reason to love it even more. You either get it or you dont.
Now that it's become a bit hotter here in Tucson (41°C, 106°F), I've noticed that my mileage has dropped a little bit. I'm typically getting 61-64 mpg, but I don't really drive on highways/freeways much. I keep the AC at 80°F (27°C). I didn't know rental companies rented Priuses. That's pretty cool. Is it considered an upgrade/premium vehicle?
When I snagged one ten years ago, near the height of the gas price surge, the rental clerk tried hard to upgrade us to a Prius, pointing out that it would save a lot of gas money. But their surcharge far exceeded what I could expect to save in fuel for our two week rental, so I declined. They tried twice more at lower price points, but I continued rejecting it for the same reason. So we kept to the originally reserved 'Compact' category. Out in the car yard, we could select anything from the 'Compact' corral. Directly beneath the actual 'Compact' sign was a Prius. I verified with a lot attendant that it really was in its correct corral, keeping photographic evidence that was never needed. So we got it for no upgrade premium at all.
Yes, we rented Prius Avis in Salt Lake City and Tucson last year. And then again this year in Tucson. We went through USAA Insurance. Avis lists them as "Cool Cars".
I'm guessing all the car rental places try to upsell their customers... I had one instance where they tried to upsell me to the next higher level and I kept refusing. Eventually they upgraded me for free. Come to find out they didn't have my car and tried to hook me for more money because they didn't have what I originally reserved.
