Got a 12 w/ 73K for Xmas...what now?

Part of the trick is making sure you drive all those miles while the car is still young. A lot of the high-miler heroes you've been reading about owe their success (in part) to getting the miles on before the car had its 10th birthday.

I can't tell you that you picked a bad car or made a bad choice, but I would recommend that you earn all you can, run the wheels off it and plan to be out of that car in 3-ish years.

 

I'm going to say take it back for a much simpler, fundamental and perhaps indefensible reason.

That is, I always think the time when you should MOST feel good about a new car, or new used car purchase is when you first make it.
If it was a Christmas time purchase and it's December 27th and you are already questioning whether you want or should even keep the vehicle, then I think that in of itself is the answer.

Take it back, get something that you feel better about, right out of the gate. Something that you are not immediately worrying about possible longevity or long term cost.

 

Good.
Since you'll want them to last - start reading up on some posts about keeping tires at about 40-ish psi (YMMV)
$50 a tire isn't as much as my truck tires, but you still want them to last a while and running at OEM recommended pressures plus 15-percent (again....YMMV) will probably net you 1-2 MPG in real world mileage.....some say.

Even if the gas you save is negligible, the juice is worth the squeeze just in added safety and tire life.
Your car is equipped with a TPMS - which is your government's vain attempt to thwart the beneficial effects of Darwinism....BUT!....sometimes the warning that you get from this system is a little late to prevent unnecessary tire wear.

How many keyfobs did they give you?
If the answer is less than two, then this will be something that you will need to go active on sooner rather than later.

Otherwise?
Your car becomes a 3200 pound lawn ornament if you lose your keyfob.
I always recommend that people take the metal keylet from their SPARE FOB and tie-wrap it to an undisclosed location under the car.
Then....take the battery out of the spare key fob and hide it somewhere inside the car.
This will not render you tow-truck-proof.....but it will serve as a tow-truck repellent if you drop your keys down a storm drain, leave them inside a locked work place, or a grandchild sees them and hides them inside her toy purse - not that any of these things have ever happened to anybody that I know......

Speaking of things that should have come with the car.....
2012 Toyota Prius Owners Manual and Warranty - Toyota Owners

The warranty and maintenance guide is probably one of the more important reference materials.

There are exceptions (such as the transaxle fluid replacement mantioned by Jimbo above) but for the most part, if some mechanic of (worse!) a dealer says that a your car needs maintenance that's not covered by the maintenance guide, then it's NOT maintenance....
It's either a repair, or a scam.

Repairs require a detailed explanation, and a second opinion, which will usually serve as a scam detector.
We're here to help with that as well!


Good Luck!