Good news, bad news

I've not experienced this in person, but have numerous times on various other message boards from various anti-hybrid folks and random people who believe CNW's bogus story about Chevy Tahoes using less energy over their lifetime than Priuses. All I can do is respond w/facts. You can show him Prius reliability ratings from Consumer Reports for starters. You can show him mileage tables such as the one at http://autos.msn.com/advice/CRArt.aspx?contentid=4023460.

 

I've been through the same situation a few times.
Just call him a Luddite.

Dan.

 

Over here I only had positive remarks. People are very interested in the car in generally like the model a lot.

 

I've never had anything but positive comments about my Prius. (But I've only had it since July.)

I think you handled the situation brilliantly.

 

My former boss used to take great pleasure in presenting me with every article he could find which had anything negative to say about my car (mostly the ones which stated I payed too much money.) He'd even go so far as to highlight the paragraph with a yellow highlighter and circle it with a red pen.

Often he'd skip past the passages which offered the counter point to his argument, so I'd highlight them and give it right back to him.

Of course, he's a Jag, BMW, and Volvo kind of a guy who loves the big car payments. Now he's close to bankrupsy.

 

People like that don't deserve my attention and I ignore them like they aren't even there.

 

I'm sure it's repressed guilt that makes people think like this. I don't normally go for pseudo-psychoanalytical explanations for everything but in this case it might be right. People seem to take it personally when they're told they need to save energy - so they are always on the defensive, and they feel threatened if anyone else takes any kind of higher ground.

People do the same thing in other areas; if I give money to a beggar, people always say "oh he'll just spend it on booze" or "you're perpetuating the system". People don't want to give money away for whatever reason, so they produce excuses for themselves.

Another example - a woman on a radio phone-in about a certain environmentally friendly practice chastised everyone for making her feel guilty about not doing the thing in question. So rather than accept she might be able to do better and change her own practices, she came up with a bogus reason to attack those who were trying to promote eco-friendly ideas.

 

My first encounter was way back in the spring of 2000, when I was still waiting for my Prius.

The woman freaked out when I started talking about it. She assumed the technology would be so good and so affordable that she'd be pressured to give up her beloved SUV. I attempted to explain that the vehicle the system was installed in had nothing to do with the technology itself, that other vehicles would later offer it too. But that was pointless. She had already concluded that only small cars could be hybrids.

Attitudes like that got worse as the years passed. But now that the "bigger is better" push has lost its appeal, we stand a really good chance of people now actually care about efficiency enough to notice that hybrids can be larger vehicles.

 

I totally agree as to how much "un fun" those encounters are. I have perfected my stock reply,, however:

<blockquote>Wow, I wish I'd known all that before I bought it. But I was swayed by the fact that it goes 0 to 60 in 10 seconds and is one of the most reliable cars in America today.

And if I use the "coffee house" voice command it shows me where I can get decent coffee on my way to work -- does the voice-activated navigation system in your _____ do that?"</blockquote>

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Festus @ Oct 16 2006, 02:07 AM) [snapback]333312[/snapback]</div>

First and foremost - forgive the guy. If he came over to say sorry, accept it like a mensch. Perhaps you have been or will be in a similar situation and ask for the same he has from you -- I am sure you would want to be granted the same he is seeking from you - so offer your him your acceptance of his apology and move on from there. The world will be a better place by keeping negative feelings to a minimum and you will set a good example for others to follow.

Second - what difference does his opinions ever make in terms of your life. Probably none. You don't ask him for stock tips, betting advice on tonights football game, etc - so conitnue to do what you have probably done all along - be polite - and follow your own decision tree.

Enjoy the care. Spread the Joy.

 

I agree and was just going to suggest you accept his apology. He may be ignorant about Hybrid tech. and seems to be an old school gas guzzling type of guy.

But he's man enough to apologize and perhaps you can use that apology to educate him?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Screwdriver @ Oct 16 2006, 09:53 AM) [snapback]333382[/snapback]</div>

I would counsel against educating him directly - I would "educate" him by using and enjoying the Prius in the way it was designed to be owned and operated. Set an example both on accepting his apology and operating the Prius. Let him learn from your actions rather than your words - actions carry a lot more weight than words.

Have a nice day. Enjoy your HSD.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(dbermanmd @ Oct 16 2006, 10:12 AM) [snapback]333389[/snapback]</div>

I agree - You can bring a horse to water - but you can't make it drink.

 

If you get the opportunity again, challenge him on his ride.

Let's both track fuel and maintenance costs over the next 24 months and we'll see what the numbers have to say as we go and especially at the end. This can be good for building the relationship and also with moving the discussion from a pissing match to a matter of tracking statistics and reviewing them. Maybe the guy will stop speaking with you after 5 months and seeing his theory and BS all squelched by the raw data.

For every cool feature his ride has, yours has a MFD or VSC, all the airbags or something to match with it if you get into feature arguement.

If anyone challenges me about what they heard about hybrid or Prius, I tell them that's a great story, but in my real world, I average 52.40mpg and in 8 months have cut $3200 out of my fuel bill and for the environment I've pumped 1100 fewer gallons out of the sand for my consumption. Did I mention that in February when I do my taxes, I get a $3200 plasma TV from the IRS?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(daronspicher @ Oct 16 2006, 10:29 AM) [snapback]333392[/snapback]</div>

Why turn this into a pissing match? What is the potential for good happening here or do you just want him to piss off his neighbor forever? I stand by my suggestions for peace, happiness and tranquility. Accept his apology, do not "educate" on the car, and let your actions speak for you and not your words. Be nice - you never know when your good deed will return dividends for you and others around you.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(dbermanmd @ Oct 16 2006, 10:22 AM) [snapback]333411[/snapback]</div>

I guess you missed this part:

Turn it into a discussion of statistics and not a pissing match...

 

Here in semi-rural Alabama, I get some funny comments -- and some very ignorant ones -- from my customers.

One of the funny ones: "What kind of space car is that?" (or "Whut kaand uh spayse car is thay-ut?")

One of the most ignorant: "We don't like no foor-een cars 'round here." This came from a Ford F-350 owner. I politely explained to the guy that there really is no such thing as a strictly American manufacturer anymore, and that at least some of the parts on his huge truck likely are "foor-een." I also politely explained to him that, while most of the money I spent buying my car went to our Japanese friends, I was greatly decreasing the amount of money I'd be spending on terrorists.

I had to explain that last statement further, and I'm still not sure he got it. Anyway, there was no point in trying to explain partial-zero emissions to him.

I've also met quite a few people who are genuinely curious about the technology, and many of them I've directed to this website.

The most satisfying experience was the curiousity shown by a group of guys that worked at a spare-parts junk-yard. They looked under the hood and drilled me for several minutes about the hybrid mechanics ("You mean there's no starter?" for example). I made their day, and they made mine. It's experiences like this that make up for the ignorance of others.

 

I'm with the folks suggesting peace. Your neighbor immediately realized he'd come on too strong, then he came over later to apologize. He didn't just wait till the next time he happened to see you: he made an extra effort.

Maybe you two can talk technology, maybe not. Remember, he's got loads of experience with ICE technology, so a Prius is somewhat alien to him. But the relationship is what counts in the long term. People are more important than machines.

If you've seen the "Pious" bit on South Park, share the joke with him. (I don't watch South Park, but my TiVo is diligently watching for that one episode.)

Explain that you'd read lots of Prius-bashing articles that oversimplify or even misstate facts, and that stuff made you sensitive to his remarks.

You know more about "his" technology than he does about ours. How about two mature men sharing a favorite beverage and just poking around under the hood? You'll both learn something about technology, each other, and yourselves.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(daronspicher @ Oct 16 2006, 11:55 AM) [snapback]333425[/snapback]</div>

A multifactorial equation for sure - easiest to be quiet and do the right thing. "Discussions of statistics" often degenerate into less noble causes - usually rapidily as the primary function here is to prove something usually the other person disagrees with.