People who trade in an SUV for a Prius

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(thebrattygurl @ May 23 2007, 09:36 AM) [snapback]448150[/snapback]</div>

:lol: Like you said, our boxers will fit in the Prius. We can lay the seats down and let them tan under the back window as we travel. But like this coming Saturday, she has a pet fair in the DFW area that she's transporting 3 foster boxers to. I can imagine turmoil of carrying all 3 (2 juveniles and 1 old man) loose in the back of the Prius for 3 hours. Talk about chaos! No, she'll be crating 2 and toting 1 loose in the Grand Cherokee this weekend.

Back on topic.......SUVs have thier place in some peoples' lives. Ours happens to be one of those lives.

 

drove the 07 blue pkg 1 touring prius off the lot about 30 days ago. Replaced my F-350 powerstroke diesel as my commuter. Retired the truck to farm chores.

Currently driving about 2K per month. First 2 K averaged ~52 mpg vs ~19 mpg for my truck.

Have block heater, touring placard and mudflaps in box on porch awaiting installation.

Thanks for all of the great advice and info posted on this website.

Have a great Memorial Day weekend. Please take the time to remember our Veterans.

Best Regards,

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Suburban600 @ May 25 2007, 06:52 AM) [snapback]449689[/snapback]</div>

Damn, another one!


That was me last month, I drove my F350 about three times since I got the Prius. I too put on a ton of miles and drove my F350 daily, it wasnt so much how much fuel it used, our Crown Vic only got a few MPG more than the truck, it is the overall cost of driving a big heavy crew cab dually diesel. 6 tires that wear, 4 gallons of oil and $10 filter every few months, that combined with seeing a lot of my money going to big oil and the state in taxes, is what made me decide to get the Prius, and that was a spur decision since I had no idea what the prius was all about until I did a search for high MPG sedans. Baought the first one I drove and havent looked back. The part that took getting used to was going from sitting so high up in comfy leather powered seats, and tons of HP, to the little bucket seat covered in cloth that only moves back and forth and lack of good leg room. Now when I get in the truck it feel like a truck, the steering is heavy, it lumbers down the road, the brakes require a lot more foot force, but moves like a bat out of hell.

Over 7 weeks of owning it I have 3800 miles on it, the first week it sat in the driveway more than was driven due to me being home with my wife and newborn, but the following week was back to work, so I would say that it is more like 3800 miles in 6 weeks. I like the car, it handles well, unless it is really windy like it has been here the past few days, then you have to be very alert to sudden crosswinds, and mileage suffers. So far the gas savings have offset the monthly payments, plus now that my wife and I car pool the savings are even better, I just dont know how much yet because she never logged the miles she drove each week, nor kept records of gas use, most women that I know dont. Its just too bad there wasnt a 6 passenger version of the Prius, then I wouldnt need to get a crossover next year when my son outgrows his current car seat.

 

Well I got my Prius yesterday, and I traded in MY SUV (the anti-Prius - 2001 Pathfinder). I do think the OP should chill out a little. Each person has their own reasons for the change. Some of us dinosaurs take longer to learn. IF Pearl can make it through an Alberta winter, I will not be purchasing another SUV.

As for passenger/cargo room, I was surprized when I drove Pearl into my garage. She is almost the same length as the anti-Prius. No wonder there is so much room inside! Oh, and I'm pretty sure I can load larger items into Pearl than I ever could into the anti-Prius. The hatch opening is larger, and there is more height. There is also more room between the rear shock towers.

Why did -I- trade?
1. Filled up the anti-Prius (2/3 of a tank of premium) for $72! Gas has gone up since then as well.
2. Did a spring oil change on the anti-Prius and noticed a lot of winter deterioration. It was time to get rid of it. It's given me seven years of good service, but it is time.
3. Have been wanting a Prius for a year now. Very efficient body design, cool technology. Best fuel economy of all "main-stream" vehicles currently sold.

I've also sold my 1993 RX-7. I may be tempted by the Toyota hybrid sports car shown at an auto show last winter. But I may just stay with one car now. It's time to be efficient.

 

Me too... I am in the process of selling my Nissan Titan to get the Prius. Titan to tiny.. hehe
Really, I agree, there is plenty of space for passengers. Trucks have their place in life for sure as they are very convenient and I cannot tow our travel trailer with a Prius! But, that is going on the block too... It was time to trim down. For some, it is just timing.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(emtownsend @ May 25 2007, 12:32 PM) [snapback]449866[/snapback]</div>

Soooooooooooo true..................... we actually wanted to buy a new Prius LAST YEAR (2006) but at that time we were in the process of buying a house and could not afford any other "loan" no matter how small !! We kept putting it off and driving around in our "gas-sucking" SUV (Acura MDX - "best" MPG 22 with HER driving.... 19 MPG with ME at the wheel !!) that took ONLY PREMIUM FUEL :angry: not even the mid-grade. As gasoline prices went well over $3.37 a gal. for Premium last month, WE KNEW IT WAS TIME !!!!!!!!!

We got a "fairly decent" trade-in value ($19,500) for the '03 MDX Touring, NAVI, Towing Pkg. (57K miles, but in EXCELLENT "showroom" condition in and out) .......... and we bought a brand new 2007 Prius Touring (Pkg. 5), but the depreciation that "Premium Fuel Only SUV's" are getting hit with is amazing !! We were hoping to get at very least Kelly BLUE Book max. ($21K) but the Toyota Dealer gave us a great price on the new Toyota Prius and had to give us the BLACK Book price (at least it was at the high end of that range) on the MDX !!

We have had the new Prius exactly ONE WEEK today (Friday 5/25) and about 300 miles..........
Do we "miss" the comfort and power of the big SUV, of course....... but as I drove that MDX, I used to actually watch the gas guage go down as I drove it.............

The right TIME was NOW.......... we did it and DON'T regret it.......... bye, bye 19 MPG.......... "Hello" 50+ MPG !!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ACD @ May 25 2007, 10:08 AM) [snapback]449747[/snapback]</div>

Amen, Have the filter and a case of Rotella T sitting in the bed. I also have only driven my truck about 3 times since getting the Prius...yes fellow Prius owners a F-350 holds at least 14 quarts of oil. Oh...after I remembered there was an ODO/Trip button I found out I had driven about 3000 miles in 30 days.

Did install the block heater and a touring logo on the ride today. Maybe mudflaps tomorrow?

Look forward to seeing block heater impact. Thanks again for all of the tips.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(mywhitenoise @ Apr 24 2007, 01:12 PM) [snapback]429085[/snapback]</div>

What pisses me off are people who run around ( usually w/1 person in the car) in SUV's and waste fuel!

There should be a penalty fee that is based on vehicle weight everytime you fill up with perhaps credits given for hybrid owners...since the car is partial 0 emmisions.
That would fix this gas usage in this country situation real quick!

Not to sound sanctimonious here, but it has to change.

 

Let's make this clear: what I drive is none of anyone else's concern. My reasons for picking a particular vehicle is not anyone else's concern. Idiots who obsess about people driving "gas guzzlers" are simply another incarnation of the stereotypical religious zealot. Yes, please, froth more about your MPG savings!

Rational, intelligent people make decisions based on measurable, verifiable data. They do not turn in their SUV so that they can "feel good" about themselves.

I used to drive a mid-90's Accord. I now drive an '07 Prius. I bought it for the lower cost of ownership considering the long commute I was about to start making. I didn't buy it to make friends with Frothy Mike the Gore-Licking Enviroweenie.

Judgemental, frothy "you are ruining the world if you don't drive a Prius" kids with practically zero real-world living experience piss me off. Check back with us in ten years, kid.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(mywhitenoise @ Apr 24 2007, 12:12 PM) [snapback]429085[/snapback]</div>

Every Prius on the road reduces emissions. I don't remember seeing an application that your motive was
a consideration. For whatever reason they bought, they reduce emissions when they are on the road. Be
grateful if they are so dumb, they have bought into one of the best ideas for improving a very big problem
by ignorance or greed. This is NOT a bad thing.

I live half of the time in L.A. People are buying them in some cases because they are trendy. You may already know this, but a Prius has the same status as a Mercedes or BMW in its own way. Who cares? Just be happy every hour one is on the road the air is getting less polluted. Be happy this is a "cool" car.

I may say this again ... I took a trip to New Zealand. There, considerations of the environment ARE NOT political. Everyone recycles because they are an island nation, not because they are "green". I don't care
for the fact we have to call people "green" and make efforts to clean our world up a political thing. It's
just good sense. As soon as the most average person, such as your SUV guy sees this as good sense,
we'll really be on the way to turning things around. You should rejoice that the Hybrids are no longer
freakish - they are sensible.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Beren @ May 26 2007, 10:39 AM) [snapback]450401[/snapback]</div>

That's sticking it to 'em. Agree w/you 1000% and am ROTFLMAO!!! :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

Awesome, this thread needed a good laugh...

I traded in a Tundra for mine because I no longer had anything I needed to tow. Is it the peoples fault that no Truck that can tow things gets good mileage or is it the auto makers. Come on man get mad at the right people. Kind of like going after the poor gas station owners, well at least the few independents left, because gas prices are going through the roof. The blame game is why nothing happens. If they switch then maybe some others will switch after they take a ride in one. It aint going to happen overnight but unfortunately one owner at a time...


<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Dan-Wolfe @ Apr 24 2007, 11:05 AM) [snapback]429123[/snapback]</div>

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(mywhitenoise @ Apr 24 2007, 10:12 AM) [snapback]429085[/snapback]</div>

Actually, no. What happened was, they woke up one day, looked down, and realized that they really DID have a penis, and didn't have to drive a HUMMER!

[To all my SUV-driving PC buddies... it's humor. Not personal.]

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(efusco @ Apr 24 2007, 01:22 PM) [snapback]429092[/snapback]</div>

HOLY COW!!!

I agree with Efusco.

WOW!

*cheers*

Does this mean I'm with the 'in' crowd now?

 

Remember one thing, when you see your insurance bill each month for your car.....a portion of that is due to rip off chiropractors who rape insurance companies and the people who pay the premiums with every little nickle and dime with "spine realignment" crap. Now see if you are impressed with your friends fancy cars, you paid for them.

If you don't believe me, I worked in insurance when I was out of college and you wouldn't believe the bogus claims submitted by chiropractors for people who claim to be injured. Many are ambulance chasers. If you don't believe me, an old girlfriend of mine was a massage therapist and she told me flat out that she got kick backs from chiropractors who she refered patients to when she told them that the "massage" needed further assistance due to a "prior" accident.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(dnoh @ Apr 24 2007, 01:32 PM) [snapback]429096[/snapback]</div>

 

I sold an '05 F150 about 6 months ago and bought a regular cab 2WD Tacoma to replace it. On the 12th (hopefully... as long as the car arrives on time!) we will be trading in my wife's '06 Explorer for a Mag Grey Package 6.

I am taking it in the shorts on both of these vehicles, but I simply could not wait any longer. We bought both vehicles before our 9 month old daughter was born. Not a great excuse, but having a kid really opens your eyes to the things that are really important.

I still have a lot to learn about, well, pretty much everything, (parenthood not withstanding) but driving a Prius and supporting the technology (as opposed to driving the previous/existing vehicles) was something I felt needed to be done.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(steve-o @ Jun 4 2007, 09:43 PM) [snapback]455488[/snapback]</div>

Odd what opens your eyes, innit?

If 20 years ago you told someone there would be a huge market for bottled water, they would laugh in your face. So when will we need bottled air?

Funny thing happened this weekend when I went to visit a friend in Elk Grove (still washing the burbs off, yeck!) We took her two daughters to the park in the Prius (which kids totally dig), it was too far to walk. She has been very stressed and took back to smoking, so we went over to the sidewalk by where the Prius was parked so she could vent and puff away. This hyper soccer mom rolls up in her Mercedes G 55 AMG (with 1 child onboard) walks said child over to the park (which was a good seventy feet away from where we are), and walks back to read my friend the riot act about smoking near a park and "how her daughter has respiratory problems" blah, blah, blah. I look over at her car and back at mine and give her the "you've gotta be kidding me about air quality" look, we live in area that boasts terrible air quality, mostly due to you darn suburbanites needing your '43rd beige house on the right 'cutting down all the trees to make way for these 'neighborhoods'. She rages on about how "you better put that out RIGHT NOW" and I must say it is strange to see a woman with Napoleon syndrome. So I unfolded my 5'11'' frame from the curb towering over her measly 5'3" puffed up self, looked down at her and explained that if my friend smoked 20 ciggies in one setting it wouldn't have the impact on the air that her hippopotamic land mass did. She huffed off muttering to herself collected her child and zoomed away brandishing her W '04 stickers. Huh, well that explains her incorrect grammar usage. :lol:

 

.......................................... <_<
Didn't know we SUV/Pick-up owners had to join an anonymous association (ie..AA)
Hi. My name is Lori. I'm an SUV owner and my husband...OWNS AN F-150 FX4 which we love to take, dare I say...MUDDING!

In all honesty - I didn't like the Prius when it first came out! I was a teenager - I loved speeding around in my little black Mustang. During college, I towed my friends everywhere and loved the convenience of my Nissan X-Terra with the stadium style seating. When I was pregnant and constantly moving I loved the roominess of my Explorer and at 5'2/living in TX (counted 8 out of 10 vehicles is an SUV or pick-up) it's nice to see just as high as the next person!!!! In fact, I still like it! But, a few things have shown me that I have to give it up.

Yes - Primarily the gas issue set things off. The fact that I'm lining the oil industry pockets with my money - disgusts me! So, when this situation got really bad we looked into various hybrids and my mentality at the beginning was - If I'm giving up my SUV, it's going to be for something that really makes a difference and as you all know, nothing compares to a Prius! But, with a little boy on the way, it just wasn't smart to have to worry about selling a vehicle, loans, etc....

So the next year that followed, I learned more about the vehicle and with my son here I got to thinking how great it would be if everyone did a little something to help HIS environment. That year, we almost bought it but with the long list an opportunity came up to by a house at a great rate in a very good area among the best school district. So.....That year past.

This year - Again, I've done more research and the more I learn about the Prius. The more I fall in love with it. I guess my taste did change quite a bit. I love that I'll be able to spend less on gas, help the environment while enjoying the technology and a hot looking car!!! I've had quite a few cars and I've never been more excited yet!!!

Saves on Gas, saves the environment, awesome technology, great looking vehicle! NO WONDER IT'S "TRENDY!" My teenage sister loves it (probably because it's in, but nice to know even she can be doing something good. LOL! ), my Dad who retired from GM after working there a lifetime drools over the technology (as do I), and my grandfather who went through the depression (also worked at GM all his life - never drove one though), had wanted to get one too. Unfortunately, he past just a while back. But...Isn't it amazing how this vehicle transcends generations?

So, whatever your reason is - ENJOY and heck if you have a pick-up or SUV at home. Enjoy that too!

 

Same kind of thing for me. I bought my last car, Acura TL just before my son was born and picked it up 10 days after he was born. At the time it made sense, low payment, fair gas mileage (avg 22), and it had plenty of room. With the rising gas prices and my changing focus on whats important now that he is 3, I didn't feel right driving the TL. I wanted something to just get me to work and back. When my dad was my age he drove a brown box Chevy Caprice that had bench seats and a weak v6 engine. At the time he was VP of a company but put all of his cash into our educations so that we didnt have anything to pay for when we graduated. So, I guess its my turn now to do the right thing. Best part is that with the Prius I do the right thing for my son and for the environment. Very cool.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(steve-o @ Jun 5 2007, 12:43 AM) [snapback]455488[/snapback]</div>

 

Brand new guy here - 1st post. I don't even have my profile set up yet. This post attracted my attention because I changed company cars this week from a suburban to a hybrid. I needed to see what I had done wrong to upset the OP so much. Like others have said, I had my reasons for a big suv. I live in Michigan, on the west side where we get 6' to 7' (sometimes more) of snow every winter. I live at the top of a 12% grade hill and I have 5 kids! A family of seven won't squeeze into a Prius, or any other hybrid made that I know about. Nor, from what I've been told by those that have them, do they do too well in snow. Things do change and when I bought my wife a new Toyota Sienna last fall, that opened the door for me to downsize my company car when the time came, which was yesterday.
I'll miss the room the suburban had, but not the fill-ups. Over $100 the last few, and they don't last me a week! 5-6 days on average.

FWIW, there are people out there even greener than hybrid drivers. I commute to work almost every day by bicycle. About 5,000 to 7,000 miles per year worth, but I pale in comparison. There are people that live totally car free and do everything on foot or by bike. They build special bikes that can haul anything from kids to groceries to kayaks and beyond. Some of these people rant about any driver, whether it's an suv or compact car or yes, even a hybrid that they drive. They complain about the extra energy required to build a hybrid (their claim, not mine) and the damage to the environment from all the hybrid batteries and the construction of same.

I'll miss my suburban this winter when we get a foot of snow and I still need to get to work the next morning. I'm not sure what I'll do then, but I'll come up with something. Maybe I'll put studded tires on my mountain bike and go for it! I know a guy who does just that every winter. He lives car free in Grand Rapids, Michigan.