Back in a Prius (after the five-car)

Howdy! I am happy to report I am now the proud owner of a new 2008 Blue Prius. Got on the waiting list of a local Seattle area dealer Memorial Day weekend and took delivery about three weeks later. When I picked up my Prius, I was told the waiting list was now over three months and they were not taking any more orders until they worked the list down some.

My first Prius? A gorgous Barcelona Red 2006. Why did I sell it? Picture this: Sitting at a stop light waiting for the light to change. A car coming up the highway does not notice traffic is not moving and plows into the car behind me at about 50 MPH. Didn't even pretend to apply the brakes. It was a full-force rear-ender. That pushed the car behind me into me, me into the car in front of me and him into the car in front of them. Five cars in all.

The car that started the dance was destroyed, although its occupants were largely un-hurt. The car behind me was destroyed as well and that driver was still unable to return to work six months later. My car sustained damage in the front and rear totaling some $15,000 and change. The insurance company opted to repair it. As a side note, the safety features of the Prius all worked as designed and despite the amount of damage done, I was able to drive my Prius home. The Prius can take a lot of damage, but they ARE expensive to fix.

After getting my Prius back from the body shop I opted to trade it as I did not want what should have been a totaled vehicle. Priuses were in short supply that year at that time as well, so I purchased a Mazda.

When the gas prices started climbing again this year, my wife and I considered whether we should bite the bullet and get back into a Prius and as you have figured out by now, we have been the proud owners of a new 2008 for the past week. Mileage? About 46 MPG so far with a high percentage of that being highway miles.

I love the Prius. Glad to be back.

 

Bill, the order of destruction was:
Initiating auto Honda Accord Result: Totaled
Car initialy hit: Geo Prizm Result: Totaled
ME: 2006 Prius Result: Sustained $15K damage, but drove home from the scene
Next rig: Ford Pick up Result: $500 damage to bumper
Final rig: Some sort of SUV Result: No observed damage. Perhaps a scuff or two