Opposition to Prius - Why?

Let's see what we know about hybrid owners:

Profile of Hybrid Drivers | Hybrid Cars

• Hybrid drivers have higher income
• We are older than the average car buyer
• Higher levels of education
• Skiing, hiking, or yoga practice
• Organic food, yogurt, and decaffeinated coffee
• Above average technical skills
• Favor news and information sites
• 14% Repubs, 38% Dems, 34% Indeps

The article didn't have anything to say about hybrid owners being 'gay' but nearly 100% are "very happy" or "somewhat happy." But thinking about Ken Mehlman the formerly homophobic now open gay; Larry Craig of airport bathroom arrest fame; and George Reker the homo-healer and his vacation 'rentboy'; I would remind the accuser of this pattern of open homophobia followed by later revelations. Making homophobic accusations is a great way to mask a secret obsession and interest in homosexual sex.

So one might note the phallic nature of a gas pump filling a gas tank parallels some acts. But filling a tank is a lot less for hybrid owners than those who seem to prefer holding that pump in their hands in the tank so much longer.

As we said in the Marine Corps, don't get mad, get even.

Bob Wilson

 

BITE YOUR TONGUE!!!! OMG.... decaff is from THE DEVIL.

BLEEEECCCCHHHHH!!!

 

+1 double BLEEEECCCHHHHH

 

But the guy said he "heard" it. Are you saying the guy didn't hear it? I'm sure the guy heard it, so the statement was true. The actual safety tests are a different issue.

Yes, it was overstated a bit. But I think everybody understood what was being said. My position was that the OP had to determine the actual life of the batter for himself and whether that was sufficient for him. Maybe 200,000 miles on a battery wasn't sufficient for him. He didn't say.

I'm glad we agree on something. But it's still politically incorrect. And some guy calling the car "gay" (or something like that) is opinion, and also politically incorrect. Let it go with that. Look at all of the posts who want to come to the defense of the Prius for being called "gay." If the OP thinks it's gay, then that's his opinion. If he doesn't think it's gay, that's his opinion. I'll let him form his own opinion.

That's actually good to know. When I show people my car, they make mention of the center counsole being high. They all actually thought it was kinda neat. It was my thought that a larger person might think it claustrophobic. I'll stop telling bigger people to consider that.

Dumb Mike

 

I completely missed that. Did he use the same airport as Sen. Larry Craig?

 

I was confused. I thought gay meant sexual preference of the car.
If you mean cars that gay people drive here is a list -

Car Talk

Prius didn't make the cut. VW seems top, er um I mean most favored by gay men. Not that there is anything wrong about that.

 

I doubt that. Prius has gone sufficiently mainstream to be significantly decoupled from any political connotations that it formerly held.

 

To answer your last question, a unqualified YES. People generally make commments on subjects they know nothing about. It's sort of like legal gossip, it concerns a thing and not people. Also this ignorance leads to fear and unfortuneately jealosy. Now with this determined mindset, how can they possibly open up and turn 180 degrees. I give you a lot of credit for going about this in such a intelligent manner. Is the Prius perfect? No, but it is a lot of fun. Buy one.....pay cash; this way you will be out of debt for 10 years, then you can save cash for a house! :cheer2:

 

I'm a 2009 owner, so shouldn't really post here, but, I have experience to share....

8/28/08, the day after I bought my 2009 Prius, word must have got around I bought a car. I work around a bunch of guys who think they're tough, and I got ribbed for an hour....

'you bought a what? Ohhh gawd!'
'you should have bought a Venza or Corvette or anything ... not a Prius ... ewwww!'
etc, etc...

Do a search on 'hate Prius' or 'Prius sucks' ... will find lots of hits. I don't know of another car as much hated and loved as the Prius. One thing's for sure, it's got people's attention. Attention isn't a bad thing.

In buying, the car fit my criteria for seating 4 adults and having 'hatchback versatility', enough room to throw a bicycle in if wanted or to carry drums in cases, etc...

I failed to evaluate the car's fit and ergonomics for me correctly. I knew it was small for my 6'2" frame, but took a chance anyway.

I'm still driving the car after about $2,000 building a custom driver's seat (I would have sold it by now without some success), so my experience has been much less than stellar, and obviously much more negative than most around here. but, I speak from my experience.

Main complaint is lack of comfort and normal fit in driver's seat. I sit in cars too much. It's no Honda Accord to sit in, that's for sure. There are some charms about how it drives. If you drive it well, it gets around quite well. Not quick in acceleration, but enough to keep you out of trouble. You can go on long trips in it, even the 2nd Gen one. It'll make quick work of a road trip, and wow does it only sip fuel.

Braking is a joy in the car. I do enjoy the regenerative brakes. You can hear the motor/generator working, a faint electrical whine as you brake, and I like that.

Fuel economy is phenomenal. Don't listen to the jokers of 'conventional' cars that quote only 'highway' fuel economy - It's actual, at the pump fuel economy that counts.

for 8,500 miles of gas station receipts, I averaged 50.3 MPG, and and I ain't no hypermiler, nor a leadfoot. This is what the Prius does the best - the best fuel economy found in a popular car.

I have rented the 2010 Prius 7 times, but something feels off for me. I'm being very careful this time around since I've been looking at cars again. Yet, I'm no hurry to sell mine since I own it and can use it.

btw, I like the Prius, definitely don't love mine nor the all-new one, but I see huge potential in future generations. Hybrid Synergy Drive is IMO, very good.

 

Dude! Thumbtacks!

 

Spot on! And if the duscussion is in written form, it usually has the word "FACT" (in all caps) sprinkled throughout. Thats the easy way to tell that the author is clueless.

Isn't talking about things you know nothing about exactly why the interwebs were invented?

 

Many Americans still like

* big cars, SUV's and big trucks - Silverado's, Escalade's, Accords - they feel safer with their children in a large vehicle

* very stylish cars - coupes, sporty sedan's (Lexus IS 250).

* cars with 'good' power to weight ratio - Civic has more P/W than Prius

* They are fearful of batteries. They are used to replacing a lead-acid 12V battery every 6 years, so they rumor the hybrid battery lasts 6 years or so and cost $8k to replace, or so they heard.

* Cars with classic shapes - sedans with trunks. Most 'cars' I see have trunks. They think a trunk keeps your stuff safe and that crook will break a hatchback window. These are they who've never heard of a roll-up tonneau cover. Duh.

What crook couldn't get into a trunk? Smash driver's window, pop the trunk release, or fold down rear seats. Trunks aren't secure any more than hatches that I know of. oopps off topic.

 

I bought a couple 600cc motorcycles in last 7 seven years. I rode 'em pretty hard. The best one got about 50 MPG average. .... a 450 lb. motorcycle !!

This '09 Prius averages 50 MPG. Not highway only, not downhill ... average at the pump 50 MPG. Phenomenal.

 

very wise advice. And do the ergonomics/fit test at www.heightsite.com

> tall drivers > 5 test for ergonomic fit. I think it's good for any driver really.

 

I beg to differ. The lack of telescopic steering wheel in the 04 - 09 is a detriment to many. Lack of seat height adjust causes many the need to duck down to see or not be able to enjoy a Gen2. B pillar too forward in 2nd Gen - too much rear seat legroom, too little front travel for many.

Cycling through touchscreen menus for climate, audio, etc... will never become mainstream.

The shifter knob is poorly placed at best. One false move of the hand, it gets bumped down and you're in B drive on the freeway, engine spinning up.

That's why Toyota made the all-new Prius. Besides, the Gen3 will cause the Prius to be much less hated. It is a bolder, more substantial looking car.

 

What? On paper? Not for my 36" inseam legs. I'll take the Pilot for comfort.

Don't even compare GenII Prius seating with a Honda Accord, a benchmark for fine seating and interior.

 

You might want to try adjusting the seatback one more notch back, then readjust the rest to compensate. Might help headrest bit.

If it's really bad, I mean bad, upholsterer ought to be able to shave a little foam out to help. Quite sure headrest could be purchased seperately for trade in or sale purposes.

Back to topic.

 

I estimate that with a 25 MPG average car (many of those!), only 6k miles driving / year, you burn 120 more gallons / year than in a 50 MPG Prius.

Average gas price of, oh, $2.60, that's $312 saved per year. Drive 12k miles / year, save $624 yr. in Prius over 25 MPG car.

I think fuel savings will cover battery costs, although you give up some benefits of a 25 MPG car, like basic towing ability, nothing major though.

 

First thing is - Prius is a full hybrid - it can propel on gas engine alone, electric drive alone, or combined.

Want complete quiet at any stoplight, no engine vibration whatsoever? Check

Stuck in a lousy, backed up 2 lane road heading to the beach on Sunday at noon, for an hour? You're not burning any gas. Engine might come on briefly once or twice in that hour. Check.

I don't watch my consumption gauges much at all. I just drive the car the way I like to - Easy on acceleration, easy braking ... My MFD reads about 48.8 MPG's this evening. It's never under 45 for me, well once with 4 people going uphill it got 'down to' like 43 MPG's. Up to 48 by time got home.

I don't call the new Prius sexy. It's kinda cute though. The 17" wheels make it pop a good bit. Don't like the 15's much. 16's would hit good spot, but hurt economy too much for Toyo's goals.

I've driven the III w/nav several hundred miles, in the hills and backroads too. It has an eCVT 'transmission' which is very different than a '5 speed automatic'.

Going up a steep, windy hill, the engine RPM's will vary much differently than an automatic car. The momentum is really smoothed out in the Prius, nothing like a hard hitting sports car. Maybe one could make it seem 'sporty', but I didn't find it that way.

Up on Skyline Blvd, the III handles the curves very securely. There's some body roll, but not too much. It feels like a solid car, quite a bit more secure than my 2009 base Prius model (I still have Goodyear Integrity's and suspect them).

I would think if you start pushing a Prius hard on windy roads, it will lose composure, but I don't really know. It will understeer much more than a sports car.

I've ridden sportbikes pretty hard in the SF Bay Area hills, but not cars. Prius is not designed for sport driving though.

 

Ya know, in 3 pages, I haven't read the one below, but the BIG thing I see in searches is ....

I hate Pruis driver's and Prius's !!! ... they drive 50 MPH in the carpool lane. I see cars bunching up in front of me ... sure enough, it's a Prius driver holding up the show in front.

South Park did an episode several years ago, I never saw it, where they called Prius driver's smug IIRC. That got a lot of 'airplay'.

There was a comedian who did a whole routine about appearing gay in a powder blue (Seaside Pearl) Prius.

Many people don't like the 'mouselike' shape of a Prius. It's functional and efficient, but not exactly sexy.

The gen2 appears are pretty small car - easy to pick on. Also, the Gen2 roof peaks too forward in the car, gives it a bit droopy look in the rear. Gen3 is a little more 'fastback' looking.