We’re doing a college-level Bible study and just completed the books of Amos and Hosea, in which these two prophets forsaw the doom of Israel and Judah due to their lifestyles. What can I say but such “turned into oneselves” lifestyle is self-centered instead of centered on God/service of others, and identical to today’s Western Civilization (I’m using the word euphamistically, of course). I’ll close with:

“Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” Phil. 4:8 (RSV)

A Mennonite website explains: “Christians are called to be separate from the evil in the world. Our nonconformity does not mean that we withdraw from all contact with those outside the church. Rather, our way of thinking is changed, and we avoid sinful behavior and participation in groups which promote sin.” “See Rom. 12:2″

“Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Rom. 12:2.

If I weren’t in the industry and constantly shifting cars, the Prius would be in my top five. I’ve always had a couple of enthusiast oriented vehicles that I bought and sold on the side. But the Prius would be a great fit for my family. We only do two or three road trips during the year, and the rest of the time it’s mostly in-town driving. I also have a VERY weak spot for hatchbacks.

Then again, I would probably opt for a 100k+ Prius that already had it’s battery replaced and was well maintained. I actually bought a 2001 model for $6500 last year that had been taken to the dealer every 3k and had a new battery pack. I sold it for $8700 on Ebay, and the fellow who bought it was a very happy camper. The idea of keeping a car is anathema to the fact that I make money on switching the wife’s car out whenever there is a willing buyer. She’s probably had 20 minivans, 15 sedans and 12 wagons this year alone.

For the intown non-enthusiast driver that plans on keeping their car for 12 to 15 years, the Prius may be the best new car buy out there. A Civic, Corolla, or Mazda 3 may also be worth a look as well. As for the TDI, I liked them more 10 years ago when you could get a Passat Wagon and a 5-speed with it. If VW saw fit to provide their powertrains with a longer warranty, it may be worth considering.

It shares the driveway with a Jeep, a Pontiac GTO and an Olds Alero. I tend to be a little right of center, work for a defense contractor, drink beer, don’t go to the gym, and even drive this car to the gun club without anyone making a crack.

Even though it is not a great long-distance driver due to the ergonomics (I drove from NH to the Upper Peninsula for vacation), it has enough room for my teenagers and I.

These things are moving to the mainstream; there are a lot less hippy tree-huggers by percentage owning them now. Time for the stereotype to retire.

The wonder of the car is that it is extremely efficient and yet doesn’t compromise at all on what buyers in its market segment expect in a car — unlike the Accord Hybrid, which wasn’t particularly more efficient, or the Insight, which was a big compromise. It isn’t tiny, it isn’t unreliable, it isn’t a stripped down box on wheels, it isn’t unsafe, etc. It really is a case of having your cake and eating it, too. It is this that makes Prius buyers smug; not a holier-than-thou attitude, but rather a “holy sh*t I can’t believe I got away with this” attitude.

The bottom line on hybrid technology is that it’s an increase in efficiency. It captures otherwise wasted energy. It can complement any other fuel source — it isn’t either/or with diesel or bio-diesel or hydrogen or whatever fuel gets you stoked. It just makes it more efficient. I just can’t wrap my head around why people are opposed to efficiency. My depression-era parents, the “Greatest Generation,” sure could have appreciated it. When did waste become a virtue?

And when did an appreciation for innovative engineering make someone a hippy? I thought hippies wanted to live in tee-pees eating raw vegetables they picked by hand out back. Jeez, we’re in for it as a country when technological improvements are scorned as a political heresy. Let’s just empty our wallets now and hand over the contents to folks who still believe in what we used to: anything that does it better is better.

I’ve never seen a car hated so much for being so good. A fascinating psychological profile of our nation. A real ink-blot test, the Prius is.

This would make sense, since, as you say, most Prius owners are well educated, and educated people are more likely follow the news and the markets, in order to manage their investments.

In fact, when I think of a typical Prius owner, I think of Mayor Mike Bloomberg, the New York mayor who is promoting hybrid taxis. He is smart, very rich, very socially liberal, and politically progressive. He knows how to profit from the capitalist system without becoming a doctrinaire supply-sider. He is exactly the kind of person most of the people on this board hate. But is the hatred due to jealousy or a lack of education?

Economics 101 says that as supply increases selling prices must come down to reach a new equilibrium between the higher supply and demand.

None of this says anything about the character or personal hygiene of the buyers.

jthorner:

I'm thinking the demand for eggs triggered by lowered prices (and finance deals) proceeded chicken stimulation.

In other words, simply putting more Prii on dealer lots didn't create the surge. Discounting did the deed.

Can you provide any evidence that a Prius is prone to break down and/or has high repair costs? I have not seen any published data which supports you claim nor have I heard any such thing from the several Prius owners I know personally.

A hybrid makes great sense for Taxi service where regenerative braking is going to get plenty of use and the shut down while stopped feature is going to be active often as well.

Sales increased as Toyota increased production.

Certainly it is true that many Prius buyers are buying a car less expensive than they can afford, but that hardly reflects negatively on them.

As a Prius owner and a NYC resident, I think the hybrid cabs will work out fine. People generally don't object to having less leg room in an Altima/Camry/Escape/Prius cab as opposed to a Crown Vic or Town Car.

My '06 Prius already has almost 40k of unforgiving miles on it, and since putting gas in it is about as much maintenance as I have time for, I'm happy about not having any problems to report. The reliability trends of Toyota's Synergy Drive have been good thus far (since it debuted in '99). Since most hybrid cabs use Toyota's technology (Camry, Highlander, Altima, Prius), I don't forsee the maintenance bills being a problem.

Besides, the emphasis isn't on them being better cars persay, but being less of a strain on the environment. Also, gas bills will be much less, which means more $ for cabbies and fewer fare hikes. Even if you drove a Prius like a complete dick, you would probably get 25+ mpg while Crown Vics in the city average about 10 mpg. We'll see how it pans out.

As for me being a smug Prius driver… well, I'm just poor. I used to drive an SUV, but after realizing that I didn't really need the extra space and 4 wheel drive, paying so much more for gas and insurance just didn't make sense anymore. Since I put so many miles on my car, the money I save in gas almost covers the payment on my car (11 city mpg Jeep compared to ~44mpg Prius).

I do wish people would realize that we're not all tree hugging hippie liberal morons. I care about the environment, but the earth won't make me buy a car that I don't like. The Prius performs about as well as a Camry, has good resale value (not that mine will after having 130580528 miles on it), and saves me money. That's all I care about. If you can afford to pay for gas in a Hummer, then knock yourself out.

Well, as the earth warms, as species die out due to said artificially accelerated warming, as the amount of arable land disappears, as total land mass decreases and total population increases, as drinkable water gets scarcer, as our oil-dependant societies scrap for scarcer resources in upcoming resource wars (and a current one), as the air, land and water gets dirtier and leads to epidemic and endemic diseases, as life in general gets harder and more expensive, I think your grandkids are gonna feel quite different.

Of course, my personal and policy preferences on cars are at odds with each other. I just live with that. Isn’t dialectics wonderful?

Your first sentance describes me pretty much right on. I don’t have a problem with the cars as they stand, not one bit. Its the owners that piss me off.

And you lucky bastardo. I want to go to Japan.

I had to go to Japan to finally sit in a Prius, them being chronically pre-sold in my own metropolitan area full of Yuppie Democrats. I think the dash is just incredibly cool.

And since the Prius is a uniquely-styled model rather than a trim line variant, the hybrid premium doesn’t need to be strictly justified. No one asks if an Accord “pays for itself” over a Civic, or if a Corvette “pays for itself” versus an Aveo. The Prius is its own thing with qualities that at least 180,000 people per year value.

Documented survey info, like this, is a bit more instructive. I suppose I fit the Prius profile pretty well, but that doesn’t mean I want one. In my mind, the use too much gas. As long as I can buy a relatively clean-running diesel vehicle like my VW TDI, I’m not interested in the hybrid hype. I’ll take my 40 mpg, using 50% renewable biodiesel, in a vehicle that responds like a real car, thank you very much. I’ll defend today’s best diesels against gassers on any front you choose, be it emissions, durability, driveability or serviceability.

My main reaction to the Prius, therefore, is envy. It’s promoted by tax breaks and welcomed in carpool lanes. It gets the glory & accolades, while my normal-looking Golf is out there quietly saving the world, or, at least, living lightly on the highway.

The Prius’ success should be a loud message to VW’s nitwit bosses. The cryptic one-inch-tall TDI badge on the back isn’t enough to reach the ignorant and distracted masses. Here’s how you succeed in the US of A. Take your new 50-state-compliant TDI engine and put it in a unique body, then advertise it to the max. Make an obvious commitment to new technology, instead of offering halfhearted conversions in limited quantities. Because if you’re not making that commitment, buyers will sense that hesitation and mirror it in their own buying decisions.

My mother drives a Prius because she has a long commute, gas prices in the northeast are high, and it is bulletproof. It’s also very roomy and has lots of cargo space. 60,000 miles on the clock without a single rattle, squeak, or mechanical problem.

Interesting survey. I saw a different one in Readers Digest this year (from autobytel I think?) that gave a very different picture. They had slightly more Republicans than Dems buying hybrids, 49% not college educated (memory number), and a far lower average income.

I wonder what the truth is?

FWIW, all the hybrid owners I know are pretty normal. Shoot, even “our Glenns” seem as normal as this group gets.

Cheerio,

Bunter

Also, can the “bbbut they just bbbuy it because it looks like a hybrid”. It’s a midsize car with a huge amount of cargo space that gets better mileage than the Civic Hybrid. Frankly, you’d have to be a fool to buy a Civic at anything but a huge discount over the Prius.

As near as I can tell, the people who get cranked about the Prius “image” are idiots.

The irony here is that these cars are punching big holes into the whole “Body on frame” arguement of increased durabilty. One fact that cant be denied is that these unibody cars feel much better after a year or so of use in our pothole filled city than their BOF counterparts.

While a body of frame car is easier to repair, nothing beats NOT having to repair the car at all!