I was only looking to spend $15k, and thus it limited me to a 2003 Civic or 2003 Prius. After testdriving both, the 2003 Prius felt cheap, and the techno gadgets I felt would grow old. Even though there are some cool hacks for the Prius multi screen display (such as back up video) I felt it was a novelty that would wear off. The gas mileage on the Civic is better than the 03 Prius in real world results. On a 62 mile trip today I got 57.5 MPG, and my tank average with 212 miles is 49.9. The Civic felt roomier, and more like a 'car'. Also, the 03 Prius looks too much like a Toyota Echo... The 04+ Prius is pretty slick, but not worth the extra $5k for me. I ended up buying a December 03 Civic with 12,124 miles on it for $15,650 off eBay.