livvie, I have to disagree with you. We have a 2001 Corolla(actually Prizm, but same car). In pure heavy city driving, driven in a typical American way, it gets about 23 mpg; the Prius, driven the same casual way, gets 42-43 mpg-almost double the MPG of pretty efficient conventional car of the same wt,length,acceleration etc.We drive them in exactly the same way ,on exactly the same routes.
Now, you certainly could argue that 23 and 42mpg aren't impressive, but they are probably dead on average for the average owner.Very few owners drive like forum members.
Now, you own a HCH. I am convinced that a Prius will deliver much better mpg than a HCH 2 when driven by typical Americans in the typical way.(based on not much evidence other than my unscientific observation that Honda owners are more fanatical than Toyota owners-of course, I also have CR's city loop as evidence).
If you want a huge improvement over a conventional car, but don't want to change your driving habits, buy a Prius, not a HCH2.
Thanks,
Charlie
Quote:
Originally Posted by livvie
That has to be one of the best shows on TV, period. What he said is true. If you drive any hybrid like you drive any other car, the mileage is not impressive at all. You do have to work at getting the EPA numbers. This is where the hybrid manufacturers have failed IMO. I shouldn't have to learn any techniques to achive the numbers, I should be able to push a "ECON" button and let the car do everything for me. It currently does not.
|