1) My previous car (Saturn SC2) had its engine blow up while I was driving on the highway. I needed a car ASAP. There was a waiting list for the Prius. I decided I wanted a hybrid anyway, so I went with HCH.

2) The Prius II is a slightly better car than the HCH in general. But it depends on how much highway vs. city driving you do. If you do a lot of city driving then Prius all the way. If you do mostly highway driving you will see better fuel economy with the Civic Hybrid.

3) It will not be long until the redesigned HCH 2006 is out. Wait to see how it is. Neither Honda nor Toyota rest on their laurels long; both continually strive to improve their products.