This is more of what I had in mind:

Efficient drivers do it better.
1003 miles a tank personal record. 74MPG calculated. HCH1 CVT

Hahahaha, did you make that? That's great.

I don't know about the xB, but I looked at an xA when I was car shopping... they are actually really small inside. I'd recommend seeing one in person before making a final choice.

Before you get the xB, take a look at the Honda Fit. I have been hearing *wonderful* things about it from many people, though I haven't driven it myself, but it has tons of cargo room (alot more than the xB, though maybe with a less roomy 'feel'), good fuel efficiency, and it's supposed to have surprisingly sporty handling. The Fit Sport is the better of the two, and sells for $15k. Plus it doesn't have Toyota's weird center-mounted dashboard... I think you should at least try one.

Steven,
I believe I may fall into the catagory as to what answer you may be looking for BUT I just got a Matrix. The Xb has a 1.5 compared to the Matrix's 1.8 but I did some of the things you mentioned. I have brought partial hypermiling driving into effect as well as I bumped up the tire pressure up to 40lbs. So far over 829 miles I have gotten an average of 34.5 MPG. I've done more city driving with a lot of idling with the A/C on too. EPA ratings for the Matrix are 28city/33hwy so I know you can easily come close to consistently breaking 40mpg with the Xb.

I can see exactly why you would want to chose the Xb as it is substantialy cheaper than the HCH. I was actually looking for a used Xb but I had a set price of $10k I wanted to spend on a used car so I settled for the Matrix which I do not regret one bit. Being a "wagon" I have been able to haul much more than I would of ever carried in the HCH so it has suited my needs excellent so far. On average now I have taken a hit of 12-15mpg which I am not too happy about but it has evened out as the Matrix has suited my needs for hauling and being a cheap-er car.

AL

'00 Insight "Wazabi" -75,000+ miles
'03 Toyota Matrix - 81,000+ miles
'03 HCH-CVT-OSBM-41,000+ miles (retired 04-10-06)
"I'm very secure with my little Insight, no Prius envy here."

Or what about the Toyota Yaris? The hatchback starts at 10,9, and the sedan: 11,8? They are rated at 34/40mpg (manual) and 34/39mpg (auto).

I saw one on the road today -- very nice. I love hatchbacks, and this one looks sort of like the Peugeot rally car.

I would have seriously considered one had they been available 1.5 years ago when I bought my HCH. Of course, buying this type of small cars is a good thing environmentally, but it doesn't really help to support and finance alternative fuel technologies to the same extent that a hybrid does.

Still, if cost is an issue, it would be hard to go wrong with the Yaris or the Fit.

I saw a Fit in person for the first time today, it's actually pretty cute.

I just wanted to say thanks to everyone for taking the time to thoughtfully answer my original question. What a great group of people, which is truly my most compelling reason for wanting another hybrid.

The decision process has evolved considerably, but not yet set in stone. My other half doesn't favor the Civic, but likes the xB. However, the Camry just came on the scene, and we've ordered one. If I get cold feet by the time I locate the Camry, we'll default to the xB. I love that little hybrid-wanna-be box. The Camry has the big-car features to satisfy my other half... leather, NAV, remote keyless, Bluetooth, large overall size, a 440-watt stereo... and a nice color selection! Decisions, decisions...

Steve Villatoro
www.stevenvillatoro.com
“An enlightened guide to small business mastery.”

I have a 2004 XB (5 speed) and still love my car. My average MPG is 33 MPG (w/aftermarket wheels and tires) and its very roomy. Pluses of the car are its roominess, decent gas mileage, handles very well, tall people can fit in the front and back. On a regular basis my friends 6' 6" and up and myself 6' 3" go to play basketball with no issues fitting. Downsides are no hybrid version, if you are a speed demon your gas mileage will suffer as you probably can see the car is not aerodynamic(at high speeds MPG suffers). Another downside is that if you love trunk space this is not the car for you. However, I now have a 2006 Civic Hybrid and still cart my friends around in the XB.