My wife drives the Prius. I drive the HCH2 during the week and the Prius is used as the 'family car', so I get to drive it on the weekend.

Both cars are so different, from style to engineering, yet accomplish the same thing - high FE. I find the HCH2 much easier to get higher FE with, especially on short trips. I have a little more leg room as well in the HCH2.

What are your preferences?

If you had to recommend a hybrid to someone, which would you suggest? When I am asked, I typicaly say the Prius has more of a 'Cadillac' ride, and the HCH2 a more solid, sporty ride. The major difference is in trunk space.

I'd recommend the HCH2 over the Prius for the same reasons.

I don't own both but I've test driven them both extensively before making my decision and chose the HCH2 over the Prius. No fold down rear seats in the HCH2 was almost a deal breaker but here in Canada Toyota is off it's rocker charging $4000 more for the Prius than in the U.S. even after exchange rate adjustments. 4 G's pay for allot of van rentals if I ever need more trunk space...

Right off the bat I got well over EPA with the HCH2, it's easy to maximize FE and allot of fun to drive.

Overall It is a well engineered car with excellent crash ratings and handles allot better than the Prius. One small factor for me was that the HCH2 does not "look" like a Hybrid, in fact, most people can't tell it apart from a regular HC.

Be part of the solution, not part of the problem!

I'm an Insight owner, but I would go for the HCH II. I've driven the Prius- great car, but the handling is not for me. Also, I've noticed (at least in my driving experience) that it was easier to get better gas mileage-close/above the EPA estimate- with the HCH II.

Personally though- you can't lose with either vehicle.

Ive personally driven both but own a HCH2. I rented a Prius on my trip to Los Angeles from the Bay Area(400mi).

Prius had a lot of leg room for big guys like my pops and I. Another cool feature about the Prius is the touch screen which shows the status of the electric motor and the regenerative braking, radio etc. What impressed me most on this trip is that i was able to take over countless suv's on the highway while getting many wierd looks as if the lil ol hybrid couldnt pack a punch when demanded to. As for interior and style, not really my taste compared the HCH2.
Acceleration wise the Prius has more punch, but im not sure about highway speeds with my HCH as ive only had it for a week and im still breaking it in.

Currently I own both. I have an 01, 05 Prius as well as an 06 Honda Civic hybrid. My choice for a fun car to drive is the Honda. For technology. functional use because of the hatchback, dealer support and knowledge toyota. When being introduced to the service dept at the Honda dealership I asked if they have a certified service writer and mechanics. The response was no which is just the opposite for toyota. It seems that Toyota takes hybrid technology seriously and I wonder about Honda. It just maybe the dealership that I purchased the vehicle from in the Charlotte, NC area. Based on dealer support and practical use of the vehicle I feel more comfortable in recommending the Prius over the Honda

My honda dealer was really aweful. There is a post about it floating around here somewhere....

I wanted a Prius although I never test drove because I don't fit. The Honda had more leg room so that's were my money went.

James


Best MPG tank: 57.7 calculated
Best Trip: 73.8mpg displayed(Palmdale"LACR" to LAX)

Wow how tall are you? Im fairly tall and fit comfortably in the Prius.
You must be a giant

Help Offset Carbon Emissions

I haven't really extensively driven either, but I have test driven them so I have some experience. I also drive an Insight, which should function similar to HCH, although not identically.

Just based on that I would be highly inclined to go with the HCH. The Prius is cool in that it can run on all electric mode, but that's all it has going for it in my opinion. The central screen showing what the car is doing is very poorly placed and I would consider it both an inconvenience to use while driving, and also a downright hazard. In order to get good FE it helps to be able to see what is going on at all times, therefore the FE gauge should be right in front of the driver at all times.

The Prius, hands down. Game over. Next...

Well, I love my Prius and was really unimpressed with my test drive of the HCH2. Noisy, slow, no trunk space, and the awful 'auto-stop'. Just to creep along in traffic the ICE comes on EVERYTIME! No EV mode in traffic jams a hybrid does not make. Did not like the lack of MPG screens (couldn't find out how I did after the test drive).

Prius is so cool with smart key, push button start. So easy to drive and smoother take-off. I love the center-mount touchscreen and steering wheel controls.

Handling? I'm never on the edge of tire adhesion and don't drive that way. Both 'handled' how I drive...but the Prius is so versatile. I can take passengers or the next time fold seats down and haul a full size wheelbarrow or large TV or any number of bulky items.

The Prius does more in every way. Hauls more, is faster, gets better mileage. You get more, period. You pay more, no doubt, but really not that much comparing options to options.

Cheers,

Curt.

'04 Seaside Pearl #7. Fumoto oil drain, mudflaps, rear bumper scuff protector & rear warn system, compass mirror, EV mode button, 8" subwoofer in right rear cubby & 6" subs under seats, power lumbar in the front seats, Coastaletech hitch w/ Aspen bike/snowboard rack. iPod2car, 2 amps, Alpine component speakers, and DVD video, solid 47 MPG @ 70000 miles.