freaking out about having to buy a car.

[shootingstar]

Sorry, you couldn't have found a cheaper solution ...for your piggy bank. It's not the greatest feeling being unemployed right now for myself, but I must admit I feel a whole better when money is not pouring into a car now.

[wackyjacky1]

Gotta give a shout-out to the Hyundai Elantra: Extremely well-built, solid car. Gets excellent gas mileage. TONS of passenger/cargo room. IMO Hyundais give you more bang for your buck than just about anything else out there.

[tulip]

You can buy a whole lot of gas for $10k. So if you get the Yaris (which gets very good mileage), you'd save $10k (easily) over the Prius. I'd say the Yaris makes quite a statement about buying reasonably-priced, efficient cars.

If you are stuck on a hybrid, I hear the Honda Element (new one) is lower-priced than the Prius.

Best of luck in your search.

[Blueberry]

If you are stuck on a hybrid, I hear the Honda Element (new one) is lower-priced than the Prius.

Best of luck in your search.

I think you mean the Insight?? I saw one driving down the road the other day, and it looks very much like the Prius (and nothing like the old Insight). I do *wish* they made a hybrid Element...

CA

[tulip]

I think you mean the Insight?? I saw one driving down the road the other day, and it looks very much like the Prius (and nothing like the old Insight). I do *wish* they made a hybrid Element...

CA

Right, the INSIGHT! I get my Hondas mixed up.

[IFjane]

I think you mean the Insight?? I saw one driving down the road the other day, and it looks very much like the Prius (and nothing like the old Insight). I do *wish* they made a hybrid Element...

CA

Me too! Elements are awesome though, even if they don't quite "measure up" in the gas mileage department. And they are quite social as well. Attached is a photo of mine on the right and Jeannierides' on the left at the Terry Wild Goose Chase in May. The two "girls" loved parking next to one another.

[smilingcat]

Well, we bought the Prius. The extra $10k over FIT, Vibe, Matrix can be made up by the better gas milage but its not going to be cheaper. It may be more expensive. But for what its worth, I just chalk it up to being green. If I save 2,500 gallons of gas, we are just that much better. $10,000 divided by $4.00/gallon (which I'm sure will reach in near future).

If you are thinking of Prius, better start thinking fast. The dealer said Toyota is cutting back on US delivery by 50%... Take it with a grain of salt ofcourse. Still... And today, the dealer did get a shipment of 5 new Prius. At the closing they had 3 left. Someone else bought one too. And its only Friday. The good news for us was that it was the color we wanted, the package I'm okay with and no surcharge or added cost just because they can. No dealing on the price which was fine with me as I really hate to haggle price at the dealers. They didn't try to hard sell on the all the add ons so that was good.

I'm ambivalent about the purchase. I just can't get excited about cars. This car will be garaged (stored) until my old audi falls apart.

[Pyannyplayer]

I bought a new Prius last summer and love it. I average 48 mpg in the Ozarks (hills - LOTS of them) and average a little better on the Interstate (51-53). I haven't seen the mileage go down with more people/bikes as someone else had; we've had 4 adults, bike rack (we put a hitch receiver on the Prius), and 4 bikes with no change in mileage at all. Recently we went to Memphis and got 53 mpg - used a tank and a half to get there, goof around for 4 days, and get back. Besides I'd rather put $25 in my tank every 6-8 weeks rather than the $60 I was putting in every 6-7 DAYS!

Everyone is different, but I do love my Prius (named her the Lima Bean because of her color and shape). We drive cars forever, so I will get my money back in gas savings (car she replaced was a 1996 Montero Sport with over 200,000 miles on it). We looked at other cars and just felt that we got a little more for the money.

Enjoy your new car.

Lorie

[jeannierides]

Me too! Elements are awesome though, even if they don't quite "measure up" in the gas mileage department. And they are quite social as well. Attached is a photo of mine on the right and Jeannierides' on the left at the Terry Wild Goose Chase in May. The two "girls" loved parking next to one another.

Me three! Dory and Ellie got along quite famously, as did our SO's! As you can see w/my Element aka Dory, on the left, our bikes fit quite nicely w/o the seats & the front wheels ride along beside them. If you are thinking you might need the rear seats in from time to time, you can still bungie them to the sides and one bike can ride between but would also have to be bungied. The seats are quite heavy and cumbersome if you don't have help getting them in and out! That said, I LOVE my Element!