Prius is a dream come true

I bought my Prius brand new a year ago this past November. I took a job that required me to commute 60 miles a day in LA traffic and figured the Prius would be my answer to many stressful days sitting on the 405. In the state of California Prius owners can drive solo in the carpool lane until 2008 when they will re-evaluate the law. So I did some research and called some dealerships only to find there was a waiting list at almost every dealer in the area. Until I came across a dealer who was doing first come first serve. So I went and took a black Prius for a test drive. I loved it. I was hooked...except when we started talking price. The sticker price on almost every Prius was marked up $3000 and I was not willing to pay that much over sticker. So I told them that I would look elsewhere. The next day I received a call that they would sell me one at sticker price. I didn't even ask what color it was, I went straight to the dealership and signed on the dotted lines! I was a proud owner of a new prius.

As an owner, I can admit that the Prius is not the most attractive car on the road. In fact if it wasn't for the gas mileage and the car pool abilities, I would never had bought one. The exterior is very areodynamic assisting in the amazing 60mpg Toyota claims it gets. The reason I say claims is because unless you are sitting in bumper to bumper traffic for 2 hours, you rarely get that good of gas mileage. I tend to get around 40-45mpg on a daily basis. Which is still nothing to complain about.

One of the best features of this car is the smart start. Not all 2005 Prius' have this feature but I recommend it if you are buying one. You simply keep the key in your pocket or purse and touch the door handle to unlock the car. When inside, all you have to do is press firmly on the brake and press the power button and away you go. The shifter is a little hard to get used to along with the 'Park' button. I have turned the car off a couple times without pushing the park button. (Im sure this isnt a good thing but the car did park itself and turn off) My model does not have navigation but does have a screen in the middle of the dash which tells me my average gas milage and all which engines are being used at the time. This screen can be a little distracting but also quite entertaining in moments of traffic boredom.

The visibility is hard to get used to especially out of the back window. There is a bar in the middle of 2 windows on the hatch back and is difficult to see out of but you get used to it. The newer models have a back up camera to assist with this problem.

The car is very comfortable. It can fit 4 adults comfortably. I had never had a complaint of the back seat beng too small or not having enough leg room. The back seats fold down for maximum storage. I moved a beach cruiser and a small dresser from Ikea in the car and not had any problems.

Over all this car is a God send. I love it and swear that I will never go back to a 'regular car'!!!!