Ok first of all, congrats to the OP and other Prius drivers for owning one. Many people have mentioned that buying an older car, or eepng a car for a long tme, is what will truly benefit the environment. Unfortuantly we live in a society where social status has importance, and being seen in an old car jsut wont cut the mustard. In reply, people with the older cars would say the new car owners have shallow personalities and are insecure in themselves. Perhaps. Perhaps not. The point is, social status is important to those who have at least a modest income. That's just the way society is. Time was when watching the news meant discussing important issues. These days news is all about glamor, Celebrity Big Brother, X-Factor, I cant believe these dumb programs make the headlines whene there are more important things to discuss; looks like people have just got bored of "real news".

Next, some people mention the Prius owners "need" to do a bunch of research to see how much toxicity their car produces over the typical ownership period of that car, including battery manufactur, shipping, disposal of batteries, of cars, etc. Fine, I see you point. But try telling that to politicians, the ones who promote hybrid cars. Aren't hybrid cars all the rage in CA for example? In London, hybrid cars get tax benefits, and I would rather spend money on metal (the Prius) than getting a cheaper car and putting the money saved towards taxes for our beloved government.]


Third, if you're in the market for a new car for around £20k (or whatever the cost is in USA), would you put your money into a diesel car? You really wanna spend £20k on a car to start it up in the morning and it sounds like a pos? I dont. I would rather startt my £20k car in the morning and it either sounds glorious, or is dead silent, and NOT like a POS tractor that's about to do the rounds on the local farm. And please dont tell me diesels these days are refined. They are more refined than they used to be, but I live in the UK where half the cars are diesel, and they stink, and they sound like crap (yes, including the smoothest BMW and Honda diiesels). They're fine when cruising, but they are NOT as refined as gas engines, especially under acceleration or standstill.

I am intrigued by hybrid cars but I cant justify the cost for myself to get one. The batteries eat up too much cargo space, besides I like a car with more excitement and economy has never been exciting in anyone's book.

I would also be intrigued as to how many people are reading this on a laptop right now and how old your laptop is (that's a rhetorical question, we wont use this thread to deviate from original topic ). Ps: good and interesting thread.