Travels with my Prius

Car owners and car shoppers measure value in a variety of ways. For some, the measurement is in dollars -- initial cost, fuel economy, maintenance, resale value, insurance, taxes. For others, a vehicle's value is determined by its effects -- or lack of effects -- on the environment.

Performance and suitability for their own use may be the determinants for others. And for many of us, there are intangibles that are difficult to measure: how the car feels, and makes us feel; how it looks, and makes us look.

Recently, several highly trusted automotive authorities honored the Toyota Prius based on their surveys and research. One called the Prius "Most Satisfying,"1 another "Best Overall Value of the Year"2 and yet another stated Prius has "The Best Resale Value."3

Consumer Reports, long renowned for its authority in the measurement of value in products and services, searches for the car owner's feelings with an annual survey that measures customer satisfaction with a single question: "Considering all factors (price, performance, reliability, comfort, enjoyment, etc.), would you get this car if you had to do it all over again?"

Cars and trucks in the survey find their places on the Most Satisfying list based on the percentage of those who answered "definitely yes" to the survey question.

ConsumerReports.org says this about the current year's survey: "The Toyota Prius ranks as the most satisfying vehicle overall for the fourth straight year, with 92 percent of owners saying they'd get another one."

Prius earned a top rating from IntelliChoice.com, the online source for automotive ownership cost and value analysis, in its "Best Overall Value of the Year" awards for model year 2007. IntelliChoice said, "The Toyota Prius, one of four hybrids on the list, is the Best Car Value Under $23,000 for the second consecutive year."

In an article entitled "The Hype Over Hybrids," IntelliChoice said, "What IntelliChoice has found is that the Prius is holding its value amazingly well -- the car simply refuses to stop being in demand, both as a new and used vehicle. Its resale values can't seem to drop, and analysis of years of accumulated data allows us to state confidently that in terms of depreciation, the future looks particularly rosy for the Prius."4

Kelley Blue Book, the widely quoted authority on used-vehicle pricing, this year named the Prius the "2007 Be

In June 2006 I decided that it was time to change my car. At the time I was driving a 2.4 petrol Audi A6. A beautiful car that was very luxurious. However, the downsides of the A6 were running costs and the level of emissions that it produced. Over the last 2 years I have spent over £9000 on the Audi. This was just on the running & servicing of the car!

Anyways I decided that a change was needed and I wanted a more economical and Environmentally friendly car.

After plenty of research we decided on the Toyota Prius. We have owned two Toyota's before so knew they were reliable, cheap to run and service.

It's been nearley 3 month of prius ownership & 2500 miles of great motoring.

I can't fault the Prius thus far, typical Toyota reliability and the slightly different look that turns heads and gets people talking.

In 2500 miles i've been to the petrol station 5 times & spent about £190 (approx £38 a visit depending on petrol prices).

There are some parts of the T-Spirit that I would not be without, in particular the Bluetooth connection. It works so well, once the phone is paired with the car your ready. Every time I get in the car and push the start button I hear the bluetooth connection tone and that's it! Make and recive calls from the steering wheel, no cables, no setting up the connection every time!

I also really like the Sat Nav & the integrated ipod port, again, they just work.

If I brought the Prius again I probably wouldn't add on the IPA (Intelligent Park Assist). Don't get me wrong it's a great bit of kit - I can just park the car quicker myself. The camera though that comes with the IPA is useful and has probably avoided a couple of reversing nudges!

So - I'm happy, my wife loves it, and I often sit at traffic lights or in jams in perfect silence whilst other cars are noisey, smelly and polluting all around them. I sit there & feel quite smug & wonder to myself why other cars don't work like the Prius?

Whilst searching the forums at pruischat.com I came accross several posts regarding tyre pressure. There seems to be a few Prius users that have bumped their front tyres to 42psi
& the rear ones to 40psi. This is supposed to increase fuel economy with some drivers reporting an 8% increase.

So at my next fill up I will increase the pressure on the front & rear tyres which are currently 36/33psi & report back. I know it's not scientific as the weather is getting colder, my route may change etc etc but I am interested to see if i notice any change.

It's been two weeks & 2 days since my last fill up and the petrol light came on today. I checked the MFD & ODO Trip and I had done 501 miles since the last fill up.

According to the MFD the average MPG was 54.0

I'm really pleased with this especially as my latest fill up cost £38.71

A few Prius drivers have complained about their fuel consumption. If you want to improve yours check out the pulse & glide piece below

Also I read in the paper on Saturday that hybrid cars were getting a bashing from a Renault clio driver he stated "That hybrids have a long way to go as his clio gets 49 mpg" I think he's missing the point. Apart from the fact that the Prius is much larger than a 3 door clio, the prius is not just about fuel consumption it's all about CO2. I know that my car pruduces less CO2 then the clio so I'm happy.

We took the Prius along the M1 motorway today for a 100 mile round trip.

I had heard that the Prius was noisey at speed and that the fuel consumption dipped when over the optimum 55 miles per hour.

Firstly we travelled along nicely at 70 mph with very little noise and a really smooth ride. Fuel consumption jumped from between 35 - 99 mpg depending on the incline of the road.

I played with the cruise control and each time the cruise control was initiated the MPG rose significantly.

Before the journey I had an average of 53.8 mpg and at the end the Prius was reading a mpg of 54.3

I received 3 calls via bluetooth to my Sony Ericsson W700i and both the caller & I had no trouble hearing each other at 70 mph. In my opinion the Prius isn't any louder than my Audi A6 - which was a very quiet car.

I run a contract at a well known UK holiday village & every day I have to pass through security. This morning on seeing my Prius one of the security satff said "What's that?" It's a car came my witty retort. "Oh, It looks funny, why did you buy that?" At this point I decided not to go into details but suggested that I wanted to be different from 'Mondeo man' (no offence to mondeo drivers intended!).

"Oh people buy mondeo's and vectras because they fit in"

I rest my case - Prius buyers don't like fitting in - We are round pegs in square holes, we like to think different, to be different. There is more about the Prius then the clever technology, the low emissions and the great fuel economy. The Prius is a statement, a statement about us as drivers. We like to stand out, we like the fact that we can drive around and people turn their heads and look.

So my friend in the security lodge my car may look funny to you, but at least it stands out, and at least it's not causing as much damage to the environment as your car.

Sometimes it's good to be self righteous.

The list price for the T_spirit is £20280

We also had the optional IPA (Intelligent Park Assist) added to the car so this pushed the price up by £364 we also had the prius car mats at an extra £49.95 so the total came to £20693.95

Firstly I contacted our local dealer for their best price which unsurprisingly was the list price.

I then went online and serached for prius deals in the UK and came accross http://www.broker4cars.co.uk/ This site got the price of the Prius down to £18607 through Inchape Toyota.

With this price I returned to the local dealer to see if the could do any better. They did the managed to get the price down to £18000

So I return to Inchape with the £18000 they agree to beat the price by £250 & throw in the car mats.

They got the deal. I did return to the local dealer to see if the could beat or at least match the price. Unfortunatley they couldn't. I have howerve returned to the local dealer and subscribed to their service plan.

A total of 16 days and 485 miles have passed since I picked up the prius & I have had to put some petrol in.

The car petrol light started flashing so after about 6 miles I filled up the car which took £39.72

I'm pretty confident that I could of got past the 500 mark, so that's my goal on this tank.

According the the MFD I averaged 52.4 MPG on my first tank. The first fill up took £42.53 but that was when petrol prices we're in the 90's. The second fill up prices we're 89.9p a litre.

The Pulse and Glide technique alternates between periods of Pulsing and periods of Gliding while trying to avoid using the Prius' large hybrid car battery.

The speed range that at is best for the Pulse and Glide technique is between about 30 and 40 miles per hour. Below 40 mph the Prius engine can remain off when Gliding. When Gliding above 40 mph, the Prius' engine spins, even when it is off, which creates extra drag that reduces the distance the Prius can Glide.

The Prius comes equipped with a display screen that shows the energy flow between the different components of the hybrid system.

This way Prius drivers can see, via the display screen, when engine is on or off as well as whether power is being drawn from the hybrid car's large battery.

How To Pulse And Glide

First, Pulse - Getting The Car Up To Speed
When the car needs to get up to speed, gently accelerate. As much as possible, avoid using energy from the large hybrid battery while accelerating.

Second, Glide - A Special Kind Of Coasting
Once up to 40 mpg ease slightly back on the accelerator. Then ever so slightly press down the accelerator again and hold the pedal in that position. On the energy screen there should not be any arrows of energy going any direction. If you press to much, repeat the process of easing up and pressing down again until you get it in the right spot. You will notice that there is no energy flowing in any direction on the Prius' energy screen and the "arrows" are black. In this state, the Prius is basically coasting, without any energy being drawn away to regenerate the battery.

Then, Repeat The Process
Once the car decelerates to the given bottom end of your Glide, usually 30 mph, start the whole process over again. Alternating between periods of Pulsing and periods of Gliding as long as the driving situation allows. The bottom end of the Glide can actually be any speed, but the record breaking drivers generally used 30 mph.
Read the full about article here

At last the day to collect my Prius arrived.

Due to my efforts to get the car at a low as price as possible I didn't buy the car from my local Toyota dealer. Although the local dealer was fantastic, helpful, frindly and not pushy they just couldn't get the price any lower. Although they did manage to knock over £1000 off the list price!

In the end I went with the dealer that had the lowest price. Unfortunatley the dealer is a 45 minute drive away compared to a 5 miunute drive to the local dealer.

I decided to go on the train to collect the car so after a half an hour walk to the train station, a total of 1 hour & 48 minutes on 2 trains and a 10 minute walk to the dealer. (There is no surprise why people do not use public transport. The journey was very pleasent & both trains were clean and tidy, but it took nearley two hours to go somewhere that usually takes 45 minutes in the car & it cost £9.50).

On arrival at the dealership I was shown around the Prius and then we started the paper work. The paper work was pretty straight forward & the sales person went through extras that I could buy, such as tyre insurance (£190), GAP Insurance (£349), MOT Insurance (£149), Service payment plan (around £19 per month for four services). Although the sales person was keen for me to buy they wern't pushy and accepted the first "I'm not interested in the extra products at the moment thank you".

Most of these extras can be bought elsewhere! I found a similar GAP insurance online for £149 for three years. If you want to buy it from the dealer do some research before and go in with the lower quotes. They should do their best to match or beat it or at least lower the premium on their product!

Over 1 hour later I was able to get in the car! After a quick introduction to the controls I was left to my own devices. The sales person was prepared to go through every detail & feature in the car, I declined the offer as I like to discover they way things work & what they do myself.

Finally on my own in the car. I carefully go through the start up procedure, the car beeps twice and Ready comes on in the heads up display.

I pop the the car in reverse, it starts beeping & the reversing / IPA camera comes on in the centre console. I decide not to use the IPA or the reverse camera at this stage & I stick with my usual reversing technique.

Once out on the road the car feels great, although a little unusual when the engine cuts out at the traffic lights, my first instinct is I've stalled!

First thing to do with the car was to pay a visit to the petrol station - The car came with the minimum amount of petrol it could!

The Prius' petrol intake is designed to only take the unleaded pipe available at most stations, I didn't realise this but apparently the diesel pipe has a larger diameter and should not fit into the small petrol intake on the prius.

£42.56 and a full tank - I'm really happy with this. My Audi A6 used to take £60+ to fill and I used to get 300-315 miles out of it. So as long as I get more than 300 I will be really pleased - Eventually I would like to get 500 from a tank, but that may take some practice.

The drive home from the dealer was about 45 minutes, mostly on dual carriage way. The Prius drove well at 70 mph although slightly noisier than the Audi A6 at 70 mph but not bad at all.

Arriving home the MFD (multi function display) informed me that I had averaged 50.9 mpg over 38 miles. Not too bad a start.

The car is beautiful inside & out and with a delivery mileage of two miles my initial reaction to the Prius was joy & excitement.

After inserting the key and pressing the power button once the 7" screen came to life with the Toyota Logo.

Second push of the start button brings everything else to life apart from the engine. The radio with it's 6 cd changer & the dashboard digital display.

To start the engine you just put your foot on the break and press that power button - The engine starts but you can't hear it at all! The prius actually beeps twice at you and READY appears in the dashboard display so you know the car is ready to move!

Make sure you have the unlocking nut for the alloy wheels.

SatNav - SatNav DVD's are inserted by the dealer, check that a) The SatNav DVD is there and is the latest version, and b) You have the box and manual it came in.

Tracker Documentation - If you have had a Toyota fitted tracker, ensure you have the certificate of fitment, your insurance company requires this to grant you theft cover, it will also have a printout confirming the unit is functioning.

Keys - Check you have both sets of electronic keys & that the emergency keys are inside them. Also make sure you have the code key that enables you get a new key programmed for your car.

Wheels - check you have all 4 valve caps. Number Plates - Silly one you may think, but it happens, check both front and rear plates are the same and are correct, it has been known for some cars to be sent out with different plates by mistake.

Windows - Minor thing, but very annoying, the dealer may wash the car for you, but they often seem to forget to clean the windscreen inside, which results in misting up and showing all the delivery labels which if its raining is a real pain.. request that the inside of the windscreen is properly cleaned.

Tax Disc - Another silly one, but it does happen, check you have the correct tax disc, your registration and is displayed in the windscreen. You could be fined and get 3 points if it's wrong.

Check the service manual has been stamped for the PDI inspection and signed by the dealer. This is a requirement of warranty.

If you are having a tough time separating hybrid truth from reality, you're not alone. The warp-speed adoption of hybrids into popular culture -- and into hundreds of thousands of American driveways -- has produced more than a little confusion and misinformation. Most industry analysts predict the continued growth of gas-electric vehicles, with estimates ranging from 600,000 to 1,000,000 hybrid sales in the U.S. by 2010, so this is a good time to debunk the 10 most prevalent myths about hybrid cars.

1. You need to plug in a hybrid car.
As soon as the word "electricity" is spoken, you think of plugs, cords, and wall sockets. But today's hybrid cars don't need to be plugged in. Auto engineers have developed an ingenious system known as regenerative braking. (Actually, they borrowed the concept from locomotive technology.) Energy usually lost when a vehicle is slowing down or stopping is reclaimed and routed to the hybrid's rechargeable batteries. The process is automatic, so no special requirements are placed on the driver.

Car companies explain that drivers don't have to plug in their vehicles, but a growing number of them wish they had a plug-in hybrid. The ability to connect a hybrid into the electric grid overnight to charge a larger set of batteries means that most of your city driving could be done without burning a single drop of gasoline.

Can you say 100 mpg? So far, auto makers have been reluctant to bring plug-ins to the mass market, claiming that today's batteries can't take the extra demand. Until a car company takes a chance on the great potential of plug-in technology, hybrids don't require plugging into the grid.

2. Hybrid batteries need to be replaced.
Worries about an expensive replacement of a hybrid car's batteries continue to nag many potential buyers. Those worries are unfounded. By keeping the charge between 40% and 60% -- never fully charged and never fully drained -- carmakers have greatly extended the longevity of nickel metal hydride batteries.

The standard warranty on hybrid batteries and other components is between 80,000 and 100,000 miles, depending on the manufacturer and your location. But that doesn't mean the batteries will die out at 100,000 miles. The Energy Dept. stopped its tests of hybrid batteries -- when the capacity remained almost like new -- after 160,000 miles.

Hybrids are expensive.
At the beginning of 2006, hybrids were available in 10 different models ranging in price from $19,000 to $53,000. The most efficient models -- the Insight, Civic, and Prius -- are available well below $30,000. By the end of the decade, more than 50 models are expected. By that point, hybrids will represent the full range of sizes, shapes, and costs.

Rechargeable batteries, electric motors, and sophisticated computer controls do add to the cost of producing a hybrid car. However, as production numbers increase, economies of scale are expected to reduce those costs. Toyota (TM) plans to offer hybrid versions of all its most popular models and thus cut the incremental cost of hybrids in half.

In the meantime, the hybrid premium -- usually estimated at $3,000 -- is mitigated by federal and state tax incentives, lower maintenance costs, and extraordinarily strong resale values. In fact, used Toyota Priuses are reportedly being sold at prices approaching the cost of new ones.

Hybrids are small and underpowered.
The Honda (HMC) Accord hybrid is the fastest family sedan on the market. The Lexus Rx400h and Toyota Highlander Hybrid share the same 270 horsepower system. The Lexus GS 450h hybrid sedan, expected later in 2006, will exceed 300 horsepower with 0-to-60 performance below six seconds. And the Toyota Volta concept is a 408-horsepower scream machine. (See Hybrids for more information).

These vehicles prove that adding an electric motor and batteries to the drivetrain does not intrinsically mean diminished performance. Combining a gasoline engine and electric motors gives engineers more control to emphasize fuel parsimony or speed, urban driving or highway cruising, large vehicles or small.

General Motors' (GM) two-mode hybrid system, rolling out later this year in the Chevy Tahoe, is designed specifically to give drivers of full-size SUVs a V8 highway cruising experience and towing power -- without draining the gas tank.

The Prius is available in 3 varients.

The T3 is the base model and although the cheapest of the 3 models it still has a lot of kit as standard. Including:
Integrated audio system with dashboard mounted CD
7-inch multi information display screen
8 Airbags
4-spoke steering wheel with audio and air conditioning controls
ABS - Electronically controlled with Electronic Brake Distribution
electric mirrors
Central double locking with remote activation and alarm
Electric climate controlled air-conditioning
Load area under floor storage compartment
Electrically controlled power assisted steering
60/40 split/fold rear seat back

The List Price for the Prius T3 without any options is £17,780.00

The middle model is the T4 which is pretty much the same as the T3 with all the following features:

Integrated audio system with dashboard mounted CD Autochanger
7-inch multi information display screen
8 Airbags
4-spoke steering wheel with audio and air conditioning controls
ABS - Electronically controlled with Electronic Brake Distribution
electric mirrors
Central double locking with remote activation and alarm
Electric climate controlled air-conditioning
Load area under floor storage compartment
Electrically controlled power assisted steering
60/40 split/fold rear seat back

Plus

Cruise Control
JBL audio system with Six-disc dashmounted CD autochanger and 9 speakers
Front fog lamps

The List Price for the Prius T4 without any options is £18,580.00

So for an extra £800 you get Cruise Control, multi-change cd & front fog lamps

The top of the range model TSpirit model leaves nothing out:

Integrated audio system with dashboard mounted CD Autochanger
7-inch multi information display screen
8 Airbags
4-spoke steering wheel with audio and air conditioning controls
ABS - Electronically controlled with Electronic Brake Distribution
electric mirrors
Central double locking with remote activation and alarm
Electric climate controlled air-conditioning
Load area under floor storage compartment
Electrically controlled power assisted steering
60/40 split/fold rear seat back

Plus

Cruise Control
JBL audio system with Six-disc dashmounted CD autochanger and 9 speakers
Front fog lamps

Plus

Full colour map satellite navigation with pan european DVD and voice recognition
Bluetooth communications technology
The List Price for the Prius TSpirit without any options is £20,280.00

Dont pay list price - How I paid £3000 below list - coming soon

Eco thinking at the product planning stage
Eco-VAS utilizes a widely adapted methodology called Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). It functions as a framework for analysis of environmental impact. Eco-VAS takes LCA to the next level: from just analysis to actual design changes in a vehicle's development. This enables Toyota engineers to improve environmental performance while a product takes shape from drawing board to assembly line.

Toyota product engineers set and implement targets for vehicles in the following six critical dimensions:

* Fuel efficiency
* Exhaust emissions
* External vehicle noise
* Reduction of environmental impact throughout the entire lifecycle of vehicle use
* Improved recyclability
* Reduction of use of substances of concern, such as toxic metals

All the necessary data are available online, and the chief engineer can access the information and carry out the evaluation at a personal terminal.

Below are some of the areas of measurement:

Vehicle production stage

* Reduce substances of concern, such as lead and hexavalent chromium
* Minimize use of energy in production
* Manufacture some parts from "eco plastics," which are derived from agricultural products, not fossil fuels

Driving stage

* Improve fuel efficiency
* Operate quieter on the road
* Produce fewer exhaust emissions
o Greenhouse gas
Carbon dioxide (CO2)
o Smog components
NOx -- Oxides of nitrogen, a smog component
SOx -- Sulfur oxides
PM -- Particulate matter
* Reduce impact of batteries, tires, oil, and parts used in maintenance

Recycling and disposal

* Collect and reuse recyclable materials
* Make dismantling easier
* Prevent harmful waste from being generated during vehicle disposal

Hybrid vehicles score points
Eco-VAS studies of Toyota hybrid vehicles confirm what most would expect: the total environmental impact is lower than conventional vehicles. For instance, Prius has an Eco-VAS lifetime CO2 index 35 percent lower than a gasoline-powered vehicle.

A holistic view of continual improvement
Eco-VAS is in harmony with Toyota's concept of Kaizen -- continual improvement, new thinking, and openness to change. Toyota engineers are challenged to incrementally reduce the environmental impact of their products year after year. Eco-VAS takes a holistic real-world view of the environmental impact of manufacturing, driving, and disposin

The Toyota Prius, the world's most popular hybrid car, emits half as much carbon dioxide as a traditional black cab does. This made it an obvious choice for greentomatocars, an environmentally friendly cab service in London that was launched on 1 March 2006 and was founded by two young ex-City lawyers. Hybrid cars have an electrical engine that takes over from the petrol engine when the car is moving slowly, which eliminates toxic fumes and noise. The company also buys carbon credits to offset unavoidable emissions.

Most green services come at a greater cost to consumers. Not so for greentomatocars. In their words: "A radical change in consumer behaviour is needed if society is to arrest climate change. greentomatocars believes that such change is only achievable if environmental businesses do not charge a premium for their goods and services." For example, a journey from West London to the West End costs GBP 10-11, which is GBP 4 less than than the fare would be in a regular black cab.

Visit greentomatocars here

To download the US e-brochure click here

To download the UK e-brochure Click here

I have just been told that the Prius is now in the UK and going through it's pre-delivery checks. I'm not picking up the car until September so giving feedback at this stage isn't possible.

However I will be sharing my finds and the info I already know about the Prius.

Here are the specifications of the Pruis I am buying.

I have chosen the T Spirit which has pretty much all the bells and whistles including:

DVD Sat Nav
6 Cd Auto-changer
Bluetooth mobile phone connections with integration into the 7" display screen so you can access your phones phonebook via the touch screen panel.

All models come with some great kit:

1.5 L VVT-i petrol/electric hybrid. Returning upto 67.3 mpg (4.2 l/100km) extra urban fuel economy.

CVT - Constantly variable transmission

Key features
Integrated audio system with dashboard mounted CD Autochanger (single CD on T3)
7-inch multi information display screen
8 Airbags
4-spoke steering wheel with audio and air conditioning controls
ABS - Electronically controlled with Electronic Brake Distribution
electric mirrors
Central double locking with remote activation and alarm
Electric climate controlled air-conditioning
Load area under floor storage compartment
Electrically controlled power assisted steering
60/40 split/fold rear back seat.

I have also added the Intelligent Parking Assist
as an option.

Intelligent Parking Assist (IPA)
Onboard sensors and rear view camera will guide the car into an a space designated by the driver. You will not need to touch the steering, however control is retained by use of the brake pedal.

View a video of the prius parking itself here
We have chosen the car colour as astral black and we are sticking with the cloth interior.

The idea behind how a hybrid car works is actually quite simple. The technicalities of putting this in to practice are however quite a lot harder. So this is a very basic introduction on how the Toyota Prius saves petrol, and thus reduces it's carbon emissions, and saves spending half your life at the fuel pump (as I seemed to do with my old A6!)

The Prius uses a power device that mixes the power of the 1.5cc petrol engine, the electric motor, or both, depending on the driving requirements. This is where the Hybrid comes from because the car is switching between the differing combinations of power sources.

How does the battery get its power? Do you plug it in and recharge it?

No you don't plug in your prius to charge it up. (There are some people whom have converted their prius' to plug in versions though - see here) The battery gets charged primarily from wasted energy - Every time you slow down or coast (no foot on the pedals) kinetic energy is created, traditional cars waste this energy. The Prius however converts this energy and stores it (charges) the battery.

One of the neat things about the Prius is that it can be powered solely by the electric motor with energy coming from the battery pack. Now you won't get great speeds about a max of 20mph and you won't be able to travel great distances just on the electric motor. But you this is great for the slow stop start traffic that we all find ourselves in.



The whole system and how it works is also shown to the driver as they are driving. The 7" display tells you when you're using the petrol engine, the electric motor or both. It also gives you details of the miles per gallon and when it's charging the battery.

Under heavy acceleration the Prius integrates both the electric motor and the gas engine, again with additional energy coming from the battery.

Waiting at traffic lights & in traffic jams
When at a stop, the Prius turns off the petrol engine, which saves petrol and keeps the air cleaner. No more wasted petrol waiting for the light to change!

The prius comes in 8 different colours all of which look pretty good (I'm not sure about the white though).

One of the downsides of the UK Prius is that if you want any colour other than white or black you have to fork out an extra £325

Not the greatest of choices if you don't want to spend the extra £325.

Having said that I've seen both the black & the white. The black is nice especially with the LED brake lights. I'm not keen on any white car so I didn't particularly like it but that is just my opinion.

I've seen a few metallic colours out there and our test drive model was the metallic blue - This is the colour that I seem to have seen most out on the roads. It is nice, but we decided on the black for mainly financial reasons. I know when your spending nearly £20,000 on a car £325 is not that much but we both wanted the Intelligent Park Assist (IPA) and it was a choice of one or the other. We figured the IPA would help to keep the Prius away from those little bangs & dents that it is easy to get when reversing.

Any way the current UK Colours are below - Leave a comment below & let us know what you think!

this is fantastic!

The Greatness of Apple Mac meets the coolness of the Toyota Prius.

This site explains how to convert your prius to a mac prius

(Check out this extract)

The quest to make Mac Prius. A work in progress!

The first thing I needed was video in. There are a number of options here, I decided to go with the CAN-view for a number of reasons, it takes RGB in opposed to other options that are either only composite video or s-video. Also the CAN-view has a serial out which I had hoped to be able to use to read touch screen coordinates, and maybe eventually take the other CAN data to build an interface showing different car statistics. At the very least even if I couldn't get the Mac Prius working I'd at least have the CAN-view interface to look at and play around with. I highly recommend this product. I am very impressed with Norm the designer of the hardware and software. He makes a great product, and is very helpful in emails and is always willing to help out. I can't say enough about Norm. Even if you aren't interested in the Mac Prius but you want to see the inner workings of the Prius I would highly recommend the CAN-view. I have the version that works with the NAV enabled Prius and it hooked up right to the NAV player under the driver's seat. Only took me 15 minutes to hook it up. It was easier then getting the Coastaletech EV Mode Kit hooked up (which wasn't hard either). The non-NAV version looks to be a bit harder to install because you have to take apart the dash to get behind the MFD. Anyway, check out his site! Hybrid Interfaces.



http://www.kusnetz.net/prius/

When you buy a Prius there are a number of options that you can purchase.

They include:

Intelligent Park Assist (IPA) - This is the world's first parking assist system that enables the vehicle to be automatically steered when it is being backed into a garage or being parallel-parked.

This system enables the driver to park the vehicle into even difficult spots, only requiring the driver to specify the desired parking spot on a display and back up the vehicle while checking the surroundings for safety.

Boot Mat - Protect the lining of the boot and prevent items from slipping about with this practical Boot mat.

Bumper Corner Protectors - Bumper scuffs are unsightly. Minimise impacts with these specially designed corner protectors.

Dog Guard - Keep your dog safe and protect the inside of your Prius with this fully tailored easy-to-install dog guard.

Roof Rack - Designed specifically for your Prius, this roof rack will provide additional carrying capacity. Additional holders can be fitted to carry bikes, skis and luggage