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What was your car before the Prius?

12K views 45 replies 40 participants last post by  Old n Bold 
#1 ·
After reading all these posts, I've been wondering what people drove before switching to the Prius?

I am driving an Audi A4, waiting for the '06 Prius :)
 
#3 ·
Sold a '92 Dodge Shadow with over 120K miles on it. Still have an '89 Dodge Ram 50 pickup bought brand new with under 90K on it.
 
#5 ·
Before the Prius:
1999 Hyundai Accent L, purchased new in 1999 for $8000. About 35 miles per gallon. Primary car, I drove it 50-100 miles a day.
1994 Ford Explorer XLT 4WD, purchased used in 2000 for $10,000. About 15 miles per gallon on a good day. Secondary car, my wife's commuter.

After the Prius:
2004 Prius, averaging... well, see my avatar for a current number. Primary car, I drive it 50-100 miles a day.
1999 Accent: Secondary car, my wife's commuter.
1994 Explorer: Camping/hauling truck. Only 2000 miles added since LAST July.
 
#9 ·
92 Acura Legend 4 dr V6 180K miles. Very reliable and a great freeway cruiser. Avg 18 mpg. Book called for premium fuel. Sold to private party in one day after 04 Prius arrived.
96 Chev Blaze 4dr V6. 65K miles. Avg 17 mpg on Reg gas. Kept for heavy hauling and the like. It gets driven about once a month.
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#14 ·
What car before Prius

I had a '93 Toyota T100 SR5 with the regular cab. I wasn't in the market to replace it until the '04 Prius was announced. The truck got only about 18 mpg, so I have tripled my mileage. When the pundits sayI could have saved $3000 by buying the comparable Camry or Corolla, my answer would be that I would still be driving my pickup. Adding in the 50 thousand miles on my Prius, the truck would now be at about 140 thousand, just nicely broken in! BTW, I sold the truck to a friend who had been wanting it for three years.
 
#15 ·
We had 2 Lexuses, a '94 and a '97. Sold the '94 ( with 75,000 miles), kept the '97. It now has over 70,000, but we have driven it less than 800 miles since December. Take "Sparky" everywhere. The Lexus was more comfortable on a long trip, but I just prefer the Prius. DOD
 
#16 ·
I traded a 2003 Highlander Limited / 40k miles for a 2005 Prius just last week...one week after my spouse purchased his Prius (2005 Silver). This may draw some boos and hisses...but here goes...I loved the Highlander. I was okay until I had to get into it one last time (the day after I traded it...drove it over the the audio shop to get my Sirius receiver removed). Bittersweet. Imagine that I'M the one who talked my husband into his new Prius! Before the stones are hurled...I happen to love my new Prius. Apples and oranges...the apples were just getting WAY too expensive!
 
#18 ·
Last car was a company car - 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix, last car I purchased is my 1999 300C. Still have it, my wife drives it. She's car shopping, may wait for the Lexus GS450h.

Cheers,
Jeff
 
#20 ·
We bought our '05 Seaside Pearl pkg 5 because we need something reliable for a driving trip to Canada this fall.

Since wife always gets the newest car, I inherit her '93 Ford Probe, purchased from original owner in '05. My vehicle, '90 Plymouth Voyager purchased from original owner in '92, is now demoted to mulch-hauler (or anything else too large or messy to transport in the Prius).

Kathy had foot surgery exactly one week after we bought the new car, so I've been driving it for most of the past month. Since the Probe has always been pretty good on gas (28-32 mpg), I'm curious to see if I can eke out a couple more mpg from it by applying some of the same techniques that work for the Prius (gentler acceleration, anticipating stops sooner & coasting more, etc.).
 
#23 ·
MikeFromEastCoast said:
My car history:

'86 Chevy Sprint (50 mpg)
'92? Geo Metro (45mpg)
'97 Saturn (30mpg) - wanted a safer car for Boston area traffic
'05 Prius (53mpg so far)

My least favorite was the Geo Metro

Favorite is the Prius :D
hehe.. You do understand that the Chevy Sprint was the predecessor to the Geo Metro, don't you? :wink: I had a college roommate who owned a Metro, and I drove it once... That thing felt like it was going to vibrate apart when it was doing 80 on the freeway. (And it only got up to 80 down a very steep hill.)
 
#25 ·
what was your car before the prius

My most recent ( I've had a lot) before the Prius: 1985 Jaguar XJ6 with LT1 Corvette engine and tranny. 1959 Austin Healey with 289 Cobra engine and tranny. 2001 Harley Road King. Guess you could say that I'm a motor head! I've got over 4000 miles on the Prius, and it provides my "fix" now. I love this car! Spent this morning detailing the engine. Can't wait for the pick-up version. I hear that will happen in 2 years in the Tacoma. My Dodge Ram (12 mpg) will be history.

Tom
 
#26 ·
99 Jeep Cheroke Sport, top heavy, poor turning radius, and 12mpg but I did like driving it. Prior to that a cute Geo Storm that started falling apart at 60,000 miles. Even the mechanic didn't want it.
 
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