Toyota Prius Hybrid Car Review

It's not easy being green," sings Kermit the Frog. However, when it comes to the Prius, being green is VERY easy! So easy, I have three Prius' in my household. But I wasn't an easy sale.

I was a long time Honda person, with an occasional Toyota thrown into the fold. At the time of my Prius purchase, I was driving an Acura TSX. Prior to that, I had driven an Acura CL. So I was accustomed to smooth riding, semi luxurious vehicles. I insisted on fuel economy and vehicle dependability. I wanted quality and settled for nothing less.

So when my husband announced that he wanted to take a look at a Prius, I was not particularly interested. But I went with him to the dealership because he was in the market for a new car and I wanted to be sure he wasn't going to get a gas guzzler.

Gas prices were on the rise and due to the political circumstances at the time, it did not appear that they would be going down any time soon, if at all. As a result, there were terrific deals on vehicles that were not very fuel efficient. Those deals were so intriguing I wanted to make sure my husband was not easily drawn into them.

When I looked at the outside of the Prius, I was not overly impressed. It was a nice size, had a decent sized back seat area, and nice trunk access through the hatchback door. I felt it was "cute enough" but not very sporty or overwhelming. It was just "okay."

Taking it for a ride made the impression on me that exists today. It was a total surprise. It was a very smooth riding vehicle, gliding more tenderly along the road than my Acura TSX did. That was a total surprise for me. It smoothly rolled over even the rough patches of Freeway 91 in Southern California!

I sat in the back seat for part of the test ride and was impressed at the roominess it had. It was easy to get into with large rear doors. The ride from the back seat did not differ in comfort. Being a mother of a son who is six foot one, I knew my son would be able to sit in the back seat without having to rest his knees on his ears.