I purchased a 2009 Toyota Prius in July and I must say that thus far I am quite pleased. I was unsure about used hybrid cars but the more I own it, the more I like it. I was actually looking into one of the hybrid trucks but I’m glad I went with the Prius.

The gas mileage, of course, is the primary benefit of owning one of these cars. Mine tends to average around 49.5 MPG, even with mostly city driving. When I purchased the Prius, I wasn’t expecting much pick-up. After all, it only has a 4-cylindar engine; I figured the trade-off for gas mileage was beneficial. As it turns out, though, there really isn’t much of a trade-off at all. When I step on that accelerator, it definitely takes off.

The Prius definitely holds its own if you’re the type who likes to gun it taking off from a stoplight. If you are that type, though, you won’t get very nice mileage (speaking comparatively, of course). Heavy acceleration will lower it noticeably – not a whole lot, but usually around a couple MPGs. Without a doubt, though, it’s still a lot better than 99 percent of everything else on the road.

The Prius has a nice, bright touchscreen built into the center control panel. This is the screen the optional GPS navigation system uses as a display. Without the GPS, it displays climate controls, audio controls, and a few other miscellaneous goodies. When it’s not displaying controls, it shows either a live diagram of the hybrid system or a bar graph of your recent gas mileage. Upon purchasing the car, you will stare at these diagrams constantly, because they’re really quite fascinating. I can attest to the fact that over time, though, the fascination quickly wears off. The standard stereo equipment in the Prius is really quite good. I don’t consider myself discerning enough to be a true audiophile, but the Prius can definitely deliver some rich sounds. The bass can overwhelm a bit at times, but the bass and treble levels are customizable via the touchscreen. Seating is reasonably comfortable, though not remarkably so. The front seats are more comfortable for long road trips than is the back seat, as is the case with most mid-size cars.

Lastly, it’s amazingly quiet. When I’m pulling into my driveway, I don’t hear the car itself at all. There’s a pretty usual amount of road noise on the highway, of course, just because of the speed, but the car itself rarely makes much noise at all (Though if you accelerate quickly, you can hear the engine kicking in). Overall, a great vehicle. You will definitely be impressed with the gas mileage, and even besides that, it’s a pretty great car.