I have a little experience with the Prius. Last October, I took a trip from LA up into the northeastern corner of Oregon. As usual, it was to be a road trip. I poked around the rental companies here and found one renting the Prius. The numbers on gas made sense, so I went and rented one.
In short, I loved it. I put around 4,000 miles on it, and it performed flawlessly. It turned in 50 MPG or so (mostly highway) and was great on the highway. It climbed more than a few mountain passes and did alright. I had to move a few things, and when you fold down the rear seats it has about as much room as a station wagon.
The only thing I couldn't stand was that weird wing that bisects the rear window. I sorta got used to it, but it drove me nuts the first thousand miles or so. It wouldn't be a dealbreaker for me, but I wish the engineers had done something else.
I liked it so much that I came pretty close to buying one last month. The reason I didn't is because it's a little too much car for me. Most of my driving is just me in the car. Also, I've only owned coupes and wanted another clutch. That added up to the Scion tC, which I bought and love.
There are a few practical considerations to the Prius. I purchased the 100k warranty with my car and Toyota mailed me the details this week. I read through the exclusions, etc., and discovered that Toyota's warranty does not cover hybrid batteries and parts of the regenerative brakes. Those are the two hybrid systems that freak me out a little. They're relatively new and unproven as well as proprietary. You can't get (at least I don't know of) aftermarket battery packs. One of the reasons I like the tC is that the mechanical parts borrow heavily from the Toyota parts bin, so I know what to expect from the engine, clutch, brakes, etc. I didn't know what to expect from the Prius. If this stuff goes, you could on the hook for some very expensive repairs.
Also, my sister-in-law owns one. She was hit by another driver (not her fault) and they had to replace some of the batteries and other systems. Though covered by insurance, the repairs were steep. I'm not sure what insurance is, but you can be sure that insurers figure this into your premium. Also, if it does get hit a few years from now, I imagine the insurer would be eager to total it, leaving you either buying used or several thousand short of a new one.
But still, if I had a family, I'd strongly consider the Prius. I loved that rental car.
