I bought it - paid a deposit, pick her up on Thursday (or even maybe Wednesday. The local dealer received a white 2016 on Friday, I booked a test-drive this morning, and also took the Corolla HYBRID for a run afterwards, and then bought the Prius. The Corolla was a nice car, but I felt not quite in the league of the Prius, I thought the Corolla was superior to my recollections of the standard petrol one - the dealer said they'd had quite a few people test drive it since it arrived late last week, and a few orders already from those test-drives. That Corolla wasn't for sale, but being reserved for demonstrations - the first they could get deliveries was mid July for a red, or August for any other colour. The salesman used to be a mechanic there, and when I asked about grade of fuel, he said that most people just put ordinary unleaded fuel in Gen 3 Prius with no ill effects, so Corolla should be the same. It was the first Prius they'd received, and he checked inventory, and it would probably be at least a couple of weeks, maybe a month before they got any more, and even then may still be white. I was the only one to drive it, it still had the packaging stickers on it and the outside panels had white plastic protective coatings attached. It's now in their preparation area getting ready for delivery. It's a busy time for all dealers here, with end of Financial Year, so there are a lot of cars to be prepped before 30/6.
It's been a long time coming - I first looked at Prius about 2005/6, again 2010/11 - both times got cold feet and went for more conventional vehicles. This time - no, bit the bullet. Maybe Plug In, more Thanks - I didn't even notice the foglamps - and the wheels have wheelcovers still to go on. The car had literally been delivered on a truck last Friday, left locked in the holding yard until ½hr before I drove and photographed it. Though - I do think they might look better without covers - I seem to have read somewhere that they improve the aerodynamics. But it's certainly an option. Maybe I could have covers on one side, and not on the other?
wow, you actually did the deed? congrats my friend, many happy years of motoring. keep us posted on your experience, all the best!
