Prius
| Driver type: | Eco warrior |
| Mentality: | Green |
| Speed: | 45mph |
| Vehicle: | Prius, Insight |
| I-spy guide: | Sheepishly filling up with Petrol |
"I want the world to know that I love the environment! I hope everyone else knows that I love the world because I drive a Prius and it's cool. I'm modest you know, but hey everyone - I'm in a Prius! I LOVE THE WORLD! I'm cool, right?"
The Toyota Prius is cool. Or at least it was for the first 6 months of its life. From an engineering standpoint, that is. Soon after however, the hybrid became as out of fashion as a Gary Glitter T-Shirt. Buying a Prius is the most crass and blatant way you can silently tell everyone you love the environment.
Which is why it's not cool any more. Thankfully everyone knows the damage to the environment that a car does is not based solely on fuel consumption. There are numerous Prius vs Hummer arguments that swing the outcome depending on how you view the life cycle of the car. Does it depend on use, manufacturing, life expectancy and so on? Do I care?
Oooo oo Prius o oo
Moving on, when we encounter a Prius driver on our roads we discover that he or she (a beard usually means a "he" but you can never be 100% sure) is now determined to show the world that they have not compromised on their car in any way shape or form. It's a similar behaviour to the middle aged male "chip on the shoulder" MPV driver. You will find that it is impossible to out-do the Prius owner; any overtaking manoeuvre must be matched with an equal chest-thumping display from the Prius. You will never shake one because they are a metaphorical macho limpet.
I will finish by saying that I guarantee a hybrid is not all it is cracked up to be; the only clear cut conclusion is that they reduce particulates in city centres. Bravo. If I wanted to grow a beard and tell everyone how much I love trees I'd pick an efficient bio-fuel diesel that returns 70+ mpg instead. For now I will stick to my current car, not buy a new one, and therefore reduce the impact to the trees in my own way.
A Prius. Smug. But the colour of a poo.