We test drove both the Civic and Prius.  Both were too small for us and we
ended up with an Accord hybrid.  Consumer Reports just rated the Civic.
Check it out at your local library.  They loved it though the Prius has
better gas mileage.

   I have driven both the Civic hybrid and the Prius.  They differ in how
they approach the concept of "hybrid".  The civic is a partial hybrid.  It
runs on a smaller engine and kicks in the electric motor when conditions
require, i.e. going up the hill.  The Prius is a total hybrid in that it
runs on the battery and uses the gas engine to charge the battery and/or
compliment the electric motor.  Both cars charge a hefty price for the
hybrid system.  Bottom line I bought the conventional 2006 Civic for $17,500
as opposed to the Civic hybrid for some $22,000.  There is  tax credit you
can take on the Civic for around $2,000.  So you can see even then the cost
delta significant. This is of course is just MHO.

Concerning the "driveability" of the civic hybrid, I have an 05 civic, and
find it wonderful in its handling, acceleration and so on.  As far as mpg,
the average is about 39-41, as I haven't gone on any really long trips.
This is at the 3500 mile point on the odometer.

I get about 33 around town with CVT transmission.
I'm particularly happy with driveability around town in stop and go
traffic.  The car is just too herky-jerky for my liking.
Honda went to a lot of trouble to make the CVT trans "seem" more like a
standard automatic transmission by using elaborate clutch controls.
But they fall short of the simulation, thus the herky-jerky nature when
starting from a stop.

If you're not going to drive this car; make sure the person who is
drives it before you buy.

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Tp,

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No Lawsuit Ever Fixed A Moron...

Please see my post on 02/21/06 related to the 2006 Civic Hybrid fuel
economy.
Dave