"D&LBusch" ...

Dunno about pricing these days.  I have a package #2 and I love it.

My opinion is no - this is just more money that the dealer can make off of
you.  This is a reliable car.

You can just get in it and drive it like a normal car and get very good
mileage, no problem there.  However, there is a trick with your foot that
you can learn that will give you about 8 or 5 more MPG depending on a lot of
stuff.  The thing is to train the foot so that it rests on the pedal just a
bit so it uses the electrics and not the gas motor at the right times.  If
you push too hard it will use the gas.  It takes a while to get good at
this.  Depending upon terrain, you can use the electrics moreso than if you
'just drove it', and thus increase your MPG.  This works on flat or
decending road portions and you can at least maintain your speed, and
increase it on downhills even.  Just make sure that you do not hold up
traffic when doing this.  We can discuss this further if you wish.

You can get this now?  (Perhaps you are not in the USA?)  Absolutely get it.
There are many times that I want it to run EV when it just decides to use
gas.  It will have the overrides to ensure that the car is not hurt.

When the car starts up it will use the gas engine for a while anyway to heat
up the emissions stuff as Toyota views the Prius' status as a non-polluter
as more important than a high MPG vehicle.  So for the first few minutes the
battery is charging up anyway.  I try to use up as much of the electrons as
possible before I turn it off because of this.  I also find that I wish that
it would use the electrics more than it does as I have almost never had the
batery run down into the 'purple' zone where the engine comes on by itself
to recharge.  (Thus my wish to have that EV switch.)  My normal driving in
the hilly western NJ is such that the engine comes on plenty to get up hills
and start from stops that the battery is well tended.  The only times I run
out the battery is when I sit in traffic and use the AC (which runs off the
electrice, not the engine directly).  YMMV.

So, in the USA anyway, I do not believe it is possible on a stock Prius to
charge the batteries from house current, and I do not see the advantage it
would provide.

Drive it like normal, and be amazed.

I would recommend visiting these sites for Prius driving and maintenance
tips:

http://www.greenhybrid.com/
http://www.priuschat.com/

There are others but for hybrid and Prius specific information, these
are the top of my lists.

GOOD LUCK!
Bob Wilson

ps. I maintain: http://www.greenhybrid.com/discuss/55101-post1.html

It doesn't matter. Amortizing the difference between the
price you paid and what you might have paid shows that
the struggle for best price is meaningless. You will be
much happier bragging about your choosing skills rather
than your haggling skills.

No. NO. !!! NO !!!
That is a terrible offer, and your dealer should be told
that it makes you suspicious of everything else he will
ever tell you. On priuschat or one of the other forums
you can get 100k/7y for under $1k. And check the
warranty on the hybrid system in your state - be amazed.

Read the forums - greenhybrid is a good source.

Not if you install it yourself (voids the warranty).
Those who do so usually find it entertaining only for a
short while. The traction battery stores energy
equivalent to 3-4 ounces of gasoline. THIS IS NOT AN
ELECTRIC CAR.

THIS IS NOT AN ELECTRIC CAR.
The electric drive enables the Miller-cycle ICE to
provide acceleration that is acceptable to us (electric
motor has max torque at zero RPM). A Miller-cycle or
Atkinson-cycle engine has terrible low-end acceleration
but great economy once it gets going. The Prius hybrid
drive gives you the benefit of both. We must wait for at
least one more generation of Prius before we can begin
thinking of this as an "electric car charged by an
on-board ICE".

I bought my 2008 Prius with package #2 in January for $22,400 in
Pennsylvania.

Do what makes you sleep well at night. I opted not to buy an extended
warranty on my Prius.

Avoid stopping suddenly as much as possible. Gentle use of the breaks
allows for more time for them to regenerate the battery's power.

Beats me. I have no idea what an EV switch is.

I don't know.

No, it's a waste of money.  See for example Consumer Report's
reliability guide.  If you absolutely have to have one you can get it
anytime in the first 36,000 miles/36 months for $1000.  See
http://www.priuschat.com
I get more "peace of mind" keeping that money in the bank.

The most effective ways of improving MPGs are to drive right and keep
the tires inflated:

- Don't speed. As with any car MPGs fall off fast above 65 MPH or so.

- Accelerate briskly (this makes most efficient use of the engine)
- Gliding (no arrows on the "Energy" display) is better than coasting
- Coasting is better than braking
- Braking is better than stopping

- Check tire pressures at least monthly.  Also, many people inflate the
original tires to 42/40 PSI front/rear because it noticeably improves
MPGs.

Not really.  In the US it will void the warranty and for most drivers
will not noticeably improve MPGs.

We must be clear here.  There are two battery systems:
- 12V used for booting up the computers and running certain fluid pumps
when you first turn the car ON
- 201V traction battery which is used for load leveling and running the
electric drive motors.

The 12V battery is easily accessible (jump point under the hood) for
external charging, but it contains so little energy that doing this will
not noticeably increase MPGs.  The 201V traction battery is very much
and very deliberately *not* easily accessible.  You can pay an
aftermarket company about $10,000 to convert a Prius into a plugin, but
this also voids the warranty.

*
The 'platinum' extended warranty (7 years and 100,000 miles) is
available for about $1,000 from Troy Dietrich at Greenfield Toyota
(Michigan).  Remember that you must buy this warranty before you have
36,000 miles on the car.  The warranty is from Toyota and is good at any
Toyota dealer.  Don't buy any third-party warranty!

Here is a letter I received from Troy Dietrich in October of '06:

***
Here is all the basic info:

I am currently offering the Toyota Platinum 7 yr / 100,000 mile Extra
Care plan w/ $0 deductible for $990.00 on the Prius, which is the
longest plan available in both mileage and years.

Most of the details on the Extra Care plans can be found directly at
their website at the following link, including all the various terms and
options available, just let me know if you would like a quote on a
different plan.

http://www.toyotafinancial.com/pyv/extended_service_coverage/n_index.html

Here are the purchase instructions if / when you decide to purchase.

I would need you to mail me an original signed letter indicating the
exact current mileage on your vehicle, and a copy of your current
registration.(If you are in a state where you don't get your state
registration right away, I can also use a copy of the bill of sale,
purchase contract, or some other official document which shows the
owners name and address, along with the vehicles VIN)

Sorry, I know its a little inconvenient, but its the only way we could
come up to cover ourselves on the mileage and VIN verification. After I
receive your letter, I can call you for credit card info, if that's how
you choose to pay, or you can include a check, money order, or the
credit card info with it.  Also, make sure that the registration copy is
legible (I have gotten a couple of them recently that I couldn't read or
had part of the VIN chopped off on the copy).

Mail to:

Toyota of Greenfield
12 Olive Street
Greenfield, MA  01301

Attn: Troy Dietrich

Please call or email me if you think of any more questions.  The phone
number for Toyota of Greenfield is (413) 772-0231...or my new direct
line is (413) 772-0989.

Thanks,

Troy

***