I've had these very same discussions with people here in France, especially when I used to drive my old Dodge pickup.
I'm not a Prius fan but I can see why some folk will have them.
Personally I only buy used cars & only stuff I can wrench myself, I've got the tools & the knowledge so why pay the depreciation of a new car & why be hostage to a dealership?
The pollution & energy consumption arguments for a Prius are a complete load of bollocks. Any vehicle will require energy to move it it just happens that the Prius energy comes from somewhere else such as a power station & is transmitted down hundreds of miles of cables to be stored in the batteries.
It doesn't pollute hugely less or hugely more, just differently.
Other than the plug in model, no matter the new one from Toyota or the aftermarket conversions, A Prius doesn't use a cord.
Power comes from the gasoline engine to charge the battery.
Now, pure electrics, and plug ins like the Volt, DO use coal, nuclear ( if you are in France ) or a tiny fraction wind, etc. power generated in giant plants.
The Chevy Volt is not a Prius style hybrid, and does not recharge the battery with the onboard engine ( and royalties are not paid to Toyota to do so ) even though the car could easily be built that way. For political purposes, & Bragging rights, a Volt is a plug in only hybrid. Driving to the local village is electric and "green", but driving from Paris to Siberia is worse mpg than the Prius, or an Audi TDI.
So a "regular" Prius pollutes less during it's operational life than, say, a pickup truck. It's creation uses more energy than the pickup. ( see top gear rant above ) Over all "green rating" is a question of math, lies, and spin. It's very hard to tell which analysis is "real" since, as my Father oft says. "Figures don't lie, but liars figure like crazy"
Nice conspiracy theory. No one will buy a car that goes from 0 to 60 in July. They make cars today that get way more than that. 'Course, they won't pass a crash test, nor are they very comfortable, nor do they carry groceries or even a passenger, not to mention that you have no hope of merging on to a freeway.
The VW Lupo diesel gets 85 MPG. VW won't bring it to the US. Why? It isn't the oil companies. It's the consumer. There may be a few hundred people in the US who will buy one and live with its lack of power, but not enough to make it worth VWs effort or expense.
Agreed that consumers are the "drivers" of what is offered - just as in Europe, where the roads are awesome to drive and where gas is super expensive, there are a great market for fuel-efficient, practical yet sporty cars.
The Mini and the Fiat 500 barely scratch the surface of the offerings over there. Have you driven a Citroen...lately?
