Should I bring my PRIUS to Westchester County? (Pleasantville: renting, house)

[cali_to_nj]

Hello - I have posted this question in the context of other threads and received great feedback, but I'm trying to get a larger sampling of responses.

We are moving from Los Angeles to Pleasantville in a few weeks and bringing an older model Mercedes that my husband drives. It is a reliable tank that I would feel safe driving in any weather, and we own it outright.

Car #2 is a YEAR OLD Prius (at the time we had no idea we would be moving anywhere much less cross country). The car has been great for us and I wouldn't dream of parting with it if we were staying in CA. On top of all the other pluses (gas mileage, environment, etc.) it has plenty of space for carting 2 kids/carseats and all of their CA gear which predominantly consists of backpacks and hoodies.

My concerns are: A) safety driving in extreme weather conditions; and B) space for the additional stuff that weather requires, for us as well as the house. The particular street and driveway we will be on are not hilly, but we really have zero practice driving in ice/snow other than occasional mountain ski trips.

Financially it will almost be a wash since the cost of shipping, re-registering & paying NY taxes on it will be about the same as the cost of doing the sale/lease buyout.

Would really like to hear from fellow Prius owners about their experience with NY driving...

Thanks!

[znycgirl]

There are many priuses (prii???) around westchester.

Hazardous driving consists of only a few real days during winter months. You'll see many more SUVs in the dividers than smaller cars (which is probably due to over-confidence). Unless you have to travel very early, road plowing in lots of areas is very good.

Your Prius will be fine. We even have a few smart cars in our neighborhood & I see them on the highway frequently.

[7 Wishes]

Lots of people in Westchester have been replacing their SUV's for Prius' (the owner of the company I used to work for for one......in fact he was on a waiting list for months to get one they're that popular here).

While winter here certainly exists compared to California (or even the Carolinas for that matter), it's not as harsh as upstate NY or central/northern New England. We get more thaws in between the cold and snow and there are equal periods of snow/ice and bare ground most winters. Your Prius will do great.

[cali_to_nj]

Thank you - this is what I was hoping for.

[Cwood2008]

I have a prius. Drive it in all types of Westchester weather. It handles great. Love that car. You'll see many prius drivers on the road here, so you won't be alone. If you've never driven in the snow, take it slowly and keep your distance.

[Port Chester Local]

I'd say to definitely bring the prius. The traffic here can be pretty bad with a lot of stop and go, you'll spend a fortune on gas driving around in an SUV. I just switched over from a jeep to a honda civic hybrid last year and I've never had a problem with lousy weather. We really don't get a ton of snow here in winter either, as long as you drive carefully you should be fine.

[cali_to_nj]

Thanks again. The house we are renting does not have a garage - does that change anyone's view? Will this car be destroyed from elements/road salt after 2 years once I have to turn it in (or purchase)?

[7 Wishes]

Originally Posted by cali_to_nj

Thanks again. The house we are renting does not have a garage - does that change anyone's view? Will this car be destroyed from elements/road salt after 2 years once I have to turn it in (or purchase)?

Just get it washed whenever the snow has melted (which will happen several times most winters in this area) and you'll be fine. Even much further upstate where there's snow on the ground most of the winter cars can take a lot more than 2 years of this.

[kletter1mann]

Originally Posted by cali_to_nj

Thanks again. The house we are renting does not have a garage - does that change anyone's view? Will this car be destroyed from elements/road salt after 2 years once I have to turn it in (or purchase)?

Modern cars just don't rust the way they used to. I've got a 1998 BMW, 1995 Saab, 2000 Hyundi, 2000 Audi and 1996 Suburban. None have been garaged, all sit outside and washing is a concept unknown to anyone in my family. All run great. The only one with any rust at all is the Surb and that's cause it was driven for years on the beach through salt water.

BTW, heated garages actually accelerate rust unless your car never comes out for the whole winter. Warm, wet road salt does it's work much faster than a cold or frozen coating.

[havoc315]

The lack of a garage can present an issue that is a big greater for non-SUVs. Really has nothing to do with driving the cars, but with parking the car. Are you parking on the street, or in a driveway?

If you are parking in the street, then in bigger snow storms, your car may get buried by the snow plow. While this is a bit of an issue for an SUV as well, the SUV has a better chance of just being able to push through the snow. The smaller Prius will require lots of shovelling to clear it out.

Doesn't happen often, but once or twice per winter, if you are parking on the street, it could become an issue.

Overall, if you aren't used to winter driving, just be careful. Doesn't matter if you are in an SUV, Prius or anything else. It's not really the foot of snow that is the most dangerous, it's the thin layers of invisible ice that can form early in a snow storm, or from freezing rain. There will be a couple days per winter, where you will just want to avoid the roads altogether if at all possible.