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Stereotypical Liberal vehicles:
Toyota Corolla
Toyota Prius
SmartCar
Honda Civic
Mini Cooper
Volkswagen Jetta
Stereotypical Conservative vehicles:
Cadillac Escalade
Ford F Series
Chevy Silverado
Dodge Ram
Ford Expedition
Chevy Suburban
Cadillac DTS
Hummer H2
not that I agree at all with the list (I'd much rather have a Mini than a stupid Hummer and noone would ever mistake me for a liberal), but I have to say that the DTS is definitely the car to rent for any type of road trip, especially a cross-country one. I've never thought to associate that car with any political party, but when I got one as a loaner car, I have to admit that I was totally basking in warm and fuzzy feelings when I got a dirty look from a guy in a Honda Insight when I passed him as he was camping in the left lane
One thing to keep in mind, though, is that a lot of rural municipalities are hurting for cash right now, and driving a newer luxury car with out-of-state tags past a speed trap out in the boonies is pretty much the equivalent of walking around Tijuana wearing a tuxedo, top hat, and monocle.
The Prius is one of many cars that portray an "image". In the Prius' case it is one of liberal environmentalist. Outside of the image, might I suggest a more practical reason not to rent one?
Generally the Prius is classified as a premium car by rental companies and you pay extra for the priviledge of driving one. Some people justify this based on the gas they will save, but the reality is that on a long road trip of primary highway driving at highway speeds, you will see very little if any benefit between a Prius and a more traditional economy car, or even midsize with a 4 cyl.
My experience with most Prius' at highway speeds >65 but <80 is that they return mileage in the mid to upper 30's. At speeds >80 they struggle mightily and fuel economy suffers as a result. Considering that a common mid-sized rental like a Chevy Malibu with the 4 cyl. will return mileage in the low to mid 30's on the highway, afford you more room, cost less to rent and sends no unintended message (if you really care about such things) it would be a better and most likely cost neutral (or better) option.
Hey, my friends and I are renting a Prius for a 2 week cross country trip, going from Baltimore to Los Angeles and then back again. We decided on the a Prius because we reckon it might same us some money on gas because of the fuel efficiency, and because since its a rental we won't be responsible for maintenance or whatever.
Its suddenly crossed my mind however about the Prius's very liberal reputation, that its a car driven mostly by typical East Coast yuppies and liberal Democrats, especially those into trends and fads (fads like Obama, etc). We're nothing like that, and we'll be going through a lot of Middle America and the southern states. Are we going to be mistakened for the typical arrogant, pretentious East Coast liberal? I hope not because I'm nowhere near that kind of person. I am a patriotic conservative American from a blue collar family who voted for George Bush twice and also for McCain. I despise liberals actually since my grandfather escaped from communist China. My dream car, once I finish grad school and have the money will be either a large SUV like the Expedition, a Hummer, and/or a large Chevy pickup truck.
Maybe we should see if there are any McCain-Palin bumper stickers to be bought on Amazon, or maybe a Christian or Confederate bumper sticker...hmmm....
Anyways is it true that most people see the Prius as a very liberal car that people buy to show their political motivations such as tree huggers, showing oppostion to the war, etc.
southern states are praised here for welcoming and friendly people... so what are you talking about :-))
You sound like they are bunch of bigoted fundamentalists full of prejudice
The Prius is one of many cars that portray an "image". In the Prius' case it is one of liberal environmentalist. Outside of the image, might I suggest a more practical reason not to rent one?
Generally the Prius is classified as a premium car by rental companies and you pay extra for the priviledge of driving one. Some people justify this based on the gas they will save, but the reality is that on a long road trip of primary highway driving at highway speeds, you will see very little if any benefit between a Prius and a more traditional economy car, or even midsize with a 4 cyl.
My experience with most Prius' at highway speeds >65 but <80 is that they return mileage in the mid to upper 30's. At speeds >80 they struggle mightily and fuel economy suffers as a result. Considering that a common mid-sized rental like a Chevy Malibu with the 4 cyl. will return mileage in the low to mid 30's on the highway, afford you more room, cost less to rent and sends no unintended message (if you really care about such things) it would be a better and most likely cost neutral (or better) option.
Your experience with Prius gas mileage is contrary to every published road test and what people I know get from them. It is easy to get 45-55 MPG on the gen 2 and gen 3 Prius.
My experience with most Prius' at highway speeds >65 but <80 is that they return mileage in the mid to upper 30's. At speeds >80 they struggle mightily and fuel economy suffers as a result.
And how much experience do you actually have with the Prius? My wife has had 2 of them, a 2008 and 2010, and as hard as I try, I cannot get the MPG below an average of 45 mpg.
I might be wrong but I think most cars don't vote in elections or sign petitions or run for office, so I wouldn't worried whether your car is 'liberal' or 'conservative.' I've driven a Prius and it's cool to drive something that's so quiet...a very interesting experience. And it's apolitical to want to save money on buying gas--it's just smart.
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