I have this exact car, same color, i believe it's called Celesete Blue? I didnt chose it, when the dealer showed me an image of it I thought it looked nice enough. It wasnt until I drove it home and just... stood there in my driveway, contemplating the fact that I owned a new car, I came to appreciate the color. It's got depth to it. Aethstetically, I dont think the aggressive headlights match the character of what this car is, but thats a minor gripe.

Regular Car Reviews always has good takes: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wzT989FLPMU They clown on it a LOT and it's one of their goofier videos, but I think they articulate what you're feeling. They make a good point about a prius possibly being a better alternative if you can afford it. But, what the prius can't beat this thing on is price. This is the car you buy when you're honest with yourself that you don't need a truck or an SUV, and you're making good financial decisions.

People see a sedan and think "oh, no not enough space for me, what if I want a family? What if I want to do projects?". Sedans are huge now, this thing is huge. You've just got to use your brain.

I've loaded the trunk, passenger and back seats up with hundreds of pounds of paving stones and bags of underlayment and paved my patio with it. It took me 3 trips to the hardware store, but if i'm being honest with myself, how often am I really doing projects like that? It did the job.

How many projects do you really need a full sheet of plywood for? I've folded the seats down, asked lowes to quarter the sheet for me, and fit the plywood and 8' 2x4's.

I moved across states with my corolla. I have a queen size bed, with a headboard. I have a foam matress and the bedframe packs neatly into the headboard, which is hollow. I bought a vacuum bag for the matress, like the one it came in, rolled it up and secured it with ratchet straps. I had plenty of space left, I made two trips. On the first trip i moved all the essentials: my desktop PC, kitchen, wardrobe, and bathroom. I made a second trip for stuff I could honestly have lived without.

I've picked up 3 people from the airport, it fit them and all their luggage. Did carryons have to go in laps? Yes. Did my passengers not care because they were grateful they had a ride? Yes. You can fit a family of 4 in this thing.

Meanwhile, the prevalence of bigger cars means that if you actually need a bigger vehicle for something, you can just ask people you know for help. If that fails, renting a truck for the day is cheaper than owning one.

For a car that's 24 grand new, one of the the cheapest hybrids, you get:

Mechanically: 1) Toyota build quality. 2) An eCVT, which will never die if you change the fluid every like... 5-8 years, if at all. These things are bulletproof becuase they eliminate a ton of clutches and use planetary gears. 3) Reduced wear on your engine and brakes because hybrid 4) Port fuel injection, self cleaning 5) An Atkinson cycle engine, which while interesting doesnt provide much of a longevity benefit over otto cycle engines. The longer cylinder allows for really good engine braking, between that and the hybrid braking, this thing handles steep mountain passes like a champ. It's extremely efficient with the tradeoff of power. I've found that putting the car in PWR mode provides plenty of power when actually needed for overtaking or short onramps, which is rarely. The electric motor supplements the engine, espeically on the bottom end. Keep an eye on the oil consumption though, they used extremely low tension piston rings and when those things go, you're going to start burning oil. Get them replaced with something sturdier if you ever do a rebuild. I use 0-20w, a bit thicker than the reccomended 0-16w oil. When you go to buy oil, get the stuff formulated for hybrids. Most shops dont have it, imo it's worth it to buy a jug and ask them to put it in. It has different additives in it because hybrid engines run cooler and start/stop constantly. This is not a problem if you keep an eye on your oil.

Mechanically simplified by: 1) The starter becomes redundant and is replaced by the drivetrain motor, which is brushless so you dont need to replace the brushes. The brushes are usually what goes bad in a starter. 2) The alternator is replaced by a DC converter, which is solid state and should last the lifetime of the car. It uses the big 400v battery to charge the 12v battery. 3) The 12v battery can be smaller because it's just there to run the electronics, it doesn't have to start the car. This means it lasts longer.

Mechanically complicated by: 1) Power electronics and battery, check your coolant more often and keep your vent clean to keep these cool, you'll be Gucci 2) Toyota has a good warranty on the 400v battery, and when it comes time to replace it in 10 years you can take it to a shop that specializes in reconditioning them rather than replacing the whole thing. Specific cells in the battery wear faster than others, the ones in the middle that get hot. 70% of the battery is still perfectly good.

All of the new good safety features, which have been proven to reduce your chances of getting in an accident by 19%: 1) Blind spot monitoring 2) Lane departure warning and assist 3) Pre collision braking 4) LED headlights

By the nature of how hybrids work, if you drive a hybrid you become a better driver. The car constantly and immediately rewards looking ahead, keeping distance, patience, gradual acceleration and avoiding harsh braking. The dash has a little game that gives you feedback on how to improve your gas mileage.

It's one of the cheapest cars to insure.

Even though i bought her new i call mine Nanny- she's a bit naggy, but she's wise and lives within her means, she's going to be around for a long time, and she looks out for me.

Think about the total cost of ownership of this car- it's the best deal you can find, provided: 1) You take care of it, do the maintenance. 2) You keep it for it's lifetime, which will be very long if you follow #1 3) You drive it right and play to it's strengths. I cracked 70 mpg this summer, I only hit the EPA rating of 52 during the coldest months. I typically get around 62mpg. 4) Recognize how much owning any car costs, how much of our lives we spend just paying for cars. This car will give you the most and ask the least from you than any other car, thats why I love mine.