Maybe you should research a bit on the emissions of so called cleean diesels. Then you would notice that the Prius is still the cleaner, good MPG vehicle.

Cheers
Tom

“I wholeheartedly believe that the vast majority of folks that drive hybrids out there go with the Prius because of it’s distinctive design. They want people to know that they’re driving a hybrid, and how sophisticated they are, and the love the earth…blah, blah, blah.”

I think people in the US have jumped on the gas hybrid train because they see it as the first “good mpg” vehicle available en masse. I don’t blame them (Gas/Hybrid owners), it’s the first semi-efficient vehicle that was ever really marketed to US car buyers. It’s hard to know there are other options out there if you’ve never heard of it.

When I was looking for a new car two summers ago, it wasn’t a TDI I was looking for, but a Prius. Not because I wanted to “be cool”, but because I was under the impression that it was the only good MPG vehicle available. Being a VW nut, I kept doing research and eventually discovered the TDI. VW has put not more than a dime or two into marketing their 50mpg diesels, even though they have been available in the US for over 25 years. The image of a diesel (in the US) has always been bad and the auto manufactures have just accepted it as such and not tried to fight it. That’s changing though.

Simply put, an efficient gas/hybrid is a boring car to drive. Sure there are SUV hybrids, truck hybrids, V6 Honda hybrids, etc.., but they are not efficient. Diesels by themselves are efficient (and fun to drive), adding hybrid technology only makes them more efficient without sacrificing driving enjoyment. It’s a no brainer.