Our car is here! We got it this morning. First thing, I noticed that the dealership snuck some dealer license plate frames on, against my request, and I said, "Off with the advertisements! (Unless you'd like to pay us a monthly fee!)" and he called the mechanic over to remove the frames. Much better.I was so nervous. This car takes some learning, and it feels HUGE to me, after driving what is the equivalent of a VW Polo for 2 years. It's a ship on the inside. A good ship, like the Enterprise.
(PS, look what this geek did to his Prius! I love it!)
The dealer explained the smart start and strange gear system (an automatic with a braking gear?!). Would I ever feel comfortable behind the wheel?
The first thing I noticed while driving was how smooth it was as I accelerated onto an Autobahn. I couldn't believe my speedometer, really, it read 110. It felt like 50 or 75. It's no sports car, but it was so smooth and quiet, in comparison. I told my man to bring his Garmin next time so we can see if that was the real KPH.
I dropped my man off at work and had a whole day to kill. I spent the first part reading the first 100 pages of the manual -- in German (!!!). (That was rough.)
Then I said, "Gotta go learn to drive it."
Cuz the car can be driven like a normal car, or it can be driven *efficiently* and that is what I wanted to learn. The console screen has an image of the engine, battery, and electric engine, and how they work together, depending on how you are driving. So I drove.
I've had lots of cars in my life (since I was 16) but never had I had the urge to just drive and drive.Every stop light, the monitor read 0.0L/100KM as the gas engine shut off. (Sorry, but liters per 100KM is the system of measuring gas usage in Europe. (And they measure endurance horse speeds the same way here. Minutes per kilometer. That means, low numbers are good. Backwards for my brain!)) If I braked enough, I'd charge the battery up so high I could even drive up long hills with only the electric engine. No way! No gasoline at all was used on this hill!
In-city driving beats the Autobahn, for MPG. And, best of all, I learned to Pulse and Glide. That is the system of acceleration and coasting that gives you the best MPG. The monitor goes black and you just coast with no power conversion or transfer. (Don't do this with cars behind you!)I love the silence. OK, one time I got scared the car was broken, because after 22 years, cars are supposed to make some engine noise, it's programmed into my brain.
So how did I do on my first day learning to drive it? I ended up with an average 4.8L/100KM for my day's drive. (That's 51 MPG, hm...the EPA rating.)
Then I picked up my man from work. We were both grinning, we love this car so much. He got behind the wheel and got 3.8L/100KM on the way home. DOH! (He got 62 MPG.)
If only we lived in Niedersachsen!
The northernest German state touches the North Sea and is a bicyclist's paradise, and I think, a Prius' too. I can only imagine the MPG I'd get up north. Our city is just too hilly! Actually, when we got this car I said, "OK! Let's drive to Bremen!" cuz we have friends up there.
And, "Let's drive to Holland, where we can see Twilight in English! Double feature!"
Even here, it's fun. I plan to see Twilight soon, in a whole 'nother country perhaps.
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9 comments:
your new baby looks so good, even though I liked your yellow postcar very much too.
We have to make out a date for meeting, but December is already so full with Weihnachtsfeiern, dates and vacancies (Borkum again). Perhaps in January? Or better later because of the weather? Email me please :-)
Now I want one. I test drove a Prius when they first came out, but wasn't comfortable with the blind spot toward the rear. I couldn't see little children while backing up, and I almost always have one or two behind me as soon as I put my car in reverse. I guess those white lights are like magnets to little children. I'm all for quiet cars. It's got to be rough on the visually handicapped not always knowing when it's safe to cross the street now that electric cars are on the road.
So cool! I love that you could read the german manual...very impressed! Have fun driving your new baby!
It's curious how little fuel one can use. With great care, my old 1.6 diesel Skoda could be driven down to about 3.8 l/100km. That kind of a car was great for longer journeys (but not over, say, 80-90km/hr as that spoiled the economy). It seems that a hybrid gives more benefits with a more start-stop type of driving, such as in a town.
Lately I've been working with commuter trains that generate power when they slow down for station stops. It reduces the energy used by 30% or more. You might get a similar kind of benefit out of your car in an urban cycle or on hilly terrain.
Do have fun with the new car. Can it pull a horse trailer?
Your new car sounds pretty awesome, but I have to say that little yellow car was really cute.
I like the mileage, and being a former Canadian I can handle litres/100km too ! ;)
Congrats ont he wonderful car! They dont show any movies in english in germany do they? that would drive me nuts. I hope to see New Moon soon too!
Hey silly..we do use euros over here too..lol I understand the euros fine..but not when they say the amount to me. Im not used to hearing five and twenty and then said in dutch..german is even worse when we shope there. Over here they hate change..they round it up or down..they are actually trying to get rid of all the small change.
I dont really shop at the butchers because it's more expensive than the stores alot of the time. I get ticked off when I see the high prices of roasts. I like shopping at the german aldi. I can find a few american like products there..they usually sell Halloween items there to. They sell fat chickens at in germany too..the chickens here are just like the dutch; Skinny and boring! LOL
Very nice car! I love the blue color.
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