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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Please see my previous post. At least ten years -
maybe more. Toyota has been selling the Prius since 1997 and has yet to sell a
replacement battery.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Terry Farrell</FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=anrebe@sbcglobal.net href="mailto:anrebe@sbcglobal.net">Andrew and
Rebeca Anderson</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=pianotech@ptg.org
href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">Pianotech List</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Friday, April 28, 2006 7:38
PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: Prius for Piano Tech?</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>What is the battery maintenance schedule on those
puppies?<BR><BR>Andrew Anderson<BR>t 10:51 AM 4/28/2006, you wrote:<BR>
<BLOCKQUOTE class=cite cite="" type="cite"><FONT size=2>Terry, Terry,
Terry,<BR>Was I hoping to get a response like yours! I really think this was
all I needed to hear. If I can carry home a grand or upright action on the
spot from out in the field, you know, don't have to go home and unload every
thing, I'm sold. I'm 52 now so carrying a few less tools is a good idea, I
think. I have a 10' long board I hit the waves with once in awhile, and I'm
not sure if you can put a rack on the Prius. My son has an old 92 Legacy I
can probably borrow for that. Also, I'm in love with the moon roof on the
Volvo and it looks like they don't come on the Prius, I can get over that,
too. 54MPG!! You're killin' me, I'm getting 17. I put $55. in it yesterday.
I never thought I'd need GPS, but that looks pretty cool, too. I'm tired of
throwing my ribs out trying to reach for the Thomas book, I must be getting
old. LET"S HEAR FROM MORE PRIUS OWNERS!!!!!!!!!<BR>Fenton<BR></FONT>
<DL>
<DD>----- Original Message ----- <BR>
<DD>From:</B> <A href="mailto:mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com">Farrell</A> <BR>
<DD>To:</B> <A href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">Pianotech List</A> <BR>
<DD>Sent:</B> Friday, April 28, 2006 3:06 AM<BR>
<DD>Subject:</B> Re: Prius for Piano Tech?<BR><BR>
<DD>Hi Fenton,<BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>I made the switch from a '92 Lincoln Town Car to an '06 Prius. It was
fairly painless. I'm 6-foot and fit in the Lincoln easier, but 54 mpg
(since new - 4-month average) beats 17 mpg any day. I have already
transported a couple grand actions in the Prius. I don't typically carry
more than four or five boxes of tools, so I was able to simply set the
actions directly on the bottom of the trunk area with the rear seats
folded down. The Prius is actually a mid-sized car and there is quite a
bit of room in there - more than meets the eye from the outside. If you
carry a mountain of tools all the time, you might need to do some sort of
other arranging - there is a fair bit of height back there, so yes, an
action could go on top of a layer of tool boxes. My 140 lb. Great Dane
fits quite easily back there.<BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>I am very happy with my Prius. If you've ever enjoyed driving a
stick-shift, you will especially enjoy driving a Prius. It is fully
automatic of course, but if one is willing, there are all sorts of
gas-pedal games one can play to increase mileage significantly. Under
no/low-traffic conditions, where you can drive any speed you want, it is
not difficult to coax 80 to 100 mpg out of the little rascal! The car is
FUN to drive! Our lifetime 54 mpg average represents a combination of
urban and freeway driving - mostly during times when traffic flow dictates
our speed. I can easily imagine that if you do not play any
high-fuel-efficiency games with the gas pedal and drive with a lead foot
(gotta beat that other car to the traffic light!) you might average
something closer to 45 mpg - maybe less, I don't know.<BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>Folks will point out that "it will take you 15 years to recoup the
investment" in the extra cost of the Prius via fuel savings. The argument
is that the Prius costs $25K and a Corolla (or some similar non-hybrid car
costs $15K or whatever). First, I'll be getting a $3K tax rebate, so my
Prius costs $22K. Second, our other car is a '03 Saturn. We paid $18K for
the Saturn - I suppose an '06 Saturn might be more like $19K or $20K.
IMHO, the Prius is much more of a high quality car than the Saturn. It
also has more safety features like side air bags and vehicle stability
control. More car, way more MPG (Saturn only gets 25 mpg), more safety,
and IMHO - as soon as the first bomb drops on Tehran (or another Katrina
or whatever) and gasoline shoots up to $5+/gallon - a
quicker-than-you-think investment payback via fuel savings, AND way less
emissions (if you have a conscience) "89 percent fewer smog-forming
emissions than the average new car, exceeding the standards for a Super
Ultra Low Emission Vehicle". For me, the decision was a no-brainer.<BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>YMMV<BR>
<DD><BR>
<DD>Terry Farrell <BR>
<DL>
<DD>----- Original Message ----- <BR>
<DD><FONT size=2>The Volvo wagon has 165K and is eating too much money
between gas and maintenance. BTW, you better be charging at least as
much as your mechanic. I'm researching my next vehicle and wondering if
a Toyota Prius could actually work. Naturally, critical is the ability
to transport a grand or upright action. I would be so grateful for any
techs using one to let me know how they like it, can you fit an action
in there on top of your tools? I've looked in them and they seem
pretty big, not like my Volvo wagon. But, I am willing to scale down
some and I sure could dig 45 MPG. Or, any other vehicles that get high
mileage, second choice for me right now is a Subaru Outback, great car
but more dough and only mid 20's MPG.<BR>
<DD>Fenton Murray, RPT<BR>
<DD><A
href="http://www.MurraysPianoTuning.com">www.MurraysPianoTuning.com</A><BR></FONT></DD></DL></DD></DL></BLOCKQUOTE><BR></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>