PLASTIC NUMBERS TO AVOID

plastic numbers

(Plastic number) In mathematics, the plastic number ρ (also known as the plastic constant) is a mathematical constant which is the unique real solution of the cubic equation

avoid

refrain from doing something; “She refrains from calling her therapist too often”; “He should avoid publishing his wife’s memories”
Contrive not to meet (someone)
Keep away from or stop oneself from doing (something)
stay clear from; keep away from; keep out of the way of someone or something; “Her former friends now avoid her”
(of a person or a route) Not go to or through (a place)
debar: prevent the occurrence of; prevent from happening; “Let’s avoid a confrontation”; “head off a confrontation”; “avert a strike”

a priori

I test-drove a Prius c today.

Similar to my experience test-driving the CR-Z in Dec. 2010, I feel mildly let down. Which is more a function of my high expectations than of anything seriously wrong with these cars (well, the CR-Z has a problem with rear visibility). But while test-driving the CR-Z confirmed my suspicion that it was not the car for me, test-driving the Prius c merely reined in slightly wishful thinking.

Going by the official specs, the Prius c has slightly more interior space than my 1996 Civic HX Coupe. While that might technically be the case for the passenger space, it’s more than a little misleading with regards to cargo space (the numbers say the Prius c has 44% more, whereas a glance will tell you it has significantly less).

I say "technically" for the passenger space, because while I can believe the overall cabin dimensions, the front seats are spaced slightly farther apart than those of the Civic, paradoxically making it feel more cramped. My jacketed arm brushes against the door in the Prius c, but it just avoids doing so on the Civic, and this makes me feel crowded in the former.

Overall, though, the Prius c is surprisingly and sufficiently spacious and comfortable – especially in the rear seats, where the Prius c fits me like a glove but the Civic is someday going to cause me permanent spinal injury.

A more serious issue is the quality of the trim. Most aspects of the interior of the Prius c (esp. the "shifter" and the glove box) look and feel cheap. Both in terms of the look and feel of the plastics and their flimsiness. By comparison, my Civic (which at $14.4k was roughly in the same relative price range as the Prius c is now) uses softer, more substantial plastics with a still-basic but not particularly cheap look.

This cheapness extends to the speakers, especially those of the One trim. While I was only listening to FM (I need to retest with my iPod), that is all I have in my Civic too, and my Civic (even with the driver-side speaker broken) sounds like a live symphony orchestra compared to the One stereo. The Four-trim stereo sounded considerably clearer – although I was listening to an HD station in that case. Even that, though, was not on the same continent as my home theater system. Honestly, I don’t know what a great car radio sounds like – the only ones I’ve heard are ghetto window rattlers and standard radios in cars so loud all attempts at fidelity are wasted.

But I’m probably making the car sound cheaper than it is. My guess is all of these components are adequate for most of the target audience for this car, and if they’re not adequate, they’ll soon be moddable. It’s just that it’s disappointing to get in a "Prius" and be aesthetically transported not to the future, but to 1989.

And that’s where the wishful thinking came in. To expect the car to be the same quality and/or performance of a similarly-priced non-hybrid, but to then get all the hybrid goodness for free is unrealistic. Realistically, this is a Yaris Hybrid, and I should be happy to get a hybridized Yaris, with all of the original’s entry-level trim, for only $4k or so more than the plain-Jane one. After all, my breakeven point on gas expenses alone, given the 198k miles my Civic will have by its sixteenth birthday and the $4/gallon average over the last year, is only a little over 7 years.

So, like for most other people considering the Prius c, it comes down to price/mileage ratio for me. I can’t know with much certainty what mileage I would actually get with a Prius c, but I do know I get about 10% more than the EPA estimate for my Civic. If that means I can get 55 mpg in a c, I will be a happy camper. 45 mpg, though, and it’s hard to see the point.

And of course that also depends on what I actually pay for a Prius c. All indicators point to demand exceeding supply right now. (In February, it was the third-best-selling new car in Japan, where 80% of production stays, and all Prius c’s are made in Iwate, which is in the still-recovering tsunami disaster zone, but running overtime to try to keep up with Prius c demand.) The salesman today wouldn’t even let us put a deposit down, they are so unsure of supply.

When more do become available, there are four trim levels to choose from. The One trim level is the base level, although one that is remarkably well equipped (well, remarkable if you’re not used to Prius marketing). Still, I think I could justify the extra $950 to get to Two – if only for the cargo cover and better stereo and seat fabrics – although there are several other additions. Three and Four are thousands more than Two, so I’m not even considering them.

Finally, there’s color. The Prius c comes in Toyota’s usual assortment of shades of boring, Absolutely Red (they didn’t have one, but they had a Yaris in that color, and it’s pretty much what the name says), and the one I’m leaning towards: Habanero. Unfortunately, I have not seen it in person (and will

20070104 Nokia 8850: front

you can clearly see the difference between the real thing (on the right) and the fake piece of crap on the left. the fake one was missing the markings on the keypad as well as the clear slots for the backlight. and the keypad plate was also missing the backlight slots and appeared to be made of plastic.