Our Getaway Car - A Green Vehicle
April 20th, 2007 @ 12:01 pm by Mrs. Apple
Mr. Apple just purchased the Toyota Prius a few days ago and it kicks ass. These hybrid cars are the best thing since sliced bread! The Prius is basically like sitting inside a computer.
Though we have many fond memories cruising in his 1996 burgundy Toyota Camry with over 150,000 miles, a missing hubcap, and a broken door handle, it was time to part ways. It was on its last leg.
We definitely wanted to stick with Toyota because they are well made and reliable cars. It was a toss up between the Toyota Camry, Toyota Camry Hybrid, or the Toyota Hybrid Prius. We did a test drive with the Prius and were blown away by the hybrid system (half gas, half electric motor). I don’t know anyone who has a hybrid so I had no idea how environmentally helpful/fuel efficient these cars are. They cut emissions from 25% to 35% over even the most fuel efficient cars and have great gas mileage - approx 50-55 miles to the gallon!
So, back to my post. I’m excited that we’re using this as our getaway car. Our exit car back to our la casa - how exciting. We’re forgoing renting taxi cabs, or limos, or borrowing a relative’s luxery car. This is so Mr. Apple and Miss Apple - so nerdy, so economical, so green, so us. 
With the Smartkey - only the press of a button and the car engine starts. Check out that shifter (it looks like a little toy!)
Here’s the Pulse and Glide technology screen - Prius Energy Display Screen:
Is anyone else using their own car as a getaway car?
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14 Responses to “Our Getaway Car - A Green Vehicle”
I don’t know what we’re doing for our getaway car. Originally we were going to look into renting a Hummer and driving it ourselves (my favorite car - and besides who wouldn’t want to drive such an awesome armored tank for a night!) I had all these cute pictures in my head of FH behind the wheel and my veil blowing out the window behind us…
But then we booked our honeymoon, which we have to leave at 9 the next morning to get there. So now it seems silly to spend a couple hundred on a car that’s taking us 10 miles from the reception straight to our hotel. Now that we don’t have extra time to cruise around town afterwards, it’s not worth it. I really wish I knew someone with a Hummer that I could borrow because it would solve everything. I think I may just have our friends decorate my car since we’ll be driving it for 5 hours the next day to get to our port.
Did you know that you’ll have to replace the car battery within 5-7 years and it’ll probably cost you around $5K? Hybrids are green friendly, yes, but in the long run, are they really saving you gas money?
My enginerds and I wouldn’t buy a hybrid. Just my two cents.
We’re driving away in FI’s truck. My sister and I have an obsession with a certain kind of truck (Ford Broncos). He came to pick me up in his on our first date, and I kept talking about how jealous my sister would be when she found out I was dating a guy with a Bronco.
After we’d been dating for a while, his relatives would all tease him that if he got sold the truck I’d break up with him.
He asked me to marry him in the truck too! So I think it’s only appropriate that we drive off in it… before it finally breaks down for good and he has to get something with better gas economy.
I have a honda civic hybrid. I love it!
MaryT- My enginerd friends disagree! We love hybrids!! Then again, I did fuel cell research in grad school. Ahaha~
As for our getaway car… uhh we didn’t really have one. haha. Well, we rode in a friend’s car. It was some sort of SUV. We didn’t care, our hotel was 2 min away from our reception. AND we actually saw our guests off. ^_^
mary….i thought the point of a hybrid was to help our environment?
also, if miss apple is saving about 25 bucks a week on gas…multiplied by 52 weeks…multiplied by 6 years…she’s still saving a few thousand dollars. or she could just resell her car before the 5 year mark and not even have to deal with that cost.
good job miss apple! not my style of car, but it looks like it suits you and mr. apple very well.
ugh, a toyota. lol. i’ve been raging against toyotas [never mind the fact my mom drives one] only because they’re EVERYWHERE in cali and everytime i’m stuck behind a super slow driver, it’s been in a toyota. totally not related to this but…yeah. 
congrats on the purchase miss apple. i’ve been toying with the idea of getting a hybrid but i love my car so much…but with the way the gas prices are in the bay area [as miss plumeria and many other norcal readers can attest too!] maybe i should…
We used my husband’s truck as our get-away car and it was perfect. It’s still fairly new and in good condition so it looked nice and he’s super attached to it. We have lots of great memories in that truck!
(Plus we felt like it would have been a waste of money to rent a car or limo for a 10 minute drive to our hotel.)
I have three comments.
a. We’re using our own feet! The reception is in the groom’s parents’ yard, and we’re staying at a really nice hotel about a block away. We usually get around town on foot when we’re there, and if we leave our rental at the hotel, that’s one less car fighting for space in the driveway.
b. My cousin’s kid and her husband rode off into the sunset on horses. As cheesy as that would be for most people, it was 100% appropriate for them, since they’re the ones who trained the horses to begin with.
c. I [heart] my Prius. I bought a 2003 after the 2004s had been introduced and all the dealers were desperate to get the 2003s off of their lots. I’m not a big negotiator, but that was a prime situation to be in.
Great idea to keep it “green.” I found an “Environmental Luxury Car Service” in LA called evolimo. They are supposedly the only limo service in the country that has total fleet of vehicles powered by “clean, domestic alternatives to gasoline.”
Thanks for the pictures, I didn’t know the Prius was so high-tech inside!
Rhonda
No limos for us. I can’t stand them and I have a tiny wedding party (Just MOH, Best Man, flower baby, and BIL who is flower baby escort).
Everyone is driving themselves except my sis will be with me on the drive to the church in my LIME GREEN BUG!
Then FI and I will travel to the reception together and then back to the hotel.
I love my car and everyone knows it - so I thought it would be a fitting vehicle. I’m getting it all gussied up before hand by getting it detailed and I’m making a sign like the back of the Partridge Family bus saying:
Caution: Nervous Bride Driving
Then we’ll possibly change it to Just Married for our send off.
we’re renting 2 white 2007 escalades. i couldn’t get myself to do the whole limo thing, and plus it costs less this way anyway.
The Prius, as well as other hybrids are worse for the environment than a Hummer.
http://clubs.ccsu.edu/recorder/editorial/editorial_item.asp?NewsID=188
A few notes from the article:
1. The battery that powers the prius is made from nickel. The plant that produces them has destroyed the environment around it for miles, to the point where NASA uses the area as a dead zone.
2. The EPA has restated the Prius’s MPG from Toyota’s claim of 60 MPG to 45 MPG, which puts it in the MPG range of many economy cars, like the Chevy Aveo.
3. To create a Prius, 50% more energy is required than to create a Hummer.
4. From the article “the total combined energy is taken from all the electrical, fuel, transportation, materials (metal, plastic, etc) and hundreds of other factors over the expected lifetime of a vehicle. The Prius costs an average of $3.25 per mile driven over a lifetime of 100,000 miles - the expected lifespan of the Hybrid.
The Hummer, on the other hand, costs a more fiscal $1.95 per mile to put on the road over an expected lifetime of 300,000 miles. That means the Hummer will last three times longer than a Prius and use less combined energy doing it. ”
Don’t buy into the marketing hype. The Prius is one of the worst things for the environment in terms of an automobile.
I have read the article that you referred to and it is very disconcerting/disappointing to me that the plant that produces the nickel batteries for the Prius are doing such environmental damage. Given this fact, I think the intent of environmentally conscious consumers is still overwhelmingly positive. The more information we have as consumers to make informed choices, the better off we are. I applaud your objectivity in making me aware of this issue. As consumers and a long time buyer of Toyota vehicles (ie. I own a 1996 Toyota Camry with 154,000 miles on it… still runs great), I think that we should write to Toyota and demand that they at least put pressure on their nickel suppliers to clean up their act. I’m not an engineer so I’m not aware of any alternatives to using the nickel battery in hybrid vehicles. I was definitely not aware of this before I purchased the car. Had I known beforehand, it may have given me pause to purchase it. Perhaps the Honda Fit would have been a more “informed” choice for us? =(
Green technology is expensive and alot of consumers do get caught up in the media hype but I think it’s a start. We have to start somewhere… hybrids are a stop gap measure, they are not the solution to our dependance on foreign oil by any meausure… or our environmental problems and noone should claim that they are. Given all of the media attention regarding global warming, I think that Toyota’s intent to do good is there… it’s not perfect but it’s there and I applaud them for that. If I researched and calculated all of the environmental damage that occurred in China as a result of my buying any consumer products from Wal-Mart, I would probably be an environmentally conscious consumer racked with guilt and despair. I would live in a cave and not buy anything but that’s not reasonable or likely.
Having driven the Prius for 350 miles now, I do agree that the mpg is overstated by the EPA (I’m averaging about 45 mpg) but I think it is because I live in Dallas and I drive alot of highway miles. Perhaps I should leave earlier on my commutes to work so I can drive the backroads and get better fuel economy. Hmmmmmm.. something to think about. If you live in the city and do alot of stop and go driving, the fuel economy will be much better.
As for the energy requirements to build the Prius, I am not surprised that it costs more to build. Organic foods cost more to produce than a McDonald’s hamburger but which would you rather put in your body on a daily basis? Maybe I am a fool for buying into the hype… I did as much research as I could about the vehicle before I bought it. I hope to drive it for as long as my 1996 Camry. Time will tell. For me personally, it made sense at the time.
Let us not give up all hope that we can change the world for the better because it initially “costs more”. Trust me, I did hesitate to buy the Prius because I could have gotten a full sized 2007 Camry non hybrid for the same price. But in the end, I’m pretty happy with the vehicle and if it helps to influence the overall auto marketplace towards greener technology, reduce the consumption of foreign Middle Eastern oil so we no longer have to send our soldiers off to a warzone for the benefit of war profiteers, and convince American automakers that greener is profitable, I’m willing to pay the initial premium.
Mrs. Apple, Dallas
Age and Occupation in '07: 28, Entrepreneur
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 32, Police Officer
Engagement Date: Easter Day 2006
Wedding Date: May 27, 2007
Blogging Since: September 28, 2006
Venue: Marie Gabrielle Restaurant & Gardens
About Me: I'm in the midst of trying to plan a "perfectly beautiful" wedding and decorating my new home. It's been exhausting but totally worth every minute of it. Ironically, I was never the type of person to want to get married but now that I'm engaged, I get giddy over anything that is wedding related! I'll try my best to give you all unique and practical ideas.
we bought a prius right after we got married and we LOVE it. we’re from la, so we drive all the time and we average 50 mpg on it. it costs about $20 to fill up the tank, too.