Cause it's amazing! I owned another amazing vehicle before it. A Nissan Armada- really was great, room for 8, heated leather seats, towed like 10,000lbs. Really nice. I got My first prius as a commuter car for my wife, who was doing only local (usually 20 mile round trips) and driving my daughter to and from school (7 miles each way). With gas around $3.40/gallon in november 07, it was costing us around $350 a month in gas. We figured the payment on the vehicle would be almost completely offset in gas savings. We were absolutely correct! I only had the vehicle for about 2 weeks before I had decided the Armada had to go... as an even trade for anther prius for my wife! I would keep the used one that we originally purchased and use it for a work vehicle. No regrets! And now forba quick commercial break:
I can't tow 10,000 lbs anymore, but honestly, any towing we did was a rareity, and I figure we can
rent a vehicle if we really need to tow something, and reep the gas savings on a day to day basis of owning the lovely prius. With gas @ $4/gallon, I'm even more tickled with our pair of petroleum preservers. Do not underestimate this vehicle-it is truly full of surprises and a joy to own. I've owned and driven tons of vehicles, but the fact that I don't have to fumble with a keyfob to get in,
can't lock my keys in the vehicle, and my phone connects via bluetooth when I get in makes this one by far my favorite. I save money and the environment everytime I need to travel; what could be better... really? We get 48-56 mpg in both vehicles- thanks to Toyota, they did something wonderful. Check out these links to helpful info on the prius.
http://www.plusaf.com/prius/prius.htm
http://priuschat.com/
and a handy place to get a trailer hitch and other mods
http://www.coastaletech.com/04prius.htm