Modern Vespa

Yeah, pretty much.

Ridiculous, isn't it?

Like this...

Let's just be clear here: I didn't call them assholes. I called them self-righteously smug.

I really try to live my life as I best see fit. In my part of the country, people are wont to live through their choice of vehicle. I tell my adolescent charges that the choice of what they drive is the most important decision they'll ever make in their lives. Some of them actually get the point of such an outrageous statement, but others go right on projecting their own insecurities on everyone else. In other words, if someone judges me by what I drive or don't drive, that's their problem.

lol. Well that changes everything.

Isn't it funny how often people like to tell you a tail about some awful bike/scooter related accident that they have seen or know of ?

Why the hell do they do that ?

I understand the risks and I accept them.

Now go away.

Love and Rockets

Bill X

My usual response is " Ya gotta die of something".

Seriously, we take risks on what we eat, smoke, our stress from our jobs, etc..etc...etc...

Ask the guy if he would rather live to 80 as a shut in wrapped in bubble wrap, avoiding the sun, & eating health food, or die at 65 having lived a life with the wind in his hair, eating some steak, & having an occasional six pack?

Say: "I'm living my life, are you really living yours?"

Regarding the Prius it is a Marketing hype. There are more toxins in those batteries - Ofcourse it uses up less gas than a truck but it still pollutes. The prius does not have much pickup.

Watch the Prius episode on "Bullshit" with Penn & Teller.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHfVlA-ySuI

Rex, maybe he doesn't want you to get hurt because you're the only one in the office that is nice to him.

He is my thing about Prius drivers..... It seems to me the most common reason that people drive these toxic nightmares, is to save gas, emissions, and money. Then why I see about 40% doing 80+mph on the SoCal freeways? It is a bit of contradiction in my eyes.

Just tell Mr Prius to go feck himself and get a life or hobby !! God i hate "digital-ossolators" like that

Ummm...
I don't hate all Prius owners (particularly not my sister)
I was talking about those owners that I know
who gloat at me about how their vehicle is saving the planet

...Although I am guilty of holding Prius drivers in disdain,
along with all the other 4-wheelers that I encounter while riding around on my scooter

Congratulations, your toaster is now on the slow boat from Italy on its way to your mailbox.

Uh, as Vespa riders we're being ironic here regarding the Prius thing, right?

Damn, I can never tell.






cheers

Although I don't know any Prius owners I like Priusses and if I needed a new car, would likely buy one. Please don't hate me

Fixed it.

I don't hate Prius owners I just think that there are better cheaper cars out there that you don't have to wear like an enviromental badge.
As a town car it's a brilliant concept but diesel engine technology is so good these days you really don't need to drag around 2 electric motors, a battery that weighs a tonne plus all that acid to boot and lets face it they are ugly due to all those extra parts taking up most of the cabin space.

I know I've said this all before and I'll admit to being biased to certain German maufactures whose approach is very different and that's to do away with the heavy stuff and make the engine burn it's fuel as lean as possible then make it as aerodynamic as you can.

Could anyone give me a good argument for the Prius against the VW Polo Blue Motion.

Hijacking ? Guilty as charged.

Bill X

Amen, Brother Rex. Amen.

Woody Allen?

woody woodpecker


...wait, sorry, wrong thread 8)

This is what a Prius driver did to me, my girlfriend, and my at the time unborn daughter because he was payin more attention to the in-dash GPS than the fact that cross traffic did not have a stop.



that was hella fun. Of course, as you can see, the passenger side is smashed, which is where I was (thankfully not the aforementioned girlfriend and daughter).

No real point to posting this. Just felt like it.

Can't argue why a Prius would be better than a diseasel. I wish there were more diseasels available in the US. Are they as long lasting in cars as they are in trucks? Ford, GM and Dodge trucks will rack up hundreds of thousands of miles.

My father owns an '04 or '05 Golf TDI (can't remember which year right now). He's already put 260,000 miles on it (he commutes a lot), and it still runs like new. He regularly gets over 50 mpg in it, and once got about 70mpg in it on the highway on cruise control from VT to NYC. Suffice it to say I love that car and would take it in a heartbeat if he was going to buy a new car.

The shocks aren't made for VT dirt roads, so he's gone through a lot of suspension work on it, but that is it, really. Torquey thing, too... accelerates like a demon

So, if a diseasel can last this kind of miles, and return this kind of economy, not to mention accelerate decently, why the hell would anyone buy a Prius?

I rest my case. Why would you want a Prius ?

I'm sorry but I'm going to stick my neck out and say that it's a brilliant con.

Brilliant technology but a con.

260,000 miles huh ? That's just about run in.

Bill X

Good question. My father looked at hybrids as well when he bought the Golf, and he's pretty glad he went with the VW. Mind you the 70mpg was an optimal condition kind of thing, but the fuel economy still averages better than the hybrid quotes I've seen. He just installed a dashboard meter which reads the output from the car's computer, and it gives you real-time calculations of the fuel economy, miles left, etc just like the dash meters you get on a hybrid anyway. PLUS, he gets to shift, which is a big fun factor for both of us

Well, I should clarify... last week when I visited him it was 258,XXX, so not QUITE run in yet

...by way of bicycles, with which I am way more familiar than my new Vespa. Interesting topic, because many bicyclists I know have been chatting lately about how Prius drivers are at the top of the list of dangerous people. I had a few incidents over a few weeks and had begun to think about it, then the topic came up in a discussion group, making me think about it some more.

I like to believe it's more a matter of distraction than outright villainy. There is certainly lots to distract the Prius driver ... all those fancy electronic gadgets, trying to see if your technique adds 0.2 mpg, admiring the view of your halo in the mirror... If you want to go deeper into the psychoanalysis, you might suspect that they've become so convinced of their moral authority - special parking places, special rights to HOV lanes, etc. - that they have begun to believe that nobody else should even be on the road.

Safety should always be On Topic here, imho. I pay extra attention to Priuses, especially when on two wheels, because in my experience they're often paying no attention to me.

td

Just so the 'Merkins don't misinterpret, "run in" is UK speak for "broken in".

Bill X - I own both. A 2010 Prius and a 2009 VW Diesel Jetta Wagon. And a new vespa gts. Anyone who is wearing blinders could find something in there to dislike me over............ we've got some narrow minded folks on this site. Truth is both cars do what they are engineered to do very well. You really need to drive them both for a month before you blast either of them. I could rant on about maintainance issues, purchase price, emissons, handling but surely someone here would jump all over it because they have a different opinion (they just shout it out not as a opinion but as a fact). For around town use and some highway - the prius is hands down the winner. For a long trip on the interstate - the oil burner shines. Safe riding bill.

here here!!! I think both vehicles are positive choices in the current environement but I also feel that we should be supporting alternative energy over fossil fuels. The sooner we invest in this industrie the faster it will developp. Prius drivers should get lane, parking privaleges, along with tax rebates, free medical, and a rebate on their energy bill so all those that are canning them have a real reason for their resentments.

There was some 3 cylinder "blue Golf" or something on Top Gear that got over 70 mpg in that last challenge to drive from Switzerland to Blackpool on one tank of gas. I wouldn't mind one of those.

I still think it's kind of funny..... Sitting at a light next to a Prius on my Vespa, and look over and yell, "Gas hog!!!"

Thanks, Mongoose

I hear you, bradysplace. As I said way back somewhere in the thread, I wouldn't mind a hybrid and have been curious about them. At least on my part, I was primarily addressing the questions about personal experience with the diesels.

Maybe instead of indirectly insulting each other, we should just drive what we want folks, and just not be a douchebag about it... Mustang, Prius, or diesel, I think all any of us want is for you to not be an ass to everyone else when you're behind that wheel

it was on top of my list when I bought my prius. suck a fart, you guys have got to be taking the prius

Now excuse me I have to drive my prius to go door knocking to force other people into my way of thinking, or local religion, Vespa, prius, strength of beer, jocks or boxers, and the no undie Sundy rule.

1. not available in Australia.
2. all our localy made cars a SUV type or big sedans
3. used to own a Hilux and a corolla and Toyota's a bullet proof
4. Toyota's are "kmart cars" - meaning cheap to repair and you can find cheap parts at kmart and auto stores
5. V-dubs are euro cars and come with a euro price tag. Not that the prius was cheap, just cheaper for services and outright purchase. just saying.


Edit - because I am a prick with a prius. And because I can.

The Prius guy could be someone who is trying to keep the crap rolling downhill. He takes abuse for the Prius, so the tries to transfer it to someone else.

There are people who can't help giving unsolicited advice. They are usually far from perfect themselves in their own insecurities. Thank them for their advice and ask them to not bring it up again. If they do, ask them about their bad habits and give them advice on what they should do. You won't see them that much after doing that.

Then there are those who subconsciously envy you and use the injury excuse to justify why they aren't riding a scooter or motorcycle. They are risk adverse, but envy the risk takers. You take a risk every time yo go to bed at night and new risks every time you get out of bed, live the adventure, don't avoid it.

While I am on a roll....
Good comeback line for the homophobic teenager question "Are you gay?" Answer "No, but I'm sure you will find your perfect partner at <local>." Since I live just outside San Francisco I use the Castro. If you are gay, you can answer "of course sweetie, you look pretty, care to go to my place?"

Or you can say in a sarcastic tone "Are you the alternative?"