Playing with a Prius

My Tacoma needs clutch work - at 113,000 miles it sounds like a broken spring - urk - urk - urk - while it still works. I drive 484 miles door to door Fremont to San Diego and then 484 miles back from San Diego to Fremont. It's my late son's truck. Both these things mean - fix it!

And the brakes - when you go from 85 MPH to 0 MPH, well, you need good brakes. And let's face it, the people driving over the holidays up and down I5 are not the best drivers in the world. In fact, one of these days I will find the idiot that drives with one foot on the brake - brake on - brake off - brake on - etc etc making a wave effect that amplifies as it travels back down the road. These people need to be locked off the freeway!

And then there's the truckers - zooming along overloaded and running 70-75 MPH (you have to go faster or be run over) - hogging one lane or maybe they'll sharply pull out into the fast lane just to watch all the cars slam on their brakes and frantically try to avoid accordion crashes. Or better yet, the trucker who whips out and tries to swat the unwary van full of kids right into the median. Seen it. Been behind it.

My air filter - having been driven through the Witch Fire and then the fire last week (would you believe - the same areas were trying to burn again???) The San Diego car dealerships were offering free air cleaners and recommending that you change them out. Oh yeah.

And the noisy air blower - turns out that is a bad design - debris gets in the blades!

Oh and a lube and oil even though it's 1,000 miles early.

We (my older son and I - he had lost his clutch earlier) thought the clutch was a master-slave and preordered it. They now say it's a bushing.

Well - I drove in - they checked - they got parts and today the truck was taken in hand. I was to get a loaner. (Anything over a couple hours and $300 you get a loaner.)

I asked for - a PRIUS!

AND I GOT ONE! FIRE-ENGINE RED!

I had driven one before - 3-4 years ago - and John (my late son) had fallen in love with it. I wrote a sexy CHiP out of uniform story (or started one) in which the hero and the heroine get it on in the front seat of a PRIUS. I am thinking my new company needs to own one. So - I got one. For the day anyway.

They had to sit with me and show me its new tricks.

You PUSH a BUTTON to turn it on (power up the computer). (You have to power down to shut it off - just like a computer.) You toggle a tiny shift switch to get into DRIVE. You have to push the brake to start (at power up) just like you had to push the clutch to the floor in the 87 van to start the car. It had mirrors that adjust like the Tacoma. It has a secure key strip (ooops- they forgot to explain how that works - I figured it out). The heads-up display is a bit distracting (no GPS in this one) - it flashed and showed how energy was being used - I flipped it to consumption when not on Audio and selecting radio stations. YOU CAN DIAL A RADIO STATION! Good. I hate it when you can't dial a station in. I revved up THE BONE (Metallic rock) and went to work.

This is a computer on wheels. Funny that - I seem to have a PhD in computers...... my car!

They called me later. Seems in spite of all the care not to have it happen - they don't have a part. Tomorrow. They have to keep the truck overnight. So I got to take the baby home for the night. I managed to get it up to 68 MPH. I tested lane changing. I examined the storage (every seat folds down - similar to the way the van seats folded up. Yes - you can do it in a PRIUS! HA HA!)

It's sitting in my driveway.

Tomorrow when I take it back I may have to stop for gas. 40.6 Miles per gallon average. Probably need oh about 2 - 3 cups of gas.

I am driving a shiny red one for the moment - but I think I like the silver mica one (below).

LOVE THIS CAR!!!!

Doesn't hurt that they actually chased a speeder driving 100 MPH in a PRIUS! (I don't think he was getting 40.6 miles per gallon!)

I promise not to go over 85.

Note: speeds mentioned are for story purposes - I ain't admittin' to nothin'!