Toyota Prius

The success of the Toyota Prius is its ability to combine great fuel efficiency and utter practicality. Five adults can fit comfortably, with more than 16 cubic feet of cargo room left over in back. The 60/40 split rear seats also can be folded flat, creating a surprisingly large cargo space for hauling groceries, strollers, large boxes, and gardening supplies—all at the same time.

Short and tall drivers should feel equally comfortable behind the wheel. The back seat is roomy, beating the Toyota Camry by an inch and providing 2-1/2 inches more rear legroom than in the Civic Hybrid.

Interior storage spaces are abundant and flexible. The sound system is adequate, but not groundbreaking compared to other cars in this class. The stereo's most-used functions are easy to see, read and use.

Many of the Prius’s standard features are either optional or unavailable on comparably priced competitive vehicles. Standard features include cloth seating, automatic, micron-filter air-conditioning, power windows, door locks, remote keyless entry, and cruise control. The optional navigation system, which is the best on the market, comes equipped with Bluetooth technology allowing drivers with Bluetooth-enabled cell phone to use the speakers and microphones for hands-free calling. Remote switches for the audio, climate and cruise controls are conveniently mounted on the steering wheel.

The most distinguishing feature of the Prius is the "Power" push-button—rather than a key to turn—and the joystick shifter which bounces back in place after selecting “D” to drive. These features are intuitive and partly contribute to the fun of driving the Prius—along with the large dashboard Energy Monitor, which shows the power flow between the hybrid battery pack, electric motor and gasoline engine.

Some Prius drivers complain that the hatchback design limits the visibility through the rear window. They refer to this drawback as the "Prius blind spot." It makes some people crazy and is a non-issue for others. You have to take a test drive to see how it feels to you.