I was just thinking today that it's SORTA fun driving the Prius (in a completely different way) by watching the electric motor gauge for hypermiling. It's almost like a video game. But then I realized other cars on the road must be cursing at me since I'm driving like a pussy. But this car is so disconnected from the road, it almost forces you to drive like an old man.

My parents have a 2007 with about 170K miles getting about 46-47mpg. Same battery pack as well, and no issues whatsoever with it. I remember when Priuses first came out, everyone was scared of the batteries dying and saying it will cost like 10K for a new one. There was actually a Consumer Reports article last year where they tested a 10-year-old Prius with 200K miles on it, and all the performance numbers were near identical to test numbers when it was new.

And speaking of limits -- my college roommate had a Toyota Minivan from the 80's with leaf spring suspension that he used to push the limits on. Not cool when you're a passenger and the car is tipped over 45 degrees to the ground. 

I imagine it being so powered and automated you can't feel the road at all. 

I wish Honda hadn't just copied the prius.  Their original insight was still my favorite Hybrid.  It's actually fun to drive if you don't mind a really underpowered car.  It's super light, and actually handles really well.  I was surprised how stiff the suspension was.  Also comes in stick shift.  I would have bought one if not for the non-existent trunk. 

Yeah, I don't think Corolla buyers have given up on life, they just don't care about cars. Let's face it, if you want a cheap, reliable appliance for getting from point a to point b, and you neither know nor care one whit about cars, the Corolla will be at the top of your list. A friend of mine had one, and he certainly falls into that category, though he's trading it in for a Scion iQ. Don't ask.

Ditto on the new Accord, it's seems to be a whole lot better than the last one. And the old Accords are still nowhere near as hideous as the monstrosities Acura has been putting out lately. Yikes. Talk about completely going off your rocker and losing touch with your customers.

Also, it's very annoying to finally convince yourself that you don't want a 335 (with n54), and then driving one for a while and realizing that all your self-rationalization was totally pointless, and that you still want one to the point where nothing else will do.

I guess. I just don't understand how somebody can look at the competition, genuinely engaging cars like the Focus, Mazda3, Elantra GT, etc and go, no no no, I just want a soulless shit box. I think that's the idea, Corolla buyers never look at those cars at all.

To me its like buying concrete blocks for shoes, the Corolla is about as exciting as a concrete block. Sure a concrete block is a terrible shoe, but it will never wear out and it's always reliable. Clarkson had a great line about people who's only transportation care is reliability: "that's like saying all I want from a girlfriend is punctuality."

Most mainstream cars are not that great to drive, but they at least don't bother me. Toyotas are really the only cars that genuinely bother me with their terribleness. The terrible seats, the TERRIBLE steering, handling, etc. It's like none of the engineers could bother to give half a shit, just stamp it out and ship it. That's the way GM and Buick especially used to build products 15 years ago, but even they are trying now. I'd take a Verano or a Regal over anything with a Toyota badge on it in a heartbeat. That's not to say I'm a Buick fan, but somebody there at least is trying. Toyotas to me seem like sausage making.

The only Acura I have ever really liked is the Legend. Vigors and TLs only sold because the competition from Infiniti was even worse, although admittedly I've always had a bit of a soft spot for the J30's oddball charm. The I30 was always just a Maxima GLE in drag, but the J30 was the real thing, and they were impeccably well built and way better to drive than any ES short of perhaps the 2013.

Good cars will have that effect on you. Cars should not be entirely rational purchases. Life is short, drive what you like 

The Lexus is sharp looking Purrin. A colleague got it as a loaner car when she had her RX330 in service.