From Guilt Trip to Hot Wheels

[Dover]

From Guilt Trip to Hot Wheels


PARKED side by side on Deb and Jason DeSalvo's driveway in Montclair, N.J., amid the trappings of suburban prosperity like a newly landscaped yard and a kitchen extension, are two virtuous little cars. Once, they were curiosities popular mainly with tree-huggers, but today they are the must-have, can't-get automotive fashion statement all over the country.

The car on the right is a 2002 Toyota Prius, a hybrid vehicle that seamlessly makes the transition from a gasoline engine to a battery-powered electric motor and thus gets twice the gas mileage of a conventional car. The car on the left is also a Prius, model year 2004, with the same holier-than-thou, anti-S.U.V. philosophy. But the new model has enough sex appeal for Hollywood celebrities, enough trunk space for soccer moms and enough whiz-bang gadgets for somebody who defines success as having more toys than the next guy.

"This is a car you have to be an environmentalist to tolerate," Mr. DeSalvo said, pointing to the pale aqua first-generation Prius.

Then he turned to the slate blue 2004 model, recently snatched off eBay for $32,299, or $6,000 over the sticker price, after he had spent six months on a dealer's waiting list and still not received a car. Mr. DeSalvo evangelized over the new Prius, with a sound system that rocks, a hatchback big enough for a trip to the Home Depot and an eye-popping instrument panel that displays real-time gas mileage and shows when the car is running on gas or electricity, or recharging its battery. "This is a quantum leap forward," Mr. DeSalvo said. "This is a car anybody can love. It has all the benefits of the old one without compromises."

The timing could not be better for a hybrid car that asks affluent suburbanites to give up little in the way of creature comforts. In recent months, gas prices have topped $2 a gallon, the war in Iraq has grown ever more worrisome and the dangers of global warming have hit the big screen in "The Day After Tomorrow." Meanwhile, Prius dealers from Westbury on Long Island to Westwood in Los Angeles report ghastly waiting lists. Some buyers complain that price-gouging by dealers has added thousands to the base price of about $21,000 to $26,000. Others happily take cars they've never test-driven, in colors they don't like and with options they don't need....cont'd

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/13/fashion/13CARS.html