These two videos had me laughing for quite a while.

But seriously now, the road is no place for fun and games.

Yesterday I let a couple who normally drive SS TrailBlazers borrow the Prius, they drove 214 miles with an average fuel economy of 44.6 miles per gallon (MPG).  That is just over one MPG less than the revised EPA fuel economy for the Prius, 46 MPG combined city and highway.  More than three times what their vehicles get on the new cycle.  I have spoken out against the new EPA ratings before but this does show how accurate they are for everyday people.  I still say the resources should have spent on a driver education campaign.

If this couple, could get within two MPG what about all the other drivers?  Of course, when I got back in the Prius I reset the gauge and to a trip to the grocery store and back and achieved 71.1 MPG.

Tell me what do you think was the better decision.  Resetting all the fuel economy ratings all the way back to 1985, or teaching America's drivers how to use less fuel, and in the process reducing our need for foreign oil to supplement our domestic supply?   How are you doing in your vehicle in comparison to the new EPA ratings (compare here)?

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reports: 4/16

The IIHS has released their latest results.  They also have the results for the Toyota Prius (get the side airbags).  The Prius even made the video with and without side airbags.  Click the "reports" link above to read the full PDF of all the tests, or to watch the video.  Here is the summary:

ARLINGTON, VA — The Kia Sedona and Subaru Impreza are the best performers in a group of minivans and small cars recently evaluated by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The Sedona is the first minivan to earn the Institute's Top Safety Pick award, and the Impreza is only the second small car design to earn this award. Both vehicles earn gold awards for good crashworthiness ratings.

The Institute also evaluated the Toyota Prius hybrid's front, side, and rear crashworthiness plus the side crashworthiness of three other vehicle designs — the Mini Cooper (small car) and Dodge Grand Caravan and Chevrolet Uplander (minivans). Results for these vehicles update the results for minivan and small car models that were released last year. Side tests of the Grand Caravan, Uplander, Mini Cooper, and Impreza were delayed at the request of the vehicle manufacturers, who were making changes to improve crashworthiness.

Click the read more link to read the full summary and to see what they have to say about the Prius.