Speed bumps with wheels
Around here, if one lane is moving markedly slower than the other, I start looking for a Buick, and with judicious application of the loud pedal, I’ll find it soon enough.
Other parts of the country seem to have different obstacles entirely:
It sure seems that every time I run into a bunch of cars backed up in the left lane I find the head of the line is being held up by a Prius. Is there something about that car that makes you drive like a moron? Maybe it is the sense of entitlement you feel by buying a green car that makes you drive like a Dickhead?
Which is not to say that I’ve never seen such a thing before:
So I’m tooling up the Lake Hefner Parkway and not actually looking (much) at the blonde in the red Mustang convertible, when a member of the Anti-Destination League shows up in the lane ahead of me: a greener-than-thou Toyota Prius at a stolid 61 mph, impeding progress and probably proud of it. I noted that this was probably just my evocation of a standard stereotype, and such things have been wrong before — fercryingoutloud, I actually once knew a gay man who was an absolute slob, which conventional wisdom says is impossible, or at least unheard of — but it didn’t stop me from uttering a few choice Anglo-Saxonisms as I passed the little electric wheezer. (Speed limit on this section of the Parkway is in fact 65 mph.)
But the counterexample came less than five miles later:
And eastbound on Memorial Road at a crisp clip, I was passed up by someone in a big hurry — in a Toyota Prius. Under the circumstances, I suppose I should have apologized for driving too slowly.
From this I conclude the following:
- I should probably avoid Priora when driving in the Midwest;
- It’s a good thing GM never built any Buick hybrids.
McGehee »
14 June 2009 · 4:12 pm
Stereotypes are both easy and risky. I’ve long since learned to content myself with thinking nasty thoughts about the particular individuals doing whatever stupid thing that catches my attention, which means that when I see a driver of the same kind of vehicle doing something right (read: the way I would have done it) I don’t have to begrudge the resulting good thoughts.
Besides, with what I drive, I’m undoubtedly more often the target of nasty thoughts, earned and unearned, than not. Many things can be passed off to someone else, but not karma.
Lisa Paul »
14 June 2009 · 4:36 pm
Okay, as a Prius driver, I plead guilty. It’s not that we’re morons, but even those of us who love our Priora (thanks Chaz), have to admit, these little tin cans just can’t go very fast.
I fell on the floor when the news broke a few years ago that Al Gore’s son was clocked doing over 100MPH in his Prius. Clearly a set up and attempted smear. I don’t think a Prius can get over 70 MPH and certainly not going uphill.
Jeffro »
14 June 2009 · 4:50 pm
I’m glad we’ve got the plural of Prius settled.
CGHill »
14 June 2009 · 5:04 pm
The previous-generation Prius, reports Car and Driver, was governed to a top speed of 104 mph. Presumably not uphill.
How long it takes to get to that speed, you don’t want to know. (Well, it was 39.6 seconds to 100, anyway.)
Lisa Paul »
14 June 2009 · 6:36 pm
All I can say is there is a big difference between ratings on paper and reality. When I’ve got my pedal to the metal on the open highway, I’m lucky to hit seventy. I think it’s one of the hidden gas-saving features: you can’t go faster than the more fuel-efficient speeds.
CGHill »
14 June 2009 · 6:46 pm
Perhaps this explains it. From the review of the 2010 model:
I’d bet that (1) this existed on previous versions and (2) they toggled it off for testing.
Lisa Paul »
14 June 2009 · 6:57 pm
Call me an old granny before my time, but except on the San Diego Freeway, I’ve never felt the need to go over 60-65.
hoosierboy »
14 June 2009 · 7:32 pm
Thank you for the link, Sir.
fillyjonk »
14 June 2009 · 7:37 pm
1. I now see another reason for learning Latin (something I never had time for and somewhat regret): it allows one to properly form plurals (or other forms) of made-up words. (I assume “Prius” is made up?)
2. Where I live, the lane-blocker (at least on US 69/75) is usually driving a pickup truck that first saw the light of day in the Eisenhower administration. And usually one or the other of the blinkers is going, even though the driver has absolutely no plan on turning or changing lanes.
Of course, I will also say when I happen to pass some young dude driving a pickup (or pretty much any other car), he usually speeds up because there is apparently some shame in being passed by a lady driving an older-model minivan.
CGHill »
14 June 2009 · 7:51 pm
Toyota has always claimed it was a Latin verb meaning “to go before,” which is not quite accurate. “Prius” is an adjective; it’s the neuter form of “prior.” (So the definition is okay; it’s the part of speech that’s off.) They probably get a tad huffy if you refer to more than one of the Matrix hatchbacks as “Matrices,” too. (More than one Lexus is probably not “Lexi,” but it’s too late to stop that usage among wiseguys.)
Still, they once had the temerity to name a sedan “Cressida,” surely the only motor vehicle in recent memory to be given the name of a Trojan woman of arguable virtue.
And am I the only person who hopes Ford will sell the Mercury marque to Roger Penske, putting Mercury and Saturn under the same ownership?
Jeffro »
14 June 2009 · 9:20 pm
Then they could sell Vegas?
runs, ducks and hides
CGHill »
14 June 2009 · 9:29 pm
Someone always Mars the thread.
Jeffro »
14 June 2009 · 9:32 pm
Io you an apology, then.
Lisa Paul »
14 June 2009 · 9:59 pm
Maybe I better get off the main roads. Fillyjonk spotted me in my other car: a vintage 1949 Ford pickup truck. Yup, if you think this nation is going nowhere fast, blame me. I’m blocking the lanes.
fillyjonk »
15 June 2009 · 7:06 am
Ah, so, Lisa, you’re actually a tiny, 85-year-old man?
Lisa Paul »
15 June 2009 · 8:05 am
It only looks that way when I don’t wear makeup.