I already own two BMWs one large one small one auto one manual ,the reason for the sat nav is I do not want a large colour screen infront of me to watch a picture of wheels turning.I have a double din sat nav that will fit into a Insight or Civic if I so wished but as long as as it plays MP3 discs thats all that matters.Extremely cheap road tax,the insurance is very cheap,reasonably economical and hold there value well are my main reasons as well as having something different.

US towing hitches are considerably different to European ones - the US usually have a square receiver socket of differing sizes for different trailer weight classes - you may need to get a bike rack from there as well as the two-bolt flange and/or 50mm ball are Euro standard only.

If you're looking for high mpg to save costs, this seems a pointless exercise. 50 miles per week is 2600 miles per year. That's around £500 fuel costs per year in a naturally aspirated petrol car doing 30mpg.

Taking 56 mpg from the RealMPG register for a 2010 onwards Prius, and you're talking just under £300. Add on another bit of cash for tax and you're talking about only £300-400 saving per year in terms of running costs.

Also bear in mind - in Winter the prius will still need to warm up so you're going to be using the engine on short journeys for half the year thereby getting little better than the NA petrol.

A Prius is going to cost you thousands more than an equivalent age / spec naturally aspriated estate, mpg or large hatchback. You'll never make the money back. The difference in environmental impact will be similarly small.

Edit: I own an insight 2. You can get a receiver hitch kit for them from the states that will take a bike rack (best to talk to Honda about how it might affect the warranty though). But in my case I got the Insight used on a deal that meant I wasn't paying much more than an equivalent spec / age petrol Focus or Civic. If it hadn't been for one coming up at a very attractive price I'd probably be driving something else. Love the car by the way but the ride can be a bit harsh on speed bumpy / potholed roads.

Edited by ear8dmg on 28/03/2013 at 16:41