There are a lot of negative rumors about battery cost, expense, and sluggishness. They are all UNTRUE. The Prius is a great vehicle, it has as much pickup as any four cylinder vehicle and my gas savings every month is incredible--it comes close to paying for itself. It is not that expensive compared to other well-performing mid size sedans and Toyota claims that the only reason anyone has ever had to replace the battery is in the case of damage due to collision. Go ahead, buy the Prius