There. I said it. But the catch is that I didn’t say that it was a great car for automotive enthusiasts to drive. I’m actually referring to a conversation I once heard from a Prius owner that surprisingly made a lot of sense. I can’t quote him, but I’ll do my best to paraphrase.

He wouldn’t know one car from the next.

He said that he knew very little about cars, but he was tired of receiving abuse hurled at him by gearheads. He said that he wanted to set the story straight and hopefully end what was otherwise blatant criticism for his choice of vehicle. He said that auto enthusiasts should appreciate people like himself. He said that all he ever needs in a car is to get from point A to point B, and that he wouldn’t know one car from the next.

There was more fuel available for others to use.

However, this man understood that the Prius he drove burned fuel more efficiently than other, sportier cars with bigger internal combustion engines. He also knew that since it is at least agreed upon that there is a finite amount of fossil fuels in the Earth, the supply for gasoline is limited. He suggested that because his car used less fuel, there was more fuel available for others to use. If someone has a big 5.0 liter V8 in their Mustang, they would better enjoy using the fuel not burned by the Prius driver.

He was saving fuel for the next guy in line.

This is a really interesting perspective. Sometimes petrolheads are put off because of self-righteous electric and hybrid car drivers with snobbish license plates which scoff at burning petroleum. We assume that these people always want you to know they are saving the planet. But this man simply recognized he was saving fuel for the next guy in line who would better enjoy burning it.

What are your thoughts? Are all hybrid/electric drivers snooty and proud? Or are some doing it for the rest of us? If the masses largely convert to electric, maybe there will be plenty of fuel for the enthusiasts.