The NY Times brings weight to a theory I've had about the Prius for quite a while. First, because it's not mentioned in the article, remember that a Prius makes no economic sense. The additional cost of a Prius vs. say a Camry swamps any savings in gasoline a customer will see. Second, more recently, you have the option of buying hybrid versions of the Accord (now discontinued), Civic and Camry. Note that all their sales have fallen below expectations. So, what drives the Prius buyer? They want a car that looks like they have a hybrid. The NY Times says this has only been true more recently; I suspect it has been true all along, just never well elucidated from customers. The Prius is different looking, but attractive. The Honda Insight was different looking but tiny and weird. What's puzzling is that carmakers have still only dimly grasped this truth. Expect US carmakers to roll out hybrid versions of existing vehicles, see poor sales and claim that the market for hybrids is saturated.