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I consider myself new to planning a trip of this magnitude. I would like if anyone can give me any pointers, suggestions, etc, etc. Even thought I am in the early stages, I was thinking on renting a Toyota Prius in order to save on gas since they do about 48-50 MPG. Hope to hear back....
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How much time will you have for this trip? You're basically going to need a full week each way just to cover the miles from Miami to California, so you'd be looking at needing at least 3 weeks if you actually want to stop and see things, like the Grand Canyon and New Orleans, along the way. What kinds of help/suggestions are you looking for?
Renting a prius will likely not be the most cost effective option. While it is quite possible that you'd get more than 40 mpg, most rental agencies are going to charge a major extra fee for renting a specialty car like a hybrid. Also remember that the Prius actually gets better in town gas mileage than on the highway, because you aren't using the hybrid's battery power.
Think of it this way, you're looking at a trip that's likely going to be about 7000 miles. Over the course of the entire trip, a Prius will probably use about 50 gallons less gas than a regular compact sedan (figure 45 mpg vs. 35 mpg), so even at $4 a gallon you'd only be saving $200 with a Prius. I'm guessing renting the Prius for 3 weeks is going to cost you a lot more than $200 more than it would cost to rent a compact sedan during that same time period. But, you'll have to get some actual quotes to find out for sure.
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You're going to be on the road for a minimum of two weeks, assuming you do anything more than just drive the miles. At $75 a night for lodging, that means around $1000 total. Food at $50 a day adds $700. The rental of a 'normal' intermediate car for two weeks, ~$450. Gas for that car, $900. So on top of 'fixed' costs of about $1700, the car rental and gas (of a normal car) should run you about $1350. Now, the Prius could save you about $200 in gas. So the rental cost can't be more than $650 for the two weeks or you're actually costing yourself more than what you save in gas. In any case, you're not going to save enough in gas costs with the Prius to make much f a dent in the costs of this trip. Remember, too, that hybrids get their best mileage in town. They don't do as well on the highway - the opposite of your normal internal combustion driven vehicle.
AZBuck