The past two weeks have flown by quickly. It started with a ton of holiday prep to do for the upcoming holidays (aka everyone came to my house for Christmas)! All my errands to get ready for the big week were a breeze in the amazing Toyota Avalon Hybrid that I was loaned to drive for review for two weeks. Pretty exciting to drive a car with your name on it – AVAlon!
This is the third car I have driven for review in the past 6 months, so I think I am getting pretty good at determining what works well in a car and what does not. I can truly say that everything seemed very well thought out in both design and function in this luxury sedan. The Toyota Avalon was also a Hybrid and got such good gas mileage that it only took ONE TANK of gas for the entire two weeks! Yes one tank from Christmas Eve all the way to January 6th and it still had fuel left when they picked it up! It even tells you every time you complete a trip, how many miles you have left before you will run out of gas. I just love that feature!
Also this car is always anticipating your needs. In the hospitality world it is one of the most highly respected skills. So if this car was a luxury hotel, I would think of it like a Ritz-Carlton with Five Diamonds. This week it anticipated the cold weather and had seat warmers for me that felt like heaven on those chilly days. In the cold the car started right up and when I needed to defrost the windows both the front and back quickly cleared. Granted we don’t get much ice here in Georgia, but this proved to me this would also be a good car for those that live in the colder states.
Everyone seemed taken by the car when they saw it. First I am certain they adored the Nautical Blue Metallic color, but when they noticed it was a hybrid everyone seemed surprised. I think many just assume that hybrid means small, but the Toyota Avalon Hybrid now proves that luxury can come with great mileage. The listed MPGs are 40 City and 39 Highway. I got around 38 most of the time. It always lets you know at each moment what your miles per gallon rate is during your trip – another feature that I love about the car.
The Avalon also now proves that hybrids are NOT sluggish. It had as much pick up and go as any other vehicle I have ever driven. For those that want to assure that there is a sport button that gives you just a boost.
Okay now back to all my holiday prep shopping and errands. Have you ever filled up your trunk and run out of room? That never happened to me with the HUGE trunk (or boot for my London pals) of the Toyota Avalon Hybrid.
Also this is a Smart Car! It automatically knows when it is best to go electric or gas and it tells you which one you are using when you are driving. This actually helps make you a better driver and increases your MPG even more. We all have Smart Phones now you can get a Smart Car.
Yes I will miss “My” Toyota Avalon Hybrid when it leaves my driveway, but guess what? I will still get to ride in one. While I had it my mother-in-law rode with me and announced she was going to go buy one next week! I think she made a “Smart” decision!
