The mileage rating is reversed because with this car, the gas engine STOPS when it's not needed. It's crazy. You're crusing down the road, and you come to a stoplight. You stop, and then a few seconds later, THUNK, the engine stops. But you hit the gas, and you zoom back right along! The gas engine just starts and stops ON DEMAND. Very crazy, and very cool.
The car handled pretty well during the winter thanks to the engine break feature. Start sliding? Going to fast? Hit the engine break and you slow down, pretty neat. Other features that come in VERY handy are fold-down rear seats and the hatchback. This creates a large storage area. GREAT for vacation! Plus, all your standard car stuff (jack, jumper cables, etc...) has it's own sub-compartment. And then below that is your spare tire. It's very well thought out, I think.
I think this car is indicitive of things to come. It just sucks it's not moving faster. I was waiting for a US carmaker to do this, but they were just to slow. Toyota has been making the Prius since like 1997. However, the 2004 model was a revolution in design, and there was a huge hype surrounding it. So, as my mileage kept going up on my Monte, I decided to check it out. After test driving a 2003 Prius, I asked my local Toyota dealer to call me when the 2004 models came in. Sure enough, the day they came into Toledo, I got the call. I went out there, test drove it, and drove the thing home. That was it! I don't regret it whatsoever. I love this car.