Jeremy pits a Lambo LP640 against a Golf in a drag race. You know who will win, but Jeremy wants to show visually what a 0-60 time of 3 seconds looks like.

So really in this case of Prius vs M3, Jeremy wants to show the difference between reckless and hypermile driving styles.

Sure, there’s some factual information to be had in an episode of TG, but you have to take it with a grain of salt. Above all, it’s a great show simply because it borders on illegal quantities of absolute fun moreso than its informational value.

Keep in mind that it is, in fact, a scripted show.

And don’t worry; I flogged the living crap out of the Z06. Pike’s Peak… twice. 150+ trips down the drag strip, ~12k miles in the 4 months I owned it. I truly do feel bad for the person that got it after me. There was, I’m sure, dirt in places that would NEVER see the light of day nor the high-pressure spray of a car wash and a solid 1/4″ thick of accumulated rubber fragments from Mickey Thompson ET Streets permanently adhered to the rear fenders/bumper. I just drive conservatively on public streets (mostly).

It actually sounded like TG was fighting back against some unidentified pro-eco, anti-supercar sentiment, and representing only the strong part of their case. Which bugs me. Or maybe it’s against speeding prius owners — probably stemming from some Prius cutting off Jeremey in his Ford GT on his way to work, resulting in a rant that lasted well into lunchtime at the BBC.

I haven’t really seen aggressive prius drivers, and the two I know do follow the rules and have probably saved a seal or two. But I’d be unimpressed by someone who bought the car for the eco-image– or stupidity– and did the opposite. But at the same time, I’m equally unimpressed by the fact that you even know the maximum mileage of your vette! Shame on you, you pretentious “vette owner”! Get out there and put the pedal down, that’s what it’s there for!

The test is perfectly valid. Does it mean the E90 M3 is a more economical car (in general) than a Prius? No, absolutely not. Did it serve to highlight the fact that even if you “do your part to protect the environment” by purchasing a hybrid, it’s not going to benefit you nor the Earth if you still drive like a freakin’ idiot.

And to be honest, it’s not an entirely rare driving behavior for Prius drivers in my area. It seems that when you’re full of self-importance for having purchased the Messiah of “green” vehicles, you’re allowed to drive like (as I previously stated) a freakin’ idiot.

Does that mean you can take Mr. Haulass out of his ecoenvirotrendy Prius, place him behind of the wheel of an M3 and see improvements on fuel economy? Absolutely not. An idiot is an idiot is an idiot, regardless of what the badging of his vehicle says. He’ll just be a faster idiot.

I can personally testify (after thousands of miles of “testing”) that a C5 Corvette Z06, with displacement larger than that of the Prius and M3 combined, will get 33mpg EASILY with a conservative driver on the highway.

The fact of the matter is that our behavior is MUCH more difficult to change than our cars. GM can spend all the money they want in R&D, but if they’re bolting that electric engine to a 5400lb Chevy Tahoe, the gas mileage is still going to blow because our behavior requires 9,194,286 cubic feet of cargo space for our one kid and obnoxious little dog…

Presumably their actual point is that engine displacement matters less than driving style for fuel economy, but their test did not at all prove this *or* their illogical assertion.