One reason the Prius is superior to every other car is what happened when tornadoes tore up the TVA transmission lines last week. My very first Prius modification was to add a 1 kW inverter:
We had lights, TV, and radio and I even ran an extension cord too the neighbors so they had lights and TV. I only had less than three gallons in the tank and after adding one gallon found at home and the neighbor's gallon, I was able on Saturday to drive my wife's Prius to Decatur and fill-up her car and a 5 gallon can. That kept our 03 Prius running through Sunday 11:30 PM when we finally got power again. This is something no stinking diesel or gasser could ever accomplish for 2 gallons/day.
The Prius provides continuous power to the inverter and only run the gas engine as needed to recharge the traction battery. It has a catalytic converter so there is no risk of carbon monoxide poisioning. The muffler is so quiet it can no be heard outside of our property line, unlike gas generators. Best of all, we can refuel it by just waiting until the engine cycles off and never interrupt power. Once we had power, I turned off the Prius and the next day, drove it to get a full tank of gas and supplies, something a gas generator will never be able to do. In fact, the Prius is regularly operated and maintained, something not so common with gas generators.
No one thing makes a Prius superior but this one sure sets a high mark that inferior gasser and diesels will never be able too follow ... nor even EVs.
Bob Wilson