New To The Prius

[SimHo]

Hi All

Excited to be getting a 2011 Prius on Saturday (after 4 years of feeding a very thirsty Focus ST!).

Just thought I'd say Hi, and ask if there are any "things I should be aware of" or Golden Rules with regards to the car?

Thanks in advance!

[johalareewi]

Make sure you get both SKS key fobs and the metal tag with the magic number on it.

Keep the tyres pumped up. :)

Lots more info in this forum and also on Prius Chat.

Are you buying from a Toyota dealer?

[korat102]

Ello! I fancied a Focus ST but ended up buying a diesel Verso instead...somewhat different! Do miss my Prius but after 9 years I needed a change.

As far as the Prius goes, just a few things really:

• Drive it normally and let it do its thing. Don't try to fool it by using the EV button to save fuel, it'll just start the ICE when the Battery gets low to recharge it - and you have no control over that unless you run out of fuel - so you'll be using any fuel you might have saved to recharge the Battery anyway.
• Talking about running out of fuel - don't do it. That's the only really big thing. It'll be forced to use the traction Battery if that happens and it wasn't designed to run without the ICE, if the traction battery gets discharged, it's back to a Toyota dealer to get it recharged and pray it wasn't damaged.
• The traction battery display shows you roughly 20%-80% of the battery charge and the Prius strives to keep it between those levels, that's to increase battery life. It's all automatic, you don't need to worry about it or obsess over it - the car pretty much takes care of everything itself and will tell you if anything goes wrong.
• On the gear selector, 'B' provides engine braking, it's intended for when you're going downhill. It spins up the ICE to provide that braking and it can get disconcertingly noisy. I never actually used it myself.
• Once you've got used to the complete silence every time you stop, you can then think about how to improve the fuel consumption...every Prius driver I've ever come across has become obsessed with mpg and it won't be long after buying it that you start trying to maximise the distance from every drop of fuel...
• Only other thing I can think of it that the 12v battery is very small and generally seems to have a life of about 5 years or so before it starts struggling. A good sign of a low 12v battery is sluggish door locks. They should give a satisfying clunk when operated, if they're a slow lethargic kachunk, you should consider putting it on charge or taking the car for a nice long run. The 12v battery won't last more than a few weeks without a charge, even after switching the movement detector off.

It's a nice car, I enjoyed owning my 2nd gen Prius. Was probably the most reliable car I've ever owned.

--edit--

Oh yes, there's a jumpstart terminal under a red cover in the engine bay fusebox. That's for starting your Prius if the 12v battery is flat.

Don't ever use your Prius to jumpstart another car - if you're lucky, that'll blow the main fuses, if not...well it gets expensive.

Edited August 13, 2014 by korat102

[Cyker]

@korat - How do you find the Verso? My Dad recently got one and to be honest I was a bit disappointed with its performance compared to my brother's Corolla 2.0D4D, which has the same engine. The Corolla had absolutely insane amounts of torque, whereas the Verso is slower than my Yaris and I feel I have to really rev it harder to make it go!

I know the Verso is heavier than a Corolla but it shouldn't affect it this much surely; Is it just ECU limited or is it really this gutless? We're gonna be loading it up with lots of heavy things soon and I'm worried it won't be able to cope with things like hills!

[korat102]

Hmm, well I only have the Prius to compare it to and the torque from my Verso's engine makes it almost fun to drive in comparison, mine certainly doesn't feel gutless...but then I've never experienced this engine in any other vehicle. If you're revving it hard, you're probably outside the torque band anyway so just wasting fuel, it's a turbo-diesel - it's all about low down grunt.

Also, the Verso is an mpv, it's not designed for racing. I wouldn't worry about the hills though, unless there's something wrong with the engine, it'll cope :) If it feels like it's struggling or a bit rough, try dropping a can of BG244 into the tank next time it's filled up.

[Chris Dance]

Congratulations on your new Prius purchase. Recommend all internal lights are OFF when you park up. Especially the sun visor lights. I have used downhill B braking it quickly charges the Battery. Do not use B for normal motoring. Ensure any recalls have been done on the car. We are on our third Prius and our son owns one as well. They are very good economical cars.

[Cyker]

@korat - Yeah, I'm starting to wonder if there is actually something wrong with the engine because it feels as gutless as a petrol engine

I wasn't sure if that was just how it was supposed to be, but from what you say it does sound like it should have a lot more pull. I will investigate further, make sure there are no leaky turbo pipes and the EGR isn't all blocked up etc. Thanks for the info!

[Dapple]

Hi Simon, congratulations on your imminent new car. I have just joined the Prius fraternity myself. I have also just recently joined this forum. I am no stranger to car forums and this seems a helpful one.

Assuming you are getting it from a Toyota dealer I too would make sure the recalls are as up to date as the service history. Equally I would expect them to make sure navigation systems are up to date and (IMHO) would not expect to have to pay extra for this.

Other than that just drive it and enjoy it, its a great gadget. Beware of becoming obsessed with MPG too much, you will start telling people about it and see them stifling yawns.

Of course the thing you really need to sort out is what you are going to do with the bucketloads of cash you will be saving on fuel stepping out of an ST, as I have had one of these too. I reckon you will triple your urban MPG figures!

[Joseph D]

... I have used downhill B braking it quickly charges the battery. ...

I don't know why people keep saying this as it is not true. 'B' mode reduces the amount of regen braking and replaces it with engine induced drag. Therefore it charges the Battery more slowly, not faster. The purpose of 'B' mode is to ensure the HV Battery is not filled quickly on a long (read more than 10 min of constant descent) down-hill slope. But do not worry, in the event that HV Battery becomes 'full' (i. e. 80% capacity), the HSD control system will replace regen with engine induced drag in any case to basically throw away the energy as it no longer has anywhere to put it.

[PeteB]

... I have used downhill B braking it quickly charges the battery. ...

I don't know why people keep saying this as it is not true. 'B' mode reduces the amount of regen braking and replaces it with engine induced drag. Therefore it charges the Battery more slowly, not faster...

and this was proved by some technically minded members of the Prius-uk Yahoo group, who wired up an ammeter to an earlier generation Prius and measured the flow into and out of the Battery. They discovered (it wasn't generally known then) that there was less electricity going back to the Battery in B mode than when pressing the brake pedal.

The original Prius manual said B mode gave "more aggressive regeneration", so you can understand people thinking that in those days.

[Grumpy Cabbie]

B mode is like an engine brake on a truck. If you're going down a long hill slip the car into B.

There is a big hill near me. If I don't use B mode the HV Battery is way over full at the bottom. If I use B it gets to the bottom with 7/8 bars full. That is good for the long term health of the HV Battery.

To the Op. Don't worry about what you should or shouldn't do. Just drive as normal in D for drive. Don't try and kid or fool or override the hybrid system to try and get better mpg's. You won't and it can actually be counter productive. Use B for long hills and not as most dealers will tell you which is to get more charge.

Check your tyre pressures often and enjoy your new smooth ride. Any questions come on here and ask away.

[korat102]

Oh yes, something I remember from driving my Prius in the winter. It is very protective of its drive train. Wheelspins are not permitted. What that means in practice is that, on snow and ice you'll need plenty of tread on your tyres and you'll need a light right foot. Pretend you're driving a RWD Ferrari and you'll probably be fine - treat it like a Range Rover and it'll just sit there with the traction control killing your attempt to show off :)

[SimHo]

Thanks for all the comments Guys!

The car is coming from a Toyota dealer & everything seems to be up to date.

Dapple - Yes I'm gonna have loads of cash now! - Even better, I've sold the ST to my Son & he still lives at home, so I'll get to drive it if I "Feel The Need For Speed".

Mind you, 14mpg around town and 28 on a run - it's not going to be hard to beat.

Korat - Don't jump start from the Prius....Got it!

Just got to make sure I don't become an mpg bore ;)

Oh, and my Facebook profile picture is probably not that appropriate for a car/driving forum, sorry!

[PeteB]

Oh yes, something I remember from driving my Prius in the winter. It is very protective of its drive train. Wheelspins are not permitted. What that means in practice is that, on snow and ice you'll need plenty of tread on your tyres and you'll need a light right foot...

Yes indeed. On Gen 1 & 2 Prius I found using B mode to slow down gave better control than the brakes some of the time.

As you say, with decent tread and a very gentle right foot, the Prius is actually quite good in snow, and on the Gen 3 ECO mode helps gentle application of power as well.

Of course, winter tyres would help even more but in my part of the world (Bedfordshire/London and for the last 3 years Norfolk/Suffolk, the cost has been hard to justify with these mild winters, but if a bad winter arrives I'll probably be caught out, and then it's too late.

[johalareewi]

A Gen3 in pretty good in the snow. ECO mode is ideal and using B mode on downhill slopes stops the car trying to run away. Traction control and VSC work wonders. Stick some winter tyres on and the only things that will stop you are stuck vehicles and snowdrifts.

[SimHo]

Hi All

Can I expect the Toyota Dealer selling me the car to update the Sat Nav maps if I ask? Its a 3 year old car & they could well be out of date. Has anyone tried to get them to do this in these circumstances?

At the end of the day, I'm not too fussed because my Tom Tom is certainly better for long journeys, but it would be nice nevertheless!

[PeteB]

Hi All

Can I expect the Toyota Dealer selling me the car to update the Sat Nav maps if I ask? Its a 3 year old car ...

Hi Simon

With a 2011 model, you probably have the 2nd T-Spirit SatNav version, which is hard disk based. If that's the case, asking the dealer is the only way, but be prepared for a eye-watering quote! (the first version was DVD based, and you would have to buy the newest DVDs, again expensive.

On the 2012 model onwards, which had the Touch & Go+ system (also available to order on T4s and T3s) the owner is expected to update via a USB stick and the Toyota portal web site. It's free for the first three years, not sure after that (PartsKing?). But I suspect it will be dearer than buying a good TomTom! It also eats into any download limit (6+ GB last time I did it!) and takes a couple of hours to download on ordinary broadband, and nearly an hour to install in the car.

[MEP's Yaris GS]

Oh yes, something I remember from driving my Prius in the winter. It is very protective of its drive train. Wheelspins are not permitted. What that means in practice is that, on snow and ice you'll need plenty of tread on your tyres and you'll need a light right foot...

Yes indeed. On Gen 1 & 2 Prius I found using B mode to slow down gave better control than the brakes some of the time.

As you say, with decent tread and a very gentle right foot, the Prius is actually quite good in snow, and on the Gen 3 ECO mode helps gentle application of power as well.

Of course, winter tyres would help even more but in my part of the world (Bedfordshire/London and for the last 3 years Norfolk/Suffolk, the cost has been hard to justify with these mild winters, but if a bad winter arrives I'll probably be caught out, and then it's too late.

Our winters have been more than enough to justify the use winter tyres imo, and if more did we'd see a vast reduction in accidents (especially with those who have poor driving abilities in the first place haha).

Below 7c and winter tyres outshine summers hands down, and to be honest, other than potentially being not as good as Low Rolling Resistance Prius tyres, should be used all year around if you haven't the space to store a 2nd set of wheels / tyres. I noticed negligible MPG difference on my last oil burner and before that the LPG car I was running, so will be interesting to see if they make much of a difference to the economy on my PIP.

They're one of those things that loads will say are not needed, but then most haven't even driven a car with them fitted, so I can't really see how they're in a position to judge.

Funny enough on the oil burner the Winters were about £55 a corner, and summers £110 :O

[korat102]

I'm fed up with the wheel changing twice a year that you get with winter tyres, and there's also the storage issue. I've been looking into the Goodyear Vector 4Seasons tyre for my Verso. The line between all seasons and winter tyres is getting blurred. I think, in the UK, the all seasons are now the best way to go. Certainly for me anyway, based on the relatively warm part of the country that I live in!

[PeteB]

Our winters have been more than enough to justify the use winter tyres imo...

of course, all safety features in cars are a compromise. The main key to safety is the nut behind the steering wheel, who can decide whether to drive appropriately for the conditions, or at all if it's treacherous on the road!.

Don't get me wrong, winter tyres obviously make a significant difference, although until a few years ago, hardly anyone in this country even knew they were available, let alone considered obtaining some.

My biggest problem in snow and ice has been being rear ended by people who haven't had the skill, experience, concentration, self control [winter tyres] or whatever to drive according to the conditions. All my leaving very long gaps (even when stopped in a queue), forward planning, and long gentle braking was undone because the person behind drove like it was a dry summer's day. I suspect some of them, if they had winter tyres on, would drive faster and brake later and have worse collisions as a result (at least none of the bumps to my rear caused any damage - so far!) - plus people with winter tyres might also brake more efficiently and find the car behind doesn't have winter tyres!

I suppose I have some advantage in having driven hundreds of miles in quite severe weather in the 1970s and 1980s, although tyres then were much narrower which was better for snow. Add skid pan training every few years, and voluntary retraining followed by a comprehensive driving test by a RoSPA (Royal Society for Prevention of Accidents) Police tester every three years. That doesn't begin to make me a prefect driver (if I ever think it does or that I've nothing left to learn, it's time to hang up the car keys!).

A key benefit is that I instinctively aim to always approach hazards systematically, thoughtfully, and position the car and drive at a speed that stands me in good stead if I or others make an error or judgement.

[MEP's Yaris GS]

I'm fed up with the wheel changing twice a year that you get with winter tyres, and there's also the storage issue. I've been looking into the Goodyear Vector 4Seasons tyre for my Verso. The line between all seasons and winter tyres is getting blurred. I think, in the UK, the all seasons are now the best way to go. Certainly for me anyway, based on the relatively warm part of the country that I live in!

All seasons have their place, but are jack of all jobs and master of none to be honest. And unlike winter tyre markings its unregulated, any manufacture can just throw a M&S marking on a tyre if they feel like it. The main difference is tyre compound of winters vs summer / all weather, which means they stay soft and don't harden up at lower temps which is what reduces overall grip of summer tyres in cooler winter temps.

The one advantage of M&S/All Season tyres is the tread pattern though, so will still better than summers in settled Snow etc.

[PeteB]

...The main key to safety is the nut behind the steering wheel...

I meant to add that one of the RoSPA observers in my previous county held the view that the best way to make roads safer was to make seat belts, airbags, ABS and all other safety features illegal, and a 6 inch, sharp steel spike in the centre of the steering wheel compulsory.

He seemed to think this would focus drivers' minds sufficiently that they would always drive with safety at the forefront of their minds!

[Grumpy Cabbie]

lol. He might have a point though. Driving is now very sloppy by many people. Too many rely on their car to save them from their rubbish driving.

[PeteB]

...Too many rely on their car to save them from their rubbish driving.

remember when it was called "the Volvo effect" - people in the tank-like models of the 70s-80s thought they were invincible and would happily pull out in front of buses, HGVs as well as just about anything else except a Chieftain!

[korat102]

I'm fed up with the wheel changing twice a year that you get with winter tyres, and there's also the storage issue. I've been looking into the Goodyear Vector 4Seasons tyre for my Verso. The line between all seasons and winter tyres is getting blurred. I think, in the UK, the all seasons are now the best way to go. Certainly for me anyway, based on the relatively warm part of the country that I live in!

All seasons have their place, but are jack of all jobs and master of none to be honest. And unlike winter tyre markings its unregulated, any manufacture can just throw a M&S marking on a tyre if they feel like it. The main difference is tyre compound of winters vs summer / all weather, which means they stay soft and don't harden up at lower temps which is what reduces overall grip of summer tyres in cooler winter temps.

The one advantage of M&S/All Season tyres is the tread pattern though, so will still better than summers in settled Snow etc.

The idea is that they'll be better than summer tyres in winter and better than winter tyres in summer. Yes, they're a compromise but looking at the various test results, they look like a reasonable compromise to me. The Goodyear Vectors have the snowflake symbol which means they meet the official standards of dedicated winter tyres.

I agree that you'll always be better off with dedicated winter and summer tyres but that's not always a practical proposition.