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Comments
--So there you have it! What's good for the environment can also be good for your car...and your wallet!
--Might be interesting if you hit a trip odometer when the first fuel warning pops up to record how much of the reserve you've eaten into before fill-up. Which brings me to my next post...
I guess the bottom line is it's YOUR investment, protect it the best way you see fit. My son and I decided to change oil ourselves to save $$ and spent $26 for oil, filter and air filter compared to at least $35 at the "quickie" oil change business. They deal in bulk but I honestly believe their filters are "seconds". I've read so many reports about these places over-filling crankcases, gear boxes and creating a host of problems. Also, I love it when they say they "top off" all fluids. The Prius is VERY picky about what kind of coolant is added, so if straight water is added to the coolant and windshield washer resevoir, the effectivenss of the fluids are diminshed rather than enhanced. Oh, gone are the days when we could do so much "hands on" with our cars. Our own oil changes always included topping off fluid levels with the correct fluids, oiling the hood latches and hinges, lubing the car yourself and the most important ingredient, TLC.
Rich
Dennis
I thought I would move this interesting article over to the Prius board. I have a couple questions. What has been the experience in cold weather with the heater. They mention in the article that it was not as toasty in the car as a conventional gas vehicle. 2nd. Are strong cross winds a problem for the Prius as the article makes mention? Good article sounds like the place to see lots of Caribou.
http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/ly/jamesbay.htm
The icon for "hybrid vehicle immobilizer / Theft deterrent system indicator light" starte flashing. This had never happened before. It would flash until I put the "key" into the slot...then it would stop.
Anyway...took it back to the dealer. The tech supposedly ran diags on it (they had it for about 1.5 hours). I was told that this was natural and indicated that the system was armed.
This never happened until after 10,000 mile service. Wonder if they "tweaked" it. Anyway...it still flashes.
Now I notice that outside temperature indicator is nowhere near what outside temperature actually is...before it was no more than 3 or 4 degrees off.
Am I going mad?
NTF = No Trouble Found
PCWT = Problem Cleared While Testing
In other words they don't have a clue and can't repeat the problem to actually fix what caused it.
Simple, all along you haven't had SE/SS enabled. That act of running the diags turned it back on.
If that indicator doesn't flash, that means it isn't active.
You'll find the manual enable/disable button under the steering-wheel. And STOP inserting the fob! Now that you have SE/SS enabled, take advantage of the wireless & touchless ability package #9 provides.
JOHN
Makes me wonder what his going to happen next.
Nothing happened. There are settings. They can be enabled or disabled. The only thing that happened (or didn't happen) was that you didn't learn about your vehicle.
I am still somewhat aprehensive about the cost of maintenance. Especially when I was told it would take all day and $40 minimum to run diags to find out why a light was on that at first was not on.
Time will tell...I hope this car is as dependable as the other three (camrys) Toyotas I have owned.
Their current Prius waiting list is up to 143 people, with the last order being taken just a couple of days ago. At current allocations, that's a wait of over two years for those at the end of the list!
I just learned new things. Enjoy!
Dennis
gagrice (#3244) - Because the Prius is tall to accomodate passengers to sit comfortably in the back seat, not too wide and only weighs 2890 lbs, it is quite often at the mercy of crosswinds. It's a little surprising when you first experience the effects of the wind. Whenever I feel the wind crossing, I always look at the surrounding trees/bushes and I swear they aren't moving. Unfortunately, the low coefficient of drag (.026) helps mostly moving forward.
Thanks,
Rich
Dennis
I just wanted to let everyone know I had XM radio added to my Prius. It is a clean install and integrates perfectly with the MFD. No more commercials, and now I don't have to burn CDs as much. As John says, sweeeeeeeeeeet!!!!
Thanks.
I got really lucky last night, having the digital camera & tripod with me at the time and being able to find a location without any horizon obstruction. And of course, there's always that anticipation that the clouds will prevent the sun from peaking out at the very last moment before it disappears.
JOHN
Thanks,
Jeannine Fallon
PR Director
Edmunds.com
Thanks,
Jeannine Fallon
PR Director
Edmunds.com
Will the maintenance cost of the Prius be greater than a similar gasoline powered car? Also I heard that only Toyota trained technicians are qualified to service the car, is that true
The previous generation Prius has proven to be quite reliable. Have a look at Consumer Reports for more information. Contrary to what you may have read, battery failures are virtually non existant. I have never read about one other than perhaps a faulty cell or two on a particular vehicle.
As for maintenance, I'm sure for maintenance on the hybrid components it's best to let Toyota-trained technicians handle it, but for routine maintenance like oil changes and such any competent mechanic should be able to do that. For maintenance costs, they should be low while the car is under warranty. And the warranty on hybrid components is 8 years/100k miles in your state (higher in some states like CA).
Meanwhile, because we had to get another car, we compromised on an almost fully loaded RAV 4, which we got for the Edmunds TMV price, and put a $500 deposit on a Prius. Dealer is adding the moon roof at his cost (we included this cost in the TMV calculation). The car was an advertised loss-leader for the dealer, but it suited us, so it was a win/win.
Meanwhile, we have a deposit on a hybrid Escape, and will look at them closely when they come out this year. Heard some talk about Toyota putting a hybrid in the RAV in two-three years, which also has us contemplating selling our new RAV to get a hybrid if/when they are produced (we're banking on our current RAV having reasonably high residual value). And of course, the wait for the Prius (the dealership told us 18-24 months, that there's a strong possibility we'll get a 2006 and not a 2005, and we'll get it for MSRP).
>battery failures are virtually non existant.
>I have never read about one other than
>perhaps a faulty cell or two on a particular
>vehicle.
They haven't been out long enough to determine if there are going to be battery failures. How many cars have been on the road 5 years? Maybe a few but with aobut 8 years or 10 years? The major failure, if they start occurring, will be in the future. That is why they are currently "virtually non existant" .
The first generation Prius was available in Europe 1997. Does anyone have valid battery stats on those early models? Even a 1997 is just coming up on 7 years. Most of the Prius sold have been the new model 2004 which have less than a year of actual data.
Come back in 2010 and I hope the answer is still "virtually non-existant". But we have no idea if that will be the answer or not. Typically Nickel-Metal Hydride batteries fail after time, heat/cold and charging cycles. Supposedly ,the Prius MG1 trickle charges the Prius all the time so that the batteries never get into deep discharge, unless you drive it hard whatever that means. But extreme cold (Minnesota winters) and extreme heat ( Phoenix summers) take their toll on any rechargeable battery Nickel-Metal Hydride or Lead.sulphuric.
Newer Polymer Lithium Ion have more storage density, better recharge characteristics and might solve the problem for future cars, but it unlikely that there will be a battery upgrade for existing Priuses.
YBLMV,
MidCow
I am sure you see BE break even as almost ridiculously high?
For the sake of argument you do 100,000 miles (easy to do multiples) plus 12-15k avg yearly mileage puts it at the avg age of the fleet of 8.3 years) fuel use @ 38 mpg=2632 gal vs fuel use@ 52 mpg? 1923 gals? Or a 709 gal savings @ 2.19= projected $1,553 dollars in fuel savings? Lets see, spend 14-17k MORE to SAVE $1553.00 in fuel savings?
Kind of reminds me of that old joke: how to make a small fortune (in Prius gas/hybrids) : start with a large fortune!!
Once gas prices subside the Prius will not be quite as difficult to get, but Toyota has lost one customer for not stepping up to the plate with enough Prius in our time of need.
Just take a look at the computer industry for great examples of parallels to the automotive industry. They have recently endured the same problem recently, the best example of which is LCDs.
LCDs are dramatically smaller and less expensive than a vehicle. How come there was a 3-year lag for supply to catch up with demand there? Why aren't you holding them to the same "deliberate" theory? After all, the computer industry is far better at dealing with change than the automotive industry. If they can't do it really quick, how can those for Prius.
And remember, it isn't just Toyota. Toyota has to buy parts from suppliers, like the battery-pack modules from Panasonic.
JOHN
I have never heard of such a wait for any car, or for that matter any commercially produced product of any kind, except maybe a high-rise office building. Toyota could build a whole new factory in that time!
Honda is coming out with a wonderful new hatchback called the Fit. Although it's not a Hybrid the CVT and VTEC powertrain yields gas mileage in the 40's without hybrid technology to repair later on. I am now a Honda customer.
Once gas prices subside the Prius will not be quite as difficult to get, but Toyota has lost one customer for not stepping up to the plate with enough Prius in our time of need.
Did you ever consider that the delay for the Toyota/Lexus hybrid SUV releases could actually caused by Prius shortages?
Since the same battery-pack module (except more of them) is used for those SUVs, wouldn't it make sense to devote that supply to Prius instead?
JOHN
You are absolutely right. And belivie me if the the Prius were as profitable as the Corolla and Camrys they replace they would make more in a heart-beat.
> ..Toyota has lost one customer
However, make that at least two customers and counting probably 1,000s that they have lost