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'05 Prius got totalled- what's new in '11?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by Ghoti, Jul 6, 2011.

  1. Ghoti

    Ghoti Member

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    Yeah, I know the GPS unit has contact sync via Bluetooth built-in. I guess I'll find out soon enough about the non-GPS Bluetooth
    ...unless anyone who has it wants to chip in :)
     
  2. Ghoti

    Ghoti Member

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    (sorry if double-posting is a faux pas here)

    I got my new car! It's "Blizzard Pearl" Prius II; it turns out the Bluetooth was a Toyota-branded "Blu-Logic" hands-free kit that is pretty basic, but works well enough.

    [​IMG]

    Driving it from the dealer, to home, to work, and back to home, I got ~55MPG, and it's not even broken in. I can't wait to see how it _really_ performs.

    (Is there any reason _not_ to use ECO mode pretty much all the time?)
     
  3. twittel

    twittel Senior Member

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    You won't have any problems using Eco mode all the time. I use ECO MODE consistently as I average 56mpg over 13K miles.

    Congrats on your new Prius. Enjoy the high MPGs, technology and low emissions.
     
  4. stream

    stream Senior Member

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    It won't hurt anything. FWIW, for the first 2 years, I drove in ECO mode basically all the time, until I read a post a while back where the poster said he switched from ECO to normal mode and got increased MPG. So several weeks ago, I turned off ECO mode and my MPG also increased--here's the thread if you're interested:

    http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii-2010-prius-fuel-economy/94931-eco-mode-vs-normal-mode-mpg.html
     
  5. phoenixgreg

    phoenixgreg Senior member

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    Congrats on the purchase! BTW, which dealer did you use? In Phoenix, you might want to use "normal" mode in summer as you will get more out of the AC fan. I use ECO in the cooler weather and it works fine.
     
  6. Ghoti

    Ghoti Member

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    Thanks! I ended up going with Larry Miller on Bell- the salesperson there was much less pushy and went the extra mile for me to get something I could afford and also met my needs. I still have a sour taste in my mouth from the extremely high-pressure salesperson at Camelback.

    As for the A/C in ECO mode, it's been more than sufficient, so I've been taking the manual at its word and using ECO for stop-and-go surface street driving and normal mode on the interstate. I may also experiment by driving the second tank entirely on ECO and the third entirely on normal to see if there's any appreciable difference.
     
  7. phoenixgreg

    phoenixgreg Senior member

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    I bought mine at Larry Miller on Bell too. The Costco deal saved me about $800. They are good people and will happily disable the reverse beep to one beep - and the same for the seat belt reminder. I've had one service visit there - again, all good things to say about it.

    Sorry you were pressured at Camelback. I've had good results with their service team and will stick with them as they are closer to where I live.
     
  8. clickerman

    clickerman Junior Member

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    Congratulations on the new purchase. What kind of deal did you get? Have you had time to form an opinion on driving a gen3 vs a gen2?
     
  9. Ghoti

    Ghoti Member

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    Thanks, Clickerman. I got down to $24k before all the doc fees, finance charges, expected interest, registration, and all of that claptrap. I had the expectations of years ago when I walked in, where the starting point was MSRP, but thanks to the catastrophe in Japan, all the dealers out here have a "market adjustment" on their Prii that I had to talk them into waving off.

    As for the comparison between my old Gen II and my new Gen III; it's not really apples-to-apples (I had a Package 6 '05; my new car is a Prius II with an add-in Bluetooth kit).

    The car drives fantastically, and I'm getting the mileage brand new that I was getting on my well-broken-in '05, so I imagine after the first kilomile or so, I'll have another five to ten MPG. I also probably have to learn new muscle memories for optimal pulse-and-glide technique for the '11. The ECO gague is, I imagine, helping with that.

    I only have two complaints about the new interior, really- I no longer have a handy place to set my cell so that I can easily see who is calling me without digging it out of a cupholder, but I can just turn on call screening with Google Voice to take care of that.

    Also, the floor mat has a tendency to, when I get out of the car, unhook itself from its retaining hooks when I get out of the car, so I sometimes have to hook it back in. This is probably an artifact of it being brand-new, and it may just need to settle into place.
     
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  10. Ghoti

    Ghoti Member

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    I just got back from a quick errand, after which I stopped in at Larry Miller to get the reverse beep set to one beep. It's funny- it seems this is the one things there's not some magic happy-dance I can do myself to configure. The tech came out with the laptop so I got to peek over his shoulder as he made the change. I know it's made for pretty much every Toyota with an OBD-II, but lordy their software is slow.

    That's good to know. I work practically across the street, so may use them for routine service. Cheers!
     
  11. 32kcolors

    32kcolors Senior Member

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    That can't be right. Once properly fastened, the mat is actually difficult to unhook unless you know a particular trick. Sounds like it isn't properly hooked or the retaining hooks aren't properly installed.
     
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  12. Ghoti

    Ghoti Member

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    Huh. Okay, well, should it happen again, I'll have my dealer take a gander.
     
  13. HTMLSpinnr

    HTMLSpinnr Super Moderator
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    (edit)
    I'd recommend checking out Avondale Toyota - their sales approach is very different than any other dealer in the valley. I was turned off by Larry Miller at the initial release since they were tacking on mandatory add-ons to justify a huge mark-up.

    A Prius Three sounds exactly what you're looking for, except that it doesn't have 3 door smart key. You could also try a Prius Four w/o NAV or Solar roof if you REALLY need 3 door smart key. You'd also get leather and a few other options.

    (edit)
    Then again, a Prius Two with your BT add-on does do the job, but IMHO, probably not as well as the Three w/ JBL.
     
  14. Ghoti

    Ghoti Member

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    I would have preferred the Prius III, but there weren't any available and I was under a time crunch to replace my old car.

    On the upside, I can drive this around, overpay the bills, and improve my credit and hopefully have a hell of a trade-in on a better model in a year or two.

    ETA:
    Is Avondale still sticking with MSRP, or are they using 'market adjustments' like like the four other dealers I checked with?
     
  15. HTMLSpinnr

    HTMLSpinnr Super Moderator
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    Unsure, I haven't been by Avondale in a while. Last I checked, they never (or rarely) charged over MSRP, and usually were under. They don't haggle (part of their One Price, One Person policy), but the price listed is generally fair, and only certain showroom cars have add-ons like tint or rims. Market Adjustments don't fly well w/ me, which is why I avoid those like "the other 4". Checking their Prius Two pricing online, it would seem that they're under MSRP, and their Prius Four is at MSRP.

    If you're happy now, and want to wait a couple of years for whatever refresh may appear, you're in a good position!