Caution long post.... It has been a fun ride thu time to let the Prius go after two years, some 18,000 miles and several road trips out of state. Highs were steering, mpg, ability to carry stuff in hatch back and plain fun ride. Lows were lower back pain that side lined me several days with pain after one four hour road trip and one multi-state trip (after several days on the road) thu have since been told one must keep hip joint point higher then knee point so keep that seat high it seems....actually no power seat was other low. Not a bad trade off really lol. Will still have the 07 highlander hybrid so still a relative in the family maybe. Carmax is offering $16,000 for my red/tan pris IV (no nav nor sunroof) would be nice to get $17,000 but it will be a fast sell. Needs tires and $200 under engine felt pad. Will try to post to Craigslist tampabay fl today thu only have until Friday to take the offer. Will use the money to pay down the house note a bit which has a 6.x rate and no chance to refi due to amount owed presently Other rides - Considered trading both rides in on new Camry hybrid due to the 0% interest offer for 4yrs thu not certain I would be happier with that over my 'old' prior body style highlander v6 with tow kit and 3rd munkin seat, large storage area and 26mpg all day long in the city.....true not the same as 48mpg ciy lol and no sunroof Sorry to say thu I have always thought of my highlander as a timex watch....keeps ticking but lacks soul when driving thu very comfortable....a plus to my almost 55 yr old body at times. Funny thu, mostly took Prius on out of state trips anyway due to mpg difference and drove Prius 80% of the time in state. Did drive a used Prius v that I did not think much of when driven prior at different dealer at different time thu this one had a rattle in the dash....maybe why it is used with only 700miles on it right lol? Would no touch that ride until rattle was fixed and don't trust a dealer to fix that type of rattle when it comes to taking a dash apart and putting it back as original from factory. Did drive a new Prius v while at same dealer and it did not have the dash rattle. The Mazda cx5 seems like an interesting ride but will wait until disel model makes it to US if that day ever comes. Enjoy your Prius rides, I know I did and will be sad to see it go. Just got new tires on the highlander and it needs nothing done to it. Had thought Toyota said there will be a recall on the highlander battery pack cable but dealer knows of no such recall....planned which seems weird to me. Ride safe
In your shoes I would rent a new Prius with 6-way seats and see what my back thought of a long ride. In the meantime work on the health of your back, or it is going to get worse.
I think the seats on my Five are super comfy. The adjustable lumbar makes a huge difference. Did your IV have leather? You get lumbar adjustment if you have leather.
Yes the prius IV has leather and power lumbar. The issue I feel is that the seat bottom and back pivot as one, unlike a power seat which of course can adjust seat bottom separately from the seat back. The Prius V offers I have read better seats then the regular Prius thu guessing the same type of adjustment as regular Prius ....no power seats either.
You should probably do your homework before you make a statement like that. About a 15 sec diversion to the Toyota site said otherwise.
Check out the 2012 Prius 4. The driver's seat is electric and has fairly decent elevation. I know as my wife takes advantage of rise of the seat.
The 2012 Plug-in and I believe the Five both have power seats now. Edit: I see I was a little late to the party. But just to clarify anyway, the 2012 Four and Five, along with the Plug-in Advanced all have the 8-way power seat
Very nice to know. Guess I was accustomed to my 2010 series IV not having them so never really looked for them in 2012 models....come to think of it don't think I ever drove a newer prius. Will have to do a double take on the V model next time at a dealer and try out that power seat feature for some reason I thought it had the old hand pump lever. Thanks for the information
I do believe I am impressed. If I am reading correctly a 2012 prius with deluxe sunroof package comes with a slide sunroof plus solar cells. If that includes a remote a/c start that is very cool. Might have to go kick tires thu of course we are talking a Lot of green for that spec model I bet.
Yes my 2012 PiP has driver's side power seat and lumbar support. I have the Advanced (higher trim) version.
Guess this is what happens when one simply drives a 2010 for two years and does not track updates from one year to the next. Thinking/guessing the first solar sunroof did not open but if I am wrong on that point also please don't shoot. If it now opens for 2012 models then maybe it was good I was clueless on updates until now. Don't think I would trade both of my vehicles on a new 2012 Prius with those goodies but it is worth driving one tomorrow.
Another "insensitive" (snotty?) response to a newbie question, where everyone seems to be punished for not being as informed as the more "enlightened" members of the forum. The other similar site that I frequent; Miata Net, has a membership that all seem to be supportive of each other, rendering advice without feeling the need to deride those who may be less familiar with the intricacies of their chosen mode of transportation. For this reason, PriusChat is becoming somewhat of an embarrassment, IMO.
I do appreciate in updated spec info...just did not track 2012 changes. So far as how that reply was handled...not make or break but I understand things happen in cyber space. Priuschat is a good site I feel. did get to drive a sea green 4 with solar sunroof today. Nice seat adjustments...power if others do not know lol. they want msrp 33,893 which includes, to me, worthless $699 toyoguard some such stuff...under coat etc.. Sort of like the color and light gray leather is ok...well fake eco leather if you will. Hud is ok but only saw mph and eco mode guage so maybe that is all it does...per a sales person. they will match carmax for buy out price on my priis...$16k. womder if a 2012 power seat bolts in a 2010 with power plug already there? I will check the site for post on that topic.
at least the dealer does not charge a dealer fee so that sort of off sets the $699 tyoguard package. did like the seats in that Prius V though, very nice.
I've been shopping for a year old (2011) Prius, and I have chronic back problems. I thought it was my imagination, that my back was hurting even after the test drive! I thought, oh, I'll adjust, but then I see on several Prius forums, many many people are complaining about back pain due to the seats. Well, I've just test driven the 2012 Prius IV, which at that level offers a fully electronically adjustable seat. It comes in this soft tech, simulated leather, unlike the upper level models in past years. However, the fully adjustable seat feels a heck of a lot more comfortable. I hate to have to spend all that extra money just so I can get the 8-way adjustable seat, but now I think it's a necessity as I find I'm not alone in my complaints about back pain. And that was only during a test drive! Has anyone out there, who has a bad back, found the seats in the 2012 Prius IV to provide the needed comfort and lower back support. The seat bottom moves independantly from the back, like in other electronically adjustable seats.
