Is the Advanced Technology (AT) package worth it?

Keep in mind the power seat gives you the ability to lift or lower both the front part and the back part of the seat bottom. I love my power seat. Much more comfortable and adjustable than the manual driver's seat. I also adjust it much more frequently, to reduce fatigue or match my mood. The power seat and the switch to 15 inch wheels (softer ride) are the 2 best things about my PIP! (besides the EV to work and back)

 

From what I've been reading here, my power seats offer a lot more adjustment. All standard seats let you adjust are the forward/backward position and angle of seatback. The power seats offer up/down/tilt of the seat cushion, forward/backward position, angle of the seat back and various degrees of lumbar support. Since my wife and I both suffer from back problems, it's relatively important for the driver's seat, at a minimum, to be adjustable. The seat still doesn't come close to the ones I had on my 1988 Grand Prix where the wrap-arsides of the seat

 

Interesting times with an explosion in technology making greater inroads into our cars.

 

Absolutely, and it's a shame we have to buy different vehicles to get some of these options and then we often have to make compromises on something else when we do. Life is a series of compromises, I'm just happy cars are moving forward and not stuck in the past. Of course, I still wish they were only $4,000, but that's just one more compromise we all have to make.

 

I love the Prius 5 wheels and the look they provide. No complaints here.

Power seats are best. No limit on the infinite adjustments. The lumbar adjustment is fantastic. The power drivers seat in my Prius Plus In Advance is among the most comfortable I've ever experienced.

I agree. Total waste and I've never used them once on the three cars I owned that had them. Some sense of a status symbol because they're only on cars with factory Xenons or LEDs.

My Prius is the most advanced and well optioned car I've owned.

 

I meant to say Prius -five, and not the large Prius.

I've heard this as well, but there is no technical reason why the manual seats couldn't have all of the same degrees of adjustment.

I once rented a car in Hawaii with power seats, reclined it to sleep, and the motor died in the down position. You wouldn't believe how bad your abs will burn trying to hold posture while you drive 30min back to the rental company. I've never had a manual seat failure.

 

I've never considered a electric powered seat as slow. Manual seats have notches, while electrics sets can be adjusted anywhere between two limits. My wife and I had two same model MBs. Her's without electric seats, mine with them. The lack of adjustments on her's was the difference between night and day. Anyone who hasn't experienced electric powered seats would be surprised at the difference. My Prius has the adjustable lumbar support, a nice addition.

That's a worse case scenario and a possibility. Same with power windows, the chance of failure is always present, but rarely happens.

 

And even harder to get back up. My van had a knob, but only on the seatback, the power button is much easier and more handy.

 

Both my Camry and Avalon had power seats, and they were such a joy. I oftentimes adjusted them a little during a long trip, which was effortless. Always appreciated the micro adjustments as well. I could raise the seats, and/or adjust the bottom fusion tilt. That's really about the only technology I miss in those two cars, and they've had them for decades. Hate to be picky, but they really should be standard in a $28k car.

 

Perhaps the Prius electric seats are much faster than my Acura seats. It always annoys me when I want to recline the seat to take a nap and I have to wait 30 seconds.

The seats in my Legacy were very comfortable, and I could put the seat flat in 1 second. I could then have it back into my preferred driving position in 1 second.

The only thing I like about the Acura power seats is that it remembers my wife's settings and adjusts for her when the car is unlocked.

I had a Volvo with a manual knob, and that was by far the worst adjustment system. It took forever and was very cumbersome. To raise the seat, you would have to turn the knob with 1 hand while lifting the seat with the other hand.

 

We go on too many long road trips and spend too much time in the car for me to be satisfied with the limitations of the manual seats. It would be a different story if, like you say, the seat cushion angle could be changed along with the seatback. The passenger seat doesn't bother me as much because I can easily change positions in it when I need a break from driving.

 

Tideland,

I run 15" wheels with the appropriate offset on my 5 with winter tires. No issues there. I even went on eBay and bought 15" hubcaps for a '90s Camry LE V6. Not sure who likes them more: me or the guys at the dealership!

 

Personally, I think it is worth it. I absolutely love the DCC feature (the only problem is when I rent a car on a trip that doesn't have it -- I keep having to remind myself that I have to monitor the speed of the drivers in front of me). Unlike some posters, I do tend to be a faster driver and really appreciate the DCC. Don't really use the LKA. The pre-collision feature has kicked in a couple of times and I think it is also worthwhile.

So it comes down to whether it is really a feature you will use (if you are a slower driver the DCC might not be very worthwhile). A very personal choice.

 

All in all, can the car drive itself when DRCC and LKA are activated? Are there any annoying beeping sounds, or just the steering wheel moving? Last, any enhancements on the 2015 technology package models? Thanks.

 

Also, LKA requires driver input; after 15 seconds in a straightaway or 5 seconds in a curve where the driver is not touching the steering wheel, LKA will beep (twice quickly, I think) and deactivate.

LKA has *lots* of annoying beeping sounds, when it is unable to detect the lane lines. The most common reasons are sudden shadows (like trees or overpasses), off- and on-ramps, and merging or splitting lanes. In each of those, it will beep twice quickly to let you know that LKA is temporarily inactive. A few seconds later, it generally picks the lines up again and resumes (silently). Maybe they've made it better in the past 5 years though, I'm not sure.

DRCC will beep sometimes too, but only if the person in front of you brakes fairly hard. In that case, it produces a rapid succession of beeps to tell you to pay attention and hit the brakes; it will not brake as hard as is possible, it leaves that up to the driver (presumably, in case it's wrong, and you're not about to hit something).

And yes, both just make driving slightly less annoying. DRCC means you can rest your right foot, even in moderate traffic. (It won't operate the cruise below 25 mph, however, so in heavy traffic you're still stuck.) And LKA is probably nicest because it can help hold the steering wheel while you're on a long sweeping curve; I feel like that helps reduce fatigue, because I'm not putting as much effort into steering. It can also catch you if you start to drift out of your lane a bit, but that's not a terribly common occurrence for me (and when I do get a little too close to the line, I already know it - it's not taking the place of me paying attention to the road).