Hello from Austria / Europe

Welcome to PriusChat! You've proved yourself a most discerning person in at least two ways (1) you bought a Prius, (2) you've discovered this amazing place to learn all you're ever likely to need to know about your Prius. Congratulations and welcome once again! Most of us love to see pictures of each other's rides, and I'm sure I'm not the only person who is wondering if you've named your Prius yet?

 

i've known austrians were a smart bunch, ever since the von trapp's. great to have you with us, all the best!

 

Herzlich willkommen!
Viel Glück mit Euren neuen Auto!
Wie schwer ist es, Ersatzteile und Reparatur für einem Prius in Austria zu bekommen?
Tschüss!

 

Mmmm… …nice! …very pretty!

 

How about Silber-Pille-bug? …or Silber-Pummel? …or Silber Kugelrund? (…well, what would you expect from Google Translate?)

 

Silber Ei?

 

Ja, das ist perfekt!

 

VERY similar to new fly-by-wire commercial aircraft, right down to having groups of computers that jointly decide if and how they will accede to the driver's control request. The "idle check ceremony" reminds me of a Prius version of a Japanese tea ceremony, but instead carried out by the computers to check the accurate functioning of the Mass Air Flow sensor and no doubt other pieces of the system. I just wish it would EXPLAIN why, for example, it refuses to go into EV mode when I request it instead of acting like a prima Donna and saying "EV mode unavailable" !

 

Heh, I use a Scangauge II to monitor coolant temp, engine rpm, HV battery temp, and HV battery fan setting from 0 to 6.
The secret to any marriage is good communication, and life with a Prius is no different. So yes, I would like to know exactly why it refuses to go into EV mode, which would tell me what I would have to do to change its mind. I would appreciate it TELLING me when it takes some time out to do the idle check ceremony so that I know I will not get to Stage 4 performance for the next few seconds.
Uncommanded mode changes are extremely dangerous in commercial airLiners, and the Prius is really at the same level of complexity. To better drive the thing, I want to replace the "black box" of the current minimal information system with a "glass box" where I can monitor all relevant modes and automated systems.
I think I may be too OCD to drive a Zen painting, to mix a metaphor.

 

The wacky aspect of the "idle check ceremony" is how the engine is willing to stop when not needed fairly soon after a cold start when not needed, then a few seconds later it isn't willing to stop, then a little later it is.

My owner's manual lists 7 different reasons why "EV-Drive Mode" may be unavailable, a reasonably complete list. It doesn't explain why coolant temperature must be over 20°C in the U.S., to move the car even a very short distance, very slowly.

 

Speaking of driver training, in Germany I know the training is long, expensive, and done by licensed professional driving schools. I suspect Austria is similar.
That starkly contrasts with Virginia, where Mummy or Daddy can simply sign a form that they have observed good driving behavior of their children, and the kids are driving on public streets after a pro forma road test!! So all of the poor driving habits of the parents are passed directly on to their teenage children without any interference of qualified teachers, which fits in withe the "home schooling" ethos so rampant in the US. The predictable result is extremely sloppy, unskilled, and disinterested drivers, which Europeans might not expect when driving here.
Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles