My new Prius scares the crap out of me

I had to explain to a new Prius owner the other day that "B" did not mean "Battery" mode.
They incorrectly thought that you had to switch into that gear in order to use the hybrid battery.

 

My mnemonic is engine Braking.

 

Every Prius owner should have one of these.

 

that's what the toyota salesman told them.

 

In my neck of the woods, there are few places where B would be better than regen braking. There's just not that many steep downhill runs. Times I thought I'd get to use B, I wound up either not going fast enough for it to matter or the run wasn't long enough that it would stress the brakes to just use regular braking.

 

Oldhippie, welcome. The car makes a number of sounds and you'll eventually just tune them out.

If you push the brake all the way down it'll beep and keep the brakes engaged for a few seconds after you remove your foot. It'll beep twice when the brakes release. Pressing the gas pedal will also cancel this function.

 

Also, keep an eye on your fuel level. The low fuel chime is easy to miss at first!

 

My opinion - The Owner's Manual has to be "Politically Correct" - in other words Toyota deems it necessary to Cover their *** to make sure EVERYTHING is addressed in the manual. Otherwise -- can you say "lawsuit" --- over who knows what some small detail didn't cover.....

 

I have switched back and forth between my Prius and whatever other car we owned for almost 10 years. I drive the Prius the same as I drive any other car so I guess I just don't get it.

 

There's not much to get used to. One thing tho: I'd be reluctant to use valet parking. There's been a few bad outcomes: botched jump starts, cars left running.

 

What car did you drive before the Prius? I came to my 2012 Prius c from a 1996 BMW hatchback, and the Prius had all sorts of features that didn't even exist when my previous car was made.
I suspect you'll find that the manuals for all modern cars are as complex as the one for your Prius, but as others here have said, you can mostly "just drive it" and figure out the details later. And everyone at PriusChat is almost unfailingly helpful if you have specific questions.

 

You can turn off the reverse beeping, or have a dealer turn it off (except for a single initial beep, which isn't so bad). There's more than a little truth in what you say about computers doing the driving. You inform them of your wishes, and they execute them, if they don't have other ideas. All cars are becoming more like that. (Automatic braking coming to all new cars by 2022, for example)

 

I cringed looking at the manuals. I just drive the car and refer to the manuals as needed, or surf Priuschat for the answers. I didn't find driving the Prius any different than other cars other than the joystick type shifter. Have yet to use 'B', probably not needed in my neck of the woods.

 

What was your previous car Oldhippie? I know if I my previous vehicle was a 1973 Toyota truck, I would be intimidated by the Prius. But since it was gradual steps with newer and newer cars, I don't feel as lost.

My dad whom likes to park and repark cars to share optimum space with the neighbors has never driven my Prius. As each of his offspring comes home every day, he would takes the keys and repark their car. It used to drive me nuts cold starting my car three times every night to move a few feet. But the Prius transmission stalk and lack of a key starter is still too much intimidation for him.

 

I don't know, when I get a new vehicle I enjoy reading the manual. But that's just me.
The Prius, being a hybrid, perhaps the manual is longer than the average ICE vehicles, but I don't really remember it being that bad.
Nothing in it that I found difficult to understand. Today's legal system perhaps makes all manuals overly wordy. They have to explain and warn about nearly every possible eventuality, but again I don't think that is Prius exclusive.

Personally? I wouldn't use my Prius to jump start a vehicle. As stated above with all the electronics now in vehicles IMO it's just not worth the risk. Not when portable jump start stations are plentiful and relatively cheap.

As far as your philosophical approach to ownership?
I find the Prius to be very much a "car" in the normal sense.
You've bought a hybrid. Toyota calls the system employed HSD or Hybrid Synergy Drive. While the system itself may be more complicated than your average ICE only vehicle, Toyota has made operation of that system nearly automatic. In other words, you can drive it simply as you would any other vehicle.

Minutia like The Smart Key System, How to Safely Jump Start It, are all things covered in the owners manual, and IMO not any more complicated than with most other vehicles.

Things like keyless entry, push button start, and even dash input that helps you monitor fuel economy are things that may of had an early genesis with Prius, but now are common on many if not the majority of new vehicles.

I hate to break it you you. Yes you bought a Hybrid. But also...yes you bought a car...in the normal sense.

 

I've got 20,000 miles on Enzo since July, have yet to crack open any of the manuals.

 

o/p, if it makes you feel any better, my wife's hairdresser bought a hybrid camry, drove it off the lot, and when the engine stopped at the intersection, turned around and traded it in for a regular camry. she said it freaked her out, and she couldn't live with it.

 

John1701a's site is back up, here is a link to a 30 page User Guide for the Gen 3.

John's Stuff - Toyota Prius User-Guide

 

That's the guide I was thinking about.
Just walking through that with a friend is a good way to familiarize yourself.