Essential Must Know for New Owners

It looks like it's just remapping.
Thanks for clearing that up.

Still, power mode for quick acceleration is a key technique!

Aaand....On to the next 'must -know' for new drivers!

Folks, with winter coming, let me know if I've got this right:

If you find you're having a hard time driving in the snow, or even get stuck in the snow, there is a fix for that.

A little background:
New Prius' are outfitted with tires with less grip, relative to other tires. (called 'Low Rolling Resistance', or LLR tires). Better gas mileage, but may not always grip as much as you want in the snow.

IF it's an issue, you can of course replace the tires. (I'm not saying that's needed - I have no stats on that.).

But there is a technique worth knowing.
When needed, you can feather the gas pedal to give just enough torque to move forward in many cases, even if you appear to be stuck.

This is helpful in any car, but can be done especially accurately in a Prius. Use ECO mode, since that makes the pedal respond slowly to touch, to get just the right amount of torque going to geit up that icy hill, out of the mud, or up and out of that ditch !

To really learn how it's done, read the excellent posts #'s 52, 59 & 60 in the thread Spinning out Front Wheels - What to do ? | Page 3 | PriusChat

 

I think I did read that!

To clarify: (as I've read on this board..)
The parking brake in the Prius is actually just the rear brakes, activated and held in place (until you release the "parking brake", of course).

If the rear brakes get wet, and it's feezing outside or the temperature drops(!), the brakes could freeze in place...and not release !

So one thing to watch for - if the brakes may have gotten wet, and its not freezing out when you park, BUT it will be later...that could be a good time to try this technique as well.

Without inviting too much discussion and derailing this thread, I'd love to hear at least one other experienced PC member comment on whether we all actually should be regularly blocking our wheels in the winter. (Is there a safe temperature range below freezing that doesn't require blocking? I'm a new owner, so can't say).

One other clarification:
In Park, the car will only move unexpectedly if it is run into. (it's held in place by a pin in the transmission that prevents the car from going into gear; it should only move if hit with enough force to break the pin.).

Well so much for short and sweet on this one! Let's see what if we can get a clarification on when to block the car in the winter, and move on to another tip as well !

- PNB.

 

Here's the link to the manual.

Toyota Online Owners Manuals and Warranty

This is a good link to put on your phone, so you can figure stuff out in an emergecny, such as towing.

●If your vehicle needs to be towed, do so with front wheels raised. If the wheels connected to the electric motor (traction motor) are on the ground when towing, the motor may continue to generate electricity. This may cause a fire. (P. 491 of the manual)

If there is a malfunction in the P position control system, the smart key system or the immobilizer system, or if the 12-volt battery is discharged, the vehicle cannot be towed with the front wheels on the ground, as the front wheels may be locked. In this case, transport the vehicle with both front wheels or all four wheels lifted.

If you are stuck in a ditch, there are tow hooks (aka emergency towing eyelets) in the trunk that can be installed behind a small cover in the front bumper.

Lots of restrictions - not more than 18 mph, etc -- see manual pp. 491-497

Suggested: put a roll of tape and a screwdriver in your trunk.
Put tape on tip of screwdriver so you don't scratch your paint.

Video on how to install tow hooks:

Careful !!

From the 2010-2015 manual:

Warming up before driving:
Since the gasoline engine starts up and cuts out automatically when cold, warming up the engine is unnecessary.

If the key fob battery runs out, you can still get in the car and start it:

1. Getting into the car:

There is a very thin metal key that can be removed from the fob. Use that to unlock the driver's door.

2. Starting the car:

Touch the Toyota emblem side of the electronic key to the “POWER” switch. (If any of the doors is opened or closed while the key is being touched to the switch, an alarm will sound to indicate that the start function cannot detect the electronic key.) Press the “POWER” switch within 10 seconds of the buzzer sounding, keeping the brake pedal depressed.

Intended as a temporary measure.
Replace key fob battery of course.

From 2010-2015 manual p. 549.

Apparently a flat tire will not fit in the spot that holds the spare.
You may want to keep a trash bag in the trunk to put a blown tire in or on.

To be clear (for new owners..) --
If you need to turn the car on for just a few seconds, such as to move it out of the garage to wash it in the driveway or something, when you are dune moving it, wait until the ICE (internal combustion engine) has finished its initial cycle before turning the car off. Otherwise, on the next start-up, the engine may shudder in a very concerning way.

OTOH, if you are simply doing something electronic, such as rolling up the windows or checking the time, there is no need to put the car in ready mode (i.e. holding the brake and pressing Start button).
Instead, simply keep foot off of brake, press Start button once for Accessory mode, or a second time for the next mode, and finally a third time when done to turn everything off.

It seems that winter driving can be an issue, especially for Gen 2 Prii.
Some people even find snow tires a must.

This seems a good primer:

Think Smart » Blog Archive » Does the Prius do Snow?

 

Know that in an emergency, I.e. in which you very suddenly take your foot off the gas and very quickly press the brake pedal, the brakes may engage quite suddenly and hard.

This is a good thing.

Specifically, a feature called Brake Assist senses when you are doing that, and engages strong braking very quickly, much more quickly and suddenly than normal, to help save you in an emergency.

It's better to know about this, so you understand and are ready for that in an emergency.

The threads I've read indicate that wearing a seatbelt is appreciated in this situation.

Here's a good thread on that:
Brake Assist | PriusChat

Also posts #7 and #9 (not #1) in:
Brake assist experience | PriusChat

 

Don't leave the car in Neutral, ACC, or IGN-ON for a long time -- you'll run down one of the batteries.

Specifically:

- Don't leave the car in neutral for a long time - the Prius is programmed to NOT run the internal combustion engine (ICE) when in neutral, and therefore it won't re-charge the traction battery.

- Don't leave in ACC or IGN-ON mode (the READY light is off) for a long time -- the ICE isn't runnig (of course), so you're running the car off the 12V battery, which isn't very powerful.

 

If you buy seat covers, be sure to buy ones be designed for side air bags!

The front seats have air bags within (am not sure about the rear). (note the little black tag on upper/vertical portion of the driver's seat.)

The seat fabric, and appropriately constructed seat covers, are designed to break away in a specific way to allow the air bag to deploy.

Seat Covers and Side Airbags | PriusChat

 

When you pull away from being parked, if a yellow triangle with an exclamation point appears I the dash, and a rectangle also appears on the dash telling you to put the car in Park....you may have a door ajar.

Oddly, there doesn't seem to be any detailed indicator telling you that the issue is specifically one of the doors...just the generic yellow triangle.