Premium vs Advanced

Rain: a myth created by folks who don't live in California!!
Wipers: devices used to remove pigeon blessings using that blue liquid stored somewhere under the hood!

.

 

One thing I find a little annoying about both Premium and Advanced, although only a little annoying, is the boot-up-time delay of the 11.6” screen before you can adjust HVAC or audio.


iPad ? Pro

 

Were you also able to get rid of the annoying boot up music like I did when I first got the car? The dealer was kind enough to perform this for free.

.

 

I know you can change the volume. I *think* I recall that it’s possible to skip it, but it still takes pretty much the same time to boot up. Or am I remembering incorrectly, and it does come up more or less immediately?


iPad ? Pro

 

Does it boot up any more quickly that way, though? I seem to vaguely recall somebody saying that it still takes about the same amount of time to boot up, but I might be remembering incorrectly.


iPad ? Pro

 

Roger. I have the volume turned down, but not off completely.

I gather HPrimeAdvanced is saying that he got the dealer to bypass it entirely (?).

I picked up a Carista thingie, mostly to turn off the backup beeper, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it has an option to turn this off too. Either way though, admittedly, I haven’t had a chance to diddle around with it yet...


iPad ? Pro

 

While it might be for some, I don't think the HUD is really a selling point. I rarely use mine. It's just above the already sufficient dash display, so it seems redundant. If you could track it higher on the windshield, it might be more useful, either way, I have to look down and change my focal point.

Safety features shouldn't be extras. If they're really that good, they should be on everyone's vehicle to make us all safer. So what's left after all of those?

The homelink mirror is definitely worth the extra $200 - but from what I've been reading, it's not something you can aftermarket anymore (like many did on the original Pip). So if you want that, you're paying for it.

If you live in cold climate areas, a steering wheel heater is probably a great option - but one that wouldn't make any sense at all for the 2-3 days of winter actually seen in So Cal.

I'm not sure how rain sensing wipers are much better than my own eyes - plus, it never rains in Southern California - there's even a song about it. Now the LED lights are definitely worth the extra $800.

A good sound system could be had for much less, but it would not actually integrate as well with the Prius system.

Unless you use the rear cover, it probably doesn't matter how robust it is.

So one way to look at the difference is that if you can live without a few important safety features, and apparently Toyota is saying you can, then you're better off saving the $3-4K and getting a Premium.

FWIW, by the time you decide to trade or sell, your entry level won't make a huge difference - but your car's condition and mileage will.

 

Gosh...the HUD is one of my very favorite features. I use it constantly.

 

I realize I already said this, but yes, me too!


iPhone ? Pro

 

Hmmm... Safety features shouldn’t be optional, so then, apparently, the Rear Cross-Traffic Monitor isn’t a safety feature?

Your thoughts are definitely worth considering, so thanks for sharing them, but I guess I don’t follow some of your thinking: The HUD display is redundant, and therefore not useful, even though it’s much closer to the normal-driving line of sight? Rain-sensing wipers don’t wipe better than manual control and therefore aren’t convenient?

I think the Advanced’s features over the Premium improve safety, convenience, or “the driving experience.” Are those improvements are worth the price increase? Everybody will just have to decide for themselves...

 

I wouldn’t have predicted it, but I really value the high beam assist which I think is only available on the Advanced. It turns on for short but helpful intervals where I probably wouldn’t turn it on manually. As someone with challenged night vision, the Prime is SO much better than Gen 2! And, SO much better than the expensive Tesla, based on both IISH and a friend/owner‘s review.

 

And more electrically efficient than a Tesla.

So, this morning it was 24F and even after warming up the car, enough ice got near the sensors by the top of the windshield that I had something like "Front Camera Unavailable Clean Windshield" and a flashing ICS-off in yellow.

 

I absolutely agree, especially on a multi-hour night road trip, but I think it’s part of the TSSP package, which is on most new Toyota models.

iPhone ? Pro

 

I asked some of my EV-driving coworkers how many miles per KWh they get (Tesla reports it in Watts per mile). I don’t have the numbers in front of me, but I reported about 4.6-4.7 miles/KWh, a LEAF driver reported about 4.8, a 1st-Gen Volt driver around 4.1, and a Tesla Model S driver around 3.8. Then again the Model S is a much larger, higher-performance and longer-range pure-EV, so not surprising that it’s lower.


iPhone ? Pro

 

Keep in mind those would be warm weather results.

Heater use can have a major impact, reducing that efficiency significantly.


SM-G920V ?

 

Don't forget the rear and side mirror alerts for errant peasants; mine have prevented at least a half dozen events so far, plus provided me enough info to back up when surrounded by those Stupid Useless Vehicles or trucks! The other Advanced feature useful in Socal are the foglights. The Advanced is totally worth the extra bucks; and no, I didn't buy my Prime to sell it!! It is wise to keep a car's resale value in the back of your mind when purchasing, but like our earthquakes here, think about it once, then as Italians say, "Foggit abut it!!" These days, no one can even get close to predicting PHEV, or EV resale values; the industry and laws are too volatile! If you like the thing, and you've got the bucks, quit waffling and buy it!!

.

 

(Mostly, yes.)

iPad ? Pro

 

Definitely a really valuable feature in my book too!

It is, however, one that I find that I have to get into the habit of explicitly looking for. That is, I personally don’t find those indications, “in yo face” enough to where you can’t miss them when they go off. I find that I have to acclimate myself to explicitly check those indicator lights.

iPad ? Pro