What every newb should know

Got my Prius in March.Love it. I fill up after 2 clicks as the sooner, the cheaper the price will be.

 

Thanks all. I've been out of town and just got back. This is all very helpful. I am hoping to have an actual Prius in the next three weeks so I am happy to learn as much as possible in preparation.

 

Would it help this thread show up in the search engine if we included every possible term for putting gas in your Prius.

refueling (recent poster with problems)
gassing up
topping off
fueling
gas
gasoline

Any more?

 

To add onto the idea about giving the Prius a jump:

I suggest that sometime when the weather is perfect, you open the hood, uncover / uncap the jump-starting connections and get familiar with which posts are positive and negative. (Also do the same for the 12 V battery in the rear.) Why do this in good weather, when, we all know that you NEVER need a jump on a 75 degree, sunny day. It's always: 1 AM, dark, sub-zero, blizzardly days when your battery decides to need assistance. (At least, that's been my experience on other cars I've owned.)
Also, if I remember correctly, if the battery does die, you cannot shift the Prius into Neutral. You need to release some type of gear. (Actual Prius owners can expound on this.) I suggest that you find out how to perform this operation before you really need to do it.
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About the guess-gauge and running out of fuel:

You CAN run the Prius on Traction Battery without fuel. HOWEVER, this is only to get you to the side of the road, not to drive 3+ miles! The owner's manual will state again and again, not to drive without fuel. Some people have driven their car while empty, and forcing their battery management system to deplete the traction battery beyond it's programmed safe limits. :der: Again, Prius types can chime in here and give more data.

The 1 Low Fuel PIP is not a recommendation: It means GET FUEL NOW, and don't look for the cheapest station.
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As I said, real Prius owners will correct anything I've said that is not 100% accurate. I have a TCH, but believe that I have given a fair representation of the Prius. It's an excellent and reliable car IF you read AND follow the manual.

 

I just picked up my '08 Touring Package #6 two days ago. I'm sure I've a kazillion questions, so here's my first: How important is it to NOT use cruise control during the first 1k miles? I'm leaving on a 500 mi. trip tomorrow and would LOVE to use the CC, but I only have 150 miles or so on it. Will I damage the car to use CC before 1K Miles? Thanks.

g

 

Gas Gauge

Hi all:

I am a new 2008 Pkg#2 owner and I have just gotten gas for the 4th time. The previous 3 times I have gotten gas, I have filled the tank.

This time I only put 20$ in which is about 4.6 gal where I live and the fuel indicator still reads 1 bar and is flashing.

Have any of you experienced this??

Thx all

Peter

 

One thing I heard here earlier, but hasn't been talked about lately:

Make sure your car is OFF when refueling, not in READY.

There were suspected problems--not registering correctly and not filling completely. Besides, I would think there would be a safety issue, not to mention the car has a complete hissy fit when you do something it doesn't like!

 

It just finally sunk in about the battery. I don't drive. I had an accident in 4/7/2001 which scared me forever. Since I'm elderly and know I'm deteriorating naturally, and all the young drivers are out to get me, I drive like I'm victimized I also was active in the 1970's with the first OPEC hostage taking and it's not my fault I'm a victim. It's yours.

So I attended a Prius membership meeting and the maintenance explained about recharging the battery. He said that those of us who keep the car stationary are not doing a good thing. Going to the grocers once in a while is not a Prius lifestyle. I do have a P.O.Box so now I go to the P.O. eveery day and I take the long route which is really the straightest one. I'm trying to understand the consumption display. The route I take is 6 miles to and 6 miles back. I'm resetting the consumption display each time. I accidently touched the kmg button yesterday.

Does all this change the algorithms in the mpg energy display. One benefit of all this is that it forces me to drive and makes me psychologically stronger. Should I take a longer route each day to help my battery?

 

A few miles is fine, don't worry about the battery. It is more of a problem if the car is left undriven for weeks on end, that can cause a problem. Drive it how you want.
I tend to agree that one short trip a day isn't really where the Prius will shine but it will still do well.

 

Oh, I have the reflective front window sun shade and apart from it being a bit big to handle, it fits perfectly and works well.

 

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However, he did tell us the Prius battery really should be exercised 1/2 hour daily. I think I'll continue my own research on my own pony. This is my last hurrah so I feel like I'm participating in climate research. I just have to keep my "typing" from touching the kmg button. Concurrently with the price of oil, there's "talk" now of USA food packaging getting smaller for the same price. This kind of "talk" will probably start giving us all a lot more shared information from our own practices. You certainly helped.

 

You don't actually have to drive the car anywhere to make sure that the HV battery is charged appropriately. Just put the car in "Ready" mode for about 1/2 hr once a week or so. The ICE (internal combustion engine) will come on to charge the battery as necessary. The DC to DC converter will also charge the 12v battery when the car is in Ready mode.

Of course, its a good idea to drive the car every so often to make sure the tires don't flat spot, the A/C compressor cycles on to circulate compressor oil to seals, etc.

 

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Don't forget the brain exercise I get driving once a day.

 

I bought a used prius- just before I was due for my oil change the service required light came on... is this "normal"?

Also... how do I find out what kind of prius I have?

 

Yes, the light comes on based on mileage; at 4500 miles it will flash several times after "ready" mode. At 5000, it will stay on continuously to signal that you should change the oil every 5000 miles. You can turn it off after changing the oil by:

1. Power off

2. Hold down the ODO/Trip button below the MF display

3. Press the brake pedal and push start while holding the ODO/Trip

4. Look at the odometer. When the mileage is replaced by -------- you can release the ODO/Trip button and the Service Reqd light will be off for another 4500 miles.

 

Wish I had found this website before I ran out of gas this afternoon on I-75! Had enough coasting and electric to get to gas station, whew!

 

Thanks! That's good info. Now... I see poeople saying they have a #2,#3,ect... I feel really stupid not knowing what I have. How do I find that out?

 

They are referring to the option Package that came on their car. If you have the original window sticker it would be printed on it. If you don't, you will have to do some research to find out.

http://priuschat.com/forums/knowled...04-toyota-prius-faq-yahoo-prius-2g-group.html