2010 Prius Driving Impressions DISCUSSION Thread

First Week's Impression

So.. I've had my car for a week. Here are my initial impressions. Some will be different from PCD as Toyota may have tweaked the car since then or I may have found new solutions to my previous issues. My vehicle is a Canadian Technology Package model.


Exterior:

• Love the paint. Metallic flakes are visible (Blue Ribbon)
• Not sure if I like the door panels. They vibrate when I close (front door)
• Backup camera works well so far. Still getting used to the car (After driving the smart for a year)
• Haven't scraped anything yet (knock on wood)
• The moonroof is actually quite streamline when opened. It's barely visible in photos at certain angles (although you can definitely see the wind deflector cause that points up quite sharply)
• Visibility is good and I think the mirrors are larger than before
• Not sure why some parts of the wheel wells aren't sprayed with the anti-chip coating (the black stuff)
• I finally understood what people were talking about with the exposed screws. It isn't noticeable on a dark coloured car
• Rear bumper protector is useful. It wraps around the bumper
• Washer spray pattern seems awfully low. The driver's side sprays the wiper at its resting position. The rear barely sprays out (kinda like the old Prius... but worse).
• I like that it takes less energy to close the rear hatch. The struts have been adjusted
• Back to small details. Toyota is the only one that I can think of that actually deflects their LED tail/brake lights. Most others, you can see each individual bulb. With Toyota's design, you see a red blob light instead of a red dot. The advantage (I believe) is that the light is viewable at a wider angle if it's reflected off a surface (You can adjust the beam pattern) vs. just having the diode face the rear of the car

Interior:

• Variable-speed power rear windows is nice (for those that missed the original posts)
• ALL the lighting that Toyota added adds up to a pleasant interior, might I say a bit upscale - power window switches, power door lock switch, ambient lighting, footwell lighting, illuminated door sills, illuminated steering wheel buttons etc etc. Most are standard on other cars (e.g. Lexus) but these are new to Toyota
• Interior is lot quieter. Wind noise is kept to a minimum. Road noise is good but not excellent. I believe the windshield is of the acoustic type. I cannot hear the wiper when the car is in motion and I can barely hear it when stopped (with the radio off). The rear wiper on the other hand is just as noisy as the old one
• Legroom is just as impressive as the old one. I might wager the rear has more even though the specs say otherwise. There seems more space in the "sitting-behind-myself" test.
• Steering position is a bit odd. The steering wheel is offset to the left a tad
• The wheel is an ok diameter. The leather feels soft but the smart's leather-wrapped steering wheel is better
• Leather is of decent quality. Again, can't beat the Germans. My smart's leather feels more expensive than the Prius'
• The front seats is actually quite firm for a Toyota.
• Nice touches such as felt-lined pillars and rubber-based interior door closing grip (or handle).
• I still don't like the reduced storage space
• I don't like the cupholder placement in the centre console box (eats up into the already limited space) but it is quite deep
• nav is hard to see with the moonroof sunshade retracted
• gloveboxes are no longer lined with felt and both of them lose a shelf
• Why is the console tray hinged?
• Would be nice if the interior backlit lights for the radio/climate control were amber instead of green
• The interior door panel moves in and out when the window is opened/closed
• The solar panels work!! No sunshade and 30°C highs. It's decently cool when I get into the car in the evening after work. (haven't used the Remote A/C yet).
• The all-season mats now have a warning printed on them thanks to the idiots who caused the floor mat recall
• The seat height mechanism is quite nice. It doesn't tilt the seat too far forward when you raise the seat (unlike some other Toyotas where you raise the seat and it only raises the rear portion of the seat bottom)
• Now that the rear hump is nearly gone, whoever sits in the middle will definitely want to step in that area. For those that want a rubber mat for it, I've found a solution and it's at Canadian Tire. I'll post a pic if I get any request for it.
• Why aren't the dome and personal lights indepedent?? The OFF position for the personal lights turn both the personal and the dome off. You can't have one or the other turn on with the opening of the doors. It's either both on or both off
• The all-season mats are lighter than before. The old ones have a nice heft to them
• The cargo floor no longer has a stand to hold it up. Guess you just fold it back flat against the floor?

Driving:

• Steering feel is definitely better than the old Prius. Still can be improved
• Better mpg. 58mpg (55mpg if I include the 5km from the dealer)
• Suspension seems well tuned. I hear the bumps more than I feel them.
• Tyre pressures weren't set right at the dealer. Currently set at 39/37.
• Wind noise is fairly low at 60km/h with the moonroof open at its first stop. It is quite noisy above 30km/h or 40km/h at its second stop
• Radar cruise is awesome!! It actually brakes quite hard if it needs to (cruising at 100km/h and it braked to 60km/h within a short distance)
• IPA works well in most cases. The Pre-Support sets it up perfectly if conditions are right. On a few occasions, it was a little far to one side.
• So far, I've only had one nav misprononciation.
• Headlight beam pattern is quite nice (these are halogens) and decently bright
• Wipers have a nice large sweep
• Someone pointed out that the intermittent settings have been reversed. Yes they have. I'm not sure why
• The engine does seem to warm up faster but then again it's 30°C outside . Put it this way, it shuts down faster when starting cold
• I've noticed that the computer will let the battery charge vary more often. I've gotten down to 3 bars on many occasions. On the '05, I can control that and keep down to 5 bars max and only have it drain to 3 bars if I'm heavily using the A/C or crawling in traffic
• The HSI CHG zone seems different than the one I drove in L.A. The L.A. one would stay full til we came to a stop. This one would start to reduce as the speed decreases, giving a better indication of regen vs. friction
• Engine start/stop is barely perceptible and very smooth
• Boy, is that inverter loud!!!
• ECO mode keeps the climate control in recirc forever
• Pressing AUTO does not bring back the A/C (if the light was off) like the old Prius did.
• The A/C is bloody cold! It's 30°C/86°F outside and the climate control is set at 25°C/75°F. Highest I've set in the old Prius was 23°C/73°F and it was much cooler outside
• The A/C also seems more efficient. I sat idle with the A/C on and the battery was slower to drain. Didn't time it though but I know I can't last 8 mins with the A/C off in the old Prius before the engine came on to recharge it

That's all I can think of for now. Time for bed.

 

Not at all. Guess I should clarify a few things back in the most in case people aren't aware that I have a blue car or that it's a Canadian model.

 

Nope. We still have the Tideland Pearl.

1. Like I said, mine just hits the wiper so it'll get the glass if the wiper's out of the way

2. My door panel bulges too but it doesn't stop as hard as you make it seem. Probably just as hard as any other Toyota (but with a bulge)

3. lol...

 

lol... Until you mentioned it, I didn't realise I did the same thing! :embarassed:

I didn't notice any strong rubber smell from my mats. These are the 3rd set of mats that we've bought from Toyota (2002 Camry, 2005 Prius, 2010 Prius)

 

I know the rears slow down. It's called Variable Speed Power Windows (it first debuted in NA in the Lexus LS460). I haven't noticed any of the front windows slow down either on my car, the test drive cars or the L.A. cars.