Backup Beep Reality Check

Gen II process doesn''t work on the Gen III (2010) Prius.

Therein lies the problem. The process described for the Gen II Prius does not work with the 2010 model. You're forced to get the dealer to toggle the settings with Toyota's maintenance software (which is not available to end users).

Stu

 

I also got the song and dance from the salesman before I received my 2010. Asked the sales man, negative couldn't do it. So then I politely asked him to to talk to his Service manager and sales manager. Negative still wouldn't do. I had a sneaking suspision that he never looked into it at all.

So....the night before I picked up the Prius I went onto the dealership website directory and gather e-mails of managers and people higher up the food chain. Sent out a nice long e-mail explaining about the features I'd like changed before I took the car the next day and free of charge of course. Might have threatened a bit, but nothing out of line or harsh.

Next day, I arrived at the dealer I noticed a few glances from different sales men as I walked up. At that point I knew word traveled. My sales man walked up handed me a copy of the e-mail, apologized and handed me my new keys to my 2010 the way I wanted it.

 

I was told that the 2010 does not allow the owner to disable the backup beep so I had the dealer disable it before we picked up the car. Now it beeps one time when you shift into reverse.

 

Good job, I like the way you handled it.

 

I disagree 100%. You've got it bass ackwards. The back up beep doesn't alert those outside the vehicle it only DISTRACTS the driver inside the vehicle from concentrating on backing. Might as well have a telephone ringing as well. The continuous beep creates a new danger rather than removing one.

 

Re: Gen II process doesn''t work on the Gen III (2010) Prius.

Does this mean that a third party auto garage that does have a computer system that allows them to check & reset the on-board computer for error codes, etc. can not reset the backup warning? Or, do they maybe just not know which point to change? If the second point is true, does anyone here know what that point label to reset is?

 

My dealers cut it down to one beep without a murmur, also disbaled thr passenger belt beep. as I cannot pick the front of the car

I got yhe reverse assist beepers so both beeping at me would have been ridiculous.

The reverse sensors are very sensitive and unless I amlined up in the exact middle of my side drive they beep anyway.

The bushes in the front garden also drive them crazy unless I prune them back frequently.

Just waiting on the front sensors to arrive and be fitted as I cannot pick the very front of the car.

David

 

My dealership sells an aftermarket product that you just stick onto the corner of a backup light on your rear end. When it sees your reverse lights go on, it starts beeping. Works pretty well..

 

Got mine down to one beep at the 4,000 mile service for free.

While one the phone making the appointment for the first service, I used something like "oh, and before the car was picked up, we forgot to have that one-time complimentary programming change to cut the continuous backup beeping down to one beep, so while you have TechStream up or whatever you use to reset the oil service nag screen, might you be able to do this now while its in? And, also, my wife refuses to drive it because of that dam*** beeping." Pause. Was then told "Oh, no problem."

Worked like a charm. Got the tech's name. When in the next day for the dropoff, asked for the same guy to write up the service order and it was done free of charge. Yes, I got licky, but it can also be the way you ask. I threw "TechStream" into the request without a pause, and used the "wife won't drive it until."

Now, I'm on board with those who think the interior backup beep is more than annoying. It might actually distract the driver into not seeing something behind them. Kind of like a train horn blaring away when someone is on the tracks and it is so deafeningly loud and frightening that they freeze in place and get hit by the train instead of being only warned.

If, instead, Toyota placed the backup beeping outside the car, it would make more sense as a real warning to more people who might need to be warned.

 

Although I had my reverse chime changed to one beep I can think of one situation where the continuous beep actually might be useful. For example, yesterday I was about to pull out of a parallel parking spot.

I shifted into reverse and while doing so checked my side-view mirror; in the split-second between shifting into drive and checking the mirror a vehicle appeared.

I think it might not be unusual for a driver to "forget" he/she did not complete the shift into drive, hit the gas pedal, and lurch backwards.

The same scenario can happen if one has overshot the stop line at an intersection.

 

If it were needed in those situations all cars would need them. That kind of thing can happen with a manual or normal automatic transmission just as easily. The real point is we shouldn't have beepers, bells, and whistles, continuously warning us about everything that could possibly go wrong.

After a while you get so many warning chimes that your brain ignores them. Better to use them only for very important things and have very few of them. Having the car in R is no more dangerous than having it in D, in either case if you push the throttle down it's going to move, and that's what it should do.

 

I took delivery on my Prius on a Saturday, and the dealer's "Prius guy" was not working that day. A week or so later, when I was having my USB adapter installed, I asked for them to change the headlight off delay to zero, change the reverse beep to one, and take off the seat belt warning buzzer. The tech said "no problem" on the headlight setting, told me the manager would not let him take off the seatbelt warning, and said he could not change the reverse beep. When I assured him that the reverse beep could be changed to one beep only, he said he'd do it if he could. After he was finished, the headlight off delay was gone, and he confirmed he was able to change the reverse beep to one. When he handed me the keys, he mentioned that some "other settings" might have been changed, but he thought I would be OK with them. When I checked for the seat belt warning buzzer, it had been disabled.

 

That's great, I'm glad there are still a few people who can think for themselves.

 

Just got my Prius II two days ago and today I took it back to the dealership to have them reset a few codes... At first the service guy didn't know what the hell I was talking about so I explained to them its written in the Owners Manual that codes can be reset.

Service guy (who's customer service was ok at best) then ask the 'whiz' who supposed to know how to do these things, and he turned out to be a complete douche and wanted to charge me $45 for 1/2 hr of the tech's time. I told him I bought the car two days ago and a finance guy there toold him just to do it.

So, I got the following changed:

1 - The reverse beep switched to single beep.
2 - Doors lock when vehicle hits 12 mph.
3 - Auto unlock turned OFF when car is put in Park.

Long story short, these shady dealership punks will try to weasel a service charge in there if you let them. Third day in my new ride and these guys already try to pull a quick one

 

One could almost believe these service techs could be on some sort of labor commission/spiff or something.