Greetings from the UK, y'all. A question for those who have "Gone Before"...... I am collecting my Prius in 3 weeks time and have a 200 mile journey home on the freeway. Any special advice on running in / first few months of ownership etc etc ? I don't plan to go over 55mph.
The manual simply suggests to avoid sudden starts/acceleration, harsh braking and kangaroo-like motoring for the first 1200 miles. I have a hire Prius from Toyota right now and pick up my new one next week (and from UK too - London).
I have a new (12 miles on odometer) hire Prius too until my 06 arrives. Here are my suggestions now that I'm up to 2,000 miles: 1. Check the tyre pressure before your trip; 42/40 psi worked for me. 2. Don't "baby" the Prius, but watch the monitor "learn" how to get the best MPG (MPL). 3. Avoid hard braking 4. I don't think 55MPH matters as much as avoiding a constant speed; some say new cars require no special run-in treatment, except for the brakes. 5. The Prius will easily take another US gallon of fuel after our pumps auto-stop at most filling stations. If you fill up early (5-6 gallons) to confirm your MPG that one-gallon fill-up variance will drive you crazy; try to use the same filling station if you can. 6. Get ready to answer a lot of questions. Have fun!
The things that are advised against in the manual could be summed up as follows: "Don't drive like a lunatic. Not at first, anyway." Casual starts and stops, try to keep it below 160KPH, and maintain all four wheels on the ground at all times. [editted] got my mph and kph conversion confused.