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Drafty cold doors....any one else?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by Robert_W, Feb 7, 2011.

  1. Robert_W

    Robert_W New Member

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    Hi folks, new member here. Want to say thanks for the site first. Lots of useful info here.

    Anyway I just bought my wife a new 2010 - 3. We've had an '08 for just over 3 years and it was a wonderful car. Never a problem with it. But she's been lusting after a new generation since they came out and when the dealer made us one of those "too good to be true" offers....really....I gave in and said yes. Nice to see the 3 year old car held 60% of it's value. Probably even more if I would have sold it on my own.

    But I digress. We live very rural... 2 plus hours to the dealer...so I would like to get as much info compiled as possible before we drive it back to get a few bugs worked out.

    On the ride home I noticed a significant cold draft coming from the passenger door and more minor draft on the drivers side. Not so much from the handle area where I have read here can be a problem....but from the door seal itself. Seemed to be quite prominent up around the head and towards the rear of the door. Has any one experienced this? Has any one solved it? More foam weather seal maybe? If it were coming through the handle I could see needing more insulation inside the door itself but this sure seamed to be around the door seal itself. And when it's cold out it is VERY annoying.

    One other quibble is that the AUX jack is not working. I have tried both an Ipod and a phone with two different cables and nothing is recognized. Not the USB the regular 1/8th stereo jack. I'm hoping it's just a connection in the console that didn't get hooked up.

    I'm going to be doing a HID upgrade on it but am unsure if I need / want to do the high beams too. Where we live they get used quite a bit so I'm leaning towards yes. Also looking at the fog light upgrade kit listed here. But my thinking is that the HID will be enough. Any thought's would be great.

    Here's hoping that this car is as great as the last one. BTW....56.2 mpg on the highway coming home from the dealer! Yee ha! Already a huge increase.

    Thanks

     
  2. dtuite

    dtuite Silverback

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    Never noticed any drafts at all over 13,000 miles.

    FWIW, the radio has to be in AUX mode in order to play analog audio from the jack. (Which you probably already knew.)
     
  3. GSW

    GSW PRIUS POWER

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    +1. 29,000 here and no drafts, but I noticed the door has to be fully closed and the windows rolled up, otherwise I get a bad draft and the window rattles a bit.
     
  4. Robert_W

    Robert_W New Member

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    Yeah, thanks. The AUX tab on the screen doesn't even light up. It doesn't recognize that anything is plugged into it. And if you press the AUX button same deal. Nothing recognized.

    But the draft is very bothersome and I will need to address it.

    Other than that she loves it even more than the old one. I think my DTI is good to go for a while. ;)
     
  5. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    Greetings and :welcome:

    I've heard a few others on the forum complain about drafty doors (especially around the handle) but I haven't really noticed myself. There isn't what you would call an over abundance of insulation in this car. You can either pop a flare over the dealer for a 'fix' or DIY with some foam insulation. Just be careful where and how much you use it in the door, so that it doesn't interfere with the window, door locks, etc....
    Good Luck!!!
     
  6. spiderman

    spiderman wretched

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    I can relate to the draft from the doors in the cold. Our 97 Camry had the same issue. Doesn't bother me enough to complain about it though.

    Welcome aboard!
     
  7. 007

    007 New Member

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    moved...
     
  8. chado1000

    chado1000 New Member

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    Had my 2010 III for a little over 3k miles now. Wife rides in the passanger everyday for 50 miles. She has never mentioned or complained of a draft.
     
  9. mainerinexile

    mainerinexile No longer in exile!

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    We had some door weatherstripping in our Corolla that had come loose, and it results in drafts. No problems so far in the 08 Tacoma or '10 Prius. As a pre-caution, I use 303 Protectant on all the rubber gaskets several times a year. Seems to keep them more supple and able to do their job.
     
  10. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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    Could the draft issues be the auto climate control selecting "fresh air" through the side vents while sending heat to the bottom?

    Not an answer to the aux input question but the iPod should work better through the USB connector and a phone through bluetooth.
     
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  11. wick1ert

    wick1ert Senior Member

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    Was just going to mention that about the climate setting. I've noticed this before, and in fact, sometimes the system will automatically move it from "foot" to "vent" or even the combo setting. I'll feel like I'm getting a draft in the car. Need the OP to make note of the climate settings when this is noticed.

    As for the HIDs, I'd stick with just doing the low-beam lights. They put out quite a bit more light than the halogen bulbs that are in there currently.

    As for the iPod issue - I notice you put down the Solar package. Doesn't this come with bluetooth/nav/etc? If you've got an iPod touch, I'd suggest using the bluetooth option for the playing of music.
     
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  12. Robert_W

    Robert_W New Member

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    Great suggestion on the side vents and auto feature. Could be cause I looked over the weather stripping and it all looks to line up and seal just fine. I will check it. Thanks

    As for the Ipod, I don't have the proper Mini USB adapter for it and it's too old for Bluetooth. It's at least 3-4 years old and if my brain serves me right when she looked in the manual we weren't too sure if it was too old a version period. So no BT but it might be controllable from the main system if I get the proper adapter. Hence the need for the AUX.

    Her phone is a Droid and works through the BT just fine. But the BT lacks seriously in audio quality which she might live with but the AUX should work none the less. She also has a TON of audio books on the Ipod that would be a real pain to move to the phone. I'm hoping it's just something simple like a plug not quite in place. But I'm not going to rip the console apart when it has to go back to the dealer this weekend anyway. It doesn't look like there's any way to pop out the AUX/USB connector from the top. I'll let the dealer sort through it.
     
  13. wick1ert

    wick1ert Senior Member

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    Sounds like getting the proper USB cable may be in order. Sadly, I probably have one sitting in a box in my house that I'm not using anymore.

    The BT for audio works really well, actually. It's a night & day difference between using my iPod Touch & my BB phone with the audio quality.
     
  14. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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    You (she) might consider moving the books and music to a USB thumb drive and leave it permanently installed in the arm console. NOTE: that connection must be usb 1.1 or maybe it's just the JBL head unit but either way the menus are dog slow. Plus, most of the NAV screen menu functions won't work while moving anyway. This is true of all the nav/audio options though not just the USB.

    I've read here of connection issues with both older iPods and phones. My iPhone 3GS syncs fine and the audio is great even via bluetooth.

    FWIW
     
  15. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    be careful, i've seen a few here get the foglites installed at the dealership and wind up with drafty doors and aux problems.:(
     
  16. Robert_W

    Robert_W New Member

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  17. macman408

    macman408 Electron Guidance Counselor

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    In my opinion, the bluetooth audio (I'm using an iPhone) is good enough. I've never done a side-by-side comparison versus Aux or USB, but I don't notice any obvious compression artifacts or anything else that I don't hear on my regular stereo system. Any lack of fidelity is easily eclipsed by the suboptimal listening location - in a noisy car on a noisy road between other noisy cars.
     
  18. 007

    007 New Member

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    yeah, sorry bout that, Bisco, I took the hint and moved it to its own thread. Me bad.:eek:
     
  19. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    just yankin' yer chain.:D