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Prius FIVE - 2011 vs 2012

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by happyfirst, Oct 21, 2011.

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  1. happyfirst

    happyfirst New Member

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    Torn between an optima SX and a prius. I really like the optima. I know my wife would prefer a Prius, but mostly because of the brand name issue of the optima.

    It seem like Prius prices have finally fallen back down to earth. In reviewing the changes between 2011 vs 2012, at least for the top of the line model, the FIVE with NAV which is what I would probably get, it seems the only differences I can see are that the 2012 gets

    1) gets HUD
    2) gets fake leather and still then has a basic non-leather steering wheel.

    Is there anything else I'm missing? If I get the 11 without nav, then no backup camera, but if I do get it with nav, are they the exact same system between 11 and 12 or is the 12 nav/screen still better quality?

    Is Entune only applicable to base/non-nav cars?

    Truecar.com makes it look like it's not hard to get an 11 for just about invoice. Is the 12 worth waiting for an paying MSRP for? Or get an 11 with an extended warranty?

    Was thinking of surprising my wife this weekend.
     
    #1 happyfirst, Oct 21, 2011
  2. spiderman

    spiderman wretched

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    Happy wife, happy life. :)
     
    #2 spiderman, Oct 21, 2011
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  3. abiazis

    abiazis New Member

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    2012.....has new daytime running lights built into the front fascia.

    Additionally, the front fascia will be updated and the rear lights will be changed in appearance.

    NAV screen will be about 1 "larger with better resolution and the ENTUNE feature which you mentioned.

    Parallel parking option with the Advanced Tech Package will not be available replaced by Heads Up Display feature.....
     
    #3 abiazis, Oct 21, 2011
  4. sa177

    sa177 Junior Member

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    2012 HUD is only for the ATP w/ the larger screen, not w/ the nav package if i recall clearly.
     
    #4 sa177, Oct 21, 2011
  5. happyfirst

    happyfirst New Member

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    I think this feature is my biggest hold out. Was watching the video on the toyota site. This looks like it will really add a lot to the car.
     
    #5 happyfirst, Oct 21, 2011
  6. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    There's no more "Five w/ nav" so to speak for 2012 as the Display Audio with navigation and Entune are standard on a Five (so you can't get a Five without nav if you want to look at it another way). It will still have a leather-wrapped steering wheel but it's wrapped in SofTex instead of real leather.

    Differences?

    1. Entune Apps w/ Bing, Pandora, iheartradio, OpenTable and MovieTickets.com
    2. LED DRLs
    3. LED parking lights
    4. Updated 5" MID (3D effect and better colour)
    5. 6.1" Display Audio unit (instead of the 7" Denso unit on the 2011). If you want the 7", you have to go with the Advance Technology Package with the HDD-based nav (vs. DVD-based on 2011 and flash-based for the basic DA unit)
    5. HUD is only available on the AT package'
    6. If you want the dark grey interior, the 2012 version has contrasting door panels and two-tone seats to break up the monotony
    7. Revised suspension
    8. JBL GreenEdge speakers - uses less energy
    9. No water-repellent front door glass
    10. No plasmacluster ionizer filter
     
    #6 Tideland Prius, Oct 21, 2011
  7. happyfirst

    happyfirst New Member

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    Just got back from some test drives. Drove an 11 Prius 5 with nav. Was nice, but wow, accessing music on a usb stick just really really sucked. So slow. Was bummed at the lack of powerseats.

    Asked about Entune, and they had one '12 camry with it. So we drove an Camry SE V6 with Entune. Entune is very very impressive. My wife really really liked it. One of the salesman had it registered, and the maps, pandora, weather, fuel prices, bing, all worked extremely well. SE didn't have homelink, I don't understand why they leave out such basic features (for a car with nav?). In the end, my wife also ended up really liking the camry.

    Tomorrow going to go revisit the optima sx again.

    Tough decision making. Get a new camry with Entune or wait for a 12 Prius with it.

    What size screen will a '12 prius 5 have? Would it be 6.1" or 7"?

    Prices going up? down? staying the same?
     
    #7 happyfirst, Oct 21, 2011
  8. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    FWIW, spwolf has been making claims about Kia Optima Hybrids having a bunch of recalls. I can't find anything on safercar.gov about it. Perhaps it's some European recall?

    See http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-h...ommercial-claims-40mpg-206hp.html#post1396013 and http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-h...mercial-claims-40mpg-206hp-2.html#post1398653.

    Maybe you should press him about it.

    I do wonder if the Optima, being the Hyundai Sonata's close cousin has the same steering problems I've just learned of. See 2011 Hyundai Sonata SE 2.0T Test. Also, in my November 2011 issue of C&D (it doesn't seem to be online yet), on page 95, for their their 2011 Sonata w/15K miles on it:
    Maybe Google for "kia optima" pulling and skim the threads that come up?

    edit: Whoops! I misread your first post and thought you were considering an Optima Hybrid. You can ignore the 1st part if you aren't...
     
    #8 cwerdna, Oct 21, 2011
  9. happyfirst

    happyfirst New Member

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    I've read about the steering problems on the Optima SX but in our test drives so far, we haven't noticed it or it hasn't bothered us.

    Just read up on the new '12 Camry Hybrid and it looks like that will finally get 40+mpg also. I'm wondering if we should just wait for that. Seems like a fully loaded '12 Camry Hybrid will cost the same as a '12 Prius 5 (without atp) ?
     
    #9 happyfirst, Oct 21, 2011
  10. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    6.1" standard, optional 7" with HDD-based nav (vs. DVD-based on the 2011).
     
    #10 Tideland Prius, Oct 22, 2011
  11. F8L

    F8L Protecting Habitat & AG Lands

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    If I were to choose a brand new hybrid sedan I would go with the Camry and the Ford Fusion as a second choice. I don't see the Sonota hybrid or the Optima reaching the higher MPG averages of the aforementioned two cars or having the same reliability.

    If you can hold out for the 2012 Prius you'll have everything plus 10+mpg higher average. The front end looks much better on the 2012 than the 2011 IMO.
     
    #11 F8L, Oct 22, 2011
  12. Gurple42

    Gurple42 New Member

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    Just my 2 cents, sounds like the 12 Camry Hybrid is your best bet:)
     
    #12 Gurple42, Oct 22, 2011
  13. happyfirst

    happyfirst New Member

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    Nice, good to here. I'd prefer a FIVE without ATP. We can live without hud.
     
    #13 happyfirst, Oct 22, 2011
  14. happyfirst

    happyfirst New Member

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    Seeing the new specs on the 12 camry hybrid does have me questioning if that extra 10mpg is worth it on the prius. Will just need to wait and see.

    We test drove the optima SX again today and that is just an outstanding car. I wish Toyota had been a little more aggressive in their '12 camry restyling. Lots of extra features that I don't see us getting on either toyota

    1) Xenon headlights
    2) Powerseats (with driver memory) - camry has power but no memory
    3) Dual climate AC and AC vents for the 2nd row
    4) Cooled/heated front seats
    5) moonroof and 2nd row sunroof - prius nothing, camry just 1st row moonroof.
    6) And the longer warranty

    Decisions, decisions........
     
    #14 happyfirst, Oct 22, 2011
  15. macmaster05

    macmaster05 Senor Member

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    I would definitely wait for the '12 Prius. :D
     
    #15 macmaster05, Oct 22, 2011
  16. F8L

    F8L Protecting Habitat & AG Lands

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    Depending on your point of view, the savings in fuel and reduced emissions could be worth losing some of those above mentioned options. Some view fossil fuel use and dependency as more important that creature comforts that go above and beyond what is really needed. :)
     
    #16 F8L, Oct 22, 2011
  17. F8L

    F8L Protecting Habitat & AG Lands

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    1) Xenon lights are generally not as good as LED headlights like those found on the Prius
    4) Heated seats are an option on the Toyotas
    5) Moonroof/Sunroof is an option on the Toyotas. The Prius v moonroof is arguably the coolest
    6) The standard drivetrain warranty is almost a non-issue with the Toyotas due their superb reliability ratings. The warranty that should be of most concern is that covering the hybrid system since those are the most expensive parts to replace out of warranty
     
    #17 F8L, Oct 22, 2011
  18. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    3. Camry Hybrid XLE has dual-zone A/C and rear seat A/C vents

    Yeah but with the Prius, you get

    LED headlights, LED parking lights (2012), Entune w/ Pandora, navigation with traffic, stocks, fuel prices and weather, JBL GreenEdge speakers, the flexibility of a hatchback, LED taillights and brakelights and of course 10mpg more than the highway mileage of the Optima (combined, youi're looking at almost 15mpg).
     
    #18 Tideland Prius, Oct 23, 2011
  19. happyfirst

    happyfirst New Member

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    That is good to know. Living in hot florida, it's nice knowing the back seat cools faster.


    Yeah, it's hard trying to accurately compare all the cars. My thinking right now is that the Prius did offer us all the space we needed, so would I really need a Camry? I did like the new Camry interior. The outside not. I did like reading that the camry hybrid was tuned a little more for performance and could get to 60 in just 7.5 seconds.

    Since the Kia interest rates are not favorable right now, we are just going to wait and hopefully soon we'll start seeing some 12' prii and 12' camry hybrids.

    The one feature that does keep pulling us back is Entune.

    Some Entune questions:

    1) I've read about some differences between the 6.1" and 7" Entune. It looks like the 7" uses XM for traffic data? Is there going to be a seperate charge for this?

    2) What about map updates? I can't find this anywhere at tyoyota.com/entune. It does reference that the unit uses BING maps. Does this mean that there are no more map update issues? But that it will pull down all that map data through a phone?.
     
    #19 happyfirst, Oct 23, 2011
  20. F8L

    F8L Protecting Habitat & AG Lands

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    So when you buy the Prius I would recommend the following first mods for added comfort and fuel efficiency:

    Tinted windows
    Windshield shade (the Priuschat Shop has a great one)
    ClearBra (protects against rock chips and helps resale value)
     
    #20 F8L, Oct 23, 2011
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