We are in the market for a Prius (this is not a deciding factor just curious) and a couple times a month we like to go to the local drive-in and have a fun family night. Our drive-in is more modern where you can listen to the movie through the radio and just wondering how the Prius works if we watch 2 movies in a night. As of right now we turn our car on a couple times throughout the night but confused as to how the Prius would work. Sorry if its a dumb question but this is something we have done for a long time and enjoy it.
Accessory mode will auto shutoff after 1 hour to protect the 12v battery. You can simply leave the car in "on" mode and if the 12v battery gets too low- the gas engine will auto start up to charge the 12v battery then shut off once the 12v battery is sufficiently recharged. It's actually a pretty fool proof system- most other cars won't automatically start the engine if the battery is getting dangerously low but the Prius will if you leave the car "on".
I agree with ny_rob. Best thing would be to just leave the Prius in "ready mode" (i.e. on). The engine will start/stop as needed to keep the 12V battery charged and the radio would never cut out. The 12V battery in the Prius is small so you want to be careful of using it too much in accessory mode. I have a slow leak in one tire. Whenever I have to fill it I put the car in "ready mode" before plugging in the air pump to insure that I don't overly drain the 12V battery. Haven't been to a drive-in in decades!
Thanks for the replies! Not rubbing it in but it is nice living in FL and being able to go to the outdoor all year round. Cheaper than taking a family to the theater and our drive-in has HD screens and projectors!
as people have kinda stated.. never keep the car in any mode other than READY for long period of time as you'll be asking for 12v battery problems sooner than later (if you drain the 12v at any time, consider it dead... recharge helps but the way the battery is, it's dead once drained.. or at at least extremely unreliable) sitting with the car in READY tends to only burn a gallon every 10 hours or so... possibly a little less time or a little more depending on volume used.. if a/c if left on.. etc..
