I Bought a 2007 Prius Touring from a Toyota Dealer a couple of weeks ago. Averaging 50 mpg on two tanks so far, lots of HWY driving. Love it. A few days ago, however, I noticed a possible computer or software glitch where my display infrequently (or sometimes) erratically switches from Consumption to Energy Monitor and toggles between the two without me touching anything. The glitch is not consistent with every start or drive, but it has been able to present itself during use of the backup camera and during navigation, rendering nav pretty much useless. Before I schedule a service appointment, has anyone seen this type of computer behavior OR is there a way to reset/update the software that would be affecting this? New to forum, sorry for any faux pas, checked the search for this topic. Nada.
If you are sure you are not bumping the steering wheel button for that function, it may be loose and doing it itself. with the car parked, just lightly touch that switch, and watch the screen. If you can tap around the switch area, or the switch takes an unnecessary light touch to change the MFD screen, that switch could be bad! You can also switch on the MFD screen, if that works OK, you can probably eliminate that. Those are the only two way I know of to switch between the Consumption and MPG screens. BTW :welcome:
isn't there a common design flaw for a wire to come loose behind the MFD? I've had 2 Prius and (knock on wood) never had this problem or the wheel bearing issue or the HID bulb issue but I think the fix is a very time consuming pain in the arse, requiring the dash to be taken off and wires to be re-soldered. (perform a search) If you're one of those people that likes to put a positive spin on things than let me tell you that if you're taking the dash apart it would only take an extra minute or two and a few bucks at Radio Shack to add an EV button.
Definitely not touching the controls and doesn't seem to the be the switch. Thanks for the the response!
Not this specific problem, but the MFD is known to have issues with cracking of the circuit board at the connectors: Prius MFD I could imagine a number of different glitchy symptoms could occur as a result of random solder cracks.
Another possibility is what is known as the clock spring in the middle of the steering wheel. This carries the wires from the buttons down the steering shaft and is known to give many strange problems like the radio turning on and off.
