Summary of proposed improvements for future versions of Prius

How about built-in "blind spot" mirrors and the little yellow awareness notification on the side mirrors like most american cars have?...

 

Push button instant passenger for car pool lanes!

 

Automatic sync of dashboard clock using GPS

 

I want the storage space from the gen 2 back: the little hidden drawer under the console and door pockets you could actually put something in. And the cup holders in the rear of the console for the back seat. Having cup holders only in the arm rest is silly. What if you need that space for cargo, or someone is sitting there?

I don't particularly care for the flying buttress bridge console.

+1 for armrests I can use. The one in the door is too low. The one on the console is too far back, and I always end up with my elbow in the cup holder.

 

i want the gen II with an improvement to the center console. connect it to the dashboard and increase the cupholder area to include a place for i phone, scangauge, changeholder, etc. make it flat so things don't slide off.

 

How about a discharge button.

I find that when i'm climbing a mountain, knowing that i need an empty battery to regen on the way down, that the ICE is charging the battery on the way up, even if the battary is at 70-80%?

I heard about the Chevy Volt having a hill climb button.

I suggest 2 buttons:
1) a force discharge (or stop recharge)
2) a force regen (I don't think it's necessary but since there is one, there should be another), plus other people may need it.

I guess it's a manual way of managing the battery. Like Fords future system, where it will look ahead to maximize hybrid charge/discharge profile, for a given route.

Aloha

 

The Volt's mountain mode is necessary because on very step and high-speed hill climbs the vols 1.4L engine cannot effectively keep up (given its high mass). It uses the battery buffer to allow it more power on the climbs. With the Prius's larger engine so a mountain mode is not really needed. With a smaller battery though I can see your desire ensure its a/near empty when you crest the hill.

I do which the EV's allowed user control, but the EPA is not really keen on that as their rules say ifyou can force ICE and discharge they test with the "worst" mode.

I would expect that Prius hackers will figure a way to force the mode changes you seek (in a year or two).

 

After living with my Prius for 2 years here's my view of what I like and don't like.
Like -

1. Keep EV mode to move the car around the yard without starting or draining the 12v battery ( I understand the newer Prius won't let you do this).
2. Style / Shape looks cool (from the side not the rear)
3. HUD
4. Auto lights
5. LED lights
6. NAV / Phone screen

Don't like.

1. Dashbord rattles /buzzes and centre arm rest rattles.
2. Interior plastics look cheap and are too hard I like a more rubbery feel like German cars.
3. Rear visability
4. Auto dimming mirror could be better at dimming
5. Fact no tyre pressure monitors I see this as a very sensible safety option when travelling at high speed to know if your tyres are deflating.
6. No Auto lights with wiper activation i.e if its raining then lights on as well please.
7. Microphone volume/sensitivity adjustment not simple
8. Rear view of car looks to narrow / tall

I dont want to increase the spec so its a Lexus but lets keep the good features and add a few basic fixes to rattles and interior quality plus a few safety tweaks.

 

Auto on/off headlamps in the lower-end models. I have them on my 98 Corolla LE and am quite surprised one has to upgrade to the Prius Four+ to get auto on/off headlamps.

 

I wish the cruise control on or off setting would default to "last setting".

 

--------

 

The thing that grates on me most at the moment is how the audio display defaults to an incomplete cascade of options when changing audio inputs instead of defaulting to a tiled display or a smarter cascade of most recently used inputs. As far as I can tell, there's no way to alter this behavior. Somebody please correct me if I'm wrong!

 

How about having the ability of the cruise range calculation to go into negative numbers? This way it just doesn't stop at "0". It would keep going so that you know how far past "0" you went. Since there is typically 2 gallons of reserve fuel when the cruise range says "0" it will help you plan your next fill-up, especially if you don't notice when the cruise range hit "0".

They may even be able to do this on existing models with software updates!

 

Add me to the list of owners in disbelief they could not at least offer the option of USB/AUX in the cubby under the dash. Maybe put sliding doors in that cubby if the idea is to make sure no one can see what is there? HOw much more would that cost to install at the factory, 10-20 dollars?

 

Jerry,
Can you (or anyone) point me to the source concerning where Ford, or any other auto makers, are working on an automatic system like this?

This seems like such a no-brainer given that with GPS, cars now can know what the upcoming terrain will be. My Honda Insight has already gone through 2 batteries. I always believed that a contributing factor is that my drive to work consists of a several mile uphill climb where the car applies battery assist the entire way until depleted. On the way back I get back up to about 30-40% charge. If I slow down to 60MPH, the battery doesn't get drained.

So add me to the list of drivers who would like to see this feature in future hybrids.

RT

 

I checked your list and didn't find this on it, although I didn't check the 25 pages of posts.
Has nobody mentioned the lack of sound coming out of the rear speakers in the Gen III Prius? You have to modify the fade quite a bit before any decent sound comes out of there. Or perhaps a mode to enable rear sound when there is a passenger back there?

 

I don't know if this is on there or not. There is a a temperature setting adjustment, a fan adjustment and a fan off switch. The fan off switch should be modified to be a fan on-off toggle. This way you could adjust your temp and fan speed via the two existing switches and use the toggle switch to turn it on/off as required without having to screw around with the fan speed switch.

I envision this being very useful in the winter when you turn the heat up high for just a little while to get some warmth in the car without taking too much heat away from the engine. Plus by being able to just toggle it on and off, you can pay more attention to the road. I guess you could also use it in the hotter months to toggle on AC as well.

 

I just read your post. I forgot where I originally heard about the adaptive ford system. But here is a link for the plug in hybrid c,ax with adaptive system using gps.

Ford EV+ feature "learns" to increase your energy efficiency

This out of the subject. I also have a gen 1 insight. I suggest installing a 'Calpod' switch. It lets you disable the hybrid system, by fooling the computer to think the clutch is engaged. This assuming you have a manual gearbox. Its just a switch wired in parallel with the clutch switch. When you close the switch the car thinks the cluch is pushed in and stops regen and assist. You can preserve the charge of the battery. I use the switch at the end of my trip to charge up my battery.

 

I love the exterior lines of the hatchback design... please don't change it! Offer interesting colors, other interior mods, but I just love the look of my Gen III 2012...

 

I actually went to the dealer to price the USB port for the under-center-dash blank and was taken back by the price. $128.00 for a USB socket!!!! Guess I don't need one that bad.