Greetings From Minnesota

welcome!

 

Welcome! Great color, btw .

 

Hello!

12 winters in Minnesota driving Prius. Haven't needed snow tires yet.

Where will you be driving that you'd feel they were necessary?

 

Routine travel off the beaten path, where oridinary traditional cars sometimes get stuck is good reason to just pop for a set of snow tires.

Living in the metro area, the driving isn't that much of a challenge. Escaping into the country does happen still though...

 

It will look something like this...

 

The Prius, like all new cars, has TPMS, a tire pressure monitoring system. There is a wireless pressure sensor in each wheel. If you buy new wheels, you can either add sensors to them or else ignore the TPMS warning light that will come on. I'd go with ignoring the light.

One more thing, if you use FixAFlat on a tire with TPMS, you might ruin the sensor. And then the light would come on, and you'd have to ignore it.

 

how did you know what model & package you were buying. I am worried about figuring it out on a used one since there is no way to determine except for knowing all the features. I am also really worried about after market heated seat & sunroof being added & me thinking it is park of a package. Any advice??

 

Toyota Vehicles : Toyota Announces Prices for 2010 Prius / Toyota will help for 2010-2011 model years (except that Toyota changed to spelling out the words instead of using Roman numerals with model year 2011 - see MY11 Prius | PriusChat). There's also no mention of USB in that press release as it was added later on the 2010s (you need to have navigation to get USB in 2010-2011).

Exclusive: 2012 MY Prius - Changes and Additions | PriusChat is mostly right except that the backup camera isn't included on model Two.

If you're considering a Gen 2 (04 to 09), see 2G Prius (2004-2009) Standard and Optional Equipment (Some Countries) | PriusChat. Brochures for Gen 2 are at 2G Prius (2004-2009) Standard and Optional Equipment (Some Countries) | PriusChat.

There was NO factory sunroof on Gen 2. On Gen 3, see the table for the matrix. If it has a sunroof but does not have a solar panel accompanied and remote AC feature, it didn't come from the factory.

You may wish to start a new thread to ask about used Prius buying questions instead of piggybacking on this.

What state are you in?

 

Thanks!!! I am new to these forums & have no clue as to when to start a chat, especially since the tools for newbies was very clear. I searched & searched. I feel SO FRUSTRATED like I need a PhD to determine which one is right for me. Really all I want in the end is a sunroof. If I have to add heated seats after the fact, I can. ( Unless everyone thinks that is a bad idea).

 

Boston. I'm looking for a 2010

 

Cool. The reason why I ask is because MA is a CARB emissions state. It's all in the warranty booklet.

So, if you buy a used Prius which was originally purchased, always registered and operated in MA or another CARB state, you'll be eligible for the 10 year/150K mile HV battery warranty (instead of 8 years/100K miles). Also, some other warranties should be longer too (e.g. 15 year/150K mile emissions warranty and a longer hybrid components warranty).

IMHO, that would be an important factor in my purchase, unless I didn't plan to keep it beyond 8 years or 100K miles.

Re: USB coming late in the 2010 model year, see More on USB/Safety Connect | PriusChat and More on USB/Safety Connect | PriusChat. The 2010s first went on sale in mid to late May 2009 (First 2010 prius in north america.. Drum roll please..... | PriusChat).

BTW, after seeing Prius Solar Panel Failure | PriusChat, I'm a bit wary of the solar roof. I'd hate to pay extra for something that fails prematurely and is expensive to fix.

 

wow.. thanks, I am having little luck searching this stuff. I HAD NO IDEA about the warranty stuff!!!
is a solar panel the same thing as a sun/moon roof? I thought the solar panel was something else/
and how do you know if you get a late model? just by searching for the USB? Is it me or is this convoluted beyond normal life...

 

The warranty book is available for download from http://www.toyota.com/t3Portal/document/omms/T-MMS-10Prius/pdf/2010_Prius_WMG_0W20_lr.pdf. You can get to it via Toyota Online Owners Manuals and Technical Manuals by putting in the year and model of car in the upper right. If you search for your state's name in the PDF, you'll see what I'm talking about. It's all/pretty all much under the California warranties.

I don't know about your USB question other than looking at the build month/year on the sticker/placard on the driver's side, near the door jamb and physically looking for the ports.

The only form of sunroof on the 3rd gen Prius liftback (aka regular Prius) is the solar roof. You get a solar panel that runs the ventilation fan when parked outside and a sunroof. I found this brief video:

and

. Remote AC comes w/solar roof.

 

^^^
BTW, I don't know if this is way out of your price range, but it looks like there are some incentives for MA given
BuyAToyota!
(put in your zip) on the Plug-in Prius. There's also a $2500 Federal tax credit, if you qualify.

 

Thanks for all of your help. My house barely has enough electricity coming in to feed the three units, let alone a car ;-( otherwise I would ahve gone that route. You are super helpful! I'm still feeling lost.

BTW, is there any way to put on larger wheels to raise the clearance at all? and would after market heated seats add the lumbar that is in the leather IV? because of the prius seat issue, I was all set to get a 2010 hybrid camry til I couldn't find one. Though I always wanted a prius. It just feels way too confusing...