What I don't like about the 2016 Prius

I'm happy for you. Thing is, that really does absolutely nothing to replace the half-dozen useful little doors and drawers in the front of the Gen2 cabin, which I think is where this started. I guess the main problem with the in-trunk tupperware is that it helps with about 20% of the problem (the small and large under-floor compartments), and not really very well (since it's not, well, under-floor). Flat plastic boxes obviously slide around like mad on a carpeted deck, but hey, if you've done additional mods with velcro or cleats or rubber mats or beach towels or Stickum or whatever and it's adequate for your specific purposes, good for you. That doesn't change this basic problem with the Gen4 (Gen4 gripes being the topic of this thread last I looked), which is most definitely not, as you have inexplicably suggested, a "benefit" to buyers by way of encouraging some minimalist aesthetic that you appear to prize.

I really don't care much about the box itself, but you've brought it up a couple of times as a solution to a problem it doesn't really address. Keep suggesting it as a great idea all you like, maybe for someone else it will be. Regardless, you're right - it's a trivial topic. If it gives you a good laugh, re-read it all you like.

But the main reason I've bothered writing any reply at all was this last bit of misdirection. The main target of my last comment (do a word count) was the ill-considered suggestion that a good solution for the problem of the Gen4's lack of cubbies was to buy a Prius v instead. That's a pretty lousy suggestion for reasons I noted, and that's what drew the "sheesh", not the lame "hatch-box" topic (which was really incidental to that post). I note you've not spoken to that at all, instead pretending that my more pointed comment was directed at the more trivial topic. Make your points as you like, but distorting mine won't advance the argument.

To all and sundry I apologize for this meta-discussion. The bottom line is that the absence of nice little storage nooks in the Gen4 is an irritant that we're learning to work around. That doesn't appear to be an uncommon sentiment, but for whatever reason I've gotten into this blah-blah-blah for daring to object to the faux-zen suggestion that the Gen4 LB is just fine, and it's we that should all learn to carry less stuff with us, and if we won't we should stop griping and buy a different car. I'm still calling BS on that idea, no matter how breezy or off-handed its delivery. As far as I'm concerned, Toyota screwed up, I wish they hadn't, and that's about as much as I care about on this subject. The suitability of one trunk organizer (I am looking at a few myself) vs. another isn't really Prius-specific, but I guess we can trade tips on that if we like.

 

Are the winds in Albuquerque making you a bit testy?

 

That was even more so on the Gen 3 rear spoiler.

 

Probably - we've been getting blown from one lane to the next this weekend. That said, yeah, the topic does make me grumpy. CC got disproportionately on my bad side with that "it's good to force you to take less stuff" BS, because I've been watching my wife figuring out what she needs at hand most and where best to put it, and she's genuinely annoyed, so the spouting of alternative life philosophy was not going to be welcome (I had a similar reaction to some twit last fall that dismissed my concerns about the Gen4's relatively more difficult ingress/egress). That this change was made to a car that had actually been much better than average in this regard, apparently in the name of some styling exercise (the dominant theme of the Gen4) is just irksome. But that's a personal problem - I'll try to tone it down.

Though this is a gripe thread, I do feel obligated to clarify that my kvetching about interior storage should not be taken as an across the board condemnation of the front seat experience. Having lived with it a few weeks, I do think the overall dashboard/console works well for the driver and looks great, stylistic excesses and dearth of cubbyholes notwithstanding. In a lot of ways it continues the "spaceship Prius" vibe (love it or don't) updated for current tech (even if the tech's not leading edge functionally), and definitely feels upmarket from the Gen3 interior. I find the seats more comfortable than the Gen2's and expect that to hold up on longer rides, and the overall look of the two-tone theme that runs through the cabin from dashboard to upholstery is distinctive without being too weird. We're glad we bought it, and I'm satisfied that the LB still suits us better than the v.

On a separate note, about the exterior styling I can only say that however I dissect its appearance from one angle or another, I notice it does draw more second looks than my i-MiEV ever has (which is saying something given the i-MiEV's clown car mien), and that's in a decidedly car-indifferent town. I expect that to fall off considerably with familiarity, but my perception is that the response has been generally positive from non-buyers who react to what they're seeing without being able to identify it.

So yeah, I gripe, but it still comes from a place of considerable affection.

 

Great thread. Even with a few design quirks, the new Gen4 Prius is a very nice car.

And we are very fortunate and blessed to be able to sit here and discuss, debate, and argue about a silly subject like cars.

 

Weird New Issue:
I'm 6'3" and while having service on my 2010 prius I was sitting in a 2016 3 and was very disappointed in the seating position.
While generally comfortable, if I put the seat where I would use it (all the way back) my left arm is far and I mean far beyond the door armrest. Making it virtually unusable. I know it's because the seats go further back than in the 2010 Prius, which I appreciate, but it really is an issue and I'm not happy. I'm hoping , for some reason, it may be better in the 3 or 4 touring models.

 

interesting, you may be the first to report this. i mean, that's a lonnnng way back.

 

"I notice it does draw more second looks . . . I expect that to fall off considerably with familiarity"
I hope so, and do expect it. On the interstate a few days ago I had a Gen III PIP catch up to me. I was doing 75mph. Then he boxed me in behind someone doing 55 in the right lane. He literally slowed down 25 MPH and blocked up the passing lane for others behind him just to gape at at my 2016. Very annoying and inconsiderate. LOL, I was rolling my eyes thinking that the drivers behind him were having their stereotype "Prius's clog up the left lane", story line re-enforced. In this case it was true.

 

Is this a characteristic particularly of Gen 4 Prius - of being easily blown around in windy conditions?

 

No, It's a characteristic particularly of Albuquerque in what the rest of y'all call "springtime" - here it's "windy season." As for the Gen4 LB's wind-worthiness, it's actually an improvement on the Gen2 in that regard (which itself was better than my '04 Matrix).

None hold a candle to my 2012 i-MiEV of course - it's lightly constructed, high profile, and downright slab-sided (which I admit did make me mildly concerned about facing the March/April winds), but strapping 750 lbs. of batteries to the bottom of the car definitely gives it a certain Weeble-like tendency to stubborn uprightness. When driving it, my first clue that it's getting gusty is usually the trash flying sideways in front of me - can't really feel it in the car.

 

They also got rid of the remote ac and solar sunroof which was handy here in California.

 

Ok time to add my beef to the correct thread.

Sunroof wind noise when closed from tilt position. Appears not to fully close , work around is to open via slide method and close again.

Dash rattles from near wind shield side or from passenger or driver foot well areas. Found multiple areas that could be causing plastic against plastic resonance. Vents under footwell, speaker covers on dash, trim pieces under footwell. Black plastic covers around sensors mounted on windshield.

Hood insulation, re- seated it. Was rattling around .

A pillar wind noise.






LG-H901 ?

 

youch. was it assembled in detroit?

 

Okay, I know this is minuscule, but is anyone else annoyed that the "back/forward track" steering wheel button works opposite for Sirius XM/Radio than it does for Bluetooth Audio? Wish there was a way to fix this for all to follow the same pattern.

My only other slight gripe is I've noticed when I'm at a stop and the engine is running, there's a small vibration in the brake pedal from the engine running, which I never felt in my Gen 3.

 

F-dawg, the "vents under footwell". You mean the heater vent that's up behind the brake pedal (somewhere?) Got a picture? (I finally saw the heater vents under my seats... 2 round tubes under each seat. They're a bit loose but they don't rattle.)

Man, that's nuts you got all those rattles! Even the hood insulation? Speakers? It seems like a few people with Four models have reported door panel rattles. Maybe I'm wrong.

 

I don't have all those rattles, just listing possible areas that can cause rattles. The vent is light colored , tap your finger over the exit holes of the driver vent and hear it resonate like buzz buzz buzz. Putting an object in between the vent but not blocking air output stops the resonating.

LG-H901 ?

 

I found it interesting that the new Wald body kit solves the part I found the ugliest with the 2016 Prius design.

If you look closely at their gallery, they covered the headlights to separate the upper and lower portions of boomerang head lights. They also covered portions of the rear lights to break the fang effect. With these kind of mods, I might consider looking again at a 2016 when my current Prius dies.

Image source: INDEX - TOYOTA PRIUS

 

The front change is interesting - to my eye it does look better, but I'd want to be guaranteed it had no effect on light spread.

The rear lights are an entirely different matter. Looks worse, making the already over-busy back even MORE junked up, and it definitely blocks part of the rear lights. Zero benefit for me, since it's not the "fangs" that bug me so much as the visual clutter (i.e., it mitigates something I don't care about and exacerbates something that I think is barely tolerable).

Oh - and kudos to Wald for taking the Touring's already pointless "rear bumper treatment" and kicking it up a few notches into Mad Max territory. Just lovely, only where are the flames and glaring bloodshot eyeballs?

 

I looked at their parts list, and the front and rear light covers have their own number. You could probably just select the ones you agree with and not order the rest. I'm 3.5 years away from having to replace my current Prius, so I won't be calling until then. Hopefully by then, a Toyota mid cycle redesign will make that unnecessary.

But if not, I will order those light blocks regardless how bad they will affect the light spread. because for me it's what will make this version barely acceptable.