My present car has a big windshield, but nothing compared to a Prius. So for those of you in HOT sun states does your body ( not the cars ) get hot even with the air on?
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(B Rad @ Jun 3 2006, 06:50 PM) [snapback]265290[/snapback]</div> In Georgia here. Temps have been in the 90s. Car sitting in sun all day gets hot, I feel comfortable only after 10-15 minutes with AC at 73-74. If car is in shade in the afternoon, then I feel pleasantness almost immediately with AC on 73-74, even when pulling car out into the sun. In short, car holds temp well once cooled. If I drove around in a fig leaf like Drift Motion, I think my leather seats would be more of a problem for me.
i've got a sunshade for my windshield that i use when the car is parked. the first 5 min or so i just open all the windows to get some air moving. if it's hot enough i'll turn on the AC after those 5 min or so. it does get warm, but tint helps as so does parking in the shade when possible.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(B Rad @ Jun 3 2006, 06:50 PM) [snapback]265290[/snapback]</div> I am somewhat heat intolerant, G*d help me, living here in central Georgia, and driving in our van was a less than pleasant experience for me. Not so with the Prius. Although the windshield slope seems comparable, once cooled to the 76 we have it set for, the Prius maintains temperature level nicely. We are getting a tint, but that is more for efficiency and on the windshield can only be on the upper 6" anyway......wouldn't bother if it was just for our comfort, Toyota has dealt nicely with that.
I find that the car cools pretty quickly. A good sunshield does help alot but just open the windows for a couple minutes to let the hot air out and blast the AC until you can't stand it and have to turn it down cause now it is too cold!
We took a trip today where the temperature was in the low 90s. We had had the windows down a bit and a sunshade before we went. It cooled down pretty quickly.
The interior of my Prius cools down quite nicely after a long, hot day of sitting in the parking lot all closed up. A sun shade definitely helps, and will likely help preserve your dash... just make sure to get a really big shade. I bought the largest one I could find in the local stores (rated "jumbo"), but it still isn't quite big enough. The PC shop does sell shades made for the Prius. The Auto A/C cools down the car quite quickly (desired temps. in 3-5 minutes), and it's smart about it. From personal observation, if there's a large disparity between indoor and outdoor temperatures or if the outside temp is higher than 90 degrees, the A/C will automatically recirculate the air from the cabin as it cools down, which is far more efficient than constantly cooling down a new "batch" of hot outside air. The designers took some time and thought out many of the details on the A/C system.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(B Rad @ Jun 3 2006, 12:50 PM) [snapback]265290[/snapback]</div> We live in Hawaii. Incredible UV and heat intensity with the humidity. The automatic air conditioning works just fine even with large front windshield.
Some other guy here didn't like the back window either. You can't please everybody. Without being too "smug", I think the Prius is the best designed, most convenient, and most comfortable car I've ever had. At least mine is. It also gets the best mpg I've ever seen. Complaints? In a word...NO.
I use the front heat shield, but that rear window is a real cooker too. I took an orchid from San Diego to Los Angeles on a sunny day a couple of weeks back. Made a couple of stops along the way. I was comfortable with A/C running, but later that afternoon, that poor little plant was cooked! I just had a tint job job done today, so things should improve somewhat. I'll post some before and after picks later. Did I say I love this car?
I have side window deflectors on my prius that allow me to lower my windows an inch or two when parked in the sun and prevent heat buildup inside the car. Despite the size of the windshield the heat buildup is not as great as the van I traded in on the Prius.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(subarutoo @ Jun 4 2006, 12:57 AM) [snapback]265482[/snapback]</div> Lets start over. I am not knocking the design of the Prius, in fact I love the whole look(except maybe the little rear wheel well). What I need to know is say you are parked in the shade on a hot day(100+) you get in turn on the air and bring the temp down to below 80 inside. You drive away and the temp inside stays nice but do the rays from the sun cook your skin???????????
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(B Rad @ Jun 4 2006, 11:57 AM) [snapback]265615[/snapback]</div> Anytime that you are in a car on a 100+ degree day the sun is cooking your skin. That has nothing to do with the Prius. Here in Texas that is not an uncommon occurrence, but I have not been in a car (untinted) that did not have the same experience.
