Gen 4, a disappointment?

Jumped from gen 2 to gen 4 and i absolutely love it. I'm a bit disappointed in Toyota's after-sales and the naff customer portal online, but the car itself exceeded my expectations and is a joy to drive. I don't fixate on mpgs and will scream away from the lights sometimes, leaving all others on my wake, but how great is it that you can do that in a hybrid electric vehicle?

I'm not sure what gadgets or tech the car is missing but I splurged on the top package and seems to have everything.

If I had one complaint it is that I can't flip between mph and km/h when I move between the UK and the continent. Oh, and not being able to turn the headlights completely off while leaving the engine on (for drive-in movies) but otherwise it ticks every box for me.

 

There are elements of the Gen 4 that are most disappointing such as the tyre noise and the bloody rattles from the dashboard. If you're considering a Tesla Model 3, then pretty much no car manufacturer is at their level in terms of tech and the WOW factor.

A friend of mine took a passenger ride the other day in my Gen 4, and when I was pointing out all the standard safety features, he was rather impressed. That's the WOW factor for me, technology working to reduce the risk of an accident.

 

The Gen 4 is phenomenal and light years ahead of its competition and has an undisputed proven track record.

 

Someone posted the other day about turning the DRLs off while parking. It involved first POWERING OFF, then back on again leaving the handbrake (horrible foot-handbrake parking thingy) ON.

 

On my USA Prius, they go off when I turn the power button off. Or I just rotate the light stalk to the "off" position. DRL's are off.

 

Mine has the Off position on the light stalk, The first car I have has where you could turn off the running lights. I wish it did not have this feature. It is too easy to accidentally drive with DRLs turned off.

 

Now that's some serious NewSpeak. Sounds like a watch guaranteed to work for a lifetime that just automatically slashes your wrist when it fails.

[Don't blame me - that was an old Dick Cavett joke that just leapt to mind when I read that Tom Tom drivel . . . . ]

Anyway, I think Hyundai's battery warranty is legit, and I'd imagine not terribly risky. The BMS in hybrids is tuned to maximize longevity, never fully charging or discharging, so the batteries fare far better than those in BEVs. From what I've heard, this is also true for the Volt, which favors long-term battery life over maximum EV range.

Your greater risk is that Hyundai USA goes the way of Daewoo. Barring some VW-grade screwup that strikes me as very unlikely, but such considerations are no stranger to Mitsubishi owners like myself.

 

you still have drive in's?

 

Not many here - but there is one only 13 mins away.

 

There's no off position on Euro spec Prii light switch.

 

a good safety feature. It forces drivers to always have their DRL's on. I like that.

 

IIRC all UK spec cars built since late 2012/early 2013 have DRLs which come on with the ignition and can not be turned off whilst the ignition is on. What RCO meant is that there is no way to turn the other lights off at night. We have "Auto" which is headlights on, forward one click on the stalk is sidelights (parking lights) and another forward click is headlights again, no "off" position. Why Toyota couldn't just put "off" where the "Auto" position is and put the auto lights on the headlight position on the stalk is beyond me ?

 

In Canada: my 2010 (not sure if it's still the case) DRL's are on any time headlights are off, and headlights can be switched right off.

Might be different in "cyberspace".

 

In my other Toyota vehicles with DRLs, they turn on when the vehicle is shifted out of Park and remain on until the ignition is switched off.

 

In Canada the DRL's come out similarly; they're the high beams at reduced brightness. If the car's turned on and parking brake released, DRL's come on. But: switch headlights on and the DRL's go off. Turn headlights off and DRL's go back on.

Switch to parking lights only, I'm not sure, lol. Think DRL's stay off?

 

This topic of DRLs had been around before. It's another care of deja vu, all over again.i

 

Yogi Berra, is that you?
It's like deja-vu, all over again. - Yogi Berra - BrainyQuote

 

I have never had an issue with a dashboard rattle, and find the tire noise acceptable. I don't know of any way to accurately measure tire noise since both volume and frequency may play a part in your perception vs. mine.

As far as comparing the Tesla to the Gen 4, that's a bit unfair because of the money and size factor. However, in terms of value, I think that Toyota reliability and superior fuel economy (fuel cost per mile driven) both make the Gen 4 a better buy than a Tesla. And no one driving a Gen 4 has "range anxiety."