Most Obscure Prius Facts (Way out there)

<_< There's a "recessed handle" on the inside of the hatch on the right side to assist in closing the hatch. Just grab the handle and pull down energetically.

<_< To remove the 12v auxiliary battery cover, you must first remove the tool tray under the cargo area floor. Then flip out the plastic flap on the back side of the battery cover, slide the battery cover rearward and up.

<_< The speedometer and odometer register speed and distance when in reverse.

<_< There's a metal bar on the left under the cargo floor to prop the floor 'up' when accessing the 'tool tray area.'

<_< There's a large 'slot' at the back of the lower glove compartment adequate to store the Manuals that come with your Prius.

<_< There's a small shelf between the hinge enclosures of the upper glove compartment. I haven't found a practical use for it.

 

actually you will find separate volume controls for AM as well.

 

• The 12V battery is in the trunk, under the right-hand corner floor.
• The rear hatch has no key, power release only.
• If your 12V battery should die while your car is locked (such as forgotten dome light?), you will need to use the mechanical key to open the driver door, reach in to unlock the rear driver-side door, fold the seat and climb into the hatch to remove the floor to access the manual release to open the hatch so someone can boost your battery!

Perhaps Toyota should have included a keylock on the rear hatch since the 12V battery is there! :huh:

My 2007 manual indicates there is a positive post for jumping the 12V battery in the fuse box under the hood. Probably not the best place to put it, but better than climbing into the trunk to get at the battery itself.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(chogan @ Nov 21 2006, 08:29 AM) [snapback]352448[/snapback]</div>

If we drive 2 Prii together we will only get 27.5 mpg?
Im not going to drive next to another Prius in the future if it affects my mileage so much.
I think its passenger/mpg which you are looking for .Prius has 4 passengers and I think that would mean that it is the equivalent of going 55mpg x 4 passengers =220 passenger /mpg.
Thats how they figure passenger /mpg of a 747 .They multiply x 300 passengers and result is about 52 mpg per passenger.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Sarge @ Nov 21 2006, 02:20 PM) [snapback]352628[/snapback]</div>

You might try a few minutes with the manual or maybe john1701a's site. There is a terminal under the hood for jumpstarting - no need to do the above dance. Besides, what if you had something large in the hatch area. You couldn't get to the rear hatch release!

- Tom

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Sarge @ Nov 21 2006, 11:20 AM) [snapback]352628[/snapback]</div>

Or you can open the front door with the key, pop the hood and use the extra terminals provided there for getting your car jumped. (It's in the owners manual)

My random facts: The Prius can't jump start other cars!

When the 12V battery dies and you try to open the doors with the fob, the alarm goes off! (This has the added side effect of draining your 12V battery even more as it tries to honk, down to the point that it only emits a 'meep', which is caused by the horn drawing so much power that the computer resets, making it 'meep' again. The only way to turn off the alarm at this point is to unlock the front door with the mechanical key.

EDIT: sorry for the late redundant reply, No-one else had replied yet before the phone rang.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Charles Suitt @ Nov 21 2006, 11:41 AM) [snapback]352658[/snapback]</div>

I was wondering what that was for.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Charles Suitt @ Nov 21 2006, 11:41 AM) [snapback]352658[/snapback]</div>

It's perfectly sized for holding three clif bars, my national parks pass, and a pen.

 

I know, that annoys the heck out of me at night! The light from the lower glovebox can be seen around the button for it.

In Microsoftese, this is a feature, not a bug. It's custom glove compartment button illumination, so you can find it at night.
;-)

 

The little shelf in the upper glove box is perfect for my fast lane transponder and garage transponders.. They can be read by the toll booths and my garage at the office while sitting in there on the shelve out of site. NO longer any need to vlecro them to the windsheild

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Sarge @ Nov 21 2006, 02:20 PM) [snapback]352628[/snapback]</div>

I think there are jumper terminals in the engine compartment. Next to the hamster wheel?

 

When set the Dutch Prius to use English for the satnav, you get the company of two women giving you directions.
British lady:
Take the next exit towards...
Dutch one takes over:
..Nijmegen

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Sarge @ Nov 21 2006, 02:20 PM) [snapback]352628[/snapback]</div>

Thats right, and I think they did a mistake when making the convertion software...

If I reset the consumption, and start by driving in EV, the calculation should read 0.0 L/100km. However, it says 99.9 L/100km which I suspect that the US model shows.

The instant consumption meter reads out 0.0 L/100km correctly.

Another obscure fact: In EU models, voice recognition doesn't work for dial by number, only pre-recorded names, same goes for setting NAV destination by address via voice recognition.

And finally: The new-car-smell has a very vague hint of ... manure! (No, I did not step in something, sniffed around in two new Prii...)

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Cant think of a cool name @ Nov 21 2006, 02:23 PM) [snapback]352747[/snapback]</div>

When you reset in the US, all three of Miles, MPG, and instant consumption go to 0. since they invert MPG into LP100KM 0 becomes 99.9, so it's the same as the US. as soon as you start moving, you get a reasonable number.

Whe you're not moving, it will take an infinite number of liters to get 100 km, and when you can only count to 99.9, Infinity = 99.9.


Random question - do the right hand drive Prii have a shifter on the left or right of the wheel. what about the dimmer, turn signal stalk, wiper stalk, etc. Do they mirror everything? Or (worse) only some of them?

 

1. Exhaust from the Prius is NOT cleaner than "exhaust" from an EV.

2. Modifying the Prius will NOT instantly void the warranty.

3. YMMV - at about the same percentage as it does for any other car on the road.

Sure, I know these aren't just for the Prius, but I hear them so often (especially #2), that I thought I'd better add them!

And the one I haven't seem mentioned that IS just for the Prius...

If you use no gasoline for a five-minute period, you'll see no bar on the consumption graph for that period, though the instantaneous MPG will have shown 99mpg that whole time. The graph ends up looking like my 6-year-old with her front tooth missing.

 

The 12V battery doesn't have to be gotten to just to boost it, unless
you meant the other definition of "boost"...
.
The Prius *can* jump other cars. You are just well-advised to unhook
before the target tries to crank. The Prius DC/DC converter makes
an admirable battery charger, but should be considered as just that.
.
_H*

 

In addition to separate volume levels for separate inputs (ie CD vs Radio) the tone controls also have separate memories. Treble and bass controls for the CD are remembered differently than the radio.

Tip: Pushing treble and bass tone controls to the maximum will improve the listening quality no matter which input you are listening to.

Also,

The lamp in the glove compartment is a LED. LED lamps will last the life of the car but the switch which turns on and off the lamp would not. The cost to replace the switch to provide "normal" on off use would cost much more than just keeping on the LED lamp. As a result this does not bother me at all.

Cheers

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(darelldd @ Nov 21 2006, 03:10 PM) [snapback]352764[/snapback]</div>

Tumbleweed sent me this paragraph once - the first line might explain darelldd's statement above:

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(engunneer @ Nov 21 2006, 02:36 PM) [snapback]352755[/snapback]</div>

IIRC, the power button is on the right of the steering wheel, but the shifter is on the left. As a matter of fact, someone wanted to install an RPM gauge so they bought an A/C vent cover that had the Park button and Shift lever, BUT they got one for the Japanese (and English) Prius. This replaces the one on the right side of the MFD perfectly and had a spot (where the shifter would go) to mount the gauge.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Betelgeuse @ Nov 21 2006, 09:01 AM) [snapback]352453[/snapback]</div>

This is assuming however that the MFD is displaying your energy consumption. If you select Audio and have the stations show up on the MFD, then....aha....
you can change between FM1 and FM2 when in reverse. :lol:
Tried it this morning and it worked.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(200Volts @ Nov 20 2006, 05:31 PM) [snapback]352287[/snapback]</div>

pushing the button on the steering wheel while traveling in reverse this morning - was able to switch to all modes.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tom_06 @ Nov 21 2006, 02:54 PM) [snapback]352673[/snapback]</div>

Hmmm... I have read the manual cover to cover and have also browsed john1701a's site (such a wealth of information!)... I must have missed this point though! I do stand corrected (a few times!) and apologize for misleading anyone!

I guess Toyota does think of everything.