My gf and I were driving our Prius a few days ago and she had some interesting questions that I could not answer... - If you are on the freeway doing 60mph and hit (or hold in) the power button, what happens? - If you are driving and hit the stick to put the Prius in reverse, what happens? Obviously I don't want to try either of these, but they are interesting to know. I doubt the car would have been made without a feature that ignores the power button or the reverse stick in anything over 5mph or something. Does anyone know the answer to these? Thanks!
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(EmptyG @ Aug 31 2007, 01:07 PM) [snapback]505035[/snapback]</div> If you hit it, nothing. Hold it in for ~5 seconds and everything will shut down and the car will go into neutral. You have to come to a complete stop, after which it will shift into "Park" and then allow you to re-start. <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(EmptyG @ Aug 31 2007, 01:07 PM) [snapback]505035[/snapback]</div> Nothing. Well, the car may beep at you, but it won't shift the car from reverse to drive (or drive to reverse) unless you're going less than ~2 MPH.
Just wondered if anyone mentioned your use of "on accident" instead of "by accident." My mom always got after me for that, so that now it does kinda grate against me. But apparently it's a regional vocabulary thing now. I found this page on it interesting; it has a poll.
I had to laugh when I read this one. "Oops I hit the power button!" - what kind of idiot would do that while driving???
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jeneric @ Aug 31 2007, 04:57 PM) [snapback]505135[/snapback]</div> I don't see the term in any of the above posts. It could be I'm blind, or perhaps the post was edited? Tom
It was funny, actually, three years ago when second gen prii were still new and this question came up. It sort of went like, "you try it." "No YOU try it." "Oh no, YOU try it."
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(qbee42 @ Aug 31 2007, 02:49 PM) [snapback]505153[/snapback]</div> The former. It's in the thread title.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jeneric @ Aug 31 2007, 02:57 PM) [snapback]505135[/snapback]</div> Interesting links! Of course, you could simply avoid the controversy by saying "accidentally" instead of either "on accident" or "by accident."
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jeneric @ Aug 31 2007, 06:09 PM) [snapback]505164[/snapback]</div> Got it. My braille reader doesn't show the thread titles. Tom
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Betelgeuse @ Aug 31 2007, 08:15 PM) [snapback]505040[/snapback]</div> Not really, something happens: The car gives three beeps and the car goes into N. The same happens if you accidentaly press P while moving.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(jeneric @ Aug 31 2007, 03:57 PM) [snapback]505135[/snapback]</div> Having studied Language and Linguistics in college, my favorite Linguistics professor once said, "there are those who correct others because they know what's right; there are those who bite their tongue because they know what's best." I have, on many occasions, found it "best" to smile and nod.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(The Tramp @ Aug 31 2007, 05:32 PM) [snapback]505170[/snapback]</div> Perhaps there's some difference between the European Prius and the American one, but I know that it doesn't go into neutral if you hit the Park button; I found that one out when I was flustered and trying to hit the hazard lights and missed. You could be right about reverse; I don't know that one.
Well, if it's anything like what happened on Mythbusters then absolutely nothing will happen in either circumstance, except possibly going into neutral. Basically Mythbusters came to the conclusion that the automatic car just wouldn't let itself get F'ed up. The computers figured it's a bad idea to go into reverse at 40MPH, or however fast they were going. Based on that I'd assume that the car isn't going to just shut off with the power button at 60MPH. I'm certainly not going to try it, even though I can't in my old 2002 Prius. As for the park and reverse. Mythbusters never said that their cars went into neutral, but they very well could have for the about 2000 foot braking distance they had while in reverse. Never personally seen how long it take to stop my car going 40MPH just by letting off the gas, but I'm assuming it's pretty far.
I tested the forward/reverse and park thing on a snowy road, so that if something bad did happen it would slide instead of ripping teeth off the parking gear ... the speed threshold is only about 2 mph for moving to N, under which the parking pawl *does* lock and you lurch to a sudden stop. I didn't try the power thing, though. I suspect you'd get a shift to N the same way, but would the whole system then shut down and leave you flying along dead-stick? Well, something to test once winter comes. Might be testable with one front wheel just held up in the air, too, although that might not have enough inertia to keep things going during the transitions. . _H*
