What I hate about my Prius

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ezbngrn @ Nov 29 2007, 04:54 PM) [snapback]545818[/snapback]</div>

If you'd looked in your manual, you have found out that the system can easily be reprogrammed to open all of the doors.

See here.

 

My biggest issue is the plastic materials used in the interior. This is not just a problem with Toyota, as a lot of car manufacturers are now using plastics that scratch way too easy. I put a Coastal Tech XM unit in my Wife's Prius, and scratched the MFD while disassembling the dash. :angry:

 

(In the classic prius): Terrible, horrible, jolly-rotten sound system for a car this expensive.

 

Here are my hates (hate may be too strong a word, I'd really call them dislikes):

1. Driver's seat too high, needs to be at least 1" lower, the mirror blocks a lot of the road especially on right hand drive turns.

2. A surprising amount of rattles and squeaks. I've got 3 rattles and 1 squeak/creak that are annoying that come and go, in order of annoyance:
- Lower glove box rattle. Doesn't rattle when it's open or if pressing the door a bit. Probably need to adjust the latch a bit.
- Rattle in the upper driver's side a-pillar somewhere. Haven't heard this one in a couple weeks, so hopefully it resolved itself.
- Rattle in the dash right above the steering wheel. Like the previous, haven't heard this one in a couple weeks, so hopefully it resolved itself.
- Creaking from the right rear hatch area. Just started after are recent rain, most noticeable when going over speed bumps. Hopefully this also goes away.

3. Often the engine "clunks" to a stop instead of stopping smoothly.

 

My gripe is the passenger side seatbelt beeper. I can pick up one little bag of groceries at the neighborhood market, set said bag on the seat beside me, and it screams all the way home.
Love my Pri otherwise.

 

That sounds like a faulty sensor in the seat mechanism (unless the bag of groceries is 60+ lbs). I've never had this problem with my Prius. Have you taken it in to the dealer for a check?

 

The seatbelt beep can also be disabled if your groceries are driving you bananas.

 

More improvements

I agree with most of the suggestions for improvement here, although some are not necessary for me personally. A fair question is how much various individual improvements would increase vehicle cost and in some cases, mpg.

I have a few additional issues:

1. Entry and exit angle: this is the angle from the wheel/road interface to the lowest point at the the front and rear - in this case the wind baffles below the bumper. The small entry and exit angles on the Prius means it may bury the nose into the dirt if the front wheels fall into a depression on a dirt road such as even a slight washout. I would like to be able to explore at least maintained dirt roads without worrying about this problem. A friend of mine could not get his Prius into the carport from a rather steep driveway for this reason, and I had to _extensively_ reshape his driveway with my backhoe to create the necessary ground clearance.

I realize the Prius is designed as a highway-only car, but it's not intended to be a low rider! I have even had problems with aggressive speed bumps.

The shallow entry/exit angles are partially a function of the car being low to the ground, and the low air baffles. It would be nice if 3" of the baffles were designed to be intentionally removable without spoiling the appearance; I wonder how much this would impair fuel efficiency? I removed my rear baffles unintentionally by parking over a too-high (but not so high) kerb! Another fix is a taller tire or wheel/tire combination, but that changes the gearing with unknown effects on mpg. and vehicle stability.

2. A related problem is the intentional design that cuts power to the drive wheels if one starts to spin on ice, gravel on a steep hill, etc., leaving one either to back out, or become stranded if reverse is not an option (I have read examples on this forum). I have a steep hill on my driveway, and I have to be very careful to maintain it so excess gravel or unevenness does not allow the wheels to spin. It would be nice if one could keep the wheels turning slowly by partial application of the footbrake (I believe that is a getting unstuck technique for stickshifts).

3. I like to rest my left arm on the window ledge while driving, and in a short sleeve shirt, the heavy grain on the plastic soon makes my forearm sore: a soft cushion of fabric would be nice there (I expect I could get a shop to do it, but why not have it standard?) Does nobody else have this problem?

4. An authoritative horn. The bleat from the existing one is weak and ugly . Small, silent cars need loud horns, and the Prius deserves a sonorous one. I have not found the horn location yet, but I happen to have a pair of horns I would love to install if I could exchange them for the bleat and they don't draw too much current for the circuit, and if I could find a site to install them (Galaxee, is your DH there?).

5. No garbage bag location: there was a thread on this subject in which I suggested a Walmart product that is attached by sticky velcro to the panel below the dash about 12" above the floor. Problem is the sticky fails after about 6 months in a hot climate. Screws and washers might be a fix if there is nothing behind the panel to harm (Galaxee's DH again?)

6. Add to the seat comments that the seat is a LITTLE too firm, and my butt gets sore after about 2-3 hr. It needs a top 1/2 layer of form-adapting foam (for me anyway). The height and shape are excellent for me, so I don't want to add another layer and raise the height.

7. Given the size of the windshield, tinting ought to be standard. Again, a shop could fix that at some cost. I have progressive grey glasses, but they are insufficient to cut NM glare, and I must usually drive with the visors down, but even that does not help enough (and it feels like peering through a tank driver's slot). (Adding clip-on sunglasses negates the greying capacity of the glasses; I might have the same problem with tinting - haven't checked yet.

8) For curvy roads, how about an innovative pair of dual visors? Each visor has two sections, and the front one would swing around to cover the side window; include a pull-down extension for the setting sun. (An after-market opportunity?)

9). Inflated service cost of local dealership ; so I use a Quickee-lube and keep a close eye on them. Maybe time for a qualified tech to look it over - at a high price!

Suggested improvements aside, the stock Prius is a great car, and with the tax credit, and no NM sales tax, a fair price I think, when compared with cars of comparable size and lower efficiency. Can't wait to see the improvements on the next edition, but doubt a trade will be cost-effective.

Only disappointment: after 22K miles, consistently only getting 48-49 mi/gal, in town or out, taking wind direction, altitude change and speed into consideration (tires 40/42 psi), based on round trips.

Charlie

 

I think it will only do this if you start the car with the weight on the seat. When I have this problem, once the car is started I wil just give the bags a lift off the seat and set them back down and the problem is solved.
BTW, I don't get a "beep". Only a flashing icon on the dash. Maybe my beep is disabled and I never noticed since I always buckle up.