PriusChat's 2010 Prius In-Depth Review and First Drive

Thanks Paradox. Seeing, on another thread, that a less legroom spec doesn't really mean less legroom, made me wonder if a more headroom spec really means more headroom. Fortunately, I don't have much on top, but my son and friends have more on top and I want them to be comfortable.

 

5'10" also. Same result. Had plenty of headroom even when when sitting on the flat hump in the middle. I didn't hear any complaints from anyone at the event, and don't remember seeing any in other threads or reviews. The cited .5" increase seems understated.

 

I'm 6 foot and no problems here in the 2010.

But there are "many" changes to the 10 if you've been reading much.... as good as the 09 is, you would likely regret not getting the newer technology, amenities and gas mileage.

 

My wife won't drive my 2008 Prius because of rearward visibility. I agree that it is limited, but not disqualifying. Is the visibility to the rear any different in the 2010?

 

I wonder if the rear headroom is less in the 09 than my 06's?

Here is states the rear headroom on existing prius's is 37.1

I wonder if your son is stretching "to test" more than he would be if he were just sitting relaxed?
Here is a report where two 6 foot men found more than adequate headroom in the back.

Seems I remember the rear seats may sit a tad lower which could be giving more headroom too.

Here is a branch off of that same page.

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You know... I believe there is... I just can't remember what it was... but I remember someone commenting on it.... maybe someone can chime in but The rear visibility is always different based on how tall you are in the first place.

A tall person may have a clearer view whereas a shorter person may be blocked.

At best, its not as good as many cars, but I put those little mirrors on my side mirrors that gives me more view... I still wish I had more vision though.

Can someone else remember whats the scoop or rear vision?

 

I commented in another thread that it seems a little better in the 2010, partly because the bar seems thinner; but there is still the same issue trying to look to the right rear.

 

Thinking more about headroom... I noticed the seats are thinner too... maybe thats the reason you sit lower clearing more headroom.

 

Second thought.... I think I was wrong to assume a shorter person would have a different view... the rearview mirrow is whats looking out the back, regardless of where your at looking at it... so if that pic was taken with the camera "in front" of the rearview mirror, then it would be accurate to what the viewer sees.

 

I read that they redesigned the braking systems for the 2010 Prius. That appears to be Toyota's response to the fact that the U.S. Generation 2 Prius (2004-2009) has had low-speed brake failures reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at 31 times the rate of such failures reported for the 2004-2009 Corolla, which of course has traditional brakes. Many of the Prius low speed brake failures were in low-speed city traffic, resulting in rear-end collisions without injury. It appears that the several computers that control the complex braking systems were too busy calculating the most efficient way to apply the brakes, and did not get around to actually applying them, until it was too late. Toyota never took responsibility for the problem, but the 2010 redesign indicates they were aware of it. Unfortunately, the NHTSA never initiated an investigation despite the extremely high rate of failures. The detailed failure reports ("complaints") are available to the public on the NHTSA website. The details are these: Through March 2009, 2004-2009 Prius has received 44 complaints of low speed brake failure. 2004-2009 Corolla has received 7 complaints of such failures. Given that about five times more Corollas than Prius were sold during 2004-2009, 44/(7/5) = 31 times the rate of brake failure for the Generation 2 Prius. Let's hope the 2010's brakes work!

 

Could one of theose fortunate test drivers answer a couple of display questions for me?

Does the 2010 MID allow the user to select the instrumentation elements, or are there display "pages" that the user toggles through?

Does the 2010 make available more information about the status of the ICE?
In particular, is it possible to display rpm, engine temp, oil pressure, etc?

Finally, to what degree has display/control compatibility been a factor in the design? (i.e. do the controls on the wheel logically and spatially correspond to the display elements?)

Forgive me it this has been covered somewhere, but I've not been able to find it so far...
I'm also posting this over in the Driving Impressions thread http://priuschat.com/forums/2010-toyota-prius/59800-2010-prius-driving-impressions-thread-3.html so my apologies in advance for the redundancy.

 

For those interested in the Rearview.... Here's 3 pics out of my 2006 Prius to compare with whats been posted of the 2010.
Looks about the same to me..... my pics were taken from the drives viewpoint, whereas the other pic looked like it was taken as if turning your head and looking back... regardless, I think about the same based on the pics.

 

Thanks Danny.... if the Eco is comparable to the present prius, that looks quite exciting indeed!... the power mode really kicks!

 

So, according to your line of thought, having 44 reports (unproven reports let me add) in about 700000 vehicles sold out there, you tend to think the customer has the reason on their side...

I sincerely doubt it. I've my 2006 for about 3 years now, and I never noticed the above mentioned problem. It seems that some bad drivers are trying to find a scape goat on the hybrid brake system.

I'm willing to bet the very same persons would not complain if the same thing happened in a "regular" car with hydraulic brakes only.

 

I love my '05 Prius but I am really excited about the 2010 model. Is there any talk of adding remote start capabilities?