Hi everyone I live in Houston, and fly to Florida with a friend on Wednesday to pick up my new red (2009) Prius. (Let's just say I got a very good deal down there...) I have never had a new car and am so excited about it. I have packed my road atlas, my iPod/iPhone connector, and my umbrella. (Supposed to be a rainy drive home.) Any other advice on what to take or how to break her in gently on the trip home? We're going to stop near Destin and take her to the beach, too, to celebrate her homecoming. Thanks for all the cool tips and helpful advice!
Congrats adllewellyn ! I'm kind of doing the same thing. I live in NY, but have a house here in Florida. I'm looking to buy a Prius here before I go back. What package did you get?? I'm trying to deal here, but it seems that the 2009's are going fast, and the best I'm seeing is $2000 off MSRP. They are offering 0% 36 months, but then you can't get the $2k off....... I want a silver pine Mica Pkg 2-3. The local dealer here can get me a pkg #3 for $23,342 plus tax and plates, (providing I don't get the financing) or a pkg #6 for $24,966 plus tax, etc. Another dealer quoted me a pkg #6 for $24,466., but I do not yet know if anything else had to be added on. I'd be happy with a Pkg #2 or #3. I don't know if that is really a good deal or not. I guess I was thinking that the 2009's were going to be a great deal now because of a glut of them, but that does not seem to be the case. The 2009's seem to be selling fast and if I wait too long they will not be an option. I really need to do some comparing with the 2010's. Am I being unreasonable? Are these "deals" or not? I do not want to be rude and ask others what they are paying...I just like to know if I could expect better or not. Thanks! Frank D.
Enjoy the ride back in your new car! You'll have plenty of time once back home to practice your hypermiling techniques!
Could you say which dealer in Florida? I live in Central Florida and would be interested once you purchase the vehicle whether you had a good experience or not. Thanks.
Sandy, No, I did not deal with Deluca yet. I'll have to research where they are. I've talked to phillips, David Maus, and Orlando. Erik, I will post my experiences. I apologize for hijacking the thread.....I did not mean to be rude...I just got excited when i saw an out of state person going to florida to buy. Adllewellyn...again, enjoy the road trip!! In a related question...are there any special rules one should follow driving a long distance during the "break-in" period? thanks, Frank D.
Hello adllewellyn: I agree with Firepa's advice: please read the manual. There are two of them for your car. The red cover "2009 Owner's Manual", and the green cover "2009 Quick Reference Guide". Right after you pick up your car, you should go celebrate over a nice meal, and look over the "Quick Reference Guide" prior to starting your trip home. This will cover most of the important basics about your new vehicle. It's very quick reading. Then over the next few weeks, read through the Owner's manual. There's a lot of good, and some very important, information in there. Unfortunately, finding it is like playing "Where's Waldo". So a cover to cover read is recommended. Here are some tips about the break in period (from the owner's manual): For the first 180 miles (300 km): avoid sudden stops For the first 621 miles (1000 km): Do not drive at extremely high speeds Avoid sudden acceleration Do not drive continuously in the low gears (doesn't really apply to the Prius, due to the CVT; must be a generic warning that someone cut and pasted) Do not drive at a constant speed for extended periods. Since you'll be making a long drive home, you should ask them as a courtesy to do a few extra things for you (if they don't automatically do them): Ask them to show you how to check the oil level, and have them actually check it. It should just be at or just below the upper "full" mark. Double check the tire pressure on all tires, the washer fluid, and engine and inverter coolant levels. Brake fluid also. As it's a new car (I assume), these should all be fine. But it doesn't hurt to double check. Show you the operation of all controls for lights, wipers, radio, Smart Key system (especially the SmartKey system), etc, such that you could drive away and not have to guess how to control any of the major functions. One last thing: if you will be driving at night, you may ask them if they could do a quick check of your headlight levels (the "height" of the lowbeams). You don't want them aimed too high or too low, and not be able to see well. There have been users that had the HIDs that have found them to be aimed too low on their new Priuses. Because you are getting package 3, you should have the normal halogen headlights, and probably won't have any issues. Congratulations, and best wishes!:welcome:. Please share with us how your "adventure" goes.
I really don't know if the "avoid sudden stops" has anything to do with the regen system, but I'd always try to avoid sudden stops (particularly if the end at a wall or a tree). "Extremely high speeds" likely should be avoided for an even longer distance. Some of the more knowledgeable among us may kick in their opinion on the "Do not drive continuously in the low gears" issue. The electronic brains in the Prius try to get to certain points in terms of RPMs and power output. It will be to your advantage to let the system deal with all options and get the ICE to run at a good variety of RPMs and power demands. The constant speed warning is a constant for any car with an ICE (internal combustion engine). You don't want to cause uneven wear on any moving part, so variety is very important for the first several days and weeks. I'd plan to spend most of the time focussed on two things: 1) How great IS this CAR? and 2) What other touristy thing can we do now. Stay off of the Interstate Highways and rediscover the U.S. Routes and State Highways. Stop to see state parks and get a chocolate-dipped cone and the local soft-serve ice cream store. I like Yardman's suggestions for talking with the dealer and getting some very good hands-on advice. I'll add these: Be very certain you know how to turn the car off -- fully! Also, remember as you fill up the gas tank that the tank has a bladder in it, and it may be difficult (at times) to put in as much gas as you think "should" fit in the tank. Just fill it slowly and don't bother topping it off. Keep a regular log (starting at the very beginning) of each fill-up. Record date, odometer reading, ambient temp., type of gas (regular, E10, Shell, Exxon . . .), and also the information shown on the MFD (Multi Function Display): MPGs and Miles. You can always analyze it later, but you'll never remember it if you don't write it down. Enjoy the ride home!!!!
Excellent point, a priori ! When the Prius is stopped, and then you press the "Park" button, it's very easy to forget to actually turn the car off! Since the ICE may be stopped, many have walked away from it, not knowing it was still running! When it's really "off", only the flashing "engine immobilizer" warning will be lit on the dash. All the other indicators should be off.
If I do buy down here in Florida, and need to drive it back to NY, it would be a bit difficult for me to not drive at a constant speed. I would not have the luxury to take the scenic route.....I'd want to do the 1300 mile trip in two days. Would this really hurt the car? If so, I might just have to buy it up north. I do not want to do anything foolish. Frank D.
You are dropping quite a few bucks on the car. Why not treat it properly? Would an extra day make that much of a difference? Is it worth causing damage to the new ICE? Perhaps you wouldn't notice anything right away, but you could start an uneven wear pattern that will shorten the life of the engine. 650 miles per day cannot be done, easily, when varying your speed between 45 and 55 or 60. 433 miles per day CAN be done this way. You're looking at two 10-hour days and possible damage to your brand-new car or three 10-hour days with much less stress, a real learning experience, time to learn about and "bond with" your car -- and the satisfaction that you have been breaking it in quite properly.
One alternative: Fly to Chicago and drive home in a 2007 Package #6. 29,000 miles and perfectly broken in. Rolling 12-month mileage: 53.4 MPG. If I had a longer commute, I'd easily be in the upper 50s (like Donee!). This is not an idle offer, as I am going to trade the car in next week if there isn't a private buyer. I have't yet even advertised it, so I'm going to offer to sell it for the KBB Private Party value. (PM if you have any interest!)
When I've bought cars or motorcycles in the past, that warning usually referred more to those who would abuse the vehicle by driving at a constant high speed before everything was broken in. Keep in mind that the Prius has a unique drive system with the CVT "transmission". At the same speed, but under different loads, the engine will actually spin at different RPMS, depending on what the MG1 and 2 are doing. So even staying at a constant speed, I would guess that the ICE rpms would change depending on whether you are going up or down a hill, or you are on a flat area, or the car is trying to burn off some extra electrical charge from the traction battery, etc. At slower speeds (less that 42 mph), the ICE will even shut off on occassion. Maybe you could try varying your speed a little on the expressways. Say, going down to 55, then pulsing to 65, then gliding back down to 55(assuming this can be done without annoying other traffic). I'd certainly try to keep it on the lower safe side of the speed limit. When you get around DC (if you go that way), you probably won't need to worry about driving a constant speed! Other than that, I would think that you would be fine. That's just my opinion, however.
You guys are incredible! Wow! I'll see if I can post from the road on the way home and give a full report. I look forward to learning from and with you all... Sandy - come be the wingwoman! It will be great! Frank - sounds like a pretty good deal to me. Erik - Palm Toyota in Punta Gorda. I confess, my dad is the CEO. But he is giving pretty good deals. yardman and apriori - ya'll rock. Yippee, here we come!
We bought our '08 in California and did the road trip thing back to Chicago and enjoyed it very much. I think the speed varying will happen naturally with traffic and all. One thing that I would have done differently if I had to do the road trip all over again would be to increase the air pressure in all 4 tires at the first fuel stop (or sooner). It will increase your mpg's for your long trip. We didn't do that until we got home in IL, so I probably could have saved some gas had I known to do it! I put all 4 of my tires to the max pressure indicated on the sidewalls, but everyone has a different technique. Enjoy your trip!
In regards to tire pressure, I've always been told that you go by what it says on the car door post...not the tires.......but others here I'm sure know more then I, and will defer to their judgement. Frank D.
Frank- Normally, I'd agree with you. But if you're trying to maximize your mpg's one might consider using a higher tire pressure. That's what most on this forum are trying to accomplish by increasing their tire pressure above what is placarded on the door sill.
My 2007 Prius Owner's Manual reads different. I think it's weird that they'd even bother re-writing the Owner's Manual on this point, as the engine and motor have not changed. In any event, my 2007 Prius Owner's Manual says this: "Break-in-period Drive gently and avoid high speeds. [Comment: What does that mean? I guess it means the below specific "don'ts"] Your vehicle does not need an elaborate break-in. But following a few simple tips for the first 1000 km (600 miles) can add to the future economy and long life of your vehicle: --Avoid full-throttle acceleration when starting and driving. --Avoid racing the hybrid engine. --Try to avoid hard stops during the first 300 km (200 miles)."
