we just bought a genI prius and im wondering what a few of the differences between the genI and gen II are, and what neuonses we have to get use to. for one thing, i test drove a gen II and loved the fact that the ac worked with no engine on. as i understand it, the gen I doesn't have that feature. what happens to the car climate control when you stop at a light, or as my wife does, extended parking with friends and family in the car. does the engine kick on and off or does it just stay on when you need ac? how does that work.
Hi Jason, The Classic air conditioner compressor is belt-driven vs. 2G which is electrically powered. Therefore the Classic gasoline engine must run whenever the A/C compressor is needed to run the vehicle. Besides that difference in A/C design, the Classic has a less powerful drivetrain while mpg under similar driving situations will be slightly lower. The Classic traction battery contains 38 modules vs. 2G with 28 modules (hence, more modules that might fail over time.) Classic has a hydrocarbon absorption chamber (HCAC) next to the catalytic converter which can develop a sticking valve with age, especially if driven on winter roads where salt was applied. That is a very costly repair since aftermarket alternatives are not generally available. If you should ever encounter a situation where the drivetrain refuses to respond to the accelerator pedal, try rapidly depressing the pedal ~30 x with the car IG-OFF. The point of this is to clean the two variable resistors within the pedal assembly. If this works, then you have temporary relief but need to have the pedal assembly replaced. 2G uses Hall-effect sensors which are not subject to this problem.
Just do what I do! Whenever you run the A/C, press the RECIRCULATION button, your prius will shut down its engine and run on electric for quite a while before coming back on. Yes its powered by the ICE engine, but its a first gen, what can you do! And power is never a problem as the electric motor seems to compensate, it never seems any slower to me. And fuel economy is not so bad, heck I can still do over 50 mpg, while doing about 120 km/h, well that was after my air intake modification! However, be glad, first gen's are a blast, they have their quirks, but unlike patrick who is perfectly correct in his opinion, but I still think that more cells gives you greater longevity than fewer cells. That is just my opinion, and the fact that my 2002 still reads strong after 130,000 kms, proves my point! Good luck with your Prius and enjoy it.
Oh and make sure you modify the rear seat to make it a fold down. It makes the car even more practical than ever. It involves removing the bottom seat cushion (just lift up!), then remove the 3 redundant bolts holding the seat bottom, then just lift the seat back upwards. Remove the silly vertical metal bars that "apparently" support the backseat (they don't!), and voila! You now have a Prius with a folding back seat, ready for a Home Depot near you. Heck I took a 8 ft long sliding doors home the other day, no problem. That was the cheapest and best modification I have ever done. Installation is reverse of above, except don't put the metal bars nor the 3 bolts back, as they are totally unnecessary.
If you're just stopped at a red light, the a/c will still run. The car just turns the engine back on again when it needs it.
WOW! I had no idea I could do this! I'm going to definitely check it out and see if I can figure it out. Thanks for posting this.
Actually I've been keeping a weather eye out for a shift-up and folding hinge. This would keep the seat backs in a more traditional 'fold down' position. Otherwise the seat backs are 'loose.' Now 'loose' has its advantages ... you can stack them on one side ... but it also means you more 'loose' stuff in the back. Bob Wilson
the air in our car does not work since we bought it. i just had a dealer i trust fill the freon and check for leaks. they said they took it from .6 lbs freon to about 1.6. i think it only had that .6 cause we put a can in it when we bought it two days ago. well now it mostly works, but sometimes it still blows hot air, and the ac light blinks. if i have max set, they both blink. what does that mean? an expensive ac repair?
Yeah its amazing. And no the seat is not loose, ever, its very secure, the hooks the hold the seat back to the parcel shelf are deep enough to make it very strong, and besides, the seat bottom pushes hard against it, keeping it from moving. If you need, help, let me, know, I can post pics for you!
As for the A/C light blinking, that means a failure of some kind. You will likely have to take it in to Toyota unfortunately. Prius's a/c does not take a full charge like most cars do of refrigerant. If you put too much refridgerant in, it will cause the compressor to over charge the system, and then it will cut out very frequently. Only put a minimal amount, I can't remember how much. I know I found out the hard way on my Prius. I put refridgerant until the gauge said normal, and I tell you my A/C was turning on and off about every 2-3 seconds. Once I discharged it to the LOW side of the gauge, it worked brilliantly and has done so for quite some time now! Try it out, and let me know.
This refrigerant (R134a) does not contribute to stratospheric ozone hole because is lacks chlorine. However it is a very strong infrared absorber and eventually comes down in rain as trifluoroacetic acid. The good angel on your right shoulder does not want you to vent it to the atmosphere. Concerning the rear seat back, would fastening the shoulder belts do enough to prevent it from becoming a missle in a crash?
