Features You Discovered After Buying Your Prius

Can anyone explain more about the DRLs? How do you select them to be on or off? Are they standard on all trim levels?

 

I think they are new for 2012. On a 2010 you may turn on the headlights, then just never turn them off. (Actually every oil change, my Toyota tech turns them off, and I drive feet before I notice)

 

Thanks for the tip - I think that's how I'll roll!

 

I just discovered that the passenger-side rear quarter-light of our 2015 Prius Four (bought about three years ago) has a heating element; none on the corresponding driver-side quarter-light.

 

By quarter-light, I take it you mean the fixed glass in the passenger quarter panel?

That's no heating element, it's an FM diversity antenna. New in the 2012 mid-Gen-3 refresh.

 

Seems an odd configuration for an antenna, but I think you must be right: I turned on the rear defroster, and the rear glass got warm but not that quarter-light.

 

I discovered that you should join prius chat before buying.

http://www.RedBullet.net

http://www.ProjectLithium.com/?ref=mG0GE

http://www.Pulstar.com

http://www.PlugOutPower.com
Use code 7373

 

If you look at the pattern closely, you'll see it has dead ends.

By contrast, you'll see the heating trace pattern on the rear glass makes a complete DC circuit.

At one point I was thinking of modding my 2010 with a later radio, and salvaged the diversity antenna amplifier and cable out of a later-model wreck.

 

I've been learning of normal car maintenance expenses folks with Toyota Hybrids do not have....no serpentine belt to replace because both the water pump and A/C are electric. No transmission filter to replace because the transmissions are even easier than an oil change, just drain and refill. And, best of all, our brake pads don't need replacing every 30,000-45,000 miles because we have two braking systems...the old hydraulic brakes and the regenerative brakes...so our brake pads can last 100,000-150,000 miles. (That electric motor buzzing when you open the car door is actually that regenerative brake system priming itself to be ready for use while driving.) I didn't know what that buzzing was for years after we got the 17 Prius.

 

And Toyota seems to frequent this site as I've seen Prius Chat mentioned a few times in my Toyota surveys they send out!

 

I've mentioned these elsewhere, and a little embarrassing, but funny.

1. And ok, I "knew" this on SOME level, but it hadn't sunk in: first time I backed out of our garage, looked back, and totally realized: "wait a sec, this is a hatchback". Yeah, I know.
2. Had the car for maybe 3 years before I figured out there was a secondary glove box, up above on the dash.
3. Took me a week or two to sort out how the touch to unlock worked, lol.

 

but when we call them about egr circuit leading to head gasket issue, they say “we never heard of such issue.”