I rented a Prius and a HCH; here are my reviews of both

There is a button on the steering wheel to change preset radio channels (I do it every 5 min. or so). It's on the left side, labeled "^ v", right below the volume control.

Fueling issue isn't so bad once you've figured it out....I mean, you only have to fill up every 400-500 miles, so you won't be fighting it often.

I normally leave the MFD off now, as I can play with radio stuff, change the A/C and recirc modes from the steering wheel. Only time I have mine on is when i care about looking at the fuel mileage.

I agree with you about the braking. Tough to get used to. I'm used to brakes that are enhanced with stainless braided lines, so they slow the car the HARDER you push the pedal, but on the Prius it seems more like the farther you push the pedal the more brakes you get. Too often I feel like I'm not slowing quickly enough, so I push a little more and the nose dives as I suddenly decelerate.

Surprised to read how poor the Civic's mileage was. Not surprised about the steering, though. Typical slow response.

 

The vanity mirrors do have lights; maybe they were turned off.

The steering wheel buttons are very dim on the US Prius, apparently - right-hand drive cars don't have this problem.

 

I may be in the minority but I have had no problems with the fuel bladder. And I live in a cold climate where the effects are supposed to be worse. I usually fill up when the bar starts flashing, at which time I generally get in about 10 gallons when the pump clicks off. The fuel gauge and the ability to fill the tank are as good as or better than any other car I've owned.

Mine is a 2005 model that I bought in November 2004.

On the other hand, I have a friend who bought a 2004 model about a year earlier and he can only get about 6 gallons in. He's never had the nerve to find out how much gas is really left when the bar starts flashing.

 

interesting reviw but i have to agree that you are perpetuating myths about the Prius. the radio, bladder, the light for the vanity mirrors, starting the car, etc...all problems that only newbies would have. you simply didnt explore the Prius enough to make a value judgement on it.

then driving at 80-90 mph...hmmm

 

I agree with you Dave, I can't respond to the HCH test, but the irritations with the Prius are just those things that you adjust to as with any new car model.

His hwy speeds reflect his low mpg averages however was no surprise to me that they were as low as they were, 80-90 mph is not an economy drive.

Finally, as we all know, hybrid driving is a learning experience, and it is impossible to get any fair reviews from short driving experiences.

 

"on the Prius it seems more like the farther you push the pedal the more brakes you get."

It is designed this way by use of a "stroke simulator" to provide the same feel as a normal brake system, wherein fluid displacement frpom pedal travel results in braking, not mere pedal pressure.

 

There is an old racer's adage about non-sanctioned claims:

deduct 1000rpm
drop 1 gear
deduct 10% of speed

to this I add...deduct 10% on high mileage claims

I would like to know where this fellow 'regularly cruises at 80-90mph'

 

Sorry you didn't see fit to mentiion the significant difference in the interior room. I am a larger person and was unable to fit between the HCH seat/steering wheel while there is no problem with the Prius. BTW, I tried the Accord hybrid too and it was also very limiting in space.

Also, the fill up problem you had is likely related to the settings of the pump's auto-shutoff. Use the "slow flow" rate on the pump handle latch (what's the rush?). I've had the pump click game happen once at slow flow and simply drove to a different pump (same station). Since then its never happened. Frankly, I'd rather have the tight fit bladder than the fumes that leak with the large filler pipes.

Yeah, the steering wheel lights are kind of winpy but then if you have to look there its just as distracting as lookng at the MFD. They do have easily identified locations so I just poke what I want.

 

Re: the MFD: I've switched it off, and use the steering (or other) controls almost exclusively.

About the only time I have it on is when I want to custom-set the air conditioner/heater, or take a brief glance at the MPG.

Other than that, I've found it distracting, and just leave it off. To each their own.

 

Thanks for the review. I also rented a 2005 Prius for a day and took my wife along for 200 mile drive. Here's my reaction:

Mileage: Great
I averaged 48 MPG. I had mostly freeway driving but perhaps 25 percent was on windy country roads. I rarely drive over 55 mph but found myself going 70 mph many times because of the surprising power.

Brakes: Good
I did notice a different feel to the brakes than I'm used to, but didn't feel it was a negative.

Performance: Outstanding
I currently drive a old Cadillac Seville, and the Prius easily matches and probably outperforms it. This was a big surprise to me.

Steering: Poor
On the freeway I felt an unsteadiness - what I call a jittery feeling. The power steering seemed weak. I'm used to easier , single finger, steering wheel turning at low speeds.

Comfort: Poor
My wife had a backache when we completed the test drive. I felt OK but certainly is was not as good as my current car. We are used to the comfort of luxury leather electric seats.
Also the steering wheel seemed too far away, and not positioned right. It really needs to be telescoping and really adjustable. My arms were tired at the end of the ride.

View: Fair
When backing up, It seemed to have far more of a blind spot than I'm used to. Something is needed here, I heard that a camera to help in backing up might be a new option. Looking forward was good.

Electronics: Fair
Maybe being unfamiliar with how to do things caused the problem, but
adjusting the heater and air conditioner, radio, etc seemed confusing with too much reliance on Screen.
A positive surprise was the Navigation System. I always felt this was a gimic. Why not just use Google maps on the PC? I typed in some addresses into the Navigation System and it told me just where to turn and where I was. Having no sense of direction this was a great positive for me.

In Summary:
I'll wait until the comfort of the seats improves. I could live with the steering wheel, but would prefer it to be telescoping.
I visited a dealer today and got the comment that if I didn't like the comfort of the 2005, I won't like the 2006 either. Too bad. I'd like to get the great mileage, but not at the price of a backache.

 

spoken like a true novice...

if you buy a Prius and want to turn off the backup beeper, i bet you will be glad you have to step on the brake to start the car since without that step, you would have no way of accessing acc. mode which is needed to change many of the functions of the car.

trust me when i say, the car was engineered by a very very very bright group of individuals. there is a very good reason why you need to step on the brakes to start the car.

 

I will agree that while the LCD display can be distracting, it isn't really necessary for any normal day to day uses of the car except navigation. I normally just keep climate control turned on at 72 degrees and only rarely find myself adjusting the temperature up or down, using recirc mode, or turning on the defrosters. All of these things are done more easily from the steering wheel controls so the LCD doesn't have to be touched.

For the radio, I find using the power, volume, and seek buttons on the radio itself are most convenient. And you can do most audio things from the steering wheel as well (like next/last preset), although not as conveniently. Again no need for the LCD except when you want to go directly to a particular preset.

 

i use the radio volume controls because i can do large volume changes quicker. other than that, the only thing i use the MFD controls for is for air conditioning. and that is only because i never use auto mode.

i am constantly changing the air conditioning. speed up fan, slow down fan, up temp down temp... of course the latter two are done much easier via the steering wheel. really fan speed control is the only thing that the steering wheel cant do other than nav

 

I won't call that Prius review ridiculous...but it is mis-informed.
-First, I would not consider 80-90 mph driving routine.
-Interior lighting is quite good and vanity mirrors do have lighting that comes on when you slide the mirror cover open.
-Brakes are fine, you just have to get used to them, plenty linear and plenty powerful.
-View outside is excellent and large windshield lends to an open and airy atmosphere inside the car.
-All the MFD interaction that was complained about could have been accomplished with controls on the steering wheel.

I, too, rented a Prius from my local Toyota TRAC dealer this weekend. 2005 Pkg. 6 with 1700 miles. Price: $40.00/day. I kept it three days, drove it on my routine work route for two days and then a typical Sunday routine for the third day. Lets get right to particulars....

My two day work route is a 100 mile round trip each day. 10% surface roads, 90% interstate around Atlanta, GA. The last day was just the inverse...mostly surface roads.

297 miles driven...54.9 MPG average over my three days.

Interstate cruise speed was maintained at 65-70 mph in 89deg F climate.
Needless to say, I am throughly impressed with this car. I had read a PDF of the owners manual and NAV manual prior to renting and every post on this site about driving technique. I employed throttle feathering, gliding, stealth driving in parking losts and neighborhoods and even neutral coasting on the long stretches of downward inclined interstate.

I was throughly impressed with everything about the car. I will be buying a new Toyota Prius after my current car sales.

 

What other cars? It has MORE interior lighting than my Honda Civic '96. Count in the Prius: dome light above driver/passenger (1), map light for driver (2), map light for passenger (3), vanity light for driver (4), vanity light for passenter (5), another dome light for rear passengers (6). That's 5 more than my Civic.

They only feel more powerful because they're usually don't work in slipping surface contact mode, and they're self-adjusting. In normal cars you need pedal travel first to get the brake shoes to the rotor, then you still need more pedal pressure before the slipping surface starts to grip. That's a lot of pedal travel whereas in Prius, mag brakes start the moment you start pressing down, no slack travel.

It's like complaining the clutch in a car is too sensitive after the heavy-deep leg-muscle-building clutching in an old truck.

Mag-braking is also more consistent because you don't have to worry about brake fade, water/oil/rust/weather on the rotors/shoes, delining shoes, rotor warping w/ 'bumpy' braking. I'm not afraid of wet weather making my braking more slippery and dangerous anymore.

The steering wheel buttons aren't very dim to my eyes probably because I have younger eyes than some, or I usually work in dim lighting anyways. Reading in the dark has been good for me.