I'm Wanting a 2009 Prius but have a few questions - Time Sensitive

Lucky you. Congradulations on your new addition. I too have been dreaming of a new Prius but haven't been able to make the plunge for the 09 because from the minute I saw the 2010 model, I was hooked. In the end I may go for the 09 because of all I'm reading about how long it will be before the new ones become available. Anyone reading this, could you please explain about what all are the problems with the HID headlamps? I've driven cars with them in the past and I liked them a lot but this is the only place I've heard of problems with them. Please explain. Once again Good luck with your new Prius. I'm a little jealous, sort of. Rick

 

Large Thread on Grill Blocking HERE.

How to sticky HERE

EBH=Engine Block Heater. People here sometimes get carried away with using initials.

Site tip - the custom google search button at the top of the page is pretty good at finding this kind of stuff in prior threads.

 

Hi nubirdman,

Sorry I did not check in on this thread earlier.

As others have said, the highway mileage of a Prius is beyond anything else in its class, and even better than anything sold in the US that is smaller. Your saying you drive around 50 to 55 mph on the highway. If you get an add-on tachnometer (scan gauge for example), you can operate in what we call SHM (Super Highway Mode). Doing this can result in 70 mpg average on highways when one operates near 53 mph (1280 RPM). These are the flat terrain 70 F running parameters. But as weather and terrain varies, one can adapt.

An EBH is an Engine Block Heater. I use mine when temps are below 15 F for the morning startup. It helps preheat the engine so the Prius will get through its warmup cycles quicker. Many people with garages put the heater on a timer so it preheats the car 2 hours before leaving time in the morning. Even people in warm climates use the EBH in the Prius. The point is, your going to burn that energy to get the engine warm, it might as well be cheaper electricity, than gasoline.

First thing to do with your new car is to pump up the tires to 42 front, 40 rear PSI. This will promote long tire life, and improve hydro-planing performance. For lake effect snow your going to want to consider snow tires. Nokians are favored by many snowy rural climate Prius operators. I have Michelin Hydroedges on my car which are a great summer tire, and OK in the mostly cleared streets I drive on in the winter here in Chicagoland. While we do get snow, Chicagoland gets somewhat less snow than other colder climate places in the US.

People use foam tubing, available at hardware store for household plumbing insulation for grill blocking. Without a temperature gauge, below 32F, its ok to block about half the lower grill. Block the passenger side of the grill. The tranmission is air-cooled, and air needs to flow through the driver's side. Insulation Tubing for 3/4's inch water pipe/tubing can be split apart and bridge over one grill slit, blocking three slits altogether. You will need to put vertical slits in the open end of the horizontal oriented insulation tubing, to fit over the recessesd vertical bars in the grill work. This helps hold the insulation tubing in place. Just use a knife to make a slit. Do not take out a wedge. The compression of the foam onto the vertical bars provides enough friction to keep the foam tubing in place. Do a search of "grill blocking" on Prius Chat here for lots more info and pictures.

Operating the climate controls is confusing. One thing to do is to keep the ventilation grillwork between the hood and the windshield clear. It has a metal grill under the plastic grill. To clear that use a snow brush, bristle down, like a hammer to push any snow or ice throught he grill work before starting. The air that flows through will clear the rest of the passages. Run the AC on even in the winter. This helps dehumidify the car interior.

If you get add-on gauges, you can keep an eye on engine temps when the heater is in operation. If there is a thing about the Prius I do not like, its that the temperature control does not go lower than 65 F. Which is too warm in 15 F conditions for 20 something mile trips. 50 F would provide sufficient window clearing heat, and not soak the heat out of the engine as badly. Consequently, I tend to cycle my use of the heater. People talk about seat heaters, but I find the microfiber seats plenty warm even in below 0F weather. A steering wheel heater would be nice though.

 

Don't forget to remove the grill blocking in hot weather. It would be sad to save $20 on gasoline only to overheat later and burn up the engine valves.

 

My commute is freeway for 15 miles doing 83mph then 13 miles city. our temps average 27-35 degrees in the morning, afternoon 45-74 degrees my average is 44 mpg this little car really scoots if I step on the gas.
The navigation system is running 1-2 years behind before toyota updates it. My Tom Tom works better! I did not want leather so we have the package 5.
This is our commuter car if I want speed I have the Corvette it gets 28 mpg doing 75mph in town 21mpg, we have a Dodge durango for towing the snowmobile trailer.
The Prius has allowed us to get out and not have to cut back on our long and short trips, plus its a zippy little car that seats 5 with a lot of head room for us tall guys.
We also just got to enjoy our $3100.00 state tax credit. :- )