Negative Consumer Review Trends

I also agree. Initially was very diappointed. But then I got some after market visor extendors that are color matched - for about $8 - and they work great. in fact, better than the factor installed extenders i have on two of my other cars. Better in the following regards:

(1) Extend further out and can be angled up or down a bit, if needed.

(2) They don't rattle.

Not as convenient to adjust as the factory ones...but they work fine, and in fact, I think a bit better in most aspects.

 

Oh, you mean he is fishing for self-justification, some reason, to not buy a ZVW30?

My thinking is the thread will be interesting as folks go over the strengths and weaknesses. But we already have a sticky thread on "improvements" for the ZVW30. In reality, if the OP wants to announce sometime in the future, 'ha, ha, I bought a <tbd> instead.' No skin off of my nose nor anyone else.

We've had a series of disgrunted Prius owners 'justify' why they didn't like their Prius. They've sold theirs and marched off the head of a mob of . . . one . . . and then joined my "ignore user" list until they finally left us alone. Today, I only have two active entries on my list which has improved the signal-to-noise ratio (UserCP -> ignore user is the 'squlech' of forums.)

Now the OP could 'fix' the title by self-reporting to the moderators with a plea for a more neutral thread title. That would be a good thing but that is between the OP and moderators. As for "troll," well if the OP is one, they are exceptionally unskilled in the art so no need to jump to any conclusions. It could be just a poor choice of words. Or they are seeking some justification for "I am changing because I don't like it."

Bob Wilson

 

If you buy the II then the 2010 is being discounted to about 20k. You can probably find a used 2009 for less. Don't know how much less but I wouldn't pay over 15k if new is 20k. You need to test drive them both -- the answer should be apparent based on your impressions and needs.

 

I have been driving my prius for a few months now, and here is what i could notice:

- poor rear visibility: True, i really dislike the rear window being split in half, especially since the middle always seems to end up on the face of the driver following you. makes it really hard to check out cute chicks. Seriously, even if i would much prefer a full unobstructed window, you do get used to it after a while;

- uncomfortable seats/poor lumbar support: No issues on the lombar support, but it was my first car with it, so no real comparison there. However, i hate the fact that the seats are slightly offset to the steering wheel. on those cold winter days, when you turn on the heat in the seat, I always end up with half a leg cold because i am not sitting straight in the middle of the seat... kinda unpleasant;

- excessive wind/road noise: Not any worse than another car, especially considering how quiet it is, you should hear outside sound more;

- squeaks and rattles: i did experience a rattle at the beginning that sounded almost like a phone ring. eventually it went away on its own. I think it was just the first uses of the car;

- problems with the regenerative braking system: I didn't notice anything of that matter;

- non-responsive steering: Nothing experienced there either;

- stiff ride: Unless you over inflate the tires for better MPG, well you shouldn't have a problem with that. however, i did notice a few times that it seems to catch in the wind a little more than i am used to. especially when crossign bridges;

- poor headrest design - especially for shorter people: No complains here, all good for me;

- cheap interior materials (e.g., plastic): I think that the leafs design they put on the plastic ( ie. dash) is a negative. it makes it much harder to clean than a smooth surface, but other than that, i didn't find it was "Cheap";

- inadequate sun visors (extenders required): Couldn't agree more with that one. when i want to use it, i find they are just totally useless due to their small size.

I hope that answers your questions. Overall, this is a great car! Not perfect, but great!

 

Bob,

Good post.

God knows this place has more than their fair share of hybrid haters/trolls.

When I see a thread title like this, my troll meter pegs.

 

I don't understand the Edmunds comment about "non-responsive steering". I think that may be a function of tire type and tire pressure, I find the steering to be fairly responsive with adequate road feel.

The seats are a lot better than the gen2 for me, but there is still room for improvement. A little more padding and more thigh support would be nice.

I agree with the comment about the sun visors, when I move them to block the side windows they are to short to be of any value. I made an extender out of cardboard, it's kind of mickey mouse but it works.

 

macmaster05

I agree with most of what you said except that, at least for this 5'2" person the headrests are definitely not designed for people my size, if I put my head back that far it'll be tipping forward as the pressure point is to high.

 

As for excessive road noise - I have to completely agree.

I've thrown lots of deadening material at the doors, and rear of the car. It is still very loud when running over certain road types. Typically I notice it most over bridges - at highway speeds {70MPH} - cement surface.

The road noise seems to come form the tires - so I am guessing tire type and inflation affect the noise.

It bugs me enough that I am thinking about pulling the carpet, and putting in sound deadening at the firewall/floor.

To the poster claiming the IV and V are more quiet - that would maybe be due to different tires.

Bottom line - while quiet in a parking lot (low speeds etc), the car is loud on certain road types - and with certain tires. I have a stock II with stock 15" Bridgestone tires....

 

- poor rear visibility - It's not great but the backup camera helps, at least when you're in reverse.
- uncomfortable seats/poor lumbar support - I have a level III and I find the seats to be very comfortable, and I've got 20,000 miles in it so far. Lumbar support is actually available in levels IV and V, though I haven't driven one of them to compare the seats.
- excessive wind/road noise - I don't find this to be true. However, I'm not coming to the Prius from a BMW, Cadillac, Lexus, etc.
- squeaks and rattles - It does have a few, but they don't bother me much.
- problems with the regenerative braking system - There is an issue under certain circumstances (potholes or uneven surfaces when braking lightly) but it's very predictable.
- non-responsive steering - I don't find this to be true.
- stiff ride - It's a ride typical of a small car.
- poor headrest design - especially for shorter people - I don't know, I'm 6'2" and the headrest works fine for me.
- cheap interior materials (e.g., plastic) - Yes, they are plastic.
- inadequate sun visors (extenders required) - I agree that there are times when the visor can't block the sun adequately, as when the sun is low on the horizon.

Tom

 

After 18K miles on my 2010 III:

- poor rear visibility - True - but I have adjusted to it and understand the engineering design purpose for it.
- uncomfortable seats/poor lumbar support - False
- excessive wind/road noise - No more so than my other cars. Most of the road noise comes from my OEM tires.
- squeaks and rattles - True. I have had a few, they seem to come and go.
- problems with the regenerative braking system - False. I have even tried to duplicate what others have described.
- non-responsive steering - False
- stiff ride - False
- poor headrest design - especially for shorter people - False
- cheap interior materials (e.g., plastic) - Yes, but they are eco plastics.
- inadequate sun visors (extenders required) - False

 

Maybe, but does anybody actually use their headrest when they drive? Most people leave plenty of space between the headrest and the back of their head since the seat leans back.

The only time I lean my head against the headrest is when I take a nap in the car, dentist chair style.

 

You know regarding road noise my other vehicle is a 2004 van and my wife and I both think the Prius is MUCH quieter, like amazingly quieter. Maybe all cars of this era are better than before but its road noise isn't bad to us at all. The van has bad noise!

 

I think there is a bit of validity to a few of the more common complaints but on balance, the problems are minor. See responses below in red.

 

- poor rear visibility. I love the rear bar, blocks headlights of cars following
- uncomfortable seats/poor lumbar support. The seats in my III are fine for my 6' frame
- excessive wind/road noise. Very little wind noise, road noise is bad only if your alignment if off, based on my experience.
- squeaks and rattles. Nope
- problems with the regenerative braking system. Nope.
- non-responsive steering. Nope.
- stiff ride. Nope.
- poor headrest design - especially for shorter people. What do you want, American design neck busters? The Japanese do headrests correctly.
- cheap interior materials (e.g., plastic). I like the idea that the plastic is made from plants, not oil
- inadequate sun visors (extenders required). OK, agreed on one.

 

I've driven a nissan, ford, mazda, honda, subaru, suzuki, camry and prius and so far my prius beats them on all with much better built quality and many cool options. Getting close to 25K miles without any major problems and still running great with almost 60mpg in average.

- poor rear visibility - true but it makes me check twice before changing lanes sot it's more like a safety feature?
- uncomfortable seats/poor lumbar support - not true my V seat feels so comfortable especially during long trips
- excessive wind/road noise - not that much and at least it doesnt shake like my suzuki does!
- squeaks and rattles - maybe when its really cold but not true most of the time
- problems with the regenerative braking system - not true except when it's really hot I hear little break noice other than that when I need to break fast, it works great!
- non-responsive steering - not true
- stiff ride - not true
- poor headrest design - especially for shorter people - not true and I am a shorty
- cheap interior materials (e.g., plastic) - not true, everything looks great to me, love leather seats!
- inadequate sun visors (extenders required)[/QUOTE] - that would be nice to have!




iPhone ?

 

I am convinced that most road noise comes from the tires. Smooth asphalt is virtually silent; concrete is noisy; peagravel in asphalt (like they are installing everywhere) is the loudest. I am in the market for new tires, and several brands tout the quietness.

I owned at 2001 Toyota Highlander ... I thought it was terribly noisy. When I changed the tires, the noise mostly went away. Plus, the ride was significantly imporved. They do us no favors with OEM tires.

 

- poor rear visibility (if we spent more time looking forward when we drive, we would have less accidents/ i wonder what that rear view camera is for??)
- uncomfortable seats/poor lumbar support (use adjustment? then again, not all have that. mine does)
- excessive wind/road noise (roll the windows up. there is also a CD you can get that mimics a V-8)
- squeaks and rattles (i hear a LOT about that here, but have not experienced it in any of the 3 Pri's i have owned. i am a lucky dog!!)
- problems with the regenerative braking system (mine too!! it does not do windows, fetch my slippers,...)
- non-responsive steering (is this what you told the insurance company when hit that parked car?)
- stiff ride (as opposed to complaining about too much body roll?)
- poor headrest design - especially for shorter people (short people's head cant reach the headrest)
- cheap interior materials (e.g., plastic) (plastic is more expensive than metal, but lighter which is why its used extensively. other than that, my interior has this leather looking stuff...)
- inadequate sun visors (extenders required) ( i live in the Pacific Northwest in Olympia, WA aka the northern most State Capital in the contiguous US. there is no visor on any car that is adequate when the Sun is at the angle we have here)

 

I don't think this is troll material at all. Nothing wrong with taking an objective look at things and getting constructive feedback. But using the same data in an attacking manner would be troll-like. I agree though, he should fill in his car and location data at least so we know what he drives and a bit of what his driving conditions are.

Since you're relatively new here, the whole thanks thing started a year or so ago, so anybody who posted before that time wouldn't get or give thanks. The large majority of my posts are in that category, that's why I don't have a lot of thanks (at least that's my excuse )

I don't have a 2010 and haven't ridden in one, but I'm surprised the front/side visibility isn't mentioned as I don't think that's changed. That's my biggest beef, trying to look for cars coming from the side or pedestrians crossing at an intersection, with the large A pillars blocking my view. Rear visibility is fine, except the rear-view mirror is too low, I had to flip mine upside down so it doesn't block the forward view so much. Distance to the pedals vs. the steering wheel is a bit odd, but I got used to it and o/w I have no complaints. (Once I taped in a small glare-blocker so the dashboard display doesn't reflect on the windshield directly in my field of view).

 

I think this all comes down to perspective. Some of my prevoius cars are: 2008 Scion XD, 2004 Mazda RX-8, 2000 Toyota Celica GT-S

- poor rear visibility - Uh, try driving a 2000 Celica or 2004 RX-8, you will quickly learn to use the outside mirrors (just like a truck driver does)

- uncomfortable seats/poor lumbar support - It all depends on the reviewers size and weight. Some people will be really comfortable and some will not. I am comfortable and the Lumbar adjust to my liking.

- excessive wind/road noise - Actually the Prius is pretty quite compared to some of my past rides. The tires do get noisy on some road surfaces. I think people sometimes hear the sound coming from the traction battery vent by the passenger rear seat and it can sound like an open window (road noise).


- squeaks and rattles - I don't notice any
, but here in Florida the weather is not as extreme so cars generally have less squeaks and rattles.

- problems with the regenerative braking system - Define 'Problem'. I like the brakes they work great!

- non-responsive steering - The steering is very good, the RX-8 is always praised for it's steering, and I don't find anything wrong with the Prius steering.

- stiff ride -Yes, compared to a Lexus sure, compared to a Viper - no. My Prius has the 17 inchers and I think it rides just right (for me).


- poor headrest design - The only way to tell if a headrest is good or bad is after you've been rear-ended and what neck or head injury you sustain.

- cheap interior materials (e.g., plastic) - OMG the Prius uses plastic in the interior, just like every other car, fo the most part I think the materials are more than acceptable for the cost of the car and the technologies used in the Prius. A quick side note - 20 years ago I purchased a new 1990 Protege. Motor Trend rated it highly, but complained the seat material was 'cheap' and would not hold up well. I traded that car in with 150,000 mile and the seats looked good as new! So define 'cheap'

- inadequate sun visors (extenders required) - Cheap people - Get SUNGLASSES - I have never used my sun visors - I wear sunglasses. (remember I am in Florida where it is sunny almost all the time)

If the above are THE complaints I would say the reviwer(s) are really reaching to find Something wrong.

Fact: Some people hate the Prius and nothing will change their mind.

It would be interesting to find out what kind of car the reviewers actually own. In fact I think we need a law that forces the reviewer (of any product) to reveal the brand they own, only then will we get closer to the truth.

 

agree 100%.

we did a trip back from Disneyland up the coast and the drive was one hairpin turn after another. turning to the right was a breeze but did not take long to realize that my confidence making sharp downhill turns to the left basically reduced my speed about 30-50%.

its simply hard to see the road when the turn is sharp enough that you must look less than 20-30 feet in front of you.

now, on the 2010. there is an adjustable steering wheel and the dreaded center column eliminates the reach issues for basic control functions