Wanted to introduce myself as the husband of a 2012 Prius 4 owner. I drive a 2010 FJ and now I'm driving wifey's Prius on a daily basis since she is working from home and thought it would be nice to say hello before I started posting questions on this car that I'm too lazy to read on the manual ( not sure I would find them anyway). Love the car and since I'm the main driver would like to mod it a bit, I have ordered a set of rims and tires which should be arriving home tomorrow (from 15's to 17's), would like to add some HID's instead of the driving lights and would like to figure out how to increase the volume of the voice that comes on during voice commands as it is so faint...well thanks for reading, and you guys have a great forum going on. HEK aka Hector
Welcome! Just keep in mind that you'll probably encounter some mileage hit due to the 17" wheels. But, Car and Driver: Mileage? No, it's Your Gallonage that Really Counts | PriusChat should help put what seems like a "large" loss in perspective.
Thanks guys ad yes I was aware of the possible loss of MPG in going with larger tires but even if I get 35 mpg (in comparison to 20 on my FJ) I'm happy. Wifey just did a search and today before I hit the gym will go and increase the volume on the voice commands and map directions. This site is very informative and being that this is a different kind of vehicle compared to all my previous rides I'm taking in the manual with me so that I can learn more about it. I just gassed up yesterday in close to 3 weeks and used 9 gal. and drove 484 miles...that's close to 54 mpg, it's crazy...if this Winter is not as harsh as the years before in 2013 I'm thinking of trading my FJ for a Honda CRZ which seems to be a bit more fun to drive , unfortunately I drove the CVT and didn't like the knocking sound it makes when the electric motor transitions to the engine when taking off, they didn't have a 6 speed to drive and didn't want to commit to buying one and have that annoying sound be part of the deal, nothing like the Prius where you can barely feel it...thanks for all the "hello's"...
I'd be wary of buying a Honda hybrid as they seem to have difficulty w/HV battery longevity. See Salvage Traction Battery | PriusChat. However, since you're in MA, I'd imagine the CRZ (you should double check its warranty booklet) would qualify for a 10 year/150K HV battery warranty since MA is a CARB (California Air Resources Board) emissions state. Then, you just have to hope that Honda is willing to replace the HV battery if it craps out during the warranty rather than putting on a band aid (e.g. Fix for Civic hybrids' dying batteries may hurt gas mileage, acceleration - Los Angeles Times). Also look at the Honda hybrids maintenance records vs. semi-recent Toyota ones at Advanced Vehicle Testing Activity - Hybrid Electric Vehicles. It seems somewhat common that Honda hybrids needed either new transmissions or cats once they hit high mileage. And, their brakes don't seem to last that long. Your mileage will definitely drop during winter. It can be mitigated a bit via grille blocking, engine block heater and better heater usage. I'd strongly recommend snow tires as well.
Thanks for the feedback on the Honda's, I will do more research before I make a decision...I love my FJ when I need to haul stuff and in the snow is awesome, the Prius with the new shoes that arrived last night has taken a more I would say "stylish look", today is the test run..pics to follow..thanks again guys
