Obd speedometer compatiblity

Welcome! If all you want is the speed, you can get that from your smart phone without an OBDII device. There are lots of apps that will do that including some of the map apps like Google maps, if I remember right.

One possible problem with using an OBDII device routinely like you're thinking about is that they keep using power after you shut off the car. So if you forget to unplug it, you could run down the 12V battery.

 

You could use a dashcam if it has GPS.

 

That's a good idea if the display is big enough. I keep my dash cam display off but it's right there if I turn it on.

 

Or a cheap SatNav/GPS.

 

And it's pretty easy to just do a mental conversion by rounding it off. Such as 60 mph = 40 kph, etc. Oops. Did it backwards. LOL! 60 mph = 100 kph, 30 mph = 50 kph. Maybe it's not super-easy. But I've done that a lot in both directions.

 

Do you know where your car came from?

 

AFAIK, none of the 2016s could switch units.

 

UK ones can

 

My dashcam display goes off a few seconds after powering up, reverting to a black screen with just the (GPS) speed showing, ideal for the OP.

 

I thought is was just the first 2016 Liftbacks that could not, and that this was fixed at some point during that same production year.

P.S. Here is the official Transport Canada list of which Prius models cannot be imported from the U.S. to Canada specifically because of this speedometer issue:

"Notes 3, 4 and 5: The following vehicles models series do not have the functionality to program the digital speedometer units from miles per hour (mph) to kilometers per hour (km/h):

-Certain 2016 model year Prius (estimated production period: start of production through March 2016) , and

-Certain 2016-2017 model year Prius v (estimated production period: Avril 2016 through end of production), and

-2017 model year Prius c (estimated production period: Dec 2016 through May 2017"

 

Aussie ones are only km/hr.

 

Mine can. From the parts catalog data, I believe the change to the meter circuit plate with support for dual units may have been made in March 2016, and my car was made after that.

See also the PriusChat thread about this, in which @Greatmouse kindly reported that replacing the instrument cluster (combination meter, in Toyota’s terms) provided the km/h readout required in Canada.

 

That mid year change does sound familiar now that you mention it, @Elektroingenieur. Thanks for looking it up.

Pretty sure that's right. I didn't specify because I was thinking liftback was the object of the question.

 

Well that is what I remembered, but that Transport Canada shows some 'c' and 'v' units also having the same problem. And curiously, they don't have overlapping production periods, but rather sequential periods.

 

Can it be changed using the Techstream Software?

 

Not as far as I know. There is an Active Test function, “Speed Meter Operation,” that lets you force the reading to 0, 40, 80, 120, or 160 of the currently selected units—more useful on vehicles with mechanical speedometer movements—but not a way to change the units, nor to enable a unit selection capability for the user.

 

No. If it could, that would have fixed the problem for a very disgruntled PC member living near the US-Canadian border and frequently crossing. He was upset enough at the lack of a fix (other than trading in for a later unit) to make noises about getting a safety recall.