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Option 9 questions from future Prius pilot

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by Bob Allen, Jan 29, 2004.

  1. Bob Allen

    Bob Allen Captainbaba

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    Hello: I talked with my CarFinder lady yesterday; I missed a Salsa Red Prius by half an hour. She wanted confirmation from me that she could put money down on the first one to show up within my (ever expanding) preference envelope. Since most of the cars coming into the Seattle area are Option 9, BC, equipped, I am moderating my anxiety over the increased cost by trying to focus on the exciting, additonal, options I will be getting.
    A few questions for those of you flying fully IFR/GPS equipped Priii:
    1. How VSC work, or, at least, what does it do? Anyone had real life experience with it?
    2. The radio CD system has a 6 CD changer. How does that work? Do you stuff 6 CDs into the slot, or is there some mechanical "lazy susan" sort of thing you load up? It would be nice on those three hour drives to Portland to have a continuous stream of music, or maybe a 4-5 CD book on tape.
    3. What's the skinny on HID headlights? Are they truly wonderful like aircraft landing lights, or are they more likely to blind oncoming drivers? In my neighborhood, the fad is for these intense semi-blue/purple lights that are like visual dental drills when you see them coming at you. They seem brighter, but not "polite". Is that what these HID lights are?
    4. And, finally, what about the self dimming rear view mirror? Why does a mirror need a transceiver built into it?
    Thanks for your responses,
    Pilot Bob in Seattle
    p.s. CarFinder lady tells me Toyota is no longer taking orders for 04 models; anyone ordering now will be on the 05 list. She says the dealers tried to convince Toyota to produce more 04s at the beginning, but Toyota used a "200% of 03 Priii" production as their benchmark. The dealers argued that this is an entirely new car and the demand will be far greater than 200% of the 03 sales. Guess who was right?
     
    #1 Bob Allen, Jan 29, 2004
  2. Cathy K

    Cathy K New Member

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    I have the VSC and the first snowy day we had I took it out to a parking lot and tried to do donuts...had absolutely no luck. The VSC kicks in before you even feel yourself going into a skid. What it feels like from the driver's end is that your throttle is cut down to a minimum level but you retain control of the steering direction. Since then I've had it kick in briefly at stop signs or down steep hills on slippery days. Again it kicks in before you can detect you are starting to skid and applies a minimal correction. Seems to be a really nice feature. As for the lights, I don't know how they look from the other side, but from the driver's side they give significantly more illumination and it seems a wider beam than traditional lights.
     
    #2 Cathy K, Jan 29, 2004
  3. jeffrey

    jeffrey New Member

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    I'd go with Cathy's description of how the vsc works- I also have tried to get the car out of control and have had little luck. It seems to kick in just at the beginning of a skid, and does feel like a throttle-down, but the best part is you can still steer just fine. In a way you might wonder if its working, but if it isn't I should have lost control eseveral times in the past week, and I have yet to (thank heaven).

    The xenon's are MUCH brighter, with a bluish tinge to them, especially initially. I have had a couple of people flash their high beams at me and yes these lights are brighter that the typical lights, but well worth it IMO.

    The CD thing is great, and yes you just feed the slot the six cd's and off you go. Much better then my trunk mounted cd changer.

    The auto-dimming mirror is something that once you've gotten used to it you'll never want to give it up. Trust me :)

    Peace
     
    #3 jeffrey, Jan 29, 2004
  4. Danny

    Danny Admin/Founder
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    Bob -

    Good questions.

    2. The CD Changer takes feeds one CD at a time and holds up to 6 CDs total - it basically feeds the first CD, then that "holder" then moves down or back to bring up the next empty "holder", etc, for all 6. It doesn't use a magazine like in most trunk-based CD changers.
    3. I love HID lights and if you have factory HID that are properly aligned, they are the best lights for driving ever made. I personally think that part of people's hissy fit over HIDs is that they are so different from what they see on the road 95% of the time that they automatically think they are blinding them or just a nuisance. I remember people (myself included) had the same thoughts when 3rd brake lights first came onto the market. Now I hate cars that don't have a 3rd brake light and curse them when I get behind them. It's the "ricey" POS ones that give HIDs a bad name. I personally have a set of Sylvania Silverstars on my MR2, and they are the closest thing to a true HID in a halogen form. They aren't for looks as you'll find with most aftermarket "HID" bulbs, but for better night vision and I can tell the difference.
    4. I believe the transceiver is built into it to use the HomeLink system - basically you can control things like your garage door and home lighting with it.
     
    #4 Danny, Jan 29, 2004
  5. rockluvr

    rockluvr New Member

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    I have the "regular" Prius headlights, not HID. Snce I've had the car for about a month now, I've been "flashed" at night by on-coming cars 4 times! Since I don't have on my brights, all I can do is flash back at them to let them know that they aren't on. The Prius lights are much brighter than the ones on my old Subaru so don't be disappointed if you don't get the HID lights - I think the regular headlights are pretty good.
     
    #5 rockluvr, Jan 29, 2004
  6. SpartanPrius

    SpartanPrius New Member

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    One of many things manufacturers and/or dealers screw up pre-delivery is proper alignment of the headlights. You may want to check yours.

    Misalignment may also partially explain why some retrofitted headlight cars are annoying. Tighter control on what retrofit products are allowable, and the success of their application would enhance road safety.

    I understand that the HID option on the Prius (that I am awaiting...) includes self-leveling lights. Has anyone noticed a plus or minus to this feature?
     
    #6 SpartanPrius, Jan 30, 2004
  7. Danny

    Danny Admin/Founder
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    I can't speak for the Prius, but the ones on the Mini are quite awesome and very helpful in keeping your headlights level all the time.
     
    #7 Danny, Jan 30, 2004
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