What did you do to your PRIUS today?

I have them in.

They do bright up the reverse area a god deal in the back-up camera, so that's great. Apparently my south-Florida tint is so dark that it is still tough to see while reversing and using the side-mirrors. Still put the windows down in many circumstances for that.

I'm a little wary of the sealing capability of the blue-ish foam insert. It did take pressure to get them in and seated, so here's hoping that this universal press-fit seals the little notches in the round bulb seat. I wasn't expecting it to be a universal fit, but I think I'm OK with it. Only a few tropical rain storms will tell if the lenses get water in them.

Thank you. They are pretty neat, and a fun little project. Also amazing to see how much gunk gets built up in the rear lens mounts - that's going to be a rust area on a lot pf Gen4 Priuses for sure. I'm going to take the lenses off once a year, now, to clean that area out.

 

Since they replaced my UFO speaker with the post-deer-vs-Prius incident, I got yet another roll of 1-inch pipe insulation and removed the speaker, wrapped it up, tested the size and had more room, so wrapped it up even more. Could barely get the bolt back in but finally did and got her back in. Now, you can still hear it when backing up but can't hear it at all at low speeds.
My neighbor has a new Rav4 Hybrid and I can hear his UFO speaker when he drives by at low speed....I'm wondering if I should ask him if he wants to fix that thing.
Side Note: Our deer problem is, still, bad. I had to come to a complete stop this morning as two big bucks were deciding if they wanted to go left or right. No, left...no there's a big fence, go back right......What are you, a squirrel???

 

Week #2 post purchase - still catching up on all the initial stuff. Replaced the cabin air filter and engine air filter. Neither was totally filthy, but worth doing. Both were OEM - I am not claiming they were original to the car (2016 / 34k km), especially given what I know about the previous owner's maintenance. But it is likely they were there since mid-2020 - so yeah, due. Checked the battery filter, looked fine. Also checked the engine oil - also looked fine, not super fresh, but probably about half way towards needing that next oil change. Will get that done in the next few months or if the "maintenance required" light comes up first.

Also on the short list - windshield wipers (at least the fronts), and put some rainx on.

 

Today's mission involves the hunt for a clip-on wide-angle rear view mirror.

 

Did an oil and filter change with my 11yr old.

 

Did the Krown Rust Control service done on my car. Its my first time doing it and wish I knew about this kind of service when I first got my car. Hoping it performs as expected. I was hesitant when they had to drill holes into the body but they plug it with a flush cap that looks factory. Easier access for when I do it again next year.

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Took the 2021 AWD Prius to the dealer for her free 5,000 maintenance. (Just rotated tires) While there, I asked the parts department why my owner's manual says, "Visit your dealer" in the section about replacing low-beam headlights.
They looked it up...seems our low beams are not replaceable bulbs so we have to buy the entire assembly...so I priced it...$300? Nope, $800!! WHAT???? The only reason I can see Toyota doing is if those lights never burn out.
Has anybody with an older Gen 4 Prius experienced a burned out low-beam and what did you do to replace it? (I'd, first, look through junk yards for one then would look at aftermarket options but you'd probably have to replace both to keep the same look.)
Not happy about this!!!

 

interestingly, for our 6 month service, the dealer here (Toyota of Seattle) did an oil/filter change, too, even though we had driven under 2k miles. Also replaced the windshield wipers free of charge… they said they were smearing.

 

For some reason, our dealers seem to think oil changes only need it at 10,000 miles. They are so wrong. I already did my own oil change at 1,000 miles (break in change) in August, and will do it again in February...I do all my cars every 6-months or every 5,000 miles, whichever comes first. (6-months almost always comes first.)

Glad they replaced your wipers....I've found aftermarket ones don't fit our strange type so just buy replacement blades instead of the entire thing when they need it.

 

that’s surprising, since they get to bill Toyota for the work the first 5 oil changes. Free $$ I would think

 

Hey I got encouraging news about our LED headlights. Yes, we do have to replace the entire thing if the light goes out BUT a Master Toyota mechanic/technician (The Car Care Nut on YouTube) said Toyota started using these headlamps in 2014 with the Corolla and he hasn't seen a single one go out. The only time he's seen one needing replacement is if the driver hits something and cracks them...and then water gets inside and ruins them.
So that's good...when my parts department said they are over $800 my mouth dropped.
I just checked discount OEM parts on McGeorge Toyota and they are showing $866.60 MSRP and their discounted price is $565.71....much better!!

 

Last night, my new dash/rearview camera (Z-Edge R1) arrived so I have it mounted....super easy to do. Only issue was with the small rearview camera. It's not a sticky, temp type but a glue type and says do not attach to tinted windows. So I noticed the small window above the trunk isn't tinted so it's working good there...so that's where it'll stay. It records in HD, not 4K, but looks great and has a WIFI feature so it's easy to transfer videos to my cell phone without removing it or the memory card. I originally had it set to record 5-minute blocks but those videos are quite large so will be switching back down to 3 minutes. With 256 MB, the videos will record about 40-hours before starting to rewrite older videos.
Tonight, I have to tuck the wires inside the car trim to get as much of it hidden as possible.

 

I've been using 20mm H&R wheel spacers that came supplied with extended studs I needed to press in. I wanted something a little stronger to avoid any future issues so swapped over to ARP extended wheel studs. They marked for a Lexus but they're the proper style and size for our Prius.

The ARP are 66mm UHL, while stock is 40mm. I'm using 20mm spacers with a 34mm CLOSED end lug nut and fitment is perfect (I was worried the ARP stud would be too long and I would either have to run an open end lug nut or a longer one which I wanted to avoid)

ARP 100-7715

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I, usually, take my 2021 Prius to run around but decided to take the wife's 2017 since she doesn't put many miles on hers. As I pulled in the garage, I noticed the muffler on mine hangs down quite a bit more than hers. So compared them and her muffler has built-in brackets holding it up that mine doesn't have. It's pretty concerning and I just made an appointment with my Toyota dealer to, hopefully, get it fixed under warranty.
I looked at a Toyota Parts website and the one that fits looks like my wife's 2017, with the bracket that holds it up....hopefully they will swap out mine. I'll see if I can upload a few pics...it's pretty noticeable.

 

The AWD hangs lower I learned. The exhaust is further down and you don't have one of the plastic panels that connect to the rear bumper. I believe the exhaust hangs lower to avoid excessive heating to the AWD motor that's right above it in the trunk

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You might be right....I called my brother-in-law (retired mechanic) who also wondered if that's the reason. But I went ahead and made an appointment on Jan 3rd at the dealership to have them research it.

This is the electric motor which is located right above the muffler.

 

Maybe others with AWD models can compare there's to mine, especially the brackets holding the muffler...mine is just black steel things, not a bracket like our other Prius.

 

I have a 2019 awd and it's the same as your 2021. The way the muffler sits, I guess it help with aerodynamics since we are missing that one panel. Ours are also coated black I guess to cut down the heat as well

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Thanks for the clear picture. But actually, that's the rear inverter. The motor is under the floor and in line with the rear axels. Thanks to @Tideland Prius for the illustration:
Prius AWD-e - Rear Drive Layout and Spare Tire | PriusChat

 

can confirm. the muffler is lowered. I believe I saw a post about the AWD Models are missing the plastic cover up.
2020 AWDe missing panel under rear bumper? | PriusChat