Advice for owning and driving a new Prius

heliotropehead · 09-02-2004, 11:57 AM

Hello all!
My 2005 Prius is due to arrive next month. This will be my first car and I want to make certain I know what not to do. I don't want any red lights to come on during my trip home from the dealership! Any advice?

Thanks in advance!

aarons12 · 09-02-2004, 01:00 PM

start the car and drive. that's what i did for the 10 hours/600 miles from west virginia to long island when i picked mine up.

beyond that, do some searching/reading at this site where you will read great tips for getting max mileage. probably the best anecdotal one was to drive as if there was a raw egg between your foot and the accelerator pedal.

**efusco** · 09-02-2004, 01:22 PM

Be sure to read this thread and download the file. Also go to the VFAQ and other links in that post. It'll give you lots of good info so that you're sure everything is ready, as it should be.

Be prepared for unexpected things at closing. Some dealers will offer an extended warranty or paint protection and take a simple "no" and move on. Others will pressure you more. You do not need, nor should you pay for Toyoguard. Do some searches on extended service contracts where you pre-pay for oil changes and such--some find it a good deal, others a rip off...it's just important to know what you want to do, what you'd consider a good deal so that you're not fooled into buying something that you don't need/want or that would end up costing you more and padding the dealer's wallet.

Know the price of the Toyota Platinum Extended Service Warranty and that you do NOT have to buy it at the time of purchase. If you can get it for $1000 or so (and you want to have it) and work it into your loan then you might be best getting it from your dealer if money is an issue. If it's not such a big issue then you can buy it from Danny here at PriusChat for $985 and you probably won't be able to find it cheaper anywhere else and you'll be supporting the site.

I would either wax or polish (with Nu-Finish or similar) right away. Offer that paint all the protection you can.

Other than that...I'm with Aarons--just get in and drive it. There are some warnings your salesman will cover about not driving too hard or braking too hard in the first 600 miles...that's fine. You may get a red light in the first 100-200 miles--that's just from crud in the O2 sensor and it'll wear off in about 50-100 more miles...no need to go in to have it checked. Anything that seems to not be working right should be checked out right away.

That oughta about do it... Have fun!!

richard schumacher · 09-02-2004, 03:29 PM

(Evan, it appears that the url you intended wasn't included.)

The pickup checklist is at http://www.vfaq.net/docs/pickup_checklist.html

Plan on spending 20 minutes sitting in the car at the dealer reading the before-you-drive section of the owner's manual, and at least skimming the rest of it.
No hard braking in the first 200 miles, no "excessive speed" (whatever that is) in the first 600 miles.

Gurmail · 09-02-2004, 03:30 PM

Congratulations. Follow Evans advice.

hdrygas · 09-02-2004, 04:04 PM

Just drive it. Keep your eyes on the road, if you can 8) . Becoming one with the car will happen. ICE on ICE off.

madams · 09-02-2004, 04:20 PM

Another thing -- The dealer told me NOT to use the cruise control for the first 1000 miles, It may cause the ICE to race too much before it breaks in.

**efusco** · 09-02-2004, 04:58 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by richard schumacher
(Evan, it appears that the url you intended wasn't included.)

The pickup checklist is at http://www.vfaq.net/docs/pickup_checklist.html

Plan on spending 20 minutes sitting in the car at the dealer reading the before-you-drive section of the owner's manual, and at least skimming the rest of it.
No hard braking in the first 200 miles, no \"excessive speed\" (whatever that is) in the first 600 miles.

I'm pretty sure it was operator error!

ops:

Here's the Referenced Thread

bookrats · 09-02-2004, 05:05 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by hdrygas
Becoming one with the car will happen. ICE on ICE off.

:lolup: :lolup:

Yes, oh master!

heliotropehead · 09-02-2004, 05:27 PM

Thank you all for the great advice. I have downloaded and printed all the files and will be studying them until the day I get the call!

09-02-2004, 11:57 AM	#1
heliotropehead Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: New Orleans, Louisiana Posts: 701 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Advice for owning and driving a new Prius Hello all! My 2005 Prius is due to arrive next month. This will be my first car and I want to make certain I know what not to do. I don't want any red lights to come on during my trip home from the dealership! Any advice? Thanks in advance!

09-02-2004, 01:22 PM	#3
efusco Troll Slayer Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Nixa, MO Posts: 12,945 My Car: 2004 Prius Package: #9 Nominated 1 Time in 1 Post TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 21	Be sure to read this thread and download the file. Also go to the VFAQ and other links in that post. It'll give you lots of good info so that you're sure everything is ready, as it should be. Be prepared for unexpected things at closing. Some dealers will offer an extended warranty or paint protection and take a simple "no" and move on. Others will pressure you more. You do not need, nor should you pay for Toyoguard. Do some searches on extended service contracts where you pre-pay for oil changes and such--some find it a good deal, others a rip off...it's just important to know what you want to do, what you'd consider a good deal so that you're not fooled into buying something that you don't need/want or that would end up costing you more and padding the dealer's wallet. Know the price of the Toyota Platinum Extended Service Warranty and that you do NOT have to buy it at the time of purchase. If you can get it for $1000 or so (and you want to have it) and work it into your loan then you might be best getting it from your dealer if money is an issue. If it's not such a big issue then you can buy it from Danny here at PriusChat for $985 and you probably won't be able to find it cheaper anywhere else and you'll be supporting the site. I would either wax or polish (with Nu-Finish or similar) right away. Offer that paint all the protection you can. Other than that...I'm with Aarons--just get in and drive it. There are some warnings your salesman will cover about not driving too hard or braking too hard in the first 600 miles...that's fine. You may get a red light in the first 100-200 miles--that's just from crud in the O2 sensor and it'll wear off in about 50-100 more miles...no need to go in to have it checked. Anything that seems to not be working right should be checked out right away. That oughta about do it... Have fun!! __________________ Evan E. Fusco, MD Seaside 04BC9/OEM EVb/NAV & auto-BT/XM Radio, CAN-View, Shark Fin, BT Stiff. Plate, Skid Plate & Strut Support

09-02-2004, 05:27 PM	#10
heliotropehead Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: New Orleans, Louisiana Posts: 701 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Thanks Soo much! Thank you all for the great advice. I have downloaded and printed all the files and will be studying them until the day I get the call!

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09-02-2004, 01:00 PM	#2
aarons12 Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: long island, NY Posts: 705 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	start the car and drive. that's what i did for the 10 hours/600 miles from west virginia to long island when i picked mine up. beyond that, do some searching/reading at this site where you will read great tips for getting max mileage. probably the best anecdotal one was to drive as if there was a raw egg between your foot and the accelerator pedal.

09-02-2004, 03:29 PM	#4
richard schumacher ichorous liquor Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: United States Posts: 3,892 My Car: 2004 Prius Package: #6 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	(Evan, it appears that the url you intended wasn't included.) The pickup checklist is at http://www.vfaq.net/docs/pickup_checklist.html Plan on spending 20 minutes sitting in the car at the dealer reading the before-you-drive section of the owner's manual, and at least skimming the rest of it. No hard braking in the first 200 miles, no "excessive speed" (whatever that is) in the first 600 miles.

09-02-2004, 03:30 PM	#5
Gurmail Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Oakland, CA Posts: 244 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Congratulations. Follow Evans advice.

09-02-2004, 04:04 PM	#6
hdrygas Senior Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Olympia Wa Posts: 3,650 My Car: 2004 Prius Package: #9 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Just drive it. Keep your eyes on the road, if you can 8) . Becoming one with the car will happen. ICE on ICE off.

09-02-2004, 04:20 PM	#7
madams Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Cary, IL Posts: 87 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Another thing -- The dealer told me NOT to use the cruise control for the first 1000 miles, It may cause the ICE to race too much before it breaks in.