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heated seats in 2011

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by 007, Feb 8, 2011.

  1. 007

    007 New Member

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    Just noticed in the Toyota Canada book for the 2011 Prius, that they have moved the heated seats buttons to the seat themselves. Can anyone with a 2011 confirm this? I read it last night, the buttons are now (supposedly) located at seat level. Thought that was interesting since so many people complained about having them on the floor.
     
    #1 007, Feb 8, 2011
  2. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Don't confuse the factory heated seats with the dealer-installed ones. (i.e. the one that come with the Tech Pack and the one that you check off under Accessories).

    Toyota has been offering port-leather-installed seats for a few years and they've always included dual-stage heated seats with small round rocker-type buttons mounted on the leading edge of the outboard portion of the seats. I've always found it odd that they install dual-stage aftermarket but Toyota itself isn't willing to offer that as a factory option. :confused:

    The port-installed leather option only includes the seats. The wheel is urethane and the door trim remains as cloth.
     
    #2 Tideland Prius, Feb 8, 2011
  3. 007

    007 New Member

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    Oh I see, this is what they quote below....yeah that's not the Tech package, so that's just an option you can get when you order for an extra 1890.00.....but they are not dealer installed, this would be done at the factory when the unit is built, correct? Because when I put my order in with my salesman, he wanted to know everything I wanted, so when it arrived, everything would be ready....they were not going to install anything at the garage. They should be just as good as the ones with the Tech package, wouldn't you say? It's called the "Leather Package"

    "Leather Seat Surfaces, Heated Front Seats with Seat-Mounted High/Low Setting $1890.00"
     
    #3 007, Feb 9, 2011
  4. Paul58

    Paul58 Mileage Miser

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    Ouch! I paid $574.00 for heated leather seats on my III: Clazzio Leather Seat Covers: $390.00, eBay Seat Heaters: $99.00, installation at local shop: $85! This is for the two stage heaters and I had them mounted on either side of the panel under the bridge where the power port and blank for the factor seat heater switch is located. They look good and warm my buns just fine but cost $1316 less... :eek:
     
    #4 Paul58, Feb 9, 2011
  5. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Nope. It is not done at the factory. It's done at the Port in Richmond, B.C. (Silvercity area). They are the same leather used in the Tech Package so it's not aftermarket but again, be advised that it's strictly the seats only. The door panels and centre console lid are still factory cloth and there's no leather-wrapped steering wheel. Frankly, it was quite pricey for just seats (I can get Katzkins w/ heated seats installed for about $1,000-$1,200 and they'll include the door panels and console lid.

    Welcome to Canada. Our car-buying population is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay smaller than yours.

    We only have 12,000 Priuses sold since 2001. You guys have that many sold in 2.5 months in a given year.

    TMS sells on average >400,000 Camrys per year
    TCI sells on average 40,000 Camrys per year.
     
    #5 Tideland Prius, Feb 9, 2011
  6. 007

    007 New Member

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    Oh, I get you now. Sorry I'm so "green" at this, so there is a Port area in Richmond BC that does all the add-on's? So the cars come from Japan to Richmond, then go to a Port (factory?) in Richmond, then when finished shipped across Canada by rail? Is Richmond the Port for all cars or just Canada?
    Very interesting, how this all works. So cars arriving in Richmond Port NOT needing any options added, just zoom on by to the rail yard and away they go? I wonder what the time-line is, from leaving factory in Japan to Port and then to as far as Nova Scotia. My "build date" was February.

    thanks for all the info so far, it's quite interesting, learning new stuff everyday on this forum, what a fantastic place for education and information.
     
    #6 007, Feb 10, 2011
  7. 007

    007 New Member

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    We only have 12,000 Priuses sold since 2001. You guys have that many sold in 2.5 months in a given year.

    So, how many Prius would be sold in Canada in a year? 1300 a year sounds like a pretty small number, ya think it would be more than that? I would think Ontario alone would sell a 3 to 5 thousand a year.
     
    #7 007, Feb 10, 2011
  8. David Beale

    David Beale Senior Member

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    Actually the cars for -Western Canada- come in to Richmond. They sit in a giant lot there where they may be "finished" with "port installed options" and are shipped by truck or rail to as far east as Winnipeg. The cars for -Eastern Canada- come in to Montreal where the same thing happens.

    For the US there are more options available, and more option packages and there are three to five ports they come into (I'm never quite sure on the exact number). I know of LA, Portland, Miami, and I'm pretty sure they also come in to Boston or somewhere close to that.

    Toyota US is a "different" company than Toyota Canada. They buy the cars from the "mother company" in Japan and sell them in their country. Same thing happens all over the world. Each local country's "Toyota" orders the cars as they think is required. For example, in Europe you can get HUD (head up display) but the two I mentioned above don't bother to order it from Toyota Japan. Another example, with the GII car, the European "Toyota" didn't want the fuel tank bladder, so they didn't get it, while in Canada and the US we did.
    Each country orders the cars equipped so the locals might be happy with the way it's equipped.
     
    #8 David Beale, Feb 10, 2011
  9. 007

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    Ah, I see, so vehicles come in from Japan in BC, then rail to Montreal for the "options" if any, then by truck/rail to individual dealerships. So would it be Montreal where they get the VIN number applied, enabling a dealership to track the car when it arrives in Canada?
     
    #9 007, Feb 10, 2011
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