2012 Advanced Trim Package, Worth the Price?

hard drive (hdd) is faster, can hold more info, can be digitally upgraded by the dealer, and comes with a larger screen.

 

Add to the list,
Heads Up Display
8-way power driver's seat with lumbar support
Pre-collision system

 

Aren't they afraid that the air bags might deploy in their experiments?

 

speed can help when looking up POIs or when it has to reroute. more info just means more POIs, etc. the number of destinations is probably just a software decision, since text does not use much space. the hdd updates are likely to be available more than once a year, without waiting for shipment of a dvd, and to be cheaper, I hope.

 

I was thinking that as well. Apparently it doesn't deploy unless you hit something hard. I know that on older cars, there were sensors in the chassis that deployed the airbags as soon as they were triggered (i.e. intrusion into the bumper as the car starts to crush). I have no idea how under what circumstances manufacturers have them rigged to blow these days. I know that side airbags deploy when the car detects that the car will roll over. It has been observed to blow in error sometimes:
Camaro's air bags spontaneously deploy doing donuts

Another video for the radar cruise control:
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0ijPeWms-w]Firsthand look at 2010 @toyota Prius cruise control - YouTube[/ame]

 

Also the advanced comes with the special entune apps that allow you to check the charge level of the battery from your phone, as well as turn on the A/C from your phone.

 

I saw the HUD when I test drove a PiP at Green Drive Expo. It was quite cool, but I only got to drive for a few minutes, so I can't really say it if was distracting.

http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...7405-video-hud-in-action-mkii-inc-satnav.html is from a UK Prius.

 

It's a cool set of features. I like the LED headlights and the cruise control, but $7,000 for all that stuff is too much for me. Nice, but I think it's expensive. No "must-haves" there. You can get the seats reupholstered in real leather for around $1,000 ~ $1,200.

 

Despite being a gadget junky, I too passed on the Advanced Package. Just about everything I want/need is present in the base trim. The only thing I'm passing up that I really like would be the Dynamic Range Cruise Control & the Homelink auto-dimming mirror. We have the previous incarnation of DRCC in our 2004 Sienna XLE limited and it is a great feature to have. Makes long trips much easier. And my current 2005 Prius has the auto-dimming mirror, too. But I can't justify spending an extra $7500 to get those two features. I can live without DRCC, and the auto-dimming mirror can be swapped in at a later date.

The other stuff is intriguing, and could be useful, but again, at an extra $7500, I can't really justify it.

 

I ordered Advanced just to have all the gadgets, but I don't think it's worth it.

The mirror is useful, but another poster said it can be added later.

Specs say that the position of the HUD is user-configurable, so I'm hoping it can be placed where it isn't a distraction.

But you only get a 3 year subscription to the app. Feh. I expect that the cost to extend will be far more than it's worth.

And how much will navigation updates cost? I've never had in-car navigation, but my impression is that updating through a dealer is way overpriced. My Android smartphone does navigation for free and it's always up to date.

 

The HUD is neat, but the Prius dash display kind-of mimics a HUD, with its extended focal point and location of speed etc. So I''ve never seen the point of a HUD in the Prius.
The original Nissan Altima had a HUD that burned out after 5-6 yrs and was extremely expensive to replace. And, of course, it happened when they were out of warranty. I think its due to their location and constant sun load. Few original Altimas have a working HUD.
The Altima also had a reflective "patch" on the windshield to aid in HUD visibility that many found annoying. Otherwise the readout is not always visible in all lighting conditions.
They are cool though.

 

I also went with the base model. I love gadgets and could have afforded them but it just didn't make sense. Now I can find other gadgets I'd rather have

I pretty much use Waze on my iPhone for navigation instead of the navigation in my 06.

 

For $7,000, I could buy a premium DSLR body and a bunch of premium lenses and strobes. Or a very nice surround sound home theater.

Or, in my case, savings for the kids college.

 

Can you say 1D X . But you'd have to come up with a few bucks to pay the tax. For those not into cameras this is a new Canon body that is $6800. Yup just the dang body no lens.

 

I went with the Advanced model, but this was my first new car ever so I wanted to go with all the bells and whistles. Also I'm a super tech nerd so eh, it was hard to pass up.