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Prius annoyances

Discussion in 'Prime Main Forum (2017-2022)' started by Zed Ruhlen, Jun 13, 2019.

  1. Washingtonian

    Washingtonian Senior Member

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    I have grown to like the shape of the rear window on the Prime. I can look down a row of similar cars in a parking lot and instantly see my car. I am glad it is different.
     
    Prius from Dad and jerrymildred like this.
  2. jb in NE

    jb in NE Senior Member

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    I read that regulation, and I don't see any requirement for a beep in reverse. The selected gear is clearly displayed on the dashboard for whatever is selected (P, R, N, D, B). Plus there is the hard-to-miss change of the dash display to a backup camera view.
     
  3. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    I think these pages have most of the introductory posts about the Prime.
    Prime Main Forum (2017-Current) | Page 111 | PriusChat
    Prime Main Forum (2017-Current) | Page 112 | PriusChat
    Prime Main Forum (2017-Current) | Page 113 | PriusChat
    The Prime is a Prius, with the same 'bones'. The wheel base, width, height, and ground clearance are identical. The difference in length is because of the lower front and rear fascia differences; the thickness of the carbon fiber hatch might play a part.
    Prius Prime Dimensions Comparison | PriusChat
    Putting Prime's rear on a Prius would take more work because of the hatch.
    Didn't the 2019 Prius get the Prime's headlights?

    Edit: Double checked Toyota's site, and there is a difference in ground clearance. Which could be do to adjustment of the suspension, or the fascia pieces.

    Back up cameras weren't standard yet.
    It is entirely possible that the reverse beeping was a requirement for Japan, and it just got left on for other markets.
     
    #43 Trollbait, Jun 14, 2019
    Last edited: Jun 14, 2019
  4. jb in NE

    jb in NE Senior Member

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    As you noted in your edit, Prius at 5.1" and Prime at 4.8". Minor difference.

    The 2019 Prius definitely does not have the Prime headlights. It looks to have the same headlights as 208 Prius.

    2019 Prius:

    upload_2019-6-14_16-50-26.jpeg

    2018 Prime (same as 2019):

    Prius Prime white.jpg

    I am not aware of any US requirements for a backup beep, inside the car. There are requirements for acoustic warning devices for EV's in both forward and reverse at slow speeds, but that's not what the Toyota beep inside the car is for.
     
  5. Zed Ruhlen

    Zed Ruhlen Active Member

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    Interestingly mine doesn't default to EV-AUTO but it DOES reset to ECO. Weird.

    Which screen do you have? I have the smaller one and it doesn't take as long to boot as yours.
     
  6. jb in NE

    jb in NE Senior Member

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    I have the larger screen - Premium model.

    When you turn your Prime on, which hybrid system operation mode does it default to: EV, EV auto or HV? Mine always goes to EV (despite the error in my earlier reply).

    But, the driving mode on mine stays in whatever mode it was when I shut the car off - ECO, Normal or Power. Your does not?
     
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  7. Zed Ruhlen

    Zed Ruhlen Active Member

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    12. I missed the seat heater switches. WTH were they thinking with that one?
    13. The Prime Plus has a recirc mode on the HVAC panel. BUT here's something else I hate. IT ALWAYS DEFAULTS TO RECIRC WITH THE A/C.
     
  8. Zed Ruhlen

    Zed Ruhlen Active Member

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    You're right, it goes to EV mode. It bothers me less because that is what I almost always require since I live in a small town.
     
  9. Zed Ruhlen

    Zed Ruhlen Active Member

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    Because I can. After all, it's a list of things that bother me about the car. And really it was a compromise decision. I went with the Prime because the Volt has a smaller rear seat and less luggage space and gets mediocre (for a hybrid) gas mileage. But for UI elements the Volt is light years better than the Prius. Plus reliability. That ruled out Honda with their battery issues and GM because, well, GM. I'm not nearly the first person to complain about many of these elements. I noticed they moved the seat heater switches for instance.
     
  10. jb in NE

    jb in NE Senior Member

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    Does your driving mode not stick to what it was when you shut the car down - always goes back to ECO? This is not the same as the A/C going to ECO, which it will do if your drive mode is already in ECO.

    12. Seat heater switches - I like them where they are. In the winter, my driver seat is almost always on anyway. People with the new Prius 19's are already complaining about the new location - they can switched on/off too easily.
    13. Agree with the A/C going in recirc. Very annoying and it should stay where I left it.
     
  11. Zed Ruhlen

    Zed Ruhlen Active Member

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  12. Zed Ruhlen

    Zed Ruhlen Active Member

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    Why do people just make stuff up? It's a "feature" world-wide and more annoying in other countries.
     
  13. Zed Ruhlen

    Zed Ruhlen Active Member

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    I measured it, there is more than enough room to put that same dash in front of the driver. It would still be above the steering wheel and I wouldn't have to look to the side of the car for some of the information displayed. It's a stupid design and it is only that way to be "different"
     
  14. Zed Ruhlen

    Zed Ruhlen Active Member

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    I'll have to check. But it shouldn't change the HVAC mode on me.

    As for the seat heaters, my wife likes to leave hers on when she gets out of the car. To turn it off the next morning I have to reach around the console. It's a bad design. If it were a good one it would be repeated by other car makers. What was it Click and Clack said? "The French copy nobody and NOBODY copies the French." It's one of those types of designs
     
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  15. Marine Ray

    Marine Ray Senior Member

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    + shark fin antenna + there isn't that many Prime in the wild = easy to find in parking lot

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
  16. jb in NE

    jb in NE Senior Member

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    I leave an inflatable Barney the Dinosaur on top of mine. Haven't lost the car yet. ;)
     
  17. Trollbait

    Trollbait It's a D&D thing

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    The difference could easily be from the different trim pieces, or suspension tuning for the different weights.

    The beeping existed long before the pedestrian warning noise requirement. Someone somewhere, externally or internally to Toyota, felt the car needed the warning. Like how they felt it needed to creep forward like a car with a typical automatic transmission does.

    Honda's issue was with NiMH, and they haven't used those for years now. They switched to Li-ion while still using the IMA hybrid system

    There may be an ergonomic reason. Center mounted and high is farther away than in front of the driver. Far enough to make a difference in the time it takes the driver's eyes to refocus on the road after checking the instrument display.
     
  18. Marine Ray

    Marine Ray Senior Member

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    Does Barney effect your eMPG?
     
  19. smyles

    smyles Active Member

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    Many cars do this, it's to accelerate interior cooling. My 4runner does it too. After a while recirc switches off automatically.
     
  20. Marine Ray

    Marine Ray Senior Member

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    My greatest annoyance is all those Prime owners complaining about their Primes. My flintstone mobile - now that was an annoyance images.jpeg

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
  21. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    For the Prime, the design was the higher priority so that’s why it’s 1.2” longer in the front than the regular Prius. The designer wanted to incorporate the quad LEDs from the Mirai as part of Toyota's future car lineup. The result is that the car was less aerodynamic than the regular Prius. The designer also wanted that dual wave rear window (on all versions but production limitations meant they kept it on the lower volume Prime). If you read some Japanese car articles, the designer wanted an even more aggressive dip in the centre of the window than we currently have. There were discussions between the chief engineer and chief designer on the merits of the dual wave rear window. The compromise we see on the Prime today is the balance between design and aerodynamics (I.e. the designer got the design he wanted and the engineer got some physics out of it rather than just let the window be a pretty design feature with no function). This improved aerodynamics from the rear window partially offsets the loss of coefficient of drag than the engineers lost due to the designers desire for the Prime’s front end. The Cd of the Prime is 0.25 and the Prius is 0.24.


    Some of this information was from me chatting with the chief designer directly (through a translator) in New York, others were from a Japanese car article where the journalist talked to the asst chief engineer.