A "park" "not to park" inquiry

You don't need push the Park button before shutting down. When you push the Power button, the car will automatically shift to Park before shutting down.

 

I put it into park every time anyway, just out of habit.
Hit the park button, set the brake, lift the tilt steering, power off, and then the seatbelt comes off. :ranger:

 

I'm the same way - hit Park, set the brake, check the mpg for the trip, turn off the headlights, turn off the stereo, turn off the A/C or heat, power off.

 

Both you and your husband are right.

It can be dangerous if you forget to press Park and walk out of the car while it's still On. (My wife did that just the other day when she stopped at the mailbox. Luckily she was able to jump back into the rolling car and hit Park before worse things happened).

I've trained myself to always press Park, knowing how absent-minded I can be sometimes.

 

I find that having the routine also ensures I remember to power off.

 

I too set the park before I hit the off as well.

My question is why bother turning off the stereo, ac and headlights?

 

I power off. Putting it in park is a needless extra step that accomplishes nothing, as it is done automatically. As for walking off, powering down works just as well as park, and you can forget either just as easily.

Tom

 

Cause I'm weird?

I find that I tend to turn up the stereo volume pretty loud while I'm driving, and I don't like to be hit with that when I first start the car. As much as I like the Foo Fighters, they can be kind of startling if you're not expecting them. Also I tend to leave the stereo off completely when others are in the car with me, since I assume they won't like my music.

I don't always want the A/C on - in winter I only turn it on if I'm going to be in the car for a while (most of my trips are short) and if the weather is nice I prefer regular outside air. Or maybe no air. Everyday it's different.

I don't use headlights during the day unless the weather's bad, so if I have them on due to darkness, rain, etc. I turn them off when I'm at my destination. Especially since I've read the life of the HID headlights are shorter if you use them all the time.

I also have sort of a mental checklist for the dashboard when starting the car - is the Ready light on, are any warning lights on, did I remember to release parking brake, etc.

Some would say this is OCD. I like to think of it as having a sense of control over a chaotic world.

 

I wouldn't if the computer turned those off as well. As it is, I like having a know starting position. I don't always use headlights, so I turn those off. I don't always listen to the radio, so I turn that off. I always use A/C Auto mode, so I don't turn that off.

Tom

 

NOBODY EXPECTS THE SPANISH FOO FIGHTERS INQUISITION!!!

:kev::kev::kev::kev:

Kinda looks like Cardinal Richeleau.

 

Their main weapon is surprise and fear...

 

I will definitely agree to that. Just saw them in concert in Worchester a few weeks ago. Amazing show! they are by far one of the best current rock bands out there.

 

How come CyberPrius has all the interesting Prius stories?

BTW, you can't let your husband know he was right. Pretty soon he'll start thinking he was right about stuff more 50% of the time. After that he'll join Fred's House of Politics and solve the Middle East Peace Crisis. What would we do if we had nothing to talk about?

 

You don't have to hit the "parl" button because the car does automatically go into "park" upon shutdown, HOWEVERR you have to be sure the car has, or is, shutting down after pushing the "on/off" button and before removing your foot from the brake.

Sometimes a quick punch of the on/off button will not register and the car will remain on. Then removing your foot will resilt in the car rolling forward (which will likely result in months of complaints about how the car misteriously accelerates!)

 

Sorry to break it to you cyberprius, but I think you may be wrong in another aspect too . . .

If the American Idol contestant who was singing at the time your were reading the "Thou shalt not" was Kristy Lee Cook . . .
I doubt he was LISTENING to HER either.

:wub::wub::wub::wub::wub::wub:
Kristy Lee Cook - Top 24 Contestants - American Idol

As efusco points out, the car gives an indication that it shifts into park automatically before shutting down. Another of those indications is that the light on the 'park button' briefly comes on before the car turns off.

Doing unnecessary steps when committing safety procedures to rote memory is asking for problems. Keep it simple, stupid.

 

Maybe you could elaborate on exactly how putting the car into park before turning it off is "asking for problems."

You and another poster, "Putting it in park is a needless extra step that accomplishes nothing," are making egocentric statements in absolute terms that are nothing more than your personal opinions, not statements of fact.

Based on the number of supporting posts, the "park then power off" process appears to be working safely and efficiently for quite a few Prius owners. :wave:

 

I use park first, and the parking brake. Sometimes I accidentally-on-purpose leave the stereo cranked, just to be sure the...uh...'other driver' is alert.