2010 Prius owners reports

I think there's a 10 post minimum before you can put pics up on this forum.

So is 44 psi the recommended tire pressure on the 15" tires? Also, how's the Nav?

I'd personally prefer the II come w/ Nav, but it's not to be so oh well.

 

I have a quick one- it the Nav screen only for Bluetooth and Nav in the 2010s? It seems to me like all the hybrid info (the MPG bars and the cool cartoon and whatnot) is next to the speedometer on the dash, but can it be accessed by the nav screen too if you have navigation?

 

Posting pics on this forum is confusing. Don't click on "insert image". That is for linking to images on other web sites. You have to upload the image as an attachment (click on the paper clip icon), then select the image or images from the ones you have uploaded to go along with your post.

Roy

 

I'm pretty sure 44 psi would be the max cold pressure, or very close to it.

The 09 tires show 44 psi max on the sidewall, although they are 185's instead of the 2010's 195's.

Toyota's recommended would likely be closer to 35 psi cold.

 

Onya Alfon, love reading about these new 2010 Prius owners!!

 

Congrats!!!!! Hope to see some pics.

 

Congrats just post pics on flickr, then a link here it much easier for most

 

The screen referred to as the MFD on both the Classic and Iconic Prius is no more. The Consumption screen and other like information will now be shown on the smaller "screen" closer to the speedo. This should make it easier to see at a quick glance. The down side is that it won't be quite so colorful and large, so it may not be as entertaining for fellow passengers.

The larger screen does appear in 2010 cars, but ONLY with the Nav system. This is why the backup camera is available only with the Nav system, as well, because there is no other place to show the image!

 

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I think the manual recommends a 1 lb PSI in front (possibly a tad higher if running at max pressure).

 

Congrats and thanks for your driving notes!

 

This Prius is for my fiance' and we are getting married this weekend and plan on taking the new Prius to Reno for our Honeymoon.

Alfon[/quote]

Congratulations! What a fantastic wedding present! :tea:

 

Wow, now I wish I'd married you! Even though that's illegal in most states, it's worth it for a chance to drive the Prius, just don't get any ideas about the wedding night buddy!

On a more serious note, two points:
How's the navigation system? Easy to use?
How's the voice recognition, is it usable or just a gimmick?

Any thoughts you could provide on those would be great, and congrats (on the wedding and the car)!

 

Hi Alfon - Noone is questioning running at max tire pressure. However the manual does recommend that the front tire pressure be 2PSI higher than the back tire pressure. This is the same for both the gen II cars and the new 2010. Over the years, people have found that this is in fact a good idea, for more stable handling, due to the unique weight and handling characteristics of the Prius. Enjoy!

 

Well, some might question that, but reguardless, does the manual state to run the pressure 2 psig higher than the rear or does it simply give two pressures with the front being 2 psig higher? My point I guess is once you make a decision to run these "rock hard" the extra 2 psig recommended for their original design may be meaningless. You've already increased the pressures beyond the recommendation reducing the contact patch significantly while putting the extra stress on the sidewalls.

Toyota lawyers I'm sure looked at the language and it is quite possible they would stick with the assumption that anyone would set the pressure to the recommended settings and thus the front needs to be 2 psig nore then the recommended rear setting. If they stated it any other way it might insinuate that they condoned running at higher pressures, which I doubt that they would do (at least not beyond what they state in the manual)

I know the debate on tire pressures have been going on for some time with hypermilers and I don't want to go there. However for a normally sane person simply seeking to gain the best reasonable balance of safety and effeciency, I would think that pushing the Michellin's to 51 psig would have little effect to say running at 45 (still well above the recommendated pressures) psig and allowing some margin of safety.

 

I've personally discovered that once you go over 55 PSI the 2 PSI difference has marginal effects, however there is a small enough difference to justify leaving it different. With that being said, I've been running 62/60 for the past 22,XXX miles with even treadwear. Yes, this is above MAX sidewall and I do know the "risks."

 

Manual of course just states recommended pressures. I was just restating what appears to be the accepted common wisdom, as reflected in Rick's post (based on the added weight at the front of this car, and its prior problems with highway handling and crosswinds). I'm not a gear head, so I should perhaps just keep my mouth shut! I would personally never run my tires as hard as the hypermilers recommend, since I value my comfort!

 

Me neither, but common sense goes a long way (most of the time)

My thought is that when Toyota designed the car they do it with the understanding that it takes a certain pressure in a specific size tire to correctly support the car and give it a contact patch for safe braking and handling. With the weight bias many cars will have a front and rear difference.

However once you go beyond the recommended pressure you have already "taken care" of their intended pressure concern as far as the weight of the car so the 2 psig difference won't be necessary. The only thing then that you might mess up with adding pressure is the handling and braking being out of balance. If you add 10+ psig over the recommendation then you've pretty well said the heck with those concerns.

Since tires are designed for various cars, one tire may need to take care of specific applications where one car weighs say 700 psig more than another with the same size application. It would possibly need more pressure to support that weight or the design might be that it needs a larger contact patch so the pressure is the same as in the other car. Reguardless, in both designs it was specifically considering all that. Since the Prius only weighs about 3000 pounds putting a tire on there that is good for 50+ psig and pumping it up that high to run daily could be a concern for a sane person. Then again, we're on here with prius owners and we know that category doesn't necessarily fit