First questions from Europe

I don't know the answer to any of your questions, but your English is excellent.

 

Current fuel usage is found on the "consumption screen" that will give you current use and info in 5-minute blocks.

The info should reset when you refuel the car, so you will have info tank-to-tank.

I can't answer the other questions, but I must say your english grammar is better than my spanish grammar, even after 2 years of college spanish... bienvenidos a priuschat y espero que disfrute su coche nuevo!

 

I'll have to assume (and you know what that means) that your JBL system is wired the same as in North America.

Yes, you could mute using control to an input to the head unit.
Mute at head unit is white wire on pin 7 of R6. It goes to pin 1 on S15 of amp. Amp has another mute input from NAV at pin 21 of S15, also white. It goes to pin 15 on N2 of NAV.

You are correct, the amp controls the audio sound controls. What comes out of the head unit is fixed line level.
You shouldn't have a problem disconnecting any speaker. The worst that could happen is the amp circuit for that particular output could blow, but I don't think it would.
You are correct, it is only the rear speaker outputs that are fullrange. The front speakers are filtered digitally in the preamp stage. Hooking up an external amp to the rear speaker outputs to power all existing speakers would work, though you would lose fade. Instead of going through all that expense, try adding a subwoofer only. Many have found that to be enough to 'fix' the JBL sound.

 

Can't help with the questions, but welcome to the Prius and Priuschat.com. Galaxee told you right each time you re-fuel and reset the A or B odometer you get new fuel quantity, mileage and MPG., you also can switch back and forth between the US MPG and miles to liters and Kilometers, right there with the buttons. Lifetime averages have to be calculated using a spreadsheet program such as Excel, or Lotus123, or the old fashioned way by hand. Made my 3rd fill up, I record CONSOLE MILEAGE, fuel quantity purchased and trip length, I also record the ODOMETER on FULL miles on the car. With that information, you should have enough data to make a good spreadsheet.

 

MFD stats have nothing to do with trip odometers. You can reset A and/or B odometer, MFD will show the same thing.

MFD resets when:
1. gas guage registers at leasts 2 or 3 gallons added
2. you move the car about 1 or 2 wheel turns
OR
you press reset on the MFD.

 

DanMan...HOW do you press reset on the MFD and what is the MFD?? and while we're on the subject, in this small TX town, we only maybe have about 25 (out of 250,000 citizens in the county) cars out there. Typically most here get 35-40 mpg now in summer with AC. One biggest question the locals and the local dealer gets is WHY on www.PriusChat.com is everybody claiming to get 50's in the mileage.

Just today I was at the dealer with my salesman, and a customer was looking at one there, and that was his very question, and I have heard this before and I always expected the MPG to be lower especially here for me. But the customers think there is some kind of CON going on. The car around here has this reputation, due to Media and other factors, I certainly want to break this mold, because I do think the mileage claims are valid if the user understands and uses the technology. I am sure you realize that most car forums such as KELLEY and the likes all hands down inform the potential buyer that TOYOTA has inflated its mileage claims.

Are the claims you all make because:
1) Climate and temps differences
2) AC usage - we use it too much
3) What other factors ? extreme heat ?
4) Highway / town driving
5) Lengths of trips - short vs long

None of the drivers here I have talked to and there are quite a few, can or have gotten anywhere close to the mileages claimed, and this is past the break in period for some of them. Still the mileage in my book is good, going from 15 to 40 MPG is good, but what is the major difference ? Some are dis-illusioned, a shame I think. Can some help be given here?

Do most of the high mileagers
-make longer trips?
-do you use AC at all?
-what is the magic ?
-what can TEXANS in high heat, high humidity, and some on short trips do to get MPG??

What should I be telling the people who are considering this car? I am trying to bolster the Prius population here.

 

The MFD is the touch-screen in the middle of your dash. There is a little RESET button you can press to reset all data on the screen back to 0 miles and knocks out your running total of MPGs.

Check out some of Ray Moore's posts. He gets insanely high MPG and he is a Texan. Also in the knowledge base Evan Fusco has posted a guide with MPG tips. Short trips, as you mentioned, will damage MPG. My average trip is 2.5 miles and if that were the only trip I made, I'd probably only get 44 MPG. I prefer half-open windows to AC but here in NC that's tolerable compared to your TX or DanMan's FL.

How long have you had your Pri? Watching the screen gives you good feedback about your driving style that will help refine your driving. It does take a little time. I was in the low 40s for the first couple hundred miles until I figured out how I should be using the car to it's best efficiency.

Tell people that you'd have to drive the car hard to get less than 40 MPG, and even 40 MPG is pretty damn good. TOYOTA does not make up these mileage figures. TOYOTA is REQUIRED by LAW to publish these EPA-derived numbers without any disclaimer, and the EPA tests are not very close to real-life driving situations anymore...

Almost every car on the road gets much lower MPG than advertised, but the Prius takes the media hit because it's a real wonder on the MPG front. It also constantly TELLS you your MPG so if you're getting lower MPG you're more likely to notice than if you were driving a Cavalier that you would have to calculate on your own.

Hope that helps...

 

thank you Galaxee., yes that is a GOOD help. How do you specifically check out a specific poster on this board, have not done it this way..I've only had my car for 1100 miles and about 3 1/2 wks., but I talked to one who has 11,000 miles on it, and another with 6,000., and two others who bought one about the same time I did., plus the dealer has a salesman with one and all said the same stuff.. It is a pity when the dealership itself is not sold on its own product. I have noted good increases when I can cut the AC., in fact this last fill up I noted the MPG going to 35.8., so I made it a point in the evening not to use the AC and I regained up to 37 MPG. I do have short trips, heavy stop and go, and extreme heat 95's to 102's with high humidity, making it hard on the car, I understand that. I watch the performance and do my best to help the car out, accelerate gradual, etc.. Do you think an EV mod in my case would help ? I understand the EPA tests, and I explain that every chance I get with the potential owners, I give them down to earth figures, and if they do better, they feel better. The dealer here is doing a terrible job, and the salesman is pressured to sell anything. Service is also questionable, that is why I have hesitated to go back for the hatch. I think I pretty much cover the bases for the driving, I just think practice and work will help in the long run with some patience, but I notice this statement in your posting:
"until I figured out how I should be using the car to it's best efficiency."

Can you be specific., what did you figure out..I am sure I may be missing something, I know about the trick feathering the gas pedal, I know about the feathering you can do so as to coast or re-charge once the car is up to speed (30-40 mph) and gain that way..just don't know if I am overlooking something.

Anyway thank you for your posts and informative stuff you have produced on these technical threads.

 

there's a "search" function at the top of the page on the right side... I believe you can search by username. keep an eye on the forums for Ray, he really has the car figured out and I believe he's from Austin.

i don't know if EV would help you out. keep in mind sometimes EV can drop your MPG... sometimes it is best to let the car decide when to use battery over ICE and vice versa. one thing i may do in your case is check out the area for any local Prius clubs (scroll way down toward the bottom of the forums page and check for anything near you) to see how others are doing. seasons do have an effect on MPG and since I imagine it's the middle of "hot" season there you are probably at your lowest MPG now because of the heat and being new to the car.

i think everyone has their own Prius driving style. my previous car had to be pedal-to-the-metal just to go anywhere. so my mpg was HORRIBLE at first. i learned that in my area it is best to get up to speed quickly and try to coast at cruising speed using the least gas you can. some people prefer to start slowly and use as much electric as possible before kicking into the gas engine mode. you will learn how to deal with hills with a little practice, i find it's best to accelerate and get some velocity behind you before the hill, it will take you part way up on electric, and then ease on the accelerator but let your speed drop until you crest the hill.

i think it just takes some time. you kind of get into a "prius driving state of mind." you can ask around to some of the high-milers for their techniques. check out the fuel economy forum to see what others are doing.

i'm glad i can help. we may not agree politically but the Prius is always a good discussion topic for me.

 

ABSOLUTELY RIGHT GALAXEE

 

I don't know what output your handsfree has.
As for mute, I am not sure if the amp sends mute to the head unit, or the head unit sends mute to the amp. I believe it is from the head unit to the amp, since it is the amp that controls the sound, and the head unit controls the source (FM, CD, Etc).

You could use a relay to switch the amp input from the head unit output to the headset output. If the headset has a mute output, you can use that to control the relay.

The amp receives the FIXED line level signals from the head unit to the following pins on the amp:

On S15:
L- : Black pin 2
L+ : White pin 3
R- : Green pin 4
R+ : Red pin 5.

On the other hand, if the headset device has speaker level outputs with a mute signal, then you can send the mute to the amp, and also use the mute signal to operate a relay to switch the center speaker from the amp to the headset, or completely disconnect the center speaker from the amp and permenantly hardwire it to the headset.