Upgrading: '08 Gen II to '11 Gen III

Most agree that the seats are more comfortable and the interior materials are not as good, also a little more pep and slightly better gas mileage.....enjoy:rockon:

 

Just got my Blue "11, Five with Nav. My first Prius ilove it I'm getting 52-54 mpg without even trying!
It wouldn't of hurt them to put in a little more soft plastic for $32k

 

I think your going to miss the old MFD system. I know I did when I had to have my 08 repainted, long story, and my rental was a 2010. I lost the fun of driving. I like to participate in the driving experience, and with the Gen II MFD display you got usable feedback. The 2010/11/12. I really disliked it. Way too hard to actually use effectively in the MPG quest. I guess I ssorta like the game aspect of it, you have rules and usable info. Sadly I think you get less usable info in a Gen III

 

Two weeks ago I replaced my 07 Prius (package 4) with a 2011 Prius Three. The new car is more comfortable, drives smoother and has more power. The interior feels larger and is better finished, and overall the car really does feel a whole generation better.

I much prefer the new dash and instrumentation - it actually provides a wider variety of information to help economical driving, though the lack of colour makes the energy screen a little harder to use. However, there's an 'eco' screen that is simple and effective, and two trip meters with associated mpg and average speed data, so for me, aside from the lack of backup camera, the lack of MFD makes very little difference.

The downside however is that there's less storage space in the gen III since it doesn't have door pockets, any in-dash space or anything but an open tray under the centre console to go with the bin under the centre armrest, and the drink holders are more awkwardly placed - particularly the front one, which if used with a tall container actually obstructs driver access to the lower dash controls. Drink holders in the rear have been moved to the armrest, which means any spill would be directly onto the fabric.

The luggage cover in the back is less substantial and leaves a gap at either side. However, all windows are now auto up and down, and the addition of power, eco and ev modes is a welcome addition.

So far, I'm not getting as good economy out of the new car - it's averaging fractionally over 50mpg after 1,000 miles where the 07 averaged just under 60 in the 1,000 miles before I traded it, but much of that is due to me rather than the car, and I have no doubt it will improve.

Overall, while the differences are individually mostly subtle, the collective result is that the gen III is a much improved vehicle.

 

Sadly, YES IT IS!!!!!

 

I have both a 2008 (Gen II) and a 2010 (Gen III). I will list a few of the likes/dislikes

seats - Gen III

interior - Gen III looks - Gen II material *(soft plastic in the Gen III)

driving - Gen III better stock tires - less wandering on the highway

mpg - hands down Gen III - 50 mph over the last 8,000 miles vs 42 in the Gen II

MFD - we shouldn't be spending 50% of our time looking at the Gen II display. Dedicated heat/AC buttons on the Gen III keep your eyes on the road.

Power - Gen III - but the Gen III is a slug in Eco mode, not much better in standard, but very good in PWR mode. It drops about 2 mpg using PWR. Eco is good for in town bumper to bumper.

lights - Gen II low beams are better. I am looking to upgrade the 2010 using H9 bulbs
The side marker lights and tail lights were changed to different bulbs for the Gen III. This would indicate that Toyota wasn't happy with what they put in the Gen II.

brakes - Both models have that "acceleration" problem with light braking over bumps.
Gen III has a problem with clanking pads over slight bumps

Good Luck with your new Gen III

 

So there you have it folks ... sounds like the 3rd gen is an improved car. And you can actually see the driving info while a separate nav screen is running unlike the 2nd gen which is either/or IIRC.