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Gen4: Do you have the "Proximity Noisemaker?"

Discussion in 'Gen 4 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Coast Cruiser, Apr 20, 2016.

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  1. Vintage Pep

    Vintage Pep Member

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    I was wondering what that noise was! My daughter says she hears it.. told me it sounds like a millennium falcon coming.(y) Guess If i didn't have the music so darn loud I would hear it too!! :D
     
    #41 Vintage Pep, Apr 23, 2016
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  2. ETP

    ETP 2021 Prime(Limit),Highlander HYB Plat,B52-D,G,F,H

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    Four Touring with convenience package is loud and clear. Side sensors are a test in progress.

    How exactly did the dealer do this?
     
    #42 ETP, Apr 24, 2016
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  3. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

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    I'm still not hearing it, guys. (And my hearing is pretty darn good.) The question is, do I really want to hear it? If my Prius is going to warn pedestrians, well then, I want it to sound like GODZILLA! :eek:
     
    #43 Coast Cruiser, Apr 24, 2016
    Last edited: Apr 24, 2016
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  4. ETP

    ETP 2021 Prime(Limit),Highlander HYB Plat,B52-D,G,F,H

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    Lots of stuff to learn. Just found the parking assist button.:LOL::ROFLMAO:
     
    #44 ETP, Apr 24, 2016
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  5. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

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    I gave up trying to parallel park, several years ago. And backing up, too! I'm glad there's a camera on my tail.
     
    #45 Coast Cruiser, Apr 24, 2016
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  6. ETP

    ETP 2021 Prime(Limit),Highlander HYB Plat,B52-D,G,F,H

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    Could be wrong but I thought you had to have all those drill holes with sensors around the car which comes with the convenience package on the Four Touring.

    Working my second large Tiger cup of strong coffee this morning.
     
    #46 ETP, Apr 24, 2016
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  7. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

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    That's what I thought. But owners of the Two model have said they can hear the proximity warning.

    I saw a drawing that somebody posted, and supposedly there's a speaker mounted near the left front fender? (As you're facing the front of the car.) I didn't find any speaker in the engine bay. I'll look underneath. Maybe the sound comes through the horn speaker??? :confused:
     
    #47 Coast Cruiser, Apr 24, 2016
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  8. ETP

    ETP 2021 Prime(Limit),Highlander HYB Plat,B52-D,G,F,H

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    She always says "what is your destination" when I asked for a channel change. Voice recognition is better on the 2016vbut still not all the where it needs to be. They need to work with Amazon on that as they have it down pat on the ECHO.
     
    #48 ETP, Apr 24, 2016
  9. Timmins13

    Timmins13 New Member

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    The sound volume is a customizable feature. I don't know what type of scan tool the dealer used. See page 753 of the Owner's manual, Customizable Features, Hybrid system.
     
    #49 Timmins13, Apr 24, 2016
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  10. I'mJp

    I'mJp Senior Member

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    Echo has a microphone array. It can listen to sounds in the far field. It also detect's and cancels noise, from different directions..
    The single microphone in our cars and telephone are good for the near field. You have to be loud and clear, and the sound needs to stand out from background noise.

    Far-Field Voice Input Processing
    Microphone Array Aided Distant Speech Recognition
    Delay Sum Beamforming - The Lab Book Pages

    Oh, and ECHO can only understand the wake up word, It records everything after the wake up word and sends it to amazons server for recognition. So it MUST have an internet connection to function.
     
    #50 I'mJp, Apr 24, 2016
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  11. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    the pedestrian warning sound has been on all prius since 2012.be careful what you wish for. a quiet lady is a beautiful thing.

     
    #51 bisco, Apr 24, 2016
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  12. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

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    I finally heard it this morning. Barely. In the drive-thru lane at McDonald's...

    It sounded like steam escaping from a high-pressure valve! :ROFLMAO: But it was very faint. (Maybe my radiator blew??? :LOL: Kidding.)

    I would much prefer GODZILLA!
     
    #52 Coast Cruiser, Apr 24, 2016
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  13. ETP

    ETP 2021 Prime(Limit),Highlander HYB Plat,B52-D,G,F,H

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    Seems a post got lost. Maybe!

    The noise maker is a separate item and is worthless IMHO. Pedestrian proximity alert system (PDS) may not be on all Prius.
     
    #53 ETP, Apr 26, 2016
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  14. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

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    Thanks, ETP.

    The mystery continues. I wish somebody would make a recording of the sound, and post it here. And where does the sound come from? Is there really a speaker in there, somewhere? (It would be nice if we could custom download our own sound... imagine the crazy variety of stuff people would come up with.)

    On a different note, who is it, Ford? They have artificial "muffler growl" piped into the cabin. Mustang? Chevy Camaro? That seems very strange.
     
    #54 Coast Cruiser, Apr 26, 2016
  15. I'mJp

    I'mJp Senior Member

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    When you open the hood, there is a black plastic cover that extends from the front of the car to the radiator.
    When you take that off and look towards the drivers side (usa) horn,
     
    #55 I'mJp, Apr 26, 2016
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  16. fuzzy1

    fuzzy1 Senior Member

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    This enhancement is on more vehicle than that. Some do it mechanically (resonator pipes into cabin), so electrically (speakers). It is not strange at all, it was meant to appeal to a certain type of enthusiast or buyer. Though some of them were upset to discover that the sound was enhanced, not natural.
     
    #56 fuzzy1, Apr 26, 2016
  17. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

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    I used to be an " enthusiast"... when I was 19. :D I had a very loud performance exhaust on my Honda motorcycle, and VW Bug. That was real sound that blew my ears out.

    I don't care for the idea that Toyota has to add some kind of artificial sound, to warn pedestrians. And it's a ridiculous noise in that video, IMO. I'm glad my car doesn't have it (or it's so quiet that I, or anyone else won't hear it.) Couldn't they come up with something better? Maybe a series of fast-paced loud beeps, that the driver can activate/deactivate from a button in the car.

    Here we go. This will work...

     
    #57 Coast Cruiser, Apr 26, 2016
    Last edited: Apr 26, 2016
  18. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    feds won't allow it to be deactivated. i'm surprised there's a volume control.
     
    #58 bisco, Apr 26, 2016
  19. JohnF

    JohnF Active Member

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    Is it actually federally mandated, ir is it just Toyota being extra-careful? I've asked before and I'll ask again: does any other manufacturer's hybrids or EV's have a low-speed noise system like this?
     
    #59 JohnF, Apr 26, 2016
  20. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

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    And I'll ask again, too... What good is it, if nobody can hear the darn thing?! Have there been any lawsuits in the past? From pedestrians that didn't hear the car coming, and stepped out in front of it? (People will sue anybody for anything.)
     
    #60 Coast Cruiser, Apr 26, 2016
    Last edited: Apr 26, 2016
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