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Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by mario24601, Apr 27, 2012.

  1. mario24601

    mario24601 New Member

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2012
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    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Hi All, just wanted to say hi. I just bought a Prius three in black. Its replacing my G35, needed room in back for two car seats :), they were kind of cramped in the G35 coupe. So far have had the Prius for about half a day and so far I like it. Power of course is not the same but it does the job and not having to shell out 300-400 a month on gas will be a welcomed change. I do like the color but as I suspected its going to be difficult keeping it clean. I am thinking of tinting windows and was thinking of removing the covers on the wheels but I read that they in fact help with the MPGs...is that true? I would not think they make any noticeable difference but what is the general consensus here? This model has the entune, anyone recommend activating that or is it not very useful? Also I might have read that after the 3 year mark the nav stops working unless you pay subscription fee...please tell me thats not true, btw I have the 6.1 screen with entune not the 7.1.

    Well any other tips or tricks that are worth noting? Any hidden or not so easy to see features? I need to read the manuals but its very long, any cliff notes would be appreciated :)

    Again, its good to find this community and looking forward to participating here.
     
  2. JimboPalmer

    JimboPalmer Tsar of all the Rushers

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    Location:
    Greenwood MS USA
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Three
  3. kalome

    kalome Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Arizona
    Vehicle:
    2016 Chevy Volt
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    N/A
    Welcome to the forum.

    I have the same car 2012 black Prius package 3.

    I got 20% all around for my tint and it looks great.
    I personally like tint all the same shade.
    The front is illegal and should be 35% or greater. I probably won't have any problems. It is not like I went limo tint 5%

    For Entune, I just don't need or interested in it so sorry I can't help you there.
    I don't use it.

    The NAV i hope you are wrong about the 3 years.

    If you hate the annoying beeps when reversing like I do just stop by the service department and have them change the setting to one beep.
    It didn't require an appt for me. The service guy just told me to stop by anytime and they will change the setting.

    I really hate the UFO sound the new 2012 makes at low speeds on battery. There is a message thread floating around explaining how to unplug it.
    I haven't don't it yet, will be soon.

    There are other tips and tricks on this board you can just do a search with key word.
     
  4. spiderman

    spiderman wretched

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    II
    Welcome aboard and enjoy the ride!!!
     
  5. ChipL

    ChipL Active Member

    Joined:
    Feb 28, 2012
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    Location:
    Reston, Va
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    :welcome: to priuschat!

    In regards to the wheel covers, popular opinion the difference is nil in mpg with or without....
     
  6. Codyroo

    Codyroo Senior Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Pleasanton, Ca
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    IV
    You will definitely like the less frequent and less costly fill ups. If you try to keep your top freeway cruising speeds down (say to the speed limit), you should do quite nicely for fuel economy.

    Keep reading on the site, you'll find a ton of useful information. Welcome!
     
  7. mario24601

    mario24601 New Member

    Joined:
    Apr 27, 2012
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    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Thanks everyone, good info!

    I think I will ask dealer to remove the continuous beeps, one should be fine.

    I think I am addicted to this site, has tons of info :)
     
  8. stream

    stream Senior Member

    Joined:
    May 12, 2008
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    Location:
    Long Island, NY
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    V
    Congrats--enjoy.
     
  9. Michgal007

    Michgal007 Senior Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Excellent choice of color. Welcome to PC.
     
  10. SageBrush

    SageBrush Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jun 4, 2008
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    Location:
    Southwest Colorado
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Two
    At 3 years the inverter dies and the traction battery explodes. The good news ? The Nav works fine :)

    j/k, enjoy the car (and the nav) for many, many years
     
  11. ralleia

    ralleia Active Member

    Joined:
    Apr 2, 2012
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    Location:
    Omaha, Nebraska, United States
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    :eek:
    Not funny, Sage! I was having nightmares for a while over that lemon of a hybrid Camry with the bad inverter that threw a monkey-wrench into two of the busiest weeks of this year!

    Waiting on my Prius four now. :p:p

    The satellite NAV is an SiriusXM data service. You get the first three years included with your purchase, but after that, it's my understanding that you need to pay a subscription fee.

    Current monthly prices from the SiriusXM page:

    Monthly Price*
    NavTraffic $3.99
    NavTraffic + NavWeather $7.00
    NavTraffic + NavWeather + SiriusXM Travel Link $8.99

    NavTraffic Pricing - SiriusXM Radio

    ---------------------

    The one thing I've learned that really surprised me is that the Prius has no reverse on the gas-engine powered transmission. So reverse on the Prius is electric-only, so be aware that the hp of the gas engine will be unavailable in reverse. That might make a difference in how you want to park on a steep hill.
    :welcome: Mario!
     
  12. jabecker

    jabecker driver of Prii since 2005

    Joined:
    Jul 7, 2005
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    Location:
    Portland, Oregon
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    Not quite.

    The Nav, if you have it, is built in. There's a cost for updating, but I don't know how much that will be. It probably will depend on which unit you have.

    XM, if you have it, provides traffic, weather, and other trip info on the Nav screen, but not the navigation itself. It's an independent service. XM is on a trial subscription for *90 days*. After that you have to sign up or lose the Sat radio, traffic, weather, and trip info. Each of those can be signed up for independently. I like the traffic and weather, and will probably keep the radio, but the trip info I don't find that interesting.

    Entune, if you have it, is free for *3 years* and then requires a subscription. Entune includes Bling, iHeartRadio, MovieTickets.com, OpenTable, and Pandora. It needs your smart phone to be connected to Bluetooth and have the Entune application running on it. Info here: Connect with your Toyota. I find it sort of useless, but others like it.

    Safety Connect, if you have it, is the Toyota equivalent of On Star. It's on a *one year* free trial subscription, after which you can pay to renew.
     
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  13. ralleia

    ralleia Active Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Omaha, Nebraska, United States
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    Thank you for the clarifications!

    I think however that for premium Nav users, NavTraffic, NavWeather, Fuel Prices, etc. *ARE* a three-year complimentary package, because these apparently come via Entune. For non-premium users, it comes through their phone:

    "All new Entuneâ„¢-equipped Toyota vehicles come with complimentary access to Entuneâ„¢ apps and data services for three years, active from the point of sale."

    Welcome To Entune

    I think the 3 months only applies to the radio... "Note that Satellite Radio (XM Select Package) requires a separate SiriusXM [8] subscription after the 90-day trial period and is available for an additional $14.49/month.ˆ "

    Entune Account Registration and Management

    Regarding the different Nav packages, the dealer indicated that the Nav between the regular Nav with 6.1 inch screen and the premium Nav with 7.0 inch screen was a different service altogether.

    Certainly the data speed on the premium Nav and the clarity of the map features was a great improvement over the standard Nav. The appearance between the two looked like totally different apps.

    It is certainly dizzying trying to keep track of all this.
     
  14. jabecker

    jabecker driver of Prii since 2005

    Joined:
    Jul 7, 2005
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    Location:
    Portland, Oregon
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    Yes, the 6.1" (aka "Display Audio") nav and the 7" (aka "Premium" HDD Audio) are entirely different units. Some people like one, other people like the other. In both cases, the navigation itself comes with the unit. There's no subscription needed.

    Entune comes with a variety of different apps, depending on which Nav version you have. Both versions include weather and traffic. Entune uses your cell phone to pull data, so it won't work if your cell is not paired or if you don't have cell service. Be careful to watch how much data you are using if you have a limited data plan with your cell service. The apps will display stuff on the Nav map.

    Satellite radio (XM) also has weather and traffic services that display on the Nav maps, and also alert you to weather and road conditions. For example, I've had the Nav voice tell me, "There is severe weather to your south," and "20 miles ahead the right lane is closed." These work as long as there is satellite reception and you have a subscription.

    Are you confused yet? :confused:
     
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