Prius II 2010 vs Prius Three 2012

oh no I hope you get your problem solved. I'd go to the manager and ask for another Prius or my car back.

 

Sounds pretty underhanded to me... sorry about that. Like mentioned above, I would work to the top of the ladder and talk to the General Manager, or if they have a Customer Service Representative.

How many miles did the '12 have when you got it?

 

Well coming from a Rav4, my wife has a Prius 2012, and I now have a Prius 2013, both smooth as glass, absolutely no shaking or flutter at all. It is not you, it is some balancing, alignment, or defect issue. Really a Toyota that shakes? You actually bought that crap, it's expected? Are they serious? Ever hear of the lemon law, perhaps your dealer needs to reminded 3 strikes and your your out of that deal.

 

After three years in a 2010 level II, I upgraded to a 2012 level Three last spring, and did not experience the problems you describe. But my car did not sit on the dealer lot for more than a few days.

Well, actually, the 2012 did suffer a very slight wheel imbalance for about two months in late fall and early winter. Then the TPMS light lit up. Turned out that a rear tire was impaled with a foreign object that cut some cords and caused a slight bubble in the tread, but didn't lose any significant pressure (I do check, especially as the weather cools) until the bubble wore thin (maybe that is also when the puncturing object, which didn't 'tick' on the pavement, was expelled). A replacement tire fixed everything.

 

The ride on my sister's new 2012 Prius three was really smooth. IMHO Goodyear makes very good tires.

My 2010 Prius does slightly grumble/shake when it goes from regenerative braking to hydraulic braking or when
when I am braking over uneven patch of road - which I think is due to the anti lock brake computer working
overtime trying to figure out what to do...

My experience is that a tire can go bad for many different reason but it is usually not due to a bad design or
defective manufacturing. All tires naturally go bad after a few years due to tire *rot* - which is
basically the oxidation of the tire's rubber which is accelerated by pollution and extreme temperatures - but you'll see surface hairline cracks on the sidewall of the tire for atleast a year or two before the tire gives out.
Tires do not go bad sitting on the lot for a few months. A properly fitted and mounted (new) tire should not have any problems for months sitting on the parking lot. For something to bad, the tire usually has to hit something - a road hazard (aka screw/nail in the tread) or a roadside curb ( aka wheel balancing weights are break off after hitting something, wheel alighnment messed up).

I agree it does not take 1,000 miles to *break in* a Prius. Given the uneasy feeling - vibes you are experience - I would advise you to take the car to another independent certified mechanic that specializes in tires and wheel alignment and have him inspect the vehicle. Tell him what happen and ask him for his opinion of whether the dealership is on the level or whether you are being taken for a ride.

 

Regarding the tires....

The Goodyear Fuel Max tire is known for being a poor riding tire compared to its main competitors like the Energy Saver A/S and Ecopia EP422. The Yokohama AVID S33D is also a fairly rough riding tire but I don't know how it compares to the Goodyear.

from TireRack.com

Read more: Tire Test Results : Eco-Focused All-Season Tires: Do They Deliver on the Promise?

Something else to consider is the worn suspension on your 2010 vs. the brand new suspension on the 2012. Struts are generally worn by 60K miles.

 

This is a defective Prius. Sad to say but the dealer is unwilling to go the extra mile to make you happy as a customer.
I would talk to his manager about the problem and request to either have them fix it or replace the Prius.
If they don't fix the problem by the third try, tell them it is a lemon and request a replacement Prius.
If they don't comply, sue them for giving you a lemon.
It is shocking to see dealer behavior like this.

A friend bought a new Mercedes which had electrical problems causing it to stall on the road repeatedly.
His dealer tried several times to repair the car but could not find the cause of the problem.
The dealer refused to replace the car after the unsuccessful repair jobs.
He sued the dealer and won all of his money back and legal costs.
He then bought a BMW instead.

Lexus dealers would do the right thing.
They would keep the car and work on it until the problem is absolutely gone.
And they would give you a replacement car while repairs are being done - even if the repair takes days.

 

I think this is rather presumptuous. Not all dealers work the same.

I receive excellent service from Magnussen Toyota but I receive sub-par service from Folsom Toyota. Are you telling me that ALL Lexus dealers will provide the same service?

 

Back in 2009 and 2010 the 2010 Prius models flew off the lots as soon as they arrived. Now it appears that the 2012 and 2013 models are not selling as fast and spend some time sitting on the lot which can cause the tires to get "flat spots". These flat spots have to be worn off by driving and until they are gone the car may ride rough and vibrate. My last new car (not the Prius) sat on the lot for about six months before I bought it. The flat spots on the tires took a few thousand miles to wear off and until they did the car vibrated and the ride was rough. Once the flat spots wore off, the ride was smooth. So there is some truth to dealer saying the car will get better with driving it if it sat long enough for the tires to get flat spots.

 

I just sold my 2010 Prius 3 with 72,000 miles on it and purchased a 2012 Prius 2 with 400 miles on it that had been on a dealers lot for 250 days. I have not experienced anything mentioned above a feel the 2012 drives just as the 2010 did. Everything in the 2012 may feel a little tighter or crisp but I'm sure that'll wear off soon.