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Protection during shipping

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by Gurmail, Jul 14, 2004.

  1. Gurmail

    Gurmail Member

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    Does any one know how the sun and the heat affect the Prii while they are on a ship for weeks and then at the port ? It probbaly gets very hot, they are probably in the open and LA is often very hot where they sit at the port for days??
     
    #1 Gurmail, Jul 14, 2004
  2. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

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    umm i would think when considering the abrasiveness of salt water, that the vehicles would be stored below deck out of the sun.

    also the Prius was #1 as far as average time sitting on dealer lots or at port. but dont tell me how it was 5+ days... especially since no one seems to have any sitting around for more than a few hours IF that!
     
    #2 DaveinOlyWA, Jul 14, 2004
  3. kenmce

    kenmce High Voltage Member

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    I expect that when the ship gets hot the pri's get hot. And when it gets cold, so do they. So what? A car that broke when it got hot or cold would be unsuitable for sale in north america.
     
    #3 kenmce, Jul 14, 2004
  4. Gurmail

    Gurmail Member

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    I didn't mean it would break due to heat. Since some of us take great care to park inside or in the shade and use sunshades, it just seems sad that our beautiful new car would stay in the Sun for weeks, all windows closed and hot inside. :cry:
     
    #4 Gurmail, Jul 15, 2004
  5. Gurmail

    Gurmail Member

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    Is no one even a little concerned or curious about this??
     
    #5 Gurmail, Jul 15, 2004
  6. lasrx

    lasrx New Member

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    Nope, just do a through walk through of the car before you pick it up. If see something wrong and point it out they're obligated to fix it before you sign anything.

    Toyota has a reputation for durability and reliability, and frankly I don't think Toyota would risk it by using sub-standard parts that are THAT supsceptible to a little sun.
     
    #6 lasrx, Jul 15, 2004
  7. efusco

    efusco Moderator Emeritus
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    They've been shipping cars this way a darn long time. The relatively small amount of time on the container ships and in the sun compared to what they'll be exposed to over the years of use is negligible. The do put protective plastic on the exterior and interior to help avoid any major dings/scratches, etc.

    If you're that anal about how it was shipped how will you ever leave it in an airport parking lot for a week or two away? Relax, check the car carefully when you pick it up. And drive it and enjoy it. Take good care of it, but not to the point that it interferes with it's intended use.
     
    #7 efusco, Jul 15, 2004
  8. victor

    victor New Member

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    Ive seen container ships loaded with cars at pors in Calais (France). Its amaizing how they are packed in with only an inch or two between the cars and the decks come right down to withing a few inches of the cars as well. The ships are not so large, but carry a lot of cars at a time. I mean a lot as well!

    A ship that sank in the English Channel some time ago had almost 3000 cars on board Sunk ship report and the
    Hyundai ship that sunk near singapore had 4000 on board.

    Sinking ships may be a bit more of a concern than a little bit of sun!
     
    #8 victor, Jul 15, 2004
  9. jchu

    jchu New Member

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    Now a ship sinking with 3000-4000 prii aboard would be something to panic about :? :crazyeyes:
     
    #9 jchu, Jul 15, 2004
  10. Danny

    Danny Admin/Founder
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    Also realize that they are closely inspected upon arrival to port and before they leave the port in Japan. A good family friend of ours works for BMW here in South Carolina and was transferred to Charleston where they export all of the Spartanburg-built BMW's from to oversee the exporting process.

    He says on average they junk at least 10-20 cars due to imperfections, wrecks as they come onto the ship (driver error), etc. Anything damaged never even makes it off the dock.
     
    #10 Danny, Jul 16, 2004
  11. tcooper185

    tcooper185 Member

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    #11 tcooper185, Jul 16, 2004
  12. DaveinOlyWA

    DaveinOlyWA 3rd Time was Solariffic!!

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    well i must say since my Prius came into port in Portland OR, that i guess it simply missed the hot weather. although it was very warm the day i picked up my Prius. i guess the weather was imitating my mood that day :)
     
    #12 DaveinOlyWA, Jul 16, 2004
  13. kenmce

    kenmce High Voltage Member

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    >Gurmail wrote:

    >Is no one even a little concerned or curious about this??


    (KM)

    You are worrying about nothing.

    It is obvious that Toyota got the bean counters out of the room and let real engineers dig deeply into the assumptions that underlie what a car is. They clearly had the time and resources that are required to produce not a car with fancy sheet metal & improved cupholders, but a car that has been radically improved right down to its very core.

    The Japanese climate is not as severe as North America, but it is not a tropical paradise either. Toyota has dealt with heat and cold before and they are good at it. They forgot nothing when they came around to this car. When a car is sitting quietly in a big metal box it is largely immune to the weather. The range in climate that it faces on the dealer lot in say, Fargo ND, is much greater than what it will face on the ship or in the port.

    If you want to worry about something, worry about all the new technologies, the CPUs, the traction battery life expectancy, the long term reliability of drive-by-wire, etc.

    These are real, solid, cars that can handle the world outside of the garage. Go get one. Drive it. Crank up some tunes. Chill out. It *will* handle any weather you can, and much, much more.
     
    #13 kenmce, Jul 20, 2004
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