Questions from a potential buyer

1) never happened to me, would be very difficult

2) rear vision is poor, you do get a bit used to it, but there's no getting around it. backup camera helps.

3) never had a problem, no idea if B is helpful.

4) all the best with your decision!

 

1. It takes a full second to shift from D to N. No problem with D to B. You can even press P while driving and nothing will happen other than it going to N. No worries
2. There is a post about setting your mirrors for the best visibility. It really helped for me. I will try to locate it for you. Other than that, you will get use to it.
3. The Prius did just as well or better than my Camry in the snow! [edit+] I should also mention that I have studded snow tires for the winter. It does wonderfully in snow.

Welcome by the way!!!!

 

1) Accidentally shifting into neutral (or any other mode) - do you ever do this? I'm concerned with the joystick shifter that I might reach to put the car in power mode, pull my hand back and hit the shifter.
Has never happened. Would be difficult to happen based on geometry.

2) Rear Visibility - I thought visibility was okay during my test drive. Not great (obviously) but it seemed like something I could get used to at least. My question is have you ever felt the rear visibility put you or others in danger (particularly in parking lots)?

Rear visibilty is fine, actually. The good news is that the spolier blocks the head lights of cars following at night. The back-up camera provides better parking lot visibilty than any other car I've owned.

3) I've never driven a CVT car in the snow. In any car I've owned until this point, you just downshift to obtain more control over what's going on. Do you do anything similar in your Prius in the snow? Does shifting into B help?

Good question. I've always owned manual transmissions until now. Haven't driven it in snow, but the key is always studded snow tires anyway.

Good luck with your decision, Kate. As one of my friends says, once you've owned a Prius, you can never own anything else. The technology is interesting, driving it is fun, the car is very quiet, and oh yes, my 56 mpg is nice too.

 

1) You'd have to hold it in neutral for quite a long time for it to register. This is a safety feature so you don't shift into neutral by accident.

2) Not really an issue with the rear view camera.

3) Never driven in the snow but TRAC should take care of it.

 

You can have a backup camera put in aftermarket (the dealer doesn't have to do this).

 

Kate,

1. yes, getting used to the shifting will take some getting used to. I have to admit, not putting it in park and paying for it.... but I will NEVER do it again....

2. It's a challenge, especially when parking and no rear view camera... get used to driving with the side mirrors....

3. can't answer that one since only had my car since end of May. I rarely shifted my other cars down the last 10 years so not sure it's going to make that big a difference.

Should be able to deal if the dealers have cars... might be supprised what they will offer.

 

I have the backup camera but normally look out the rear window just like i did with my old car. I have not had issues, you get used to it.

 

The rear view is actually quite good, it just appears to not be, due to the split window in the hatch. It's a better rear view than I had in my Malibu.

 

1. I have never accidentally shifted into neutral. You have to hold it in N for a full second. And even if you did while driving, nothing happens. The engine won't race. Just tap it back into D and you're fine.

2. You get used to it. Not a deal-breaker for me.

3. Snow tires are the key. Last winter, I was still on my stock 17in tires and even with that setup, I did not drive it any different than any other car I've owned in the past. This winter, I have a set of Nokian Hakka 5 ready to go.


DC is where I fell in love with the 2010 Prius. I walked by a Blizzard Pearl V and I knew I had to have one. I have so many fond memories there.

Good luck!

 

I haven't driven ours in Winter yet, but with both traction control and ABS (yes, the II has those) it should be ok with snows on, as it seems to be fairly well-balanced and not too light.

 

Love the Prius, but yes, it does have issues. The biggest is the rear visibility. It's terrible - bad enough I've contemplated getting a rear view camera of some kind. I just try to always park so I can pull out forward. It's that bad.
Never had the neutral problem.
I can imagine this car won't be great in snow with standard tires, at least. It flashes dash lights at me going up my (steep, gravel) driveway at times. I don't think it will handle snow well at all, but I have two other vehicles with AWD.
It's the most entertaining to drive of all my vehicles - love the display - it's like driving a video game. You do have to watch yourself, or attention can be divided between the car's displays and road, plus there are blind spots to the front too - I've almost pulled into someone going forward - so look twice or three times before pulling out.
But they are great, overall.

 

Rear view is much better than my truck/camper I used to drive.
Glad I have backup camera with NAV package, but all cars have blind spot and one just has to be extra attentive.

Car did great with stock Ecopia tires in snow. Problem is clearance in heavy/drifted/plowed snow. The plastic air shields under the engine can be damaged and there simply is not a lot of clearance. When I lived in DC we got a 15" snow (11/15/1987 IIRC). Prius wouldn't go anywhere until the plows were done in such conditions. But the city shuts down anyway...

 

I don't think the backup camera is worth that much. I only look at it when I first put the car in reverse. I think it's a good safety feature for families or a busy neighborhood: where you can check lower to your bumper to make sure there's no children or pets in back. But when I'm backing out, I don't trust the camera since it has a relatively narrow angle of view from the bumper. You can't see any oncoming traffic from the sides of the rear bumper. It took some getting used to the spoiler in back, but I don't think the rearview visability is that bad. I reverse normally by turning my head both ways at first, then look towards the center rear as I pull out.

I've taken the car up to the mountains of NC to visit family. It seems to handle steep driveways/hills alright (just takes more force and lowers mpgs). Haven't driven it in snow yet...but I've always found it's the skill of the driver that matters most. Especially if I'm driving in Atlanta when there's snow (those few times it happens). Some morons drive at regular speeds and continue with their agressive passing techniques. That's when there's a backup of accidents that keeps public services busy

Anyways, that's the end of my rant....about the gear shift, I think it's pretty impossible to accidentally sift if you go reaching for the drive mode buttons. The shifter has tracks which make you have to shift the shifter to the left first.

 

I've had my car since end of May so no snow experience yet but I'm not worried. And I live in Toronto, we can get a lot of snow at times! I've heard from other posters that it will be fine and I have faith.
I too was concerned about rear visibility but there has been no problems. I wasn't used to using side mirrors at all before the Prius (I know, I know, that's very bad...) but it took me no time at all to adapt to using side mirrors to check when changing lanes. (One close call when I didn't check the side mirror changing lanes at the beginning, I always check my side mirrors now!)
I don't have the back up camera and have absolutely no problem when backing up. I never back into a parking spot to prevent having to back out, and my parking lot at work is tight, tight, tight. Main problem isn't the rear window visibility, which is fine, its trying to see past all the SUV's and big vans parked beside me!!! (you have to use side windows for that). I guess the camera would have been helpful for that but I just pull out slowly at first until I get good visibility of oncoming traffic.
I love my car, best decision I ever made car wise. Its fun, its peppy, its reliable and its easy to spot in my parking lot (no other Prius's around where I live)
I have occasionally put car in N when attempting to put it in R (just sloppiness) but have never, ever accidentally gone into N by bumping the shifter. Don't really see how that could happen.
I have been very, very happy with my Prius. Should have bought one years ago but my Corolla was so damned reliable!

 

No, this will never happen, in my opinion.

I thought that visibility sucked on the test drive, but in time I've gotten used to it and tolerate the port hole rear-window. In regard to putting myself or others in danger I have to be honest and say no because I drive very carefully in reverse (irritating backup beep notwithstanding) because the rear visibility is SO BAD when backing up. It's ATROCIOUS and my all-case is warranted. I actually detest backing this car up. Parking it is a dream because its turning circle is very small and it's not a large vehicle but the backup portion is not fun. Generally I will try and back up into parking spots while shopping because when I pull up I can see the spot is empty, so backing up "blind" is safer. The only vehicle I've ever been in with a worse blind spot than this is a 2010 Camaro which, I must say, is not just a little but actually much much worse than that. Backing a 2010 Camaro up is truly a scary experience.

I have never down-shifted an automatic in snow to gain control. B won't help you, though; let the car handle it. There is truly just the one gear, like it or not. The thing has traction control which means that slipping is very difficult as it will force throttle lower when it detects the front wheels slipping.[/QUOTE]

I don't have a backup camera. I still believe people spend too much money on gadgets in cars. I think you'll be fine with the rear visibility. You do get used to it. It's a drawback of the car but one that is pretty easy to live with in the grand scheme. And like I said despite its rear visibility being poor it is a dream in parking lots. I think you'll love the turning radius.

 

A lot of your decision should be on how the dealership treats you. I got lucky and found a great one even though it's not the closest to my house. They adjusted all the nasty beeps to "off" for free and I just had my 6 month check up. I felt like I was treated like a valued customer - they even put plastic on the driver's seat so no dirt would get on it during the visit. Even the Cadillac dealers I used to frequent didn't do that. Good luck, and let us know when you've made a purchase.
I also have a "II" and find it has all the comforts and amenities I need.