2010 Prius Build Thread

[vskid3]

Originally Posted by hayden55

I picked up a 10 pack of oem oil filters for 16 bucks

Where? I paid $25 for 5 filters for my Prius on Amazon and thought I was getting a good deal.

I use Mobil1 0w-20 in my '05, recommended is 5w-30. I've been doing 10k mile changes, but I think I'm going to drop that down to 5-7k because of all the short trips I'm doing now. Around $25 for 5 quarts at Walmart, any fuel savings from going thinner would be too low to justify (not to mention possibly more engine wear).

[redpoint5]

Where did you get the plug for the rear wiper? I looked everywhere for the right size plug and ended up with something slightly too big.

I'd take that spare tire back out, and replace it with a plug kit and inflator (and pliers). I consider plugs to be a permanent fix.

If you get an alignment, please post the specs on here.

[hayden55]

Originally Posted by vskid3

Where? I paid $25 for 5 filters for my Prius on Amazon and thought I was getting a good deal.

I use Mobil1 0w-20 in my '05, recommended is 5w-30. I've been doing 10k mile changes, but I think I'm going to drop that down to 5-7k because of all the short trips I'm doing now. Around $25 for 5 quarts at Walmart, any fuel savings from going thinner would be too low to justify (not to mention possibly more engine wear).

Yeah i just saw Wal-Mart had pennzoil ultra 0w-20 for like 22. You can't beat that at all.

For the filters i just googled the part number on eBay.

I will be getting the alignment here in a little bit. I've got the alignment sheet that came with the car. What specs are you interested in?

[hayden55]

Well I got a scale so I put it to use for my weight reduction tally:
So far (in pounds):
Tire jack kit- 8.2
side mirror- 2.16
spare tire- 25.8
tire foam- .34
tall rear head rest- .82 x2
short rear head rest- .84
front license plate frame- .4
engine cover- .9
rear wiper- .58
intake resonator- 1.86
rear wiper motor- 1.58
misc bolts and old antenna- .26
owners manuals- 2.1
rear carpet mats/ trunk organizer- 6.48
rear shade- 3.68
trunk mat- 5.86
passenger wiper- 2.96
washer fluid capacity- 4 liters = 8.82
Total weight loss- 74.46 pounds (2.45% weight reduction approximately)
And gas mileage is starting to go up slightly
But yeah I was too impatient to really set a baseline when i got the car but you get the idea.
Next is an alignment, engine oil change, engine coolant change, maybe remove the the brake dust shields, probably wont ever install the block heater so I'll just sell it. OH and i've started ordering parts for my yakima rack! Just needs to warm up now... :'(

@redpoint5 I have an extra plug if you want it.

[hayden55]

Looking into the soar energy rejecting tints i found an old test pdf which was very interesting to read and see the results. Test was by 3m in 2001 for their SRF tint (solar rejecting tint) and they saw an average of a 6.5% in reduction in AC required to keep the cabin comfortable and a resulting 1.3% fuel economy gain. Now I've tried to find specs on their SRF tint vs the crystalline Tint but i can't seem to find it. Synopsis of the report said that as time goes on the air conditioning plays a greater and greater effect on fuel economy and from what I've seen on the new prius with its windshield, and having 40% crystalline on the civics driver side window that stuff makes a HUGE improvement without the reduction in visibility. Anybody know the TSER on SRF tint? I figure the windshield, hatch, driver, and passenger window will be 80% of my heat gain so I'll just mix and match tint to get the most tser reduction for the money. 3m also noted that 3m color stable is similar to ceramic tint without the signal interference.
http://www.nrel.gov/transportation/p...01_01_1721.pdf
http://multimedia.3m.com/mws/media/6...s-brochure.pdf
http://multimedia.3m.com/mws/media/6...-brochure.pdf?

[hayden55]

Well next project is to kind of make a cargo can conversion kit for the Prius to load more items but I've kind of hit a road block. It seems like the HV battery is on top of a hump and really is limiting height of loading bay capacity. Anybody know if the battery has enough slack to where you can move it forward and mount it where the rear seat used to be? Goal is to make a diamond plate loading bay tray and make it as flat with as much usable volume as possible.

Also side note removed a LOT more weight. Really need to go through and weigh items but I'd guess I've removed around 120 pounds. Throw back in an aluminum tray floor, remove the brake dust shields for increased thermal capacity for the brakes and you could have a nice gvwr value with great gas mileage.

[vskid3]

Looks like the orange HV lines would be long enough to move the battery forward, can't tell if the others have any slack. Something else you'd have to rework is the battery ventilation system. Might be as easy as splicing in some dryer ducting.

[ALS]

My 2010 III has 65K miles on it and I get around 55-56 mpg on the highway at 65 mph.

Michelin Defender tires at 44 front 42 rear, Toyota 0W20 oil, factory original transaxle fluid and the only change I made to improve my mileage was change the gasoline I was using. I use to get 53-54 mpg at 65 mpg with Sunoco then I changed my fuel supply.

Tossed in a bottle of Techron to clean out the crap and switched to Shell a top tier gas. After two or three tanks my mileage jumped back up to what I was getting with straight gas before we were forced into E10.

I'm not a fan of pulling wipers off or spare tires out of the car. Obvious on the wipers if they were detrimental on aero Toyota would have made design mods. The airflow over the car is not affected by the windshield wipers in fact the base of the windshield is a high pressure area. Same with rear wiper due to being inline with the airflow over the car it has minimal effect on fuel mileage. To the point it probably couldn't be measured accurately between installed and eliminated.

I understand the weight of mini spare is a concern here, but there is a problem.

Yes if you get a nail in a tire a can of tire repair foam will work until you can get the tire repaired. What if you puncture the sidewall? You're waiting for a tow truck.

I've driven over one million miles and I've twice had sidewall punctures. Both times I ran over something in the road and it cut through the sidewall on the edge of the tread. Neither was repairable and tire had to be replaced.

Looking at your list this is what I agree with.

side mirror- 2.16
tire foam- .34
tall rear head rest- .82 x2
short rear head rest- .84
front license plate frame- .4
intake resonator- 1.86
misc bolts and old antenna- .26
owners manuals- 2.1
rear carpet mats/ trunk organizer- 6.48
rear shade- 3.68
trunk mat- 5.86

Just an old guys opinion that has been there, done that, and got the tee shirt.

[redpoint5]

Originally Posted by ALS

Tossed in a bottle of Techron to clean out the crap and switched to Shell a top tier gas. After two or three tanks my mileage jumped back up to what I was getting with straight gas before we were forced into E10.

I'm not a fan of pulling wipers off or spare tires out of the car. Obvious on the wipers if they were detrimental on aero Toyota would have made design mods. The airflow over the car is not affected by the windshield wipers in fact the base of the windshield is a high pressure area. Same with rear wiper due to being inline with the airflow over the car has minimal effect on fuel mileage. To the point it probably couldn't be measured accurately between installed and eliminated.

Yes if you get a nail in a tire a can of tire repair foam will work until you can get the tire repaired. What if you puncture the sidewall? You're waiting for a tow truck.

I've driven over one million miles and I've twice had sidewall punctures. Both times I ran over something in the road and it cut through the sidewall on the edge of the tread.

Even if your mileage improved by switching to Shell (which I highly doubt was attributable to that), you'll never make back their outrageous pricing in fuel savings. I've seen them charge 70 cents more per gallon than an Arco across the street (also a TopTier certified station, as well as Costco).

Fuel comes from the same refiners, and it's highly regulated in the US. There isn't much variation, just like Clorox bleach isn't any better than generic bleach. It mostly comes down to marketing.

I agree that wiper removal isn't likely to have a measurable affect, but I removed the rear one since it takes 5 minutes, and I never use it anyhow. It just doesn't snow here often enough for me to need it (and I have a backup camera).

I'd be curious to know the percentage of tires that have irreparable sidewall damage vs punctures through the tread. I've had over a dozen flats, and all were repairable with a plug kit in less time than it would take to remove a wheel. Perhaps I'm lucky. No matter anyhow; my car didn't come with a spare. The trend of eliminating the spare will grow more popular over time as a way for manufacturers to save money and reduce overall weight.

[ALS]

The local Shell by me is usually either equal to or two to three cents more than the no name stations around me so it makes sense to use them.

Yes all the gas comes out of the same refineries, the difference is the "additive" package that the fuel haulers add to their load of gasoline. That's what makes the difference between no name gas stations and top tier stations.

I had an old Volvo 960 2.9L 24V that use to get 29.25-29.75 on straight gas.
Over the last ten years the fuel mileage had dropped to 26.5 mpg or so which I was blaming on E10 gas.

A buddy was doing some on the road R&D work for Shell and said try some Shell in your Volvo and see if it helps. Threw in a bottle of Techron and after two to three tanks of Shell V-Power with Nitro I had a whole different car.

Just made a trip to Florida second week of December of 1170 miles each way and I averaged 29.2 mpg at 65 mph. I'm not going to complain over a 10% increase in fuel mileage.

In the Prius it has only been a 3.5-4.5% increase by the fuel change but I'll take anything I can get since we have the highest gasoline taxes in the country.

I know where you're coming from on the cost of top tier fuels in certain areas of the country because I got raped at a Shell station in Ga. where I had to pay .40 more than any other gas station along the interstate. We're talking about a car with a 21.3 gallon gas tank so it cost me an extra $8 to fill it up.

Why, they were the only Shell station along I-95 open at 11:00 pm at night.