2016 Toyota Prius (photos, specifications, Cd 0.24)

[Hersbird]

That's funny about charging you to delete the spare tire. We bought a used cop car but it came with the original window sticker. Chevy charged them $100 for "rear door handles inoperative from the inside" which after pulling the panel proved all they did was not connect the linkage. $100 please. Funny also because the car also has rear child locks that disable the rear handles from the inside with the flip of a lever.
It also has a dome light deactivation which I hoped just meant the charged another $100 a left out the bulb. Sadly no, bulb was there but the body computer had a special program in it to disable it. To fix it all they wanted was $125 to buy the normal program plus an hour of labor to reprogram it. Uh, no thanks Chevy.

[Vman455]

Originally Posted by Old Tele man

Weight is down roughly 200 lbs -- 3075 lbs vs. 3275 lbs -- due mostly to lighter Li-Ion battery. As yet, no actual ET times.

We ARE talking the ECO model?!?

Weight is up, actually, unless you get the Two Eco. 2015 weighs 3,042 lbs (across all trim levels, according to Toyota, except PiP); 2016 Two weighs 3075 lbs; Three and Four weigh 3050; Three and Four Touring weigh 3080. The only trim that got lighter is the Eco, at 3010 lbs, and it loses the spare tire that comes with all 2015 trims.

Edit: Whoops--I misspoke. Toyota quotes the 2015 at 3072 lbs on their website; earlier years were 3042 lbs (they added some material in 2014 to improve offset crash test ratings, which probably accounts for part of that gain).

[redpoint5]

Originally Posted by Xist

I had forgotten about the 12v battery. I ran across this a while ago, but lost it before sharing it here: Don't Let Your Prius' Battery Die, Ever | Greentech Media

The gen III Prius has jumping ports under the hood to make "jumping" the Prius just as easy as any other vehicle. You wouldn't want to provide a jump to other vehicles with those ports, however. On the Prius, the 12v battery mostly just powers on the computer and runs some low voltage pumps to get going, and doesn't need high cranking amps. For that reason, providing a jump to someone else would be a bad idea, unless their car was also a Prius.

Now that I think about it, I rather like locating the 12v battery in the interior of the vehicle because it provides better temperature stability. I'll have an easy time of replacing my lead-acid battery with a LiFePO4 when it comes time.

[gone-ot]

...but, since long copper wires do have some resistance, locating the battery far away from what it's powering is NOT very efficient and thus NOT a good engineering decision.

[Xist]

At least the hood is operated mechanically, unless this happens:

The cable can slip off the release lever under the dash pretty easily.

Can't open hood | PriusChat

[redpoint5]

Originally Posted by Old Tele man

...but, since long copper wires do have some resistance, locating the battery far away from what it's powering is NOT very efficient and thus NOT a good engineering decision.

True, but the 12v battery is only needed on startup. After that a transformer provides for the 12v demand from the traction battery.

[RedDevil]

Originally Posted by redpoint5

True, but the 12v battery is only needed on startup. After that a transformer provides for the 12v demand from the traction battery.

In fact the Prius starts by using its hybrid electric motors.
I believe the DC/DC converter is in the back too, so having the 12V battery there makes sense.
While most of the 12V power users are up front, if the source is in the back you'll still lose less on wire resistance by having the battery in the back.

[Daox]

You're both right. The 12V boots the computer to check the high voltage pack, then the high voltage pack takes over and the motor generators physically turn the engine over.

[oldtamiyaphile]

I've found this neat calculator:

Electric Car Calculator

Based on 3.2l/100km, the Prius is actually cheaper to fuel and produces 25% less Co2 than a Leaf

I've grown used to the styling now and look forward to getting one in 2-3 years time as it's probably the only car I refuse to buy new.

[sendler]

I just checked a Leaf versus a Prius C at 20,000 miles per year. Gas is 15% cheaper and purchase price is way less for the Prius C but the Carbon emissions are listed as 40% less for the Leaf in NY. And the grid is getting cleaner all the time.
.
Gas at $2/ gallonUS is way to cheap. At some point fossil fuel must become a world heritage commodity that is not "owned" by any one person or country. And must be carbon taxed to make those that waste it pay for the transition to renewables.