Okay, so my roommate/best friend drives a red 2008 Toyota Prius Hybrid, and I drove it on Saturday to look at cars, and I found it to be one of the most confusing cars ever? Just everything about it confused me? Does anybody find these cars to be strange and confusing??? Or is it just operator that is stupid. lol.
Chanel
I have a friend with a blue Prius Hybrid. I think that it is a fantastic car. It would help at the beginning to have the owner go with you so that he can work the electronic screens. They’re possibly a little confusing at first, but then become intuitive. Same thing with the keyfob, starting the vehicle, etc.
The car is smooth, quiet, and I have gotten 60 miles/gallon driving on the Interstate at 80 mph. That speaks of a great vehicle.
So again, the first few times take a guide to get through the vehicle’s quirks. If gas stays up over $ 3 a gallon, it will still be nice to get somewhere for less than 10 cents a mile.
I played this confusing game called Hyperball once. Somebody came by and coached me. Once I got in the habit of shooting at the right targets, I could beat the heck out of the game without any help at all. You just have to know what to be ready for. Two Tigers was the same: Don’t sink the ships until you shoot enough of the airplanes and bombs. You have to get the points first. It can be learned and it doesn’t take long.
What did you find confusing? Just drive it like any other car. Let it do its own thing.
I’ve been confused in every car I’ve ever owned and driven since my 1947 Pontiac. This car did things the correct way–headlights were controlled by a push/pull switch on the left of the dashboard and it was the only switch there. The wiper switch was on top of the dashboard and couldn’t be confused with anything else. The radio had real knobs to control the volume and select the station. There was a wonderful lighted hood ornament of Chief Pontiac that helped aim for pedestrians at night. All I know about cars after the 1947 Pontiac is that you turn the wheel clockwise to go right, counterclockwise to go left, the right most pedal makes it go and the next pedal over makes it stop. My wife is the only one knows how do run the heating and airconditioning so I freeze in the summer and roast in the winter. My son has the radio set to blast a rock station at 100 decibels. I’ve never found the lights and wipers on any car I’ve driven since, but these devices are for wimps anyway.
Now if my 1947 Pontiac was to resurface, you would find it confusing to drive. You have to operate a pedal called the clutch. There was another pedal on the floorboard right above the accelerator. That pedal activated the starter.
The point is that a car different than what you are used to may seem confusing at first. A friend of mine has a Toyota Prius and I’ve driven the car. Even at my age, I could get used to it very quickly.
LipGloss; it’s entirely natural to be initially confused by a vehicle that is dramatically different in the way it powers the itself. Way back when my office went to computers, some of our secretaries had great difficulty and needed special training.
If you bought a Prius, it would not take you long to get used to the car and how it manages itself!
I just installed a GPS system in my wife’s car, since she had trouble reading maps. After some initial confusion, she now realizes how good and smart these systems really are, and enjoys the gadget telling her where to turn without worry of getting lost.
I have heard that when one can find a Prius at an airport car rental the MFD (Multi-Function Display) is mostly turned off. Can do radio and A/C controls, but the two hybrid system status displays are hidden.
Biggest problems newbies have in driving a Prius is in thinking its any different than any other car. It is a little different to “start”, the process is more akin to booting a computer. Seatbelt on, foot on brake, push the big power button, Toyota logo on MFD, beep-beep, you are ready to go.
The gear selector is a bit confusing because it returns to its resting position after the selection is made.
A friend has had his Prius for a year and mentioned that in heavy stopped traffic the A/C will run the battery down to purple, and that he had to leave a gap in traffic that he could stomp the gas to start the engine to charge the battery. I corrected him, just let it be, the Prius won’t hurt itself. The engine will start whether you are rolling or not if/when the battery has to be charged.
2007 Prius, package #6, Driftwood Pearl
The only confusing part of a Prius is trying to keep up with what it’s doing…just hang on and enjoy the ride.
It is much like the typist and secretaries I trained to use computers. It is amazing how difficult it was for them to stop hitting the enter key like it was return key. Many had real problems, but not one ever wanted to go back once they learned how to talk to this new intelligent machine.
It will take time and you mind needs to adjust, but it will happen.