Swapping To Prius T Spirit

[robvensis]

Hi

I have been kicking around in the avensis forum but have the option to change my Avensis T4 to a 56 plate Prius Tspirit.

The avensis is great but I cant live with the seats which I find crippling for lower back. This may be due to me being quite short 5 6" and the support feels in the wrong place.

What is the seating like in the Prius? I have seen reports of problems but this seems mainly for tall people (unlike me!)

I would also like some overall comments on the Tspirit which seems to have all sorts of features. i intend to use it as a familly car and commuting wagon down the A1 (30 miles each way). reliability and comfort are what i am after, will i be disappointed if I swap the car and throw in another 2.5K to get this?

thanks for any comments and advice

Rob

[Chris Dance]

I had an Avensis and it was a good car. I changed to the Prius T-spirit 2 years ago. mine has leather upholstery, and both my wife and I prefer the comfort of the Prius. The Prius is also much quieter as there is not so much road noise. We are very pleased with the Prius. Especially the reduced running costs.

[Mkuk0]

I swapped from a T3-X 'vensis to a Prius, great move, I am very happy after a year with the bluemeanie!

[robvensis]

Thanks for this it is very encouraging. I am hopefully doing the deed tomorrow morning before I think about the extra money :-)

cheers

robert

[Grumpy Cabbie]

I have the latest shape Prius and would certainly recommend you take a long test drive to see if you find the seats comfortable. I sit in my car 10 hours a day and find the seats ok but they are not forgiving if you get the wrong driving position! I have driven many many different cars and some are more forgiving than others for seat comfort and position. The Prius took me quite a while to find the best position for long term comfort and now I've found it I'm gonna leave it well alone.

It isn't all doom and gloom. The car is fantastic and I wouldn't change it for anything else in its class. Once you get the seat setting right it's a beauty.

[Sagitar]

Hi

I have been kicking around in the avensis forum but have the option to change my Avensis T4 to a 56 plate Prius Tspirit.

The avensis is great but I cant live with the seats which I find crippling for lower back. This may be due to me being quite short 5 6" and the support feels in the wrong place.

What is the seating like in the Prius? I have seen reports of problems but this seems mainly for tall people (unlike me!)

I would also like some overall comments on the Tspirit which seems to have all sorts of features. i intend to use it as a familly car and commuting wagon down the A1 (30 miles each way). reliability and comfort are what i am after, will i be disappointed if I swap the car and throw in another 2.5K to get this?

thanks for any comments and advice

Rob

It's difficult to know what the seating is going to be like for another person. I am just about six feet tall and have had lower back problems for some years.

However, I picked up the Prius just before going on holiday last year and after spending a little time making sure that the seat adjustments were right, I drove the car about a thousand miles in the first week of ownership, without so much as a twinge.

It has continued to be very comfortable for me.

[robvensis]

hello and thanks for these helpful comments:

Well the deed was done and I gave my avensis a good swearing at before handing it back to the dealer under the 30 exchange program. I had to part with another few grand which is a bit painful, but I can feel where my money has gone and am very happy so far. Full credit to the dealers in wolverhampton they were exceptional and I didnt loose out on anything whatsoever and they really looked after me.

After 1 sec in the prius seats I felt the pain and "knee in the back" feeling disappear, what a difference. I now feel very comfy with no problems at all. The avensis must be for fat tall execs

I bought a Tspirit 56 plate with 24k miles and one owner (this is a bit of a laugh as it turned out to have belonged to a famous Lord!! - no joke)

Driving it the 80 miles home was fantastic and having slowly got used to the alternative way of driving the car just keeps getting better for me. The cruise control is amazing and leaves me with very little actual driving to do apart from steer. Interestingly I dont seem to suffer from bad MPG in this car as is reported all over the place and still got over 60mpg average (most is dual carriageway driving with a bit of town thrown in) which was a pleasant surprise.

Is there any advantage to using the higher octane fuels at the pump ie super unleaded or is this not recommended.

cheers

Robert

[timberwolf]

After 1 sec in the prius seats I felt the pain and "knee in the back" feeling disappear, what a difference. I now feel very comfy with no problems at all. The avensis must be for fat tall execs

Unfortunately, there isn't a standard size. I'm 5'10" 29" leg and somewhat over weight and I find most cars with a lumber support a killer on my lower back. My last car was a Honda Civic, and that had seats that caused pain after an hour, what was really annoying was that previous Civic to that one had very flat seats with no side hugging support or lumber and they were the most comfortable seats that I'd ever had in a car. The Prius fabric seats although they have side supports seems to be quite squashy, so I am okay for four hours before I become a bit uncomfortable.

I bought a Tspirit 56 plate with 24k miles and one owner (this is a bit of a laugh as it turned out to have belonged to a famous Lord!! - no joke)

Low annual mileage could mean that the 12v Aux Battery could need replacing a bit earlier - 4 years is a not uncommon life span. My advice would be to test the mechanical key now so that you know it works - I am not sure but it may be harder to turn when the electrics are dead? Learn where the jump start point is under the bonnet and how to open the plastic cover (it's much easier than I first figured out).

Driving it the 80 miles home was fantastic and having slowly got used to the alternative way of driving the car just keeps getting better for me. The cruise control is amazing and leaves me with very little actual driving to do apart from steer. Interestingly I dont seem to suffer from bad MPG in this car as is reported all over the place and still got over 60mpg average (most is dual carriageway driving with a bit of town thrown in) which was a pleasant surprise.

If 80 miles is a typical journey lenght then you're going to see a far better mpg than my 7 mile trips. The mpg will vary, and you really need a few tank fills averaged out.

Is there any advantage to using the higher octane fuels at the pump ie super unleaded or is this not recommended.

I don't think so. The Prius petrol engine is designed to use the Atkinson cycle and run on regular unleaded petrol, for a petrol engine it apparently runs quite cool and is designed to be efficient while being a bit under powered (made up for by the electric motor) - I am not sure what would happen if a richer fuel was burnt in the engine. I tend to use the Shell unleaded petrol because I used it in my previous cars (non-hybrids) and they seemed to run well on it.

[robvensis]

Hi Timberwolf

thanks for you post which is very informative and i take your point entirely on the seats.

Regarding the 12v Aux Battery stuff, am i right in thinking this is a Battery more like a standard car Battery that keeps my alarm, central locking and door lights etc working or are you refering to the big expensive stuff that is involved with feeding the hybrid engine?

I am under warranty for the whole car for a year and for the hybrid parts for about 5 years,but this is still important detail to know and consider

cheers

Rob

After 1 sec in the prius seats I felt the pain and "knee in the back" feeling disappear, what a difference. I now feel very comfy with no problems at all. The avensis must be for fat tall execs

Unfortunately, there isn't a standard size. I'm 5'10" 29" leg and somewhat over weight and I find most cars with a lumber support a killer on my lower back. My last car was a Honda Civic, and that had seats that caused pain after an hour, what was really annoying was that previous Civic to that one had very flat seats with no side hugging support or lumber and they were the most comfortable seats that I'd ever had in a car. The Prius fabric seats although they have side supports seems to be quite squashy, so I am okay for four hours before I become a bit uncomfortable.

I bought a Tspirit 56 plate with 24k miles and one owner (this is a bit of a laugh as it turned out to have belonged to a famous Lord!! - no joke)

Low annual mileage could mean that the 12v Aux battery could need replacing a bit earlier - 4 years is a not uncommon life span. My advice would be to test the mechanical key now so that you know it works - I am not sure but it may be harder to turn when the electrics are dead? Learn where the jump start point is under the bonnet and how to open the plastic cover (it's much easier than I first figured out).

Driving it the 80 miles home was fantastic and having slowly got used to the alternative way of driving the car just keeps getting better for me. The cruise control is amazing and leaves me with very little actual driving to do apart from steer. Interestingly I dont seem to suffer from bad MPG in this car as is reported all over the place and still got over 60mpg average (most is dual carriageway driving with a bit of town thrown in) which was a pleasant surprise.

If 80 miles is a typical journey lenght then you're going to see a far better mpg than my 7 mile trips. The mpg will vary, and you really need a few tank fills averaged out.

Is there any advantage to using the higher octane fuels at the pump ie super unleaded or is this not recommended.

I don't think so. The Prius petrol engine is designed to use the Atkinson cycle and run on regular unleaded petrol, for a petrol engine it apparently runs quite cool and is designed to be efficient while being a bit under powered (made up for by the electric motor) - I am not sure what would happen if a richer fuel was burnt in the engine. I tend to use the Shell unleaded petrol because I used it in my previous cars (non-hybrids) and they seemed to run well on it.

[Dave R.]

Regarding the 12v Aux battery stuff, am i right in thinking this is a battery more like a standard car battery that keeps my alarm, central locking and door lights etc working or are you refering to the big expensive stuff that is involved with feeding the hybrid engine?

I am under warranty for the whole car for a year and for the hybrid parts for about 5 years,but this is still important detail to know and consider

Yes, the 12v Aux Battery is a "standard car battery".

You should find that the "big expensive stuff" that drives the traction motors is classed as part of the hybrid system.

[Fujisan]

Regarding the 12v Aux battery stuff, am i right in thinking this is a battery more like a standard car battery that keeps my alarm, central locking and door lights etc working or are you refering to the big expensive stuff that is involved with feeding the hybrid engine?

I am under warranty for the whole car for a year and for the hybrid parts for about 5 years,but this is still important detail to know and consider

Yeah, it's the car type Battery he was referring too, not the big drive Battery.

[timberwolf]

As others have already confirmed I meant the small 12v Battery, and yes it only needs to power the electronics or illumination. It's not a very common Battery size and if I recall correctly I think it may have a 28Ah capacity, which is pretty small when compared with a conventional 12v car Battery that may typically have a 45Ah capacity or more.

Cranking power to spin up the Prius petrol engine is provided by the traction battery.