Since so many Novans drive Prius', does the Toyota scuttlebutt affect traffic? (Williamsburg: fit in, credit)

[normie]

Originally Posted by blu_monk

H1N1! OMG
Tiger Woods! OMG
Toyota! OMG

If they don't have something, they have nothing.

And don't forget the bird flu!

While I think Toyota's cars may have some problems, I agree that this "big scare" has the whiff of a scam to it. Some sort of political manipulation going on here.

Meanwhile, I drove down the same stretch of Rt. 7 today and saw the usual number of Prius' (Or is the plural of that word Priii? I've never been sure...) Nobody looked panicked to see me driving behind them. So yesterday must have been an aberration.

[oneasterisk]

Originally Posted by normie

While I think Toyota's cars may have some problems, I agree that this "big scare" has the whiff of a scam to it. Some sort of political manipulation going on here.

I wouldn't be suprised considering the US Gov't has a large share in the US car manufacturers now. It's only prudent to protect your investments by making your competition look bad?

Where was the Federal gov't when Ford's cruise control mechanism were bursting into flames and burning people's homes down? Where were they when Ford Crown Vics were bursting into flames because of the gas tanks (Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptors).

Does anyone publish the number of recalls for all the manufacturers? I would not be suprised that Toyota has less recalls than the other manufacturers...

[ngadude]

Originally Posted by GreenGene

Me, too!


1. Yes, you can shift into neutral while the Prius is in motion. I did it yesterday, at 50+ mph and accelerating, with my foot on the gas pedal. Move the shifter directly to the left - from Drive to Neutral - and hold it there for a second. The engine will continue to rev, but the car will start to slow down.

2. Yes, at any speed you can turn the car off. Press and hold the Power button - this takes maybe two or three seconds - just stabbing at it won't work. Press and hold. However, the problem with this is that you are cutting power to everything - steering , brakes, etc. If for some reason you feel you really, really need to turn off the power, do so carefully; i.e., you don't want to do this just prior to a turn, since your power steering will be disabled. You will retain the ability to steer, but not as easily, quickly, or completely.

Best advice if you have a true "runaway" vehicle of any kind - shift into neutral. The engine can then rev up all it wants to - it's no longer propelling the car.

Thanks, that was a very good post and answered everything I was wondering about.

I had forgotten about your very good point of the loss of power steering/power braking if you do turn off the car by pressing and holding the Power button for a few seconds.

As you say, the best thing is to shift the car into neutral. I'm glad to hear that does indeed work on the Prius. I was going to try it out maybe over the weekend in an empty parking lot and see what happens. Anyway, I didn't think about the Power issue with power brakes/power steering - although I would have definitely found that out if I had tried it in a test.

It is good to know though - really if it happens I like the idea of shifting into Neutral. As you say the engine will rev for a bit until the car slows down and once stopped you can kill the Power. Really, if my car is starting to accelerate and getting out of control, the last thing I worry about is protecting the engine from over-revving!

[ngadude]

Originally Posted by oneasterisk

I wouldn't be suprised considering the US Gov't has a large share in the US car manufacturers now. It's only prudent to protect your investments by making your competition look bad?

Where was the Federal gov't when Ford's cruise control mechanism were bursting into flames and burning people's homes down? Where were they when Ford Crown Vics were bursting into flames because of the gas tanks (Ford Crown Victoria Police Interceptors).

Does anyone publish the number of recalls for all the manufacturers? I would not be suprised that Toyota has less recalls than the other manufacturers...

Yes, and really I heard over the years there's been something like more than 10,000 reports of sudden acceleration - and it cuts across ALL manufacturers - foreign and American!

The press is definitely sensationalizing this story to some degree, and it's hard to know what the ground truth is and what all the facts really are. They really are on the attack on Toyota - and it may not be totally deserved. Of course, there is some question as to whether Toyota knew about this in some cases, and didn't choose to address the problem. Again, hard to tell what the real truth is - I don't really believe a lot of what I read in the press these days - as the press has an agenda and definitely very much distorts the truth on some news items until it no longer has much representation to the truth!

Speaking of bursting gas tanks - there was some other American made car in the 70's or so that had a huge reputation for bursting into flames because of a poorly made gas tank. I can't remember the name, but I'm sure someone else on the forum will. It caused the death of a bunch of people who were unfortunately in an accident and the car burst into flames and exploded due to the way the gas tank was made.

[ngadude]

Originally Posted by normie

And don't forget the bird flu!

While I think Toyota's cars may have some problems, I agree that this "big scare" has the whiff of a scam to it. Some sort of political manipulation going on here.

Meanwhile, I drove down the same stretch of Rt. 7 today and saw the usual number of Prius' (Or is the plural of that word Priii? I've never been sure...) Nobody looked panicked to see me driving behind them. So yesterday must have been an aberration.

I haven't been able to figure out how to write the plural of Prius either! In one of my posts I found myself wanting to speak of more than one Prius, but really had a hard time figuring out what to put down!

I may not be very observant on things, but I really haven't noticed people on the road acting oddly when they see me driving along in my Prius. Although, I tend to be focused on the car ahead of me and cars directly to the sides of me when driving - to make sure no one does some crazy thing that might cause an accident. So, I'm not looking to see if cars are giving me an unusual amount of room.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by normie

Since so many Novans drive Prius', does the Toyota scuttlebutt affect traffic?

Rep point for using the word "scuttlebutt" ! Also, interesting topic. I think you're right, Nova does seem to have an unusually high percentage of Priusses on the road compared to other cities. I wonder why?

[Workin_Hard]

Originally Posted by Caladium

Rep point for using the word "scuttlebutt" ! Also, interesting topic. I think you're right, Nova does seem to have an unusually high percentage of Priusses on the road compared to other cities. I wonder why?

I think that being able to use the HOV lanes in an area where commute times can be lengthy contributes to the popularity of the vehicle. We just bought a Lexus hybrid (waiting for delivery now) and that was a factor in choosing the hybrid over the conventional drive.

(Personally I don't give a rat's butt about the 'green' factor and would use snow leopards or bald eagles for fuel if needed. My wife works in DC and getting home a little sooner *is* an issue.)

[bmwguydc]

Please keep the topic as local as possible, and not delve into issues of media hype or political reasons as to why we have the current cultural climate with regard to Toyota. There are many threads in the Automotive forum that discuss this; however, safety issues are important and I won't relocate a thread that's discussing those aspects, since roads in the region do come into play. Thank you for your cooperation.

[Caladium]

Originally Posted by bmwguydc

Please keep the topic as local as possible, and not delve into issues of media hype or political reasons as to why we have the current cultural climate with regard to Toyota. There are many threads in the Automotive forum that discuss this; however, safety issues are important and I won't relocate a thread that's discussing those aspects, since roads in the region do come into play. Thank you for your cooperation.

Thanks bmwguy. I totally agree, the local aspects of this are the most interesting to me. When the Prius came out I didn't expect it to be such a big hit in NOVA, but it certainly is everywhere. It's funny how certain vehicles are a cultural part of a city. When I was in Arkansas, it was the pick-up truck you saw everywhere. In upstate New York, everyone seems to drive hummers and other big cars. But here in NOVA everyone drives a Prius.

Laugh if you wish, but it's one of the things I brag about regarding NOVA. I like living in an area with so many hybrid cars (even though I don't drive one myself but maybe the next one I buy will be a hybrid). I like seeing so many of them on the roads here because they're so quiet. When you have a lot of them in traffic, you notice a discernible difference.

[bornindc]

Originally Posted by ngadude

Speaking of bursting gas tanks - there was some other American made car in the 70's or so that had a huge reputation for bursting into flames because of a poorly made gas tank. I can't remember the name, but I'm sure someone else on the forum will. It caused the death of a bunch of people who were unfortunately in an accident and the car burst into flames and exploded due to the way the gas tank was made.

I believe that would have been the Ford Pinto.