Test drivin' a Prius this week - Page 2

 

I discovered that method years ago; the problem is that it leaves a
blind spot (on some cars) from the time it moves out of sight of the
side view mirror and into direct view.

--
Stop Mad Cowboy Disease:  Vote for John Kerry.

  It went very well - the Prius handles nicely, accelerates well getting on
the highway, the in-dash display is intuitive and not as distracting as I
thought it might be, and I could barely tell when the gas engine cut in and
out. The only thing that stood out as annoying was the limited
rearview-mirror visibility; I prefer to have more of a view as to what's
coming up on me.

Unfortunately, the three cars they had on the lot contained unwanted option
packages putting them in the $
4k range, and they confirmed there's no way
of installing just the onboard satellite navigation short of the $
k
all-inclusive accessory package, so I walked. I just couldn't justify the
added expense - the base model price was pushing it, and my treat was to be
the sat nav, not the other things I have no interest in.

They promised to call me if a base model Prius turns up in their allocation,
and I'll consider it if I can find an elegant sat-nav solution.

 I bought a 2004 with the #4 option package. I use a handheld Magellan
Meridian Gold for navigation purposes.Works well for me.

Alan


wrote:

 That's what they want you to believe.  I installed a Kenwood KNA-DV3100 =
with the
8" touch screen in my '04 with the Package 7.  It's a full-featured touch
screen, voice activated DVD-based GPS navigation system.  The screen goes=
 where
the plastic hinged door that covers the compartment right below the =
radio.  I
have about $
500 in the Nav and display, and it cost $
00 to get it =
installed.
It works FAR BETTER than the Toyota OEM version in the Prius.

An added bonus is that since it uses a separate screen, I can keep the
consumption display up at the same time I am using the Nav.

You can see the pictures here:

http://tinyurl.com/663pq

Hope that helps.

Steve


together some random words that came up with:

 
They were quite willing to consider an integrated idea, and were open to
aftermarket options - they just didn't know of any offhand that met my
requirement that it use the existing display, which hamstrung them. I didn't
feel any pressure from them to go with their system.

Thanks for the tip on the Kenwood. I'll give that serious thought.