Things I like and dislike about my 2012 Prius v option level 3.
It is as delivered except for dealer added Daylight Running Lights, Leather interior armrests and seats, Ebay center cap hubcaps, Weathertech mats and a set of Maxi View blind-spot mirror add-ons. All at my expense and request. Around 54.6k miles as of July 2019.
Maintained with:
Initial 1k, and every 5k oil changes.
Wipers at 30k.
Tires and brakes measured at 40k and showing no signs of needing replacement for a long time though I believe in replacing tires at 5 years or so. I did. Michelins were original and I replaced with the same.
12 volt battery replaced after 5+ years.
pLock (transmission parking lock) failure 5 times in quick succession resulting in no-start, tow and repair. A search of online forums show nothing similar so it must be very very rare. Actuator, switch and relay replaced and wiring connections checked. Now consider it fixed after at least 10k miles and more than a year later. Oil leak at 54k miles around timing chain cover. Fixed. Power train warranties are wonderful.
5 Toyotas in the family. 2 Prius v wagons(51k and 70k), one Prius hatchback (200k). Now 4. Sienna sold with over 220k miles on it due to changed circumstances.
I'm now 76 years old and my wife isn't much younger. I have a 2019 Rav4 hybrid I bought and I sold my v. It was easy to sell. It has been a great car but I have decided I need the electronic nannies and the higher entry height the current SUV designs provide. And I won't be giving up too much in the way of MPG. The Rav4h isn't exactly cheap but sometimes life directs you in different ways. Good luck Seth.
Likes
1. It’s a wagon and has gobs of trunk room. Seats down, 6 foot Xmas tree, check. Seats up, 3 months of groceries and house supplies from Costco, check. 2 adults and 2 kids and all their stuff to the beach for a week, check. And just today a dryer in the trunk. Full size and used an old rug to allow one old man to slide it out.
2. It gets around the EPA MPG figures and I don’t have to do anything funny to get there. I just drive it, I don’t hypermile or pulse-glide. I run with 42/40 pressures. Definitely firmer/harsher. I respect the other drivers on the road and don’t dawdle. (41+ MPG average for my driving to date and 90% of my trips are very local over hilly roads, look for GoodWitch at fuelly.com) I completed a 300 mile run at 65-70+ a little MPH with 700+ pounds of people and full luggage and averaged 43.5 MPG with AC on.
3. The clarity of the instrument dials. Though some rare angles of sunlight can create slight difficulty.
4. 3 car seats fit in the back seat. But lots depends on how long the trip is and how the kids get along. I just rented a mini-van for a 3.5 hour each way trip to the beach because the three rows allowed some separation for the 5, 8 and 11 year-old grandkids. More than willing to do that for the rare long trip with 3 kids. I've used the v for 2 kids and a week long trip including beach umbrellas and chairs, sleeping bags, etc. 4 of us for the same trip. Yes.
5. The wonderful amount of cup holders for the front seat -3! One for me.
6. The two glove boxes, door cubbies, center console size, bottle holders, etc.
7. The way the center console is cut away near the dash so the right knee can splay over that area. Makes a perfect square Kleenex box place during pine pollen season.
8. The 2 hidden compartments under the rear trunk area. Perfect to hide a few golf clubs (irons and hybrids, no driver) to use on the range. And a golf umbrella. Plus canvas bags for groceries to help reduce the use of plastic bags.
9. The hidden 'mag' wheels behind the hideous hubcaps.
10. The easy to change clock time setting buttons. Trivial and obvious.
11. Bluetooth and making a hands-free phone call. Android works fine, initial reports of Apple's then non-standard bluetooth not working so well but now fixed.
12. Easy destination entry on the GPS. Interface seems very logical and easy to use in contrast to the one on the 2011 Avalon my wife has which I’d almost pay to have removed. (And I’ve been using computers for 50+ years!) Also see ‘dislikes’ below. New GPS in model year 2015 cars so these comments may not apply.
13. The reclining and sliding rear seats. And they are far enough back the kids don't kick the backs of the front seats. My NFL lineman sized son can sit back there.
14. Rear seats that can fold down and not force the front seats to be moved forward. The rear headrests don’t even have to be removed.
15. The armrest in the back seat keeps two grandkids away from each other. 3 grandkids fit for hour long trips, one in a booster, one in a car seat.
16. Heat is distributed to the back passengers.
17. That I can get leather as a “dealer installed option” on any trim level. Not cheap but I didn't trust the fabric armrests. katzkin KZ-DKS P#T12FA Frost T#2954843. 7 years later spotless.
18. That the radio displays the genre of radio station in addition to call letters and frequency.
19. The clarity and display of the heating controls settings.
20. That it doesn’t waste display space with a tachometer.
21. That it doesn’t have an analog speedometer with a 160 MPH limit like so many other cars (the useful area of such a dial is so small as to be useless). I much prefer the digital display.
22. The spare tire (even if it is a limp home one). Lots of room there for jumper cables, flares, etc.
23. Reliability. Both its reputation and my experience. Until 38 below. And 42.
24. Michelin tire longevity. On other cars I’ve had manufacturer-supplied tires last only 15k miles, these look great at 43k. Replaced then due to age, tread looked good for 30k more miles.
25. That there are active online communities supporting the v. Most active is priuschat.com.
26. It is sold by a dealer 3 miles from my house even in my small town and by a manufacturer with thousands of dealers. I contrast this with several other brands (Tesla, Mazda, Porsche, Mercedes, Lexus, Kia, Hyuandi, BMW, Volvo, etc) where dealer support is at least 45 miles away from me. Even in my small semi-rural town, the dealer sells in volume enough that there are at least 12 service bays. And when he gets my car for service, he'll drop me off a short walk from my house. Makes dropoffs the night before easy.
27. How long it can go between fill ups. I stop at the gas station for a lottery ticket more often than I really need to fill up. I just completed a 175 miles one way round trip with running around for 3 days and I wasn't desperate to refuel. The display said I had plenty and even after that was exhausted there was a reserve in the tank that should get me to any gas station. Don't run the tank dry. It can burn up a fuel pump or allow debris that is in the bottom of the tank to get into the fuel injection system.
Dislikes
Don't over react to what seemingly is a long list. This is more information that you probably have ever had about any car. It is assembled from reading online forums so many individual's preferences have contributed. Many of the 'dislikes' are trivial. Some only apply to specific model year cars. Others only to specific persons.
1. Noise level. The single weather stripping around the doors and hatch seem marginal and there is little sound deadening seemingly used. Light weight glass. Every stone thrown up against the wheel wells comes through to the cabin. My old ears need all the help they can get. On certain roads, the tire noise is significant. I just got back from a 1,000 mile trip and starting the car this morning I turned on the radio only to be startled at how loud I had left it trying to overcome the road noise at speed. On the other hand, I am 75 and my hearing isn't the best at certain frequencies.
2. The center placement of the instrument dials. Quirky styling element but they sell enough LHD and RHD cars to differentiate and put the gauges in front of you. Something you get used to.
3. The lack of standard LED DRLs. You can get them installed with a Toyota distributor part number kit but it is $$. I did. Standard in the 2015.
4. That it isn’t made in the US of more US made parts. I'd rather support jobs where I live.
5. The unlighted shift knob. You get used to its position and use the dash display to assure you are in the right "gear"..
6. The placement of the PWR, ECO, EV buttons so near a cup holder that it potentially exposes them to spills.
7. The lack of side mirror turn signals.
8. The lack of high marks when offset crash testing. This is fixed in the ’15 models and the v is now an IIHS Top Safety Pick with "good" in every category. The pre-'15 v cars had good marks everywhere else. The criteria change and more features are demanded to meet the new standards each year. The 2016 standards will require more automated crash warning and avoidance features.
9. The lack of standard minimal sized mud-guards to shield the wheel well sheet metal from stones thrown up by the tires. But no stone chips in the paint at 45k miles.
10. The heating system low amount of air flow to the feet with the fan on less noisy settings and air direction set to only feet. It isn't like the cabin isn't warm enough, just that I'd like my shoes dried off and my toes toasty. Defrosters are fine.
11. The lockout of some GPS functions when moving. My navigator controls the GPS on long trips and it is perfectly safe for her to change settings while underway. I do understand the need for the driver to not use it at speed. (There is a kit sold that, with some rewiring, removes this lockout.)
12. The backup buzzer duration (reset at the dealers now to only one beep).
13. The seatbelt buzzer duration (can also be reset at the dealer)
14. The limited number of directions in which the front seats can be adjusted. The inability to slant the seat bottom up in the front in particular. The 2015 in option levels four and five have a 8 way power adjustable seat for the driver only. The passenger seat in a 2015 is 4 way adjustable non power.
15. The comfort of the seats isn’t what it is in a plush-mobile. I have back trouble and I don’t have any problem taking 5 hour trips driving the v. My wife prefers her Avalon. Individual bodies vary. Try before you buy.
16. Some complain about the position of the front seat headrests. Try before you buy.
17. The useless card holder to the left of the steering wheel. Make it an area capable of storing change, a pack of breath mints, etc. (I use it for calling card stowage. But beware the upper card will deform from a/c condensation.)
18. That the trunk area with rear seats folded down is not perfectly flat.
19. The amount of road dirt collected on the inside door sills. Common to my last 4 cars of varying brands.
20. The amount of road dirt collected on the rear trunk hatch, spoiler, and bumper. Sure shows on a white car. Common to white cars and especially to wagons. Kamm effect.
21. The fabric used on the 3 trim level (see ‘likes’ above because I do like the optional leather I had installed by the dealer even though it was a v three). I feared stains from sun tan oil or sweat on the cloth seats. I thought they were installing Softex and it sure looks like it but the bill said katzkin leather KZ-DKS P#T12FA Frost T#2954843. The option level four and five have Softex "leatherette".
22. The 2012 thru 2014 have no way to lock the differential so both wheels spin in the snow. Consequentially, it is possible for you to get into a situation on ice where one wheel spins uselessly while the one with traction moves not at all. The 2015 has a switch to lock the differential so both wheels spin. Use it only in an emergency. Use snow tires if you live in a snow area. Carry sand or ashes and a shovel.
23. The South East Toyota & South West Toyota area “distributor options” which aren’t options in NC and are vastly over-priced. (Go to the Laurel Maryland Carmax Toyota site and see the price difference. Well you could before Toyota forced dealers not to advertise non-sticker prices on the Internet.)
24. The NC dealer "administrative fee". $599 is ridiculous (now even higher). None at the Md dealer (now $99).
25. The lack of a true ‘scan function’ which would scan the dial and present each station for 5 seconds and go on to the next station” on the audio system. Having to touch a button to move between stations is poor as is the placement of the button to do it which are very far from the driver. The 2015 has a new audio system.
26. I’d like a more squared off steering wheel bottom to make getting in and out of the car easier when the seat is adjusted to its highest.
27. The lack of sun visor extensions to cover the center of the windshield or the back of the front side windows when rotated.
28. The original ’12 GPS software failed to give advance warning far enough in advance of when a turn is needed. A dealer installed no-charge software update fixed the problem. I used an 10 year old TomTom portable and was struck by how timely and repeated and clear all the instructions the TomTom's voice gave me. A software update to the v's GPS largely fixed this. The model year 2015 uses different software. The option level five ATP uses different map/GPS software.
29. The cost of GPS software updates and map updates. Toyota uses the same map data as the TomTom portables. Toyota charges ~$170 for once a year updates that are a year old when made available and then the dealer charges to install it. TomTom charges $25 for a year worth of 4 updates issued quarterly via download. But the only way to update the maps in the v is via the Toyota dealer service. Toyota does not detail the changes in the map data base it sells. TomTom does. You can sometimes get that info from Lexus. Considering that the map data changes 15% year to year, this is a big gripe on the Prius forums. Every once in a while, I'll need to resort to google maps on my phone. (Particularly irritating to me as the salesman said maps were just a download)
30. The location of the GPS screen is down and centered within the dash. This causes you to have to pull your eyes far away from the road (and dodge around the change line in your bifocals if you are wearing them). You adapt to it. Far better to mount the GPS screen closer to eye level. Yes, move the vents down. I’d really like to see it in a glare protecting tunnel right in front of the driver. Say on the left of the instruments that would be mounted centered to the steering wheel. I've seen some upscale cars where there is a display within the instrument panel directly in front of the driver and hooded from glare in addition to the one in the center of the dash.
31. The exterior styling. Yawn. Not much you can do, it is a wagon. And the front end got even worse in my opinion with the updated front end for crash safety.
32. The lack of a high mounted light which illuminates the luggage area when the hatch is raised. There is a low mounted one but it can be covered by luggage or grocery bags. It can also be switched to off so you can leave the rear hatch door open and not deplete the 12v battery.
33. The requirement to have a sunroof on the high options models. I want all the safety and convenience options without the sunroof. Had several, never used.
34. The lack of a warning light when the windshield washer fluid is low.
35. The lack of a display showing which door is open. A generic "door open" icon lights up but, when I have to scramble out in the rain to find the door that is open, it would help if I knew which one. Each of the doors has a sensor, why not display the info in a more useful way.
36. The lack of a blind spot warning mirror or detection capability. I don't need lots of the electronic nannies, but that is one that would really help. Available in later model years. I compensate by using a set of Maxi View mirror add-ons. Love em. But why not aspheric mirrors (curved)?
37. The lack of a full sized spare tire. I want one capable of running at 70 MPH for 100 miles if I need to use it. Not a doughnut though it is certainly better than many cars provide. There may not be a tire dealer with the right tires open for miles.
38. I don't like getting a "pLock Malfunction" screen that it will also fail to start the car multiple times. No details in the manual beyond what is already on the screen "Park on a flat surface". It is a bit late for that as the pLock error occurs when you come back to start the car after it has already been parked. A unique to me problem according to the online PriusChat forum and no other mentions found by a google of the web. Dealer has replaced the actuator and finally a switch and relay. No problems in the last 20k so I consider it fixed.
39. Toyota has announced as of November 2017 that there will be no more Prius v's imported into the US. Sales numbers in the US dictate their decision. The RAV4 hybrid is a nice SUV but not 42 MPG like the v. The pre-2019 RAV4h's MPG is more than 20% less and it also has less horizontal trunk room. The 2019 Rav4h is available in the second quarter of 2019 and its MPG is pretty darn close the the v's. I'd consider that its replacement.
40. By 2019 standards, the halogen headlights are rated "poor" by IIHS. The LED headlights on the 2015-2016 Model 5 with LID headlights was rated "acceptable" for the version without the ATP package and "good" for the Model 5 version with ATP and auto high beams. I have the ones from 2012 rated "poor" and I've found them typical of headlights of that era. But then in 2019 I see new models with headlights rated Poor or Marginal.
41. A 2012 weakness bit mine when the dealer detected a timing chain leak.
42. The 2012 seems to have a weak head gasket. Many failures at around 100k. Seems to occur most often if the Exhaust Gas Re-circulation plumbing is not cleaned around 80k miles.
Summary
Glad I bought it, heck yes. Find me another car with similar city and highway mileage, utility, maintenance costs, etc. 3 grand-kids in the back with car seats, no problem. 6' Xmas tree to the landfill, no problem. $400-600 Costco run with wife and 5 cooler boxes, no problem except the bill. And that trip to the dump with the old dryer.
No car is perfect. But I can't imagine another car of its era that does exactly what I expected it to as well as the v does.
My car has had only the GPS software and map update as a repair and the pLock incidents noted in 38 above. And at 54k a timing chain cover leak repaired under aa lifetime engine warranty I had purchased. Tires replaced because of age, not wear. Ditto 12v battery. And wipers. Every 5k oil changes because I drive it so little and brake and transaxle fluids.
There has been only two safety recalls completed (important software fixs to the controller software). If you are buying a used v, make sure these updates have been done.
My daughter-in-law also bought one. And she had read this the day before she made the decision. So that makes 3 Prius in the family. 200k+, 80k and 55k.