Toyota Prius in winter?

Look around some more on the message boards and you'll find a lot of info - in a nutshell, cold weather does hurt hybrid efficiency (due mainly to longer warm-up times to get the system ready to operate at max efficiency). However, cold weather hurts ALL vehicles efficiency for a number of reasons (such as the winter blend gas we get in the NE).

All three (so far) hybrid SUVs are available with AWD. Not sure about other upcoming hybrids though.

Synthetic engine & drive train lubes in hybrids is a good example of how much more effective PAO lubes are in cold temperatures compared to non-synthetics. In larger cars & trucks it's probably not that obvious because of the size difference.

Priuses all over the place here in Montreal, winter temps often 25 - 30 below zero F. doesn't seem to affect them, no waitning lists at dealers as far as I know, but the day we get a tax rebate like our friends in the USA, the polar ice cap will have melted and it will be too late to do anything about greenhouse emissions. This is the last place in the hemisphere that doesn't have some form of emission testing for the cars on the road. You could be driving a pile of s--- from the 1980's that's never had a tune up, and chugging along at 35 mph on the freeway, and no-one would bat an eyelid. Bravo to our decision makers.

With regard to battery charge, at temperatures of -5C, you should not have any reduction in battery capacity.

What is happening is that the car's computer is keeping the gas engine running in order to keep it at operating temperature. The car is not going to "use" charge from the battery to propel the car if the engine is ALREADY RUNNING. Basically, the car is charging the battery every time you hit the brakes, and slow down. But never using the battey to propel the car down the road. So the battery get's pretty full.

You can increase your winter mileage by no heating the passenger compartment more than necessary, and using the cruise control to let the computer manage engine use more efficently.

Of course the biggest effect on winter mileage is the distance you travel. Short trips under 10km are going to result in very poor mileage because the car spending most of it's time running down the road with a cold engine.

Ironically the biggest annoyance of my 2002 Prius in the winter is the change I had to make in order to prepare for snow. In most cars with front wheel drive you park so you back out of the spot through the snow; that way your drive wheel runs first over the spot covered by the car. Reverse in the 2002 Prius is electric only. That means it can't even cross a molehill of snow in front of it.

It sounds like I have a problem similar to the one Darryl posted 3 years ago. My 2002 Prius does not start normally after a night below freezing. The electric system seems to work fine, but the gas engine does not start, and I see a lot of "problem" lights, including Check Engine. If I drive a couple of miles on electric only, stop and turn off the car for a few seconds, restart it, the gas engine will then start normally, although the problem lights remain. Then, the next time I turn the car off, after 20 miles or so, and restart, all the problem light go off.

This happened the one time I drove to a cold area (Sierras) last year, and I ignored it (did not go to dealer). However, it just happened this past weekend in my once-a-year ski trip.

Any idea if this is a wide spread problem? Will the dealer be able to help if there are currently no problem lights on?

One other thought: the Prius does NOT have a separate starter motor, like a normal car.

The big 40 Hp drive motor IS the starter motor. It runs from the big 200V drive battery.

the 12v battery is there ONLY for the computer, headlights, etc.

If you can drive the car around on the electric drive motor, then the computer, 200V battery, 12V battery, and drive/starter electric motor are all running fine.

Get the computer codes readout.

I have problem in my Toyota Prius 1999 on the coldest weather light about turtle & Warning

Sounds chilly. Do you have a block heater for the Prius? Very good accessory for sub-zero conditions that gives the "warm up" a good head start.

I have a 2003 Prius and the ONLY problem I have is last winter and now this winter it won't start on cold days. We took it to the dealer last year and they ran the computer but it was inconclusive and they suspected water in the gas line. We put STP in and it does seem to solve the problem. I just hate not knowing if it will start.

there is that little thumbwheel brightness control for the dash lights on the left of the steering wheel. Did you try rotating it up and down, to see if that would make the dash lights come on? A bad dimmer switch might be "temperature sensitive".

I haven't had to start up in subzero weather. My coldest starts have been around 12F with no problems. I did drive through a couple places with 1F temperatures, but the car was warmed up and didn't give me any problems.

Lisa: I have a 2002 Prius and it does have starting problems as well during cold days. You mentioned it is not cheap to fix it. What has to be fixed? and who quoted it?
This winter, my battery finally is going bad. (bad cells). As I drive, my car or engine stalls and seem to rev up; I lose power and have to pull over and turn off / on my car completely, to reset whatever was causing the engine to rev up. I know the car has no transmission. I am trying to understand the problem.
Thanks, SM

Actually, some scan tool in repair shops allow to customize preferable interior temperature for Toyota/Lexus models. It should be very useful in cold/hot days. If the repair shop owns OEM equipment or factory-level scan tool such as pq-TLS, I'd like to try this shop first.

Anyone who says that the Prius is anything less than dangerous in slush and snow just hasn't driven it in the conditions that cause every Prius - even with great snow tires - to come to a complete halt and unable to move. I have a 2004 Prius and have driven it through 6 New England winters. The simple fact is that if you find yourself in any situation that causes the wheels to spin in slush or snow the traction control will apply braking to the wheels. If you are on a flat or only slightly inclined surface the intermittent braking will allow the wheels to regain some traction after briefly braking them when wheel spin is sensed. this will allow the car to move haltingly forward. However, if you find yourself going up a steep incline or in snow 4-5 inches deep, the traction control will keep applying/releasing the brakes every couple of seconds,thereby slowing the momentum you need to power up the hill or through the deeper snow even with some wheel spin - as every other car will allow you to do. So, when the system finally brings you to a complete halt on an icy hill, and you try to accelerate, of course the tires are going to need to spin a bit to pull you from a dead stop to a forward motion on a slippery surface. In a normal car, not a big deal. But in a Prius - forget it. The second the wheels spin the brakes are applied and so you go nowhere! One result is that you block every car behind you making it so that they too lose momentum and must try to pass you from a dead stop up a snow hill - which on a road with a single lane in each direction means they must somehow cross in to opposing traffic and pass you from a dead stop on an icy steep hill. This doesn't make you very popular.

In addition, may people don't know that the Prius can only move in reverse in electric mode - the CVT transmission is not capable of applying engine power in reverse. This means that in situations where the car is parked on ice or snow and must reverse to get out, the electric motor does not have the power to back you up - especially if parked on an incline. On top of that, if the electric motor engages the wheels and they spin, the brake is automatically applied, leaving you pushing on a wet noodle of an accelerator pedal.

The situation I have described is not just a description of my unique experience, it is an engineering fact and limitation of all Prius' that goes way beyond snow tires. Sure, good snow tires will help the wheels spin less and thereby not engage the traction control as frequently, but no snow tires can eliminate all wheel slippage. So, I have to conclude that those who rave about Prius in snow have not yet found themselves a steep icy hill with traffic behind them.

I know much has been made of the electronic braking anomaly in the 2010 Prius and Toyota then recalled them - after first denying the problem existed. But I believe that the traction control problem in snow is an extremely dangerous flaw and should also require a recall.

After talking to an import car mechanic today, I am considering the idea that the abs system is doing a self-test just after the car is started. It's in the middle of acting as it would do on a skid. "Self-modulation" was the term he used. The system is checking itself and would put a check engine light on on the dash if it were malfunctioning. The test is over in a matter of seconds. One minute later and the test would be over.

My shaking and rat-a-tat noise occurs usually when I start the car and drive quickly backwards, turning a bit, while leaving my garage. There is a small lip I back over. I have also had a couple instances of shaking when going over a big rough spot in my gravel driveway. I am going to monitor myself to see if I am braking at the same time I get the steering wheel shaking.

I purchased a 2010 Toyota Prius eight months ago. I drive less than 1 mile to work and usually average about 35/mpg just driving around town and live in southeastern PA. On trips I averaged 43 to 45 mpg. Just recently (early December) my mileage dropped to about 26 mpg around town making very short trips. I am so disappointed in the Prius's mileage. Toyota should let customers know that cold weather adversely affects mileage.

This winter I passed 3 Prius's stuck on the hill by my house. I went to this site to see if snow tires helped Prius's in snow. I would love to have a Prius for the gas mileage. My husband doesn't think it is safe for our occasional snow storm.

I live in Yellownife NWT Territories in Canada
i seem a problem with the prius on cold wheather. over here it gets -40C = -40F. so little be cool....it is normal for this area. The vehicle has a block heater but when it gets that temperatures or below we need to live it running overnight cause it will not start the next day.....
it is very reliable vehicle excepts for that....so we are changing it for a Yukon Hybrid that the batt cell is for this climates.