Hello all, I am new to this forum and am now in the market for a Prius, I have read many of the postings but still have a question about the Advanced trim on the Prius Plug In. This is what I read in most sites as the features with this trim- Prius Plug-in Hybrid Advanced- upgrades with the SofTex upholstery, Premium HDD Navigation, HomeLink, Head Up Display, Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, LED headlights, integrated fog lights. I know some ads I have read will say Advanced when there not, I know some people do not know what trim they ACTUALLY have, I have seen this a lot with Gen 3 Prii that I have looked. My question is some of the postings I have seen for Advanced will have the HUD and Solar Roof ( I know it isn't part of the Advanced) but won't have the upgraded HDD Nav or DRCC, is it not an actual Advanced then? I thought maybe those that had everything were an Advanced with a Tech Package perhaps but I couldn't find that anywhere I looked. Any help would be appreciated. My budget is about 12k as I prefer to pay cash for the vehicle. ~Chad Pixel 3 XL ?
2012 was the only year the PiP had two trim levels - Base and Advanced. 2013-2015 - The "Advanced" trim level was decontented and became a mid-level trim. You then added the Technology Package to add back the items that were removed. This was done so that there wasn't a large jump between the base and Advanced trim levels. A solar roof was not available for the PiP ever. It's only available on the regular Gen 3 Prius (and there was an "Advanced Technology" package for the Prius Five which is maybe where the sellers get confused). The 2013-2015 PiP Advanced (PiPA) adds: SofTex-trimmed seats and steering wheel, 10-way power driver's seat (that includes a 2-way power lumbar support), dual-stage heated front seats, Premium HDD Navigation with Entune App Suite, 7" high resolution LCD with split-screen capability, JBL GreenEdge Audio System with 8-speakers, AM/FM/CD/DVD/USB/AUX/BT, HUD with speedo, HSI and nav displays, Safety Connect (similar to GM's OnStar) The Technology package adds: LED low beam headlights with automatic level control, LED front-facing parking light (checkmark or a boomerang shape), automatic headlights, headlight washers, halogen foglights, Dynamic Radar Cruise Control (cuts out at 25mph), Pre-Collision System. Note that XMNavTraffic and XMNavWeather may not work. I think SiriusXM stopped supporting that for Toyota vehicles. (I know I lost that capability midway through ownership of my 2010 Prius)
Thanks for the info, that is very helpful and clears a lot up for me. Is there any difference on what to look for when buying a used Prius vs PiP? I have read that one of the main issues is EGR. Pixel 3 XL ?
egr is the same on both. if it is close to 100k, it's a gamble with the head gasket. with a pip, you want to charge it up and see how far you can drive until the engine comes on. with either, you want to reset a trip meter, take it for a good long drive, and see what she returns for average mpg's.
When you say it's a gamble, is there a way to increase my odds? Whether it's a private party or dealership couldn't I have the car checked out first or once it gets to 100k are they not worth buying? Sorry if I sound like a novice, when it comes to car mechanics I definitely am. Thanks Pixel 3 XL ?
Actually, the 2013 had two trims. Base and Advanced. No Technology trim at least in the US. Here's a copy of the 2013 brochure I got for my PiP. I also have a copy of the 2014 and it also shows just the two trims.
Thanks a lot for that, it's helpful. I was looking at a 2012 PiP that was supposed to be an Advanced that had HUD but it didn't have the better Nav, it was the one that didn't play DVDs. As another member said earlier 2012 was the only year that they had the Tech package, could this of been the reason why? Pixel 3 XL ?
you would have to have a leak down test or something, certainly worth asking. it's not that common in 2012's yet, but expensive if it happens.
See, I couldn't remember when Toyota separated the Advanced and Tech packages.. I remember it was early on but that's weird. I got my info from TMS as well.
EGR is one of the main issues and it's the same engine for both regular Prius and PiP so it could be a problem. I'm purely speculating but depending on how often the engine is used in the PiP, it might actually buy you some more time since the plug-in part means the engine may have ran less often than it would on a regular Prius. But maybe runtime hours may not matter, maybe it's just the number of cold starts. Either way, some solutions for extending the life include installing an oil catch can and cleaning out the EGR. Point of oil catch can? | PriusChat Oil Catch Can, Eliminate that knock! | PriusChat EGR cleaning (video #17) Nutz About Bolts Prius Maintenance Videos | PriusChat EGR & Intake Manifold Clean Results | PriusChat
Weird and confusing. I've wondered about that, too. It might have something to do with not getting fully warm. If I had kept my PiP, I think I would have an OCC in it by now.
I'm looking at a 2012 PiP online and they state in the description that it has Heads Up Display but when looking at the pictures I do not see a HUD button to the left of the radio, also it does not have the better HDD Nav Radio if that matters as well. So if the button isn't there I assume no HUD then correct? Thanks, Chad Pixel 3 XL ?
That's correct. (You can also scan the photos and see if you can spot the cut-out in the dashboard, ahead of the driver, where the HUD would project from).
