You know, after months of owning the Prius, I can say the Prius is definitely doing one thing right concerning my health. It doesn't try to kill me everytime I park in the garage. Let me explain. Back in 97, we owned a 97 Corolla DX Plus and we had a 2-car garage. My dad would always reverse into the garage and even though it was a 2-car garage, the exhaust fumes from the Corolla were very strong. Moving up through the LEV 2000 Corolla and the ULEV 2002 Camry, exhaust fumes became less noticeable even when we moved to another house with a 1 car garage filled with all our useless crap and stuff we haven't had time to unpack. Now with the Prius, reversing into the garage in EV mode, I know that I won't have to hold my breath and evacuate asap. I can take my time to unload whatever's in the hatch.
That would be another great time to have the EV switch: for parking in a garage. Like Oly said, there is no need to run the ICE in reverse (technical note, it is impossible for the ICE to provide mechanical power in reverse). However, due to cold weather, A/C demands, or other reasons, the ICE might still kick in while in reverse. With an EV switch, the driver could shut off the ICE and back into the garage knowing full well that the ICE will not come on. Here's to your health, Tideland!
True, but a) loading the trunk will be a pain as you'll have to walk all the way to the end B) driving out to the alley is safer than reversing out. I'd rather not play the guessing game.
