Hi! I'm 5 days in on my new Prius purchase. Interesting car. Not sure how I feel about it yet. Don't want to bum anybody out, just tellin' it like it is. I'm a realist. And an optimist. Can you be both??? Anyway, beside some "scratchy" brakes that I've been discussing with another afflicted Prius chat member, and a grease stain on my carpet (thanks to the mechanic who checked out the scratchy brakes), I'm pretty happy so far. NOT the drive I'm used to, but hey, we're saving the world, right?! Global warming be gone! OK, on to more serious topics -- my FM reception is crap. And I noticed today that while there is the bulky antenna piece on top of the car (satellite???), there is no long skinny antenna screwed into it (I can see the hole with the threads). I got Package #5, with satellite radio capability, but...shouldn't there be a regular antenna up there??? I'll deal with it on Monday, but any input would be just plain fun.
yep, there's a whip that should screw into the hole in the top of the black bulky thing. If you bought the car new it should've been on there. There's a chance it's still stashed somewhere in the car...check under the hidden floorboard in the hatch. If the dealer won't provide one you can get a replacement any number of places...ebay, auto parts stores, etc.
Welcome to PriusChat, bayareapriusdriver! You should have an 15" (approx) whip up there. Sat antennas are usually little flat black biscuit shaped things. If the black thing with the brass screw hole in it is sort of pointy and conical, that's not the sat antenna, just the base of the regular AM/FM antenna. Scratchy brakes (usually below 7 mph) may be caused by rust on the front rotors. Someplace where it's safe and you're doing over 20 mph, flip the selector into N and gently step on the brakes. There is no regenerative braking (the usual way of slowing your Prius) so the brake pads will scrub the rotors clean in no time. You can flip it back into D and keep driving, no need to stop.
I like the whip. You get better reception than the fin. We live in an area of poor reception, so the extra gain is worth having the whip. That might not be the case for city dwellers. Tom
Thanks for the welcome and all the helpful responses! I'm gonna 'whip' my Toyota dealer if they try to cheat me out of my radio antenna. I did check in the hidden compartment in back, I'll check around some more before I raise heck on Monday. And, thanks for the tip on the brakes.
Not a good sign forgetting to screw in the antenna. I wonder what else this dealer forgot or omitted to do when prepping the car for delivery. In this regard, two things come immediately to mind: If I were you I would check the rear storage area for the spare tire, jack, wrench and the thing that's most likely to gone missing because it's used sometimes when shipping the Prius -- the eyelet that screws into the front bumper's round tow hole. Also, if the wheel alignment seems off to you, or if you have to turn the steering wheel to the right (or less commonly, the left) in order to go straight, you should demand that the dealer align the wheels to spec and ask for the wheel alignment print out. The warranty booklet expressly warrants the front alignment for 12 months/20,000 miles.
Check here for everything else they should have done (except maybe the valet cards): Prius Pick-up Checklist
You should go into your wife's closet and steal a metal clothes hanger. Jam it into the hole with the threads. That should work. If your AM reception is still sketchy, then wrap it in aluminum foil. Yep, that should do the trick.
way too much verbage for a simple issue. go back to the dealer, say, hey, you forgot my antenna. any respectable dealer will put one on for you in a few minutes; trip over themselves apologizing, and be done with it. or worst case, order the part for you and install it when it comes in. shouldn't be an issue.
Speaking of antennas, does anyone know if Toyota will be incorporating the antenna into the front windshield? I sometimes place things on the roof and this is a concern for me with the antenna-on-roof system of the current Prius. Would love to be able to have the roof clear....
Check the cargo bins on the driver and pax doors; the sales agent 'whipped" my antenna out of the pax side bin when we went for the pre-signing test drive. +1 on using this doc for a list of things to check for; Prius Pick-up Checklist
