15 November 2007
Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
19001 South Western Ave.
Dept. WC11
Torrance, CA 90501
Dear Toyota Guy or Gal,
I drive one of your 2007 Priuses...er...Prii. Wait, what do you call more than one? I am generally happy with it. So it's not a very exciting automobile to drive but it is comfortable and more than 40 miles per gallon is welcome these days.
I also like how quiet it is on the road and I sometimes drive up right next to a jogger or better yet, a blind guy, and lay on the horn right at the last second before he even knows I'm there. Hilarious!
But I digress. I am writing with a question about one of your features on the car when it is moving in reverse. The little camera on the rear bumper that shows me what is behind me before I hit it is helpful and I applaud you for that. What I don't get is the obnoxious "beep beep beep" that accompanies every backwards trip.
You know the reason that garbage trucks make that annoying sound is so that vehicles and pedestrians in the area are advised the truck is moving, right? Their beeping is heard on the outside of the vehicle and that makes it a safety feature
Your beeping is only heard on the inside of the vehicle! That means that literally the only person in the world who hears the warning signal is the one person who already knows that the car is in reverse. I'm the driver. I put it in R so why do I need all that noise?
I would appreciate it very much if you could explain this seemingly illogical attribute of an otherwise sensible car. Also, is there any way to disable it?
Sincerely,
Dude, Bean....that letter rocks on so many levels. If you actually sent that in to Toyota, you are my new personal hero.
Tiffiny
Posted by: Tiffiny Kaye Whitney | November 15, 2007 at 05:12 AM
HILARIOUS!
Happy Belated Birthday, Bean!
Posted by: ScotWharton | November 15, 2007 at 05:33 AM
Bravo!!!!!!!
Posted by: Steph | November 15, 2007 at 06:03 AM
Wow...wow...you have WAAAAYYYY too much time on your hands
Posted by: Skyy | November 15, 2007 at 06:48 AM
That beeping is to discourage people from attempting to drive the car backwards all the way to their destination. I'm sure you're just joking around, but it took me about two seconds to find the solution to your problem:
http://www.wikihow.com/Disable-Reverse-Beep-in-a-Toyota-Prius.
Posted by: Smivey | November 15, 2007 at 07:01 AM
Please, you must let us know how Toyota Guy or Gal responds.
Posted by: LA | November 15, 2007 at 07:19 AM
YOU and I should also write one to Landrover USA. Their vehicles SUCK ass.
Posted by: Josefina | November 15, 2007 at 07:28 AM
As a prospective 5'8" tall Prius buyer, it's good to know a really tall guy finds it a comfie car to drive
Posted by: Diane | November 15, 2007 at 09:20 AM
I could be wrong here, but I think the beep beep beep noise might be a ploy from the auto manufacturer to get people not to drive in reverse so much. Perhaps just a subliminal thing to force one to use their gas fueled automobile.
Then again, it could be a feature for the blind drivers, but really, they shouldn't be driving in reverse anyway.
A tree just feel on my car. Got to go...
Posted by: The Priest Who Stalks Conan | November 15, 2007 at 09:55 AM
Bean,
This disables the beeping noise
1. Power on the car to IG-ON or READY. IG-ON will do for this purpose.
2. Using the Trip/ODO button, set the Trip/ODO display to ODO (not Trip A or Trip cool.gif
3. Power off the car.
4. Now power the car to READY (brake on). This is required so that step 6 works correctly.
5. Within 6 seconds of powering on, press and hold the Trip/ODO button for 10 seconds or more.
6. WHILE STILL HOLDING ODO *after* the 10 seconds, shift the "gear" selector from P to R, then back to P. Now release the Trip/ODO button.
7. If the last step was successful, "b on" or "b off" should be displayed in the location where the Trip Odometer or Odometer is normally displayed. "b on" is beep on, and "b off" is beep off.
8. Press Trip/ODO to toggle the mode.
9. Now power the car off to exit the toggle mode.
10. Power the car on to READY and confirm the reverse beep status by shifting to R. The beep should not be audible if "b off" was selected, and should be audible if "b on" was selected.
Enjoy
Posted by: Raul | November 15, 2007 at 10:20 AM
this is why I love you bean....
Posted by: Cathy | November 15, 2007 at 10:33 AM
Bean,
Please help me! Please write a strongly worded letter to all reporters and explain the difference between "robbery" and "burglary". It makes me cringe to hear "my house was robbed." Robbery is taking something by force or fear. Burglary is entering a building with the intent to commit a felony (usually theft). So your house is burglarized by burglars. Not robbed by robbers. Bank robbers are taking the money from people by force, so it is really robbing the tellers, customers, etc. If they broke in after closing, it would be burglary.
Thank you for letting me vent.
Posted by: Mary | November 15, 2007 at 01:07 PM
Here is an easy 5-step solution:
1. Put car in neutral
2. Release emergency brake
3. Stand in front of the car
4. Place hands on hood of car
5. Push
Posted by: Tom Greene | November 15, 2007 at 05:09 PM
That's strange. I don't get that beeping in my Hummer when I'm in reverse. http://www.targetofopportunity.com/prius_hummer.htm
Posted by: Matt | November 15, 2007 at 08:52 PM
A better distinction between robbery and burglary is that a robbery is when someone robs a person, while burglary is when they rob a place. If someone breaks into your home and takes things while you are gone, it is a burglary, but a home invasion is a robbery because the victims are present.
Posted by: | November 15, 2007 at 08:54 PM
bean i find it a bit ironic that the deaf community wants toyota to make the prius louder, so that they can sense the car coming. maybe you have the solution to their issues.
Posted by: bigdaddy | November 16, 2007 at 01:09 PM
FYI* That annoying beep is standard in all the cars in Japan. I have been putting up with it for 5 years. My next car will definitely be a GM car, without the beep. Screw the mileage.
Posted by: Frank | November 19, 2007 at 04:25 PM
I'm pretty sure that the beeping comes from backup sensors. The faster they beep, the closer whatever it is you are about to hit. Lots of cars have had this for a while now. Why you need a visual and auditory warning system when you could just use your mirrors, I have no idea.
Posted by: Ethan | November 26, 2007 at 01:58 PM
My mom has a Prius and that car drives me nuts. The rare times I do drive her car, I find it to be such a pain that I would rather walk. And yes, the beeping is incredibly annoying. Thank you Toyota for letting me know that Im backing up, when I am the one who put my car in reverse in the first place.
Posted by: Becky | December 06, 2007 at 09:01 AM