[SnakePuncess]

OK, this is the 2nd time this durned light has come on. Last time I nearly had a cow, thinking something was wrong with my car. I pulled over, called hubby, etc., then drove slowly to the dealership 10 miles away. There I was told "Oh, it's your friendly reminder to have your regular service done!" FRIENDLY MY ASS! I about had a heart attack...

OK, now it's come on again, only 5000 miles later. WHAT IS THIS?

Normally, I'm one of those weird people that actually reads the manual - but I got this one "used", and it has no manual, and I keep forgetting to call Toyota and order it.

How do I turn this thing off, and can I keep it from coming on any more? I love that the LCD screen will remind me of needed maintenance (if set to do so), but this dash light is really getting on my nerves....

Otherwise, I love my Prius, wouldn't trade it for any car in the world... (OK, maybe a 2005 with side airbags, since mine doesn't have those.)

 

[wombatua]

It's probably the same reason - in the US, Toyota wants oil changes and such for the Prius every 5,000 miles. There's a way to turn it off that involves pushing buttons, but I can't help you there. Mine only has about 3,000 miles so far, so I haven't seen the light, but from what I've read it's supposed to come on for a brief period and go off once the odometer hits 4,000, and is supossed to come on and stay on at 5,000 (or at intervals thereof).

 

[SkipHuffman]

OK, now it's come on again, only 5000 miles later. WHAT IS THIS?

Normally, I'm one of those weird people that actually reads the manual - but I got this one "used", and it has no manual, and I keep forgetting to call Toyota and order it.

It means "Time to change the oil" Maintanence required, not repair.

Get that manual. It does help.

You can order it here:
Manuals
- Order with credit card from Toyota Publications at 800-622-2033
2001 Prius Manuals
Repair Manual Volume 1 - Diagnostics NPNRM778U1 $78.95
Repair Manual Volume 2 - Repair NPNRM778U2 $71.95
New Car Features May, 2000 NCF182U $34.00
Electrical Wiring Diagram (NHW11 Model) EWD414U $46.95
Owner's Manual 00400-OM474-01U $13.90


Anyone have links to PDFs?

 

[finman]

maintenance lite...

To turn off the maintenance lite, have the car on and in 'ready mode'. Make sure the ODO mode is showing. That means the speedo area at the base of the windshield will be showing the total miles of the car. Power down the car. Then, while holding the ODO button (middle dash area below radio, near the hazard lite button), power on the car like you normally would to drive it and keep holding the ODO button. The speedo display will go thru a 'countdown' of sorts that shows the total mileage one digit at a time. After the maint. lite goes out and the display shows the current miles, let go of the ODO button and drive happy! Love my Prius!

 

[MUGlover]

PDFs are available but restricted.

I joined the Prius2004NE group on Yahoo. It focuses on New England but welcomes new members. The downloads section includes the Prius user manual in 28 numbered PDFs. (number 19 and 20 are identical but you don't miss any pages.)

They are easy to view and, unlike many PDFs, the layout is screen-friendly so you may not have to print them.

There may be other user manual sources but Toyota is not one of them (for free).

 

[GeoffM]

Prius manual

I ended up spending the 10 bucks for access to the Toyota tech site, and all I can say is, what a mess. The search functionality is not good, and Toyota insists on taking 300 page manuals and breaking them up into infinite PDFs. That's what PDF bookmarks are for. At least offer the option of a complete PDF download if you're concerned about dealer bandwidth issues.

Add to that file names that are so poorly chosen (and there are duplicates) that you have no clue what you're getting in any particular file once it's downloaded. You have to either go rename them all, or do what I did and make a new PDF.

Speaking of which... I put all 28 PDFs back together again in one 2004 Owner's Manual PDF. Did the same with the NAV docs. It's just so much easier to browse, print, etc.

Geoff

 

[SkipHuffman]

Re: Prius manual

Speaking of which... I put all 28 PDFs back together again in one 2004 Owner's Manual PDF. Did the same with the NAV docs. It's just so much easier to browse, print, etc.

Geoff

Wanna share? Or does copyright/licensing prohibit?

 

[GeoffM]

Re: Prius manual

[/quote]

Wanna share? Or does copyright/licensing prohibit?[/quote]

Well, they pulled the online manuals over at PriusChat.com leading me to believe that Toyota's not real thrilled about public distribution. So much as I'd be happy to put these up for download, it's undoubtedly a copyright violation that would be frowned upon. Sorry.

Geoff

 

[mrv]

You can get the Prius Passport to Performance (scheduled maintenance guide) here:
http://www.toyotapartsandservice.com/sm ... icle=Prius

on the 2004-2005 US Prius, the regular maintenance schedule is every 5000 miles. The Prius comes with a default setting for the Maint Req light of 5000 miles. (It'll come on blinking at 4500 miles when you start the car, and at 5000 miles it'll stay on permanently (until reset).) The light is just there to remind you to go and get your oil changed and your tires rotated. (Only Prius with the Navigation system have a Maintenance reminder/Calendar/Memo screen, so the dash light is available on all Prius...)

Procedure to reset the light yourself is located at:
Page 122-123 of the US 2004 Prius Owner's Manual (Section 2-5 "Operation of Instruments and Controls: Gauges, Meters and Service Reminder Indicators", item (j) in the "Service reminder indicators and warning buzzers" section.
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/Pri ... aintenance
http://www.vfaq.net/FAQ-misc.html#reverse
http://www.priusonline.com/viewtopic.php?t=948
http://priuschat.com/forums/kb.php?mode=article&k=7
and on page 14 of the User-Guide:
http://john1701a.com/prius/prius-userguide.htm

The owner's manual is only about $15, I'd suggest buying a copy...
http://toyota.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/toyo ... MQ**&p_li=