2003 TOYOTA PRIUS cooling

15
12p009c
Do not put the luggage on the package
tray behind the rear seatback.
An air vent is provided on the package
tray behind the rear seatback to cool
the hybrid vehicle battery. If this vent
is covered with something, the hybrid
vehicle battery will overheat resulting in
a reduction of the output performance
of the hybrid system.
Do not apply water or put foreign ob-
jects over the air vent. Otherwise, it
may affect the hybrid vehicle battery
adversely and cause damage.
You may hear a cooling fan noise from
the air vent.For vehicle repairs or maintenance, be
sure to consult your Toyota dealer.
If your vehicle is beyond repair because
of accident or something, be sure to
consult your Toyota dealer.
As sealed NickelMetal hydride batteries
are used, be sure to consult your Toyota
dealer when disposing of your vehicle.
CAUTION
If you are involved in an accident,
follow these precautions.
Move the vehicle to a safe place
and perform the followings to re-
duce the risk of high voltage elec-
tricity leakage.
 Depress the brake pedal and put the
selector lever in “P” position.
 Apply the parking brake.
 Turn the ignition switch to “LOCK”
and remove the key.
If your vehicle has experienced ma-
jor damage, you may get an electric
shock. To prevent this, never touch
the high voltage parts (hybrid ve-
hicle battery assembly, etc.) or
cables (orange color) connecting
these parts. If some exposed elec-
tric wiring is protruding inside or
outside of the vehicle, an electric
shock may also occur. Never touch
them.
If the fluid leaks or gets in some
part of the vehicle, never touch it
because it may be electrolyte
(strong alkali) from the hybrid ve-
hicle battery. If it gets on your skin
or eyes, wash off immediately with
a large amount of water, if possible,
with boric acid solution, and get
immediate medical attention in or-
der to help avoid serious injury.
If a vehicle fire occurs, extinguish
it using a fire extinguisher for the
exclusive use on electric fires. As
a small amount of water may be
dangerous, use a large amount of
water, for example from a fire hy-
drant, or wait for a firefighting
team arrival.

91
If the red high coolant temperature warn-
ing light comes on, your hybrid system is
too hot. If your vehicle overheats, stop
your vehicle and allow the hybrid system
to cool.
Your vehicle may overheat during severe
operating conditions, such as:
Driving up a long hill on a hot day.
Reducing speed or stopping after high
speed driving.
NOTICE
Do not remove the thermostat in
the cooling system as this may
cause the hybrid system to over-
heat. The thermostat is designed to
control the flow of coolant to keep
the temperature of the hybrid sys-
tem within the specified operating
range.
 Do not continue driving with an
overheated hybrid system. See “If
your vehicle overheats” on page
176 in Section 5.
24p004d
This meter displays the odometer and
two trip meters.
1. Odometer—Shows the total distance the vehicle has been driven.
2. Two trip meters—Show two different distances independently driven since
the last time each trip meter was set
to zero.
You can use one trip meter to calculate
the fuel economy and the other to
measure the distance on each trip. All
trip meter data is cancelled if the elec-
trical power source is disconnected.
3. Trip meter reset button—Resets the two trip meters to zero, and also
change the meter display. To change the meter display, quickly
push and release the button. The meter
display changes in the order from the
odometer to trip meter A to trip meter
B, then back to the odometer each
time you push.
To reset the trip meter A to zero, dis-
play the meter A reading, then push
and hold the button until the meter is
set to zero. The same process can be
applied for resetting the trip meter B.
Odometer and two trip
meters46.

137
“AUTO” position (for fan speed)
For automatic operation of the air condi-
tioning, turn the fan speed selector knob
to “AUTO” position.
In the automatic operation mode, the air
conditioning selects the most suitable fan
speed according to the temperature.
You may use manual controls if you want
to select your own settings.
Fan speed selector
Turn the knob to adjust the fan speed—to
the right to increase, to the left to de-
crease.
In automatic operation, you do not have
to adjust the fan speed unless you desire
another fan speed mode.
Temperature selector
Turn the knob to adjust the temperature
to the right to warm and then to the left
to cool.
27p002
Air flow selector
Turn the knob to select the vents used for
air flow.1. Panel— Air flows mainly from the
instrument panel vents.
2. Bilevel— Air flows from both the floor
vents and the instrument panel vents.
3. Floor— Air flows mainly from the floor
vents.
4. Floor/Windshield— Air flows mainly
from the floor vents and windshield
vents.
This position allows the air intake to
select FRESH automatically. This is to
clean up the front view more quickly. If you want to return the setting to RE-
CIRCULATE mode, press the air intake
selector button once again.
Press the “A/C” and “MAX” button for
dehumidified heating or cooling. This
setting clears the front view more
quickly.
5. Windshield— Air flows mainly from the
windshield vents.
Turning the air flow selector to the
windshield position turns on the defog-
ging function with the purpose of clear-
ing the front view.
This position allows the air intake to
select FRESH automatically. This is to
clean up the front view more quickly.
If you want to return the setting to RE-
CIRCULATE mode, press the air intake
selector button once again.
For details about air flow selector settings,
see “Air flow selector settings” on page
140.

138
27p003a
Air intake selector
Press the button to select the air source.1. Recirculate— Recirculates the air inside
the vehicle.
2. Fresh— Draws outside air into the sys-
tem.
The air intake selector button is used to
switch the air intake FRESH mode that
draws outside air into the system and RE-
CIRCULATED mode that recirculates the
air inside vehicle.
To turn the air source to RECIRCULATED
mode, press the button. The indicator will
come on. To turn the air source to FRESH
mode, press the button again. The indica-
tor will go off. To prevent fogging up of the windshield,
the air intake mode may change automati-
cally to FRESH depending on the condi-
tion of the air conditioning system.
2way air intake control
To improve fuel economy, “Fresh” mode
control changes when the air intake se-
lector is set in “Fresh” mode on the
following conditions:
When the maximum heating is needed
with the air flow in “Floor” or “Floor/
Windshield”, fresh air flows in the up-
per compartment, while air is recircu-
lated in the lower compartment.
When cooling is needed, both fresh
and recirculate modes turns on.
27p004b
Air conditioning onoff buttons
To turn on the air conditioning, push
the “A/C” button.
1. Turning off the air conditioning
Push the “A/C” button to turn off the air
conditioning. 2. Economical and environmentfriendly cooling
Usually use the air conditioning with the
“A/C” button on. If you push the button
again, the air conditioning turns off.

139
3. Powerful cooling and dehumidifying
If the air conditioning does not work well
with the “A/C” button on, push the “MAX”
button. To cancel the “MAX” mode, push
the “MAX” button again. To turn off the air
conditioning, push the “A/C” button.
With the “MAX” button on, the gasoline
engine is frequently used.
The air conditioning may not turn on with
the selector lever in “N” position because
the gasoline engine cannot start.
If the “A/C” button indicator flashes, there
is a problem in the air conditioning system
and the air conditioning automatically
shuts off. If this happens, take your ve-
hicle to your Toyota dealer for service. For economical and environmentfriend-
ly use
Usually, use the air conditioning with the
“A/C” button on (economical and environ-
mentfriendly cooling).
In this mode the gasoline engine starts
and stops automatically and good fuel
economy driving is achieved.
To use the air conditioning in economi-
cal and environmentfriendly way, we
recommend the following setting:
1. Lower the setting temperature if you feel a little hot with the “A/C” button
on.
2. If you feel still hot with the “A/C” but- ton on, push the “MAX” button also.
After the compartment cools, turn off
the “MAX” mode only.

141

If following another vehicle on a dusty
road, or driving in windy and dusty
conditions, it is recommended that the
air intake selector be temporarily set to
RECIRCULATE, which will close off the
outside passage and prevent outside
air and dust from entering the vehicle
interior.
Heating
For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed—
“AUTO”
Temperature— To the desired
temperature
Air intake—FRESH (outside air)
Air flow—FLOOR
Air conditioning—OFF
For quick heating, select recirculated
air for a few minutes. To keep the
windows from fogging, select fresh af-
ter the vehicle interior has been
warmed.
Press the “MAX” button on for dehu-
midified heating.
Choose “Floor/Windshield” air flow to
heat the vehicle interior while defrost-
ing or defogging the windshield. Air conditioning
For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed—
“AUTO”
Temperature— To the desired
temperature
Air intake—FRESH (outside air)
Air flow—PANEL
Air conditioning—“A/C” ON
For quick cooling, move the air intake
selector to recirculate for a few min-
utes.
Ventilation
For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed— “AUTO”
Temperature— To the desired
temperature
Air intake—FRESH (outside air)
Air flow—PANEL
Air conditioning—OFF

154
If the engine becomes difficult to
start or stalls frequently, take your
vehicle in for a checkup as soon
as possible. Remember, your Toyota
dealer knows your vehicle and its
threeway catalytic converter and
Toyota HC adsorber and catalyst
system best.
 To ensure that the threeway cata-
lytic converter and Toyota HC ad-
sorber and catalyst system and the
entire emission control system op-
erate properly, your vehicle must
receive the periodic inspections re-
quired by the Toyota Maintenance
Schedule. For scheduled mainte-
nance information, refer to the
”Scheduled Maintenance Guide” or
”Owner ’s Manual Supplement”.
 Do not apply coating agent such as
for antirust undercoating to the
exhaust pipe (especially to the ac-
tuator to valve).CAUTION
Avoid inhaling the engine exhaust.
It contains carbon monoxide, which
is a colorless and odorless gas. It
can cause unconsciousness or even
death.
Make sure the exhaust system has
no holes or loose connections. The
system should be checked from
time to time. If you hit something,
or notice a change in the sound of
the exhaust, have the system
checked immediately.
Do not run the hybrid system in a
garage or enclosed area except for
the time needed to drive the vehicle
in or out. The exhaust gases cannot
escape, making this a particularly
dangerous situation.
Do not remain for a long time in a
parked vehicle with the hybrid sys-
tem running. If it is unavoidable,
however, do so only in an uncon-
fined area and adjust the heating or
cooling system to force outside air
into the vehicle.
Keep the trunk lid closed while
driving. An open or unsealed trunk
lid may cause exhaust gases to be
drawn into the vehicle.
To allow proper operation of your
vehicle’s ventilation system, keep
the inlet grilles in front of the wind-
shield clear of snow, leaves, or oth-
er obstructions.
If you smell exhaust fumes in the
vehicle, drive with the windows
open and the trunk lid closed. Have
the cause immediately located and
corrected.
110.Engine exhaust cautions

155
FUNCTIONS OF ENGINE OIL
Engine oil has the primary functions of
lubricating and cooling the inside of the
engine, and plays a major role in main-
taining the engine in proper working order.
ENGINE OIL CONSUMPTION
It is normal that an engine should con-
sume some engine oil during normal
engine operation. The causes of oil
consumption in a normal engine are as
follows.
Oil is used to lubricate pistons, piston
rings and cylinders. A thin film of oil
is left on the cylinder wall when a
piston moves downwards in the cylin-
der. High negative pressure generated
when the vehicle is decelerating sucks
some of this oil into the combustion
chamber. This oil as well as some part
of the oil film left on the cylinder wall
is burned by the high temperature com-
bustion gases during the combustion
process.
Oil is also used to lubricate the stems
of the intake valves. Some of this oil
is sucked into the combustion chamber
together with the intake air and is
burned along with the fuel. High tem-
perature exhaust gases also burn the
oil used to lubricate the exhaust valve
stems.
The amount of engine oil consumed de-
pends on the viscosity of the oil, the
quality of the oil and the conditions the
vehicle is driven under.
More oil is consumed by highspeed driv-
ing and frequent acceleration and decel-
eration.
A new engine consumes more oil, since
its pistons, piston rings and cylinder walls
have not become conditioned.
When judging the amount of oil con-
sumption, note that the oil may become
diluted and make it difficult to judge
the true level accurately. As an example, if a vehicle is used for
repeated short trips, and consumes a nor-
mal amount of oil, the dipstick may not
show any drop in the oil level at all, even
after 1000 km (600 miles) or more. This
is because the oil is gradually becoming
diluted with fuel or moisture, making it
appear that the oil level has not changed.
The diluting ingredients evaporate out
when the vehicle is then driven at high
speeds, as on an expressway, making it
appear that oil is excessively consumed
after driving at high speeds.
IMPORTANCE OF ENGINE OIL LEVEL
CHECK
One of the most important points in prop-
er vehicle maintenance is to keep the en-
gine oil at the optimum level so that oil
function will not be impaired. Therefore, it
is essential that the oil level be checked
regularly. Toyota recommends that the oil
level be checked every time you refuel
the vehicle.
NOTICE
Failure to check the oil level regularly
could lead to serious engine trouble
due to insufficient oil.
111.Facts about engine oil
consumption