
18
1. Charging operation
PRIUS PHV_QG_OM47A73U_(U)
CAUTION
■Battery charger
The battery charger is located under the luggage compartment. Observe the
following precautions.
Failure  to  do  so  may  cause  death  or  serious  injury  from  burns  or  electric
shocks.
●Do not touch the battery charger during charging, as it becomes hot.
●Do not disassemble, repair or modify the battery charger. 
If repair is necessary, consult your Toyota dealer.
■Routine inspection
Check the following points regularly.
If  use  is  continued  without  inspection,  fire  or  electric  shock  may  occur,
possibly resulting in death or serious injury.
●The  charging  cable,  plug,  charging connector,  CCID  (Charging  Circuit
Interrupting Device) etc. have not been damaged
●The outlet has not been damaged
●The plug can be securely inserted into the socket
●The plug does not get extremely hot during use
●The tip of the plug has not been deformed
●The plug is not dirtied by dust etc.
Inspect the plug after removing it from the outlet.
■Maintaining the charging cable
When the cable is dirty, first remove the dirt with a hard, wringed cloth, and
then  wipe  the  cable  with  a  dry  cloth.  Do  not  wash  with  water,  as  doing  so
could  cause  a  fire  or  electrical  shock  when  charging,  which  could  lead  to
death or serious injury.
■When not using the charging cable for a long time
Remove  the  plug  from  the  outlet.  Dust  could  accumulate  on  the  plug  or  in
the outlet, possibly causing overheating which could lead to a fire.
Also, keep the cable in a place free from moisture. 

36
4. Things you must know
PRIUS PHV_QG_OM47A73U_(U)
NOTICE
■Hybrid battery (traction battery) air vents
●Do  not  put  foreign  objects  near  the  air  vents.  The  hybrid  battery  (traction
battery)  may  overheat,  leading  to  a  reduction  in  hybrid  battery  (traction
battery) output or a malfunction.
●Clean the air vents regularly to prevent the hybrid battery (traction battery)
from overheating.
●Do  not  wet  or  allow  foreign  substances  to  enter  the  air  vents  as  this  may
cause a short circuit and damage the hybrid battery (traction battery).
●Do  not  carry  large  amounts  of  water  such  as  water  cooler  bottles  in  the
vehicle. If water spills onto the hybrid battery (traction battery), the battery
may be damaged. Have the vehicle inspected by your Toyota dealer.
●If  the  rear  seat  belt  becomes  separated  from  the  guide,  it  could  obstruct
the hybrid battery (traction battery) air vent. Set the rear seat belt into the
guide to use.
There  are  air  intake  vents  on  the  side  of
the  rear  right  seatback  and  on  the  front
corner of the left rear seat cushion for the
purpose  of  cooling  the  hybrid  battery
(traction  battery).  If  the  vents  become
blocked,  the  hybrid  battery  (traction  bat-
tery) may overheat, leading to a reduction
in hybrid battery (traction battery) output. 

51
1-1. Plug-in hybrid system
1
Before driving
PRIUS PHV_OM_OM47A11U_(U)
NOTICE
■Hybrid battery (traction battery) air vents
●Do  not  put  foreign  objects  near  the  air  vents.  The  hybrid  battery  (traction
battery)  may  overheat,  leading  to  a  reduction  in  hybrid  battery  (traction
battery) output or a malfunction.
●Clean the air vents regularly to prevent the hybrid battery (traction battery)
from overheating.
●Do  not  wet  or  allow  foreign  substances  to  enter  the  air  vents  as  this  may
cause a short circuit and damage the hybrid battery (traction battery).
●Do  not  carry  large  amounts  of  water  such  as  water  cooler  bottles  in  the
vehicle. If water spills onto the hybrid battery (traction battery), the battery
may be damaged. Have the vehicle inspected by your Toyota dealer.
●If the rear seat belt becomes separated from the guide ( oP.   1 5 4 ) ,   i t   c o u l d
obstruct the hybrid battery (traction battery) air vent. Set the rear seat belt
into the guide to use.
■Notice about fuel
For  plug-in  hybrid  vehicles,  fuel  may  remain  in  the  tank  for  a  long  time  and
undergo  changes  in  quality  depending  on  the  how  the  vehicle  is  used.
Refuel  at  least  5.3  gal.(20  L,  4.4  Imp.gal.)  of  fuel  every  6  months  (refuel  a
total  of  at  least  5.3  gal.  [20  L,  4.4  Imp.gal.]  over  a  6-month  period),  as  this
may affect components of the fuel system or the gasoline engine. 

68
1-1. Plug-in hybrid system
PRIUS PHV_OM_OM47A11U_(U)
Plug-in hybrid vehicle driving tips
For economical and ecological driving, pay attention to the following
points:
■Using EV mode and HV mode effectively
Primarily  using  EV  mode  when  driving  in  cities  and  using  HV
mode  when  driving  on  highways  (or  freeways)  can  help  con-
serve fuel and electricity. ( oP.   3 7 )
■Using Eco drive mode
When  using  Eco  drive  mode,  a  torque  corresponding  to  the
accelerator  pedal  depression  amount  can  be  generated  more
smoothly  than  it  is in  normal  conditions.  In  addition,  the  opera-
tion of the air conditioning system (heating/cooling) will be mini-
mized, improving fuel and electricity economy. ( oP.   2 5 1 )
■Use of Hybrid System Indicator
Eco-friendly  driving  is  possible by keeping the Hybrid System
Indicator within Eco area. ( oP.   2 7 3 )
■When braking the vehicle
Make  sure  to  operate  the  brakes  gently  and  in  good  time.  A
greater  amount  of  electrical energy  can  be  retained when slow-
ing down.
■Delays
Repeated acceleration and deceleration, as well as long waits at
traffic  lights,  will  lead  to  high fuel  and  electricity  consumption.
Check  traffic  reports  before  leaving  and  avoid  delays  as  much
as  possible.  When  encountering  a  delay,  gently  release  the
brake  pedal  to  allow  the  vehicle  to  move  forward  slightly  while
avoiding  overuse  of  the  accelerator  pedal.  Doing  so  can  help
control excessive electricity and fuel consumption. 

109
1-2. Charging
1
Before driving
PRIUS PHV_OM_OM47A11U_(U)
CAUTION
■Routine inspection
Check the following points regularly.
If  use  is  continued  without  inspection,  fire  or  electric  shock  may  occur,
possibly resulting in death or serious injury.
●The  charging  cable,  plug,  charging connector,  CCID  (Charging  Circuit
Interrupting Device) etc. have not been damaged
●The outlet has not been damaged
●The plug can be securely inserted into the socket
●The plug does not get extremely hot during use
●The tip of the plug has not been deformed
●The plug is not dirtied by dust etc.
Inspect the plug after removing it from the outlet.
■Maintaining the charging cable
When the cable is dirty, first remove the dirt with a hard, wringed cloth, and
then  wipe  the  cable  with  a  dry  cloth.  Do  not  wash  with  water,  as  doing  so
could  cause  a  fire  or  electrical  shock  when  charging,  which  could  lead  to
death or serious injury.
■When not using the charging cable for a long time
Remove  the  plug  from  the  outlet.  Dust  could  accumulate  on  the  plug  or  in
the outlet, possibly causing overheating which could lead to a fire.
Also, keep the cable in a place free from moisture. 

239
2-1. Driving procedures
PRIUS PHV_OM_OM47A11U_(U)
2
When driving
CAUTION
■When taking a nap in the vehicle
Always  turn  the  hybrid  system  off.  Otherwise,  if  you  accidentally  move  the
shift lever or depress the accelerator pedal, this could cause an accident or
fire due to hybrid system overheating. Additionally, if the vehicle is parked in
a  poorly  ventilated  area,  exhaust  gases  may  collect  and  enter  the  vehicle,
leading to death or a serious health hazard.
■When braking 
●When the brakes are wet, drive more cautiously. 
Braking distance increases when the brakes are wet, and this may cause
one  side  of  the  vehicle  to  brake  differently  than  the  other  side.  Also,  the
parking brake may not securely hold the vehicle.
●If the electronically controlled assist function does not operate, do not fol-
low  other  vehicles  closely  and  avoid  downhill  or  sharp  turns  that  require
braking. 
In  this  case,  braking  is  still  possible,  but  the  brake  pedal  should  be
depressed more firmly than usual. Also, the braking distance will increase.
Have your brakes fixed immediately.
●The  brake  system  consists  of  2  or more  individual  hydraulic  systems;  if
one  of  the  systems  fails,  the  other(s)  will  still  operate.  In  this  case,  the
brake  pedal  should  be  depressed  more firmly  than  usual  and  the  braking
distance will increase. Have your brakes fixed immediately. 

251
2-1. Driving procedures
PRIUS PHV_OM_OM47A11U_(U)
2
When driving
■Selecting a driving mode
The following modes can be selected to suit driving conditions:
Eco drive mode
Suitable for improving the fuel economy, because the torque cor-
responding  to  the  accelerator  pedal  depression  amount  can  be
generated more smoothly than it is in normal conditions and the
operation of the air conditioning system (heating/cooling) will be
minimized.
When the “ECO MODE” switch is pressed, the “ECO MODE” indicator
comes on.
Power mode
Use  when  high  levels  of  response  and  feeling  are  desirable,
such  as  when  driving  in  mountainous  regions  or  when  overtak-
ing.
When  the  power  mode  switch  is  pressed,  the  power  mode  indicator
comes on. 

253
2-1. Driving procedures
PRIUS PHV_OM_OM47A11U_(U)
2
When driving
■Operation of the air conditioning system in Eco drive mode
Eco drive mode controls the heating/cooling operations and fan speed of the
air conditioning system to enhance fuel efficiency. ( oP.   2 5 1 )   To   i m p r o v e   a i r
conditioning performance, adjust the fan speed or turn off Eco drive mode.
■For the shift positions
●When the “POWER” switch is off, the shift position cannot be changed.
●When the “POWER” switch is in ON mode (the hybrid system is not oper-
ating), the shift position can only be changed to N. The shift position will
be changed to N even if the shift lever is shifted to D or R and held in that
position.
However,  immediately  after  turning  the  “POWER”  switch  to  ON  mode,
the shift position may not change to N.
●When  the  “READY”  indicator  is  on,  the  shift  position  can  be  changed
from P to D, N or R.
●When  the  “READY”  indicator  is  flashing,  the  shift  position  cannot  be
changed from P to other position even if the shift lever is operated. Wait
until  the  “READY”  indicator  changes  from  a  flashing  to  a  solid  light,  and
then operate the shift lever again.
●The shift position can only be changed to B directly from D.