[pommysmommy]

If you own a Prius be sure to have a Prius spare tire. A friend of mine told me that a good friend of hers who lives in Las Vegas got a flat on his Prius and had to special order the tire. He drove on a "donut" tire for a week.

[las vegas drunk]

Originally Posted by Willy702

This isn't true on cars running full bore A/C for the first 2-3 minutes to get it up to cool, or at least that is what my mechanic told me. He said the newest cars with more efficient A/C draw less power after start up and the battery should last 3-4 years instead of the 2 or so you get with cars from 2005 and before. Ask around, almost any battery which lasts a long time like yours doesn't have A/C or its left off 100% of the time.

It is time to get a new mechanic, because he doesn't know what he is talking about. I posted an article below which should clear it up for you. The second the car is started, the alternator is running the car, not the battery. You can pull of the + or - cable and the car will continue to run with the a/c on or off, it doesn't matter (I have tried it myself). In fact, the alternator will up the volts to approximately 14.4 volts from the 12 volt battery power the second the car is started, which not only runs all accessories, but also immediately begins recharging the battery. You can clearly see this from any Autozone which will do a courtesy alternator/battery check. Regardless, after doing some research online regarding battery life, two factors are at play. I do have a 84 month genuine Motorcraft battery, and I also start and drive the car very little compared to most people. I have put 22,000 miles on it in five years, so there is your answer.

"Once the engine starts, it’s self-sustaining (as long as there is fuel) thanks to the combustion taking place inside the engine. While the engine is running, the alternator in the car (a small electrical generator) will recharge the battery using some of the power produced by the engine."

"When you turn the AC on in your car, it uses energy supplied to it by the alternator. This energy is coming from the engine, which is using the fuel in your gas tank. The AC won’t run properly without the car started because the belt that engages the compressor (which is used to compress the coolant and make it cold) will only run with the engine started. This is the same belt that is responsible for running the alternator and charging your battery."

Does Driving With The AC On Actually Use More Fuel?

[von949]

Newer cars(Dodge/Chrysler) have the batteries in the trunk near the spare tire where it is much cooler than the engine compartment. More car companies should adopt this. Plus it makes jump starting a lot more easier.

[jfkIII]

My Prius was great in heat...now I have a bunch of little priuses runnig around!

[tiger08]

My smokey smelly diesel truck eats Priuses for breakfast!

[VegasMJ]

Toyota Prius in any situation = get something else.

[airics]

Let's hear you say that when gas is $5 a gallon later this year.

[VegasMJ]

Sorry, I can't hear you over the loud pipes of my Corvette.

[Tek_Freek]

I'm impressed. 16 posts before someone popped in with that expected comment.

[tiger08]

Originally Posted by airics

Let's hear you say that when gas is $5 a gallon later this year.

The nice thing about my $4.50 a gallon diesel truck is, its old and I can burn a variety of different fuels, most of which can be found for free.

Try finding free batteries for a Prius.