GreenHybrid - Hybrid Cars - View Single Post - Pet Peeves (some more significant than others)

SPL · #1 (**permalink**) 02-23-2007, 01:25 PM

[Not in any particular order.]

If you look at the LCD displays (both radio and climate control in the non-NAV; climate control only in the NAV) through polarized sunglasses, you’ll find that the angle at which the display is most clearly visible is around 30 degrees counter-clockwise from horizontal. [The angle at which the display appears completely black is correspondingly 30 degrees counter-clockwise from vertical.] The polarizers in the LCD displays (LCD displays use internal polarizers as part of their mechanism) are not correctly aligned so as to make the displays maximally visible to a user wearing polarized sunglasses. Why not? It should be easy to correct the design. As it stands, these displays are hard to read when wearing polarized sunglasses.
The speedometer markings in the "other" system of units (miles per hour or km/h) are almost invisible in daylight. Why?
Make the Multi-Function Display (and NAV display) have the capability to display in either metric or US units, at the user’s discretion. This would be most helpful when one drives across our common border into the other country. [This has already been noted by other correspondents.] This could be implemented in a firmware update.
The wheel icon in the Multi-Function Display in the dash isn’t circular. The display’s pixels are square, so it can display a proper circular wheel. This isn’t a display but rather a programming error. It looks as if the image was "squished" horizontally, but not vertically, thereby distorting its aspect ratio. This is sloppy, but easily corrected by a firmware update!
Withdrawn — see Post #42 If one sets the adjustable door-lock option so as to lock the car’s doors when its speed reaches ~22 km/h (~14 miles per hour), this option does work, but only the first time the car reaches this speed after starting it up (i.e., putting it into READY). Thereafter, if one stops, unlocks any doors (e.g., drops a passenger off), and then moves on again, the doors do not re-lock. Even putting the gearshift into Park, and then back into Drive doesn’t cause them to re-lock. One has to power the car OFF and then back on to READY to have it operate (once only) again. Why? This isn’t sensible! It could easily be fixed in a firmware update.
The heating/cooling fan starts up briefly for ~0.5 second, and then stops, when one starts the car with the engine cold and the ambient temperature below 0 degrees C (32 degrees F). Why? Again, this is easily fixed by a firmware update.
The Toyota clear license plate cover does not fit properly on the Toyota plastic front license plate bracket. The cover has a groove around its periphery that is supposed to mate with the edge of the bracket, thus giving a secure and "waterproof" seal. But the cover’s groove is too large in its dimensions, and the edge of the bracket does not mate with the groove. Why? This is sloppy, in fact the sloppiest part of the car in my opinion! [Those living in states that do not require front license plates can ignore this peeve.]
The knock-out wire pass-through holes in the console box (below the climate controls) are too small for some power adapters to fit through.
The center console’s lid does not stay open when raised, and slams shut when the car moves.
The driver’s seatbelt catches on the lower plastic protrusion on the LHS of the driver’s seat, if the seat is moved fairly far forwards (e.g., for a short driver such as me).
Unused front seatbelt buckles knock against the plastic B-pillar moldings as one drives, causing an annoying noise. [Already noted by some correspondents.]
The power sockets are too tight and/or deep. Some other correspondents have already noted difficulty in unplugging some power adapters from these sockets. Indeed, one person pulled his whole center console apart in the process of trying to unplug a power adapter!
Why doesn’t the CD changer have a "pause" capability? This would be most convenient. Switching the audio system "off" is a very poor way of pausing CD playback, because the player takes quite a while to spin up and re-read the CD data before one gets sound again when one powers it back on. [Already noted by some correspondents.]
Modify the power outlets and/or the grounding arrangements so as to eliminate the audible noise/interference problems noted by many on this Web site when plugging auxiliary audio devices into both the AUX socket and the power socket at the same time.
Eliminate the center console "crickets" and dash "clicks" noted by so many correspondents.
The car’s cruise control behavior on level ground is fine, but on rolling hills it’s totally egregious, and indicates to me that this feedback control system may be close to instability. I think that the control algorithm used is dreadfully sub-optimal, and has such long internal control-loop delays that its reactions to changing road conditions are potentially dangerous. What I [and many other correspondents to this Newsgroup] find is the following behavior. The car substantially overshoots the set speed on the downhill portion of each hill, but then waits so long before reacting to the beginning of the next uphill portion, that it then undershoots the set speed by such a large amount that it has to “floor” the accelerator in order to catch up. Still on the uphill portion, it then proceeds to overshoot the set speed again, before finally settling down to the desired speed. This cycle of events repeats over and over again as one negotiates rolling hills with the cruise control “on.” Why is the internal loop delay so long? Why is the cruise control system not properly designed? This control system really needs to be re-designed as a matter of priority! The cruise control’s behavior could then be fixed by a simple firmware update.
The JBL audio system's Automatic Sound Levelizer (ASL) system appears not to work when switched “on” [many correspondents have reported this]. It is supposed to raise the audio volume as the car’s speed increases, thus keeping the sound clearly audible over car and road noise, but it is either not working at all in some vehicles, or else is having such a minimal effect that it cannot be perceived. This defeats its purpose, of course! If this is a design or manufacturing defect, it likely cannot be corrected by an easy firmware change.

Stan