2004 Toyota Prius Owners Manual - Page 150

(g) Vehicle driving characteristics Creeping In order to hold the vehicle properly on an incline and for better accelerator pedal operation at starting, your vehicle is designed like a typical automatic transmission vehicle which tends to move without depressing the accelerator pedal with the transaxle in a position other than "P" or "N". With the transaxle in a position other than "P" or "N", depress the brake pedal firmly even when stopped and apply the parking brake as required. When moving in a compact area or during a traffic jam, it is an effective way to control the speed using only the brake pedal operation without depressing the accelerator pedal. Regenerative brake When the accelerator pedal is released or the brake pedal is depressed, the electric motor acts as a generator and converts kinetic energy to electric energy to provide deceleration and recover electric energy to charge the hybrid vehicle battery. At this time, the electric motor running noise may increase. The operation is the same as a typical gasoline powered vehicle. You may experience the following condition while braking. As they do not indicate a malfunction, perform braking as usual: (h) If the system malfunctions In the following conditions, there is some problem in the system. D The indicator on the "P" position switch flashes. However, this does not indicate a malfunction unless a warning message appears in the multi−information display. D In the "OFF" mode, pressing the "POWER" switch once or twice will select "ACC" or "IG−ON" only if the brake pedal is not depressed. In this condition, the brake pedal may move a little. D All frames of shift position indicators in the instrument cluster flash. Hybrid driving This vehicle runs in combination with the gasoline engine and electric motor. If the "READY" light is on, you can start your vehicle even with the gasoline engine stopped. D The parking system error message appears on the multi−information display. D The instrument cluster and multi−information display does not come on when the "IG−ON" mode is enabled. In these cases, stop your vehicle in a safe and level place, apply the parking brake securely and contact your Toyota dealer immediately. (i) When the auxiliary battery is disconnected Before you disconnect the auxiliary battery, confirm the shift position is "P" and apply the parking brake completely. After you reconnect the auxiliary battery, shift the shift lever to "N" and confirm the shift position is in "N" when the "IG−ON" mode is enabled. 138