Get Maintenance and care -> Cleaning and protecting the vehicle exterior Guide for Toyota Prius 4 Door Fourth Generation (2016-2022)

484

6-1. Maintenance and care

Cleaning and protecting the vehicle exterior

Perform the following to protect the vehicle and maintain it in

prime condition:

● Working from top to bottom, liberally apply water to the vehicle

body, wheel wells and underside of the vehicle to remove any dirt

and dust.

● Wash the vehicle body using a sponge or soft cloth, such as a

chamois.

● For hard-to-remove marks, use car wash soap and rinse thoroughly

with water.

● Wipe away any water.

● Wax the vehicle when the waterproof coating deteriorates.

If water does not bead on a clean surface, apply wax when the vehicle

body is cool.

■Automatic car washes

●Fold the mirrors before washing the vehicle. Start washing from the front of

the vehicle. Make sure to extend the mirrors before driving.

●Brushes used in automatic car washes may scratch the vehicle surface and

harm your vehicle’s paint.

●Rear spoiler may not be washable in some automatic car washes. There

may also be an increased risk of damage to vehicle.

■High pressure car washes

As water may enter the cabin, do not bring the nozzle tip near the gaps

around the doors or perimeter of the windows, or spray these areas continu-

ously.

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485

6-1. Maintenance and care

■Note for a smart key system

If the door handle becomes wet while the electronic key is within the effective

range, the door may lock and unlock repeatedly. In that case, follow the fol-

lowing correction procedures to wash the vehicle:

●Place the key in a position 6 ft. (2 m) or more separate from the vehicle

while the vehicle is being washed. (Take care to ensure that the key is not

stolen.)

●Set the electronic key to battery-saving mode to disable the smart key sys-

tem. (P. 194)

■Aluminum wheels

●Remove any dirt immediately by using a neutral detergent.

●Wash detergent off with water immediately after use.

●To protect the paint from damage, make sure to observe the following pre-

cautions.

• Do not use acidic, alkaline or abrasive detergent

• Do not use hard brushes

• Do not use detergent on the wheels when they are hot, such as after driv-

ing or parking in hot weather

■Bumpers

Do not scrub with abrasive cleaners.

■Front side windows water-repellent coating (if equipped)

The following precautions can extend the effectiveness of the water-repellent

coating.

6

●Remove any dirt, etc. from the front side windows regularly.

●Do not allow dirt and dust to accumulate on the windows for a long period.

Clean the windows with a soft, damp cloth as soon as possible.

●Do not use wax or glass cleaners that contain abrasives when cleaning the

windows.

●Do not use any metallic objects to remove condensation build up.

■Plated portions

If dirt cannot be removed, clean the parts as follows:

●Use a soft cloth dampened with an approximately 5% solution of neutral

detergent and water to clean the dirt off.

●Wipe the surface with a dry, soft cloth to remove any remaining moisture.

●To remove oily deposits, use alcohol wet wipes or a similar product.

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6-1. Maintenance and care

WARNING

■When washing the vehicle

Do not apply water to the inside of the engine compartment. Doing so may

cause the electrical components etc. to catch fire.

■When cleaning the windshield (vehicles with rain-sensing windshield

wipers)

Set the wiper switch to the off position.

If the wiper switch is in the

posi-

Off

tion, the wipers may operate unexpect-

edly in the following situations, and may

result in hands being caught or other

serious injuries and cause damage to the

wiper blades.

●When the upper part of the windshield

where the raindrop sensor is located is

touched by hand

●When a wet rag or similar is held close to the raindrop sensor

●If something bumps against the windshield

●If you directly touch the raindrop sensor body or if something bumps into

the raindrop sensor

■Precautions regarding the exhaust pipe

Exhaust gasses cause the exhaust pipe to become quite hot.

When washing the vehicle, be careful not to touch the pipe until it has

cooled sufficiently, as touching a hot exhaust pipe can cause burns.

■Precaution regarding the rear bumper with Blind Spot Monitor (if

equipped)

If the paint of the rear bumper is chipped or scratched, the system may mal-

function. If this occurs, consult your Toyota dealer.

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487

6-1. Maintenance and care

NOTICE

■To prevent paint deterioration and corrosion on the body and compo-

nents (aluminum wheels etc.)

●Wash the vehicle immediately in the following cases:

• After driving near the sea coast

• After driving on salted roads

• If coal tar or tree sap is present on the paint surface

• If dead insects, insect droppings or bird droppings are present on the

paint surface

• After driving in an area contaminated with soot, oily smoke, mine dust,

iron powder or chemical substances

• If the vehicle becomes heavily soiled with dust or mud

• If liquids such as benzene and gasoline are spilled on the paint surface

●If the paint is chipped or scratched, have it repaired immediately.

●To prevent the wheels from corroding, remove any dirt and store in a place

with low humidity when storing the wheels.

■To prevent damage to the windshield wiper arms

When lifting the wiper arms away from the windshield pull the driver side

wiper arm upward first, and repeat for the passenger’s side. When returning

the wipers to their original position, do so from the passenger’s side first.

■Cleaning the exterior lights

●Wash carefully. Do not use organic substances or scrub with a hard brush.

This may damage the surfaces of the lights.

6

●Do not apply wax to the surfaces of the lights.

Wax may cause damage to the lenses.

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6-1. Maintenance and care

NOTICE

■Handling the decorative resin parts (for vehicles equipped with 17-

inch wheels)

●Make sure to observe the following when handling wheels equipped

with decorative resin parts. Failure to observe these precautions may

result in damage to the decorative resin parts or wheels.

• Do not remove the decorative resin parts

When decorative resin parts removal is necessary, contact your Toyota

dealer.

• Do not hold the tire by the decora-

tive resin parts to lift up or carry the

tire.

●If there is rattling in the decorative resin parts, or strange sounds from

the wheel area when driving, have your wheels inspected at your Toy-

ota dealer.

■When using an automatic car wash (vehicles with rain-sensing wind-

shield wipers)

Set the wiper switch to the off position.

If the wiper switch is in the

position, the wipers may operate and the

wiper blades may be damaged.

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6-1. Maintenance and care

NOTICE

■When using a high pressure car wash

●When washing the vehicle, do not let water of the high pressure washer hit

directly or the vicinity of the camera. Due to the shock from the high pres-

sure water, it is possible the device may not operate as normal.

●Do not bring the nozzle tip close to boots (rubber or resin manufactured

cover), connectors or the following parts. The parts may be damaged if

they come into contact with high-pressure water.

• Traction related parts

• Steering parts

• Suspension parts

• Brake parts

●Keep the cleaning nozzle at least 11.9 in. (30 cm) away from the vehicle

body. Otherwise resin section, such as moldings and bumpers, may be

deformed and damaged. Also, do not continuously hold the nozzle in the

same place.

●Do not spray the lower part of the windshield continuously.

If water enters the air conditioning system intake located near the lower

part of the windshield, the air conditioning system may not operate cor-

rectly.

■When raising the windshield wiper arms

Make sure to hold the hook parts of the

wiper arms to raise them.

6

Hook parts

Do not hold only the wiper blades when

raising them, or it may cause deformation

of the wiper blades.

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Maintenance and care -> Cleaning and protecting the vehicle exterior for Your Toyota Prius 4 Door Fourth Generation (2016-2022)

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