I am re-considering the purchase of a Prius after previously rejecting it, and have found lots of helpful answers on this board. It does look like a pretty good car. If you're bored, here a couple of questions I'm still wondering about, least important first:<br><br>1. Is the touchscreen LCD or CRT? Is it glass, or vulnerable to damage when pressed?<br><br>2. If you get the Toyota in-dash 6 CD changer, where does it go and how do you load it? I assume you either lose the clock above the cassette, or else you lose the storage box under the temperature controls.<br><br>3. Are there rear cupholders? Any storage under the trunk floor?<br><br>4. What do the MAP and TRAF buttons do? MAP would be for GPS navigation? I know there is no US GPS option now--is it known if that is a possible upgrade, if Toyota chose to offer it? Or is the computer fixed and non-upgradeable?<br><br>5. I have heard that it is possible to add cruise control even though it is not an official option. Is doing so safe and advisable? Feature-wise that's the one thing that might stop me getting a Prius.<br><br>6. Can the Prius carry kayaks on the roof (if you add a rack yourself), or is the car too short?<br><br>7. Is there any timeframe known for the 2002 models (or info on them)? At this point, I'll probably hold out for that if I choose a Prius. Who knows, they may add cruise control or side airbags.<br><br>Thanks for any info!

Well, I'm a wannabe, not yet an owner, but I can answer some questions that I have been watching these groups carefully about, or that I noticed on a test drive or other.<br><br>1) The touch screen is surely an LCD, not a CRT.<br>2) 3) Need an owner to answer.<br>4) Don't know about the buttons. I do know that NAV is available in some locations and to some people (like Canada, Hawaii, and the Toyota Tech Center). I don't believe the actual main computer needs upgrading. As far as I know, the big hassle is a wiring harness that standard US Priuses do not have, so an upgrade would be difficult and expensive.<br><br>5) A Cruise control upgrade was just announced. Look for the last post by Priusman. I think it was last Monday or Tuesday.<br><br>6) Wait for an owner. I know people have used roof-mounted bicycle racks. And the car is not as short as you might think.<br><br>7) Absolutely nothing is know for sure. Priusman (the National Sales Manager) stated recently that they project that the 2001 model year will be sold out around the end of April and that a 2002 announcement will be made "shortly". I am hoping for side air bags and NAV. (Both are discussed in the 2001 New Car Features manual and both are available in some locations as I mentioned above.)<br><br>Good luck!<br><br>Burns

2. The CD goes in the lower storage compartment, and remains hidden behind the plastic door.<br><br>3. There are rear cupholders - they flip back from the rear of the center console.<br><br>The spare tire is under the trunk floor, and there is no storage space there except for a curious, vary small compartment 6"x6"x2 1/2" on the far right hand side. The trunk floor covering covers this up, but is cut for access.<br><br>How many owners haven't discovered this little curiosity? I supposed you could hide your wallet in there. <br><br>Sam

Ah, a fellow paddler!<br><br>I'll try to answer as many as I can...<br><br>1. It's LCD. With only 1500 miles I can't say personally how well the touchscreen will hold up, but no one on this or the eGroups has reported any problems to date.<br><br>2. The latter--the changer goes into the storage bin with the latching door below the clock. You simply feed it one disc at a time up to 6. You can also eject specific discs using the buttons on the player.<br><br>3. Rear cupholders, yes. I haven't looked under the trunk floor yet (except to make sure the spare and jack were there).<br><br>4. TRAF scans for stations that have a special traffic report broadcast.<br><br>5. Many have done the cruise mod, and an official cruise kit has been announced for May availability. Scan the messages from about a week ago for the announcement by Priusman.<br><br>6. Now to my favorite question. Do you mean sea kayaks or river kayaks? We currently carry our two sea kayaks (16' and 17') on top of our Corolla using the Yakima Kayak Stacker, and this setup works beautifully. You probably don't want to go much longer than 17' if you're concerned about ends sticking out past the car.<br><br>Yakima has the Q-clips and measurements for the Prius on their website now. I wouldn't anticipate any problems, although the Prius is slightly shorter and taller than the Corolla.<br><br>7. No official announcement yet.<br><br>Where do you do your paddling?<br><br>Enjoy, and get your Prius!<br>--gc

&gt;The spare tire is under the trunk floor, and<br>&gt;there is no storage space there except for a<br>&gt;curious, vary small compartment 6"x6"x2 1/2"<br>&gt;on the far right hand side. The trunk floor<br>&gt;covering covers this up, but is cut for access.<br><br>Sam,<br><br>I noticed this too. Also, on the side wall of<br>the trunk just above this, there is a strap<br>that seems like it would also be used to hold<br>whatever fits there. I wondered about this<br>until...<br><br>I just got both volumes of the service manual<br>today, and if you look at page BO-22, there is<br>a diagram of all the stuff in and around the<br>trunk. The strap is referred to as a "warning<br>reflector holder" and there is also a "warning <br>reflector box" which I think is the Styrofoam<br>bit with the recess you mentioned in it. I<br>think this is for countries where you have to<br>carry a warning reflector in your car by law,<br>to be placed somewhere around your car if you<br>break down on the road. I'd assume this is<br>a Japanese regulation but I'd also bet it<br>could be found in Europe as well.<br><br>Matt Roberds