Sneak Peek of the New Prius #9

WOW, you Europeans get all the good stuff. EV button, auto park and headlight adjustment. I am jealous.

 

I would assume "Eco mode" is the default, and basically what we have now.


I agree EV is great for moving the car around the garage, which is I why I got that EV modification. I have tandem parking, and don't want to turn on the ICE for 15 seconds each morning, while my wie pulls her car out.

 

Ahhh... many thanks for the insight!

If that's the case on the Crown, I'm betting they'll do the same on the Prius.

 

Don't be, we have to pay a lot for it.

My 2006 Prius cost me 35540 EUR, that's about 45500 USD at current exchange rates. You guys can get it at less than half the price, and you don't loose half the equipment... so guess who's jealous...

 

I wonder how many PC'ers will forgo the new Eco mode because the button is put in that center console location...

 

My guess is that ECO mode could alter the acceleration characteristics to maximize MPG, but with the downside of being rather pokey. In POWER mode it could be more brisk (as it is now) but get much worse mileage. I notice under heavy acceleration now the readout says between 6 - 10 MPG (icky!). If that's what this is, I like the sound of it. But I would have to believe that no matter what your mode, flooring it would provide full acceleration for emergency maneuvers. You wouldn't want to have to hit a switch first before trying to avoid an accident.

 

That would be the dumbest thing to do IMHO...

 

Again if you use the HH as the guide it has both the an ECON and an EV button.

• The ECON mode can be engaged at any time at any speed. Essentially it tunes down the ICE to spin only at a very efficient 'cruising' rate...but it has no guts whatsoever. It probably saves ~5% overall.
• When you disengage the ECON button then the normal HSD system is put into use with plenty of power for passing and accelerating.
• The EV button on the HH can be used for pure EV driving at speeds up to about 20 mph at which speed it kicks off automatically reverting to normal HSD driving. The limitation is that the EV button cannot be used until the battery is near or fully charged. It can't be used on a cold morning at first start up.

 

its engine, AC and battery power - basically now we will have 3 settings, ECO, Normal/Default, Power.

My GS350 downshifts quicker and opens throttle valve faster in PWR mode - it is quite noticable, especially throttle valve, makes car feel like it is opened up instead of restrained in normal driving, in Prius case I am pretty sure they will add more power from the battery as well and regenerate more from ICE just like in Crown Hybrid...

Most cars these days have slight delay when press gad pedal, to maximize fuel efficiency and CO2 emissions (especially for govt MPG testing)... And Sport sounds really good, it will basically make car feel a lot sportier.

Very smart move, and one that moves Prius even more upmarket IMHO.

 

Hopefully w/the PWR switch we won't have anymore people complaining about shifting back and forth between drive and "boost".

 

99% of the time I can cruise the street and into the garage on battery.

I'm not sure I'd like to tell my car to run in EV mode. I'd rather have the computer decide what is best.

 

me like ECO mode haha
nice

 

I am getting excited over these two modes. It is like having two cars in one. This is exactly what I envisioned 4 years ago.

 

2007 UK Prius T3 owner here:

I use EV mode in a morning traffic jam at the end of my street, where it's warm outside and I know that I'm not going to get up to 20mph for at least the first ten minutes. I delay engine switch-on/warm-up until I actually need it.

In cold weather I switch EV mode on about half a mile from home to run down the battery, so there's some capacity for the power generated by engine warm-up to go into. Basically, warm weather, park it charged; cold weather, park it discharged.

The EV mode cuts out automatically if you go over 29mph and if you accelerate hard. However, if you want to accelerate under electric power only, you can do so harder in EV mode, where 'normal' mode would fire up the engine.

 

My 93 Camry has eco and pwr buttons.

 

I would hope 'power' is the car as is. It has plenty of power and Toyota has already increased the engine size anyway, no need to waste gas for even more acceleration. Econ would be good IF it keeps the ICE in the 'high MPG' RPM range people that Wayne and Hobbit have documented. That would make hypermiling a bit easier since the car could watch the RPMs instead of the driver. It would also be good it if it pops into 'power' when you stomp on it in Econ, realizing there is some reason you all of a sudden want to drive like an idiot (other than actually BEING an idiot ).

 

I predict and would expect the new Prius to have 2.5L equivalent power assuming it has 1.8L ICE. Remember, the current Prius has 2.0L equivalent power. Driving it in the power mode should feel like a small V6!

 

any car will always give you full power when you floor it - eventually, but it is not magic, it does not know what you are trying to do without you doing it first.

so in econ mode, expect for prius to go into full power mode slower than in pwr mode... and default mode is in between.