Toyota Prius 1.8 Enjoyable Drive Or Not

This is what I averaged over 83 kms today, 3.8 L/100kms or 74.33 mpg by trying harder than I normally do.

Speeds 60-100 kph. No motorway.

YbFocus

Ha ha I seen 8.3 and was going to say that's as bad as the 530d
Thats great going man!

YbFocus

YbFocus wrote: »

Ha ha I seen 8.3 and was going to say that's as bad as the 530d
Thats great going man!

ha ha fixed,

Still, it doesn't mean much as my tank average is usually 60-64 mpg.

But not bad, I concentrated more on using pulse and glide which is basically neutral with engine off using no fuel and battery only to keep momentum going also using 0 fuel.

Idbatterim

I was educating myself on pulse and glide the other day and while its practical in a prius, doing it in an ICE is madness if actually turning the engine off, I'm all for saving fuel, but that turning the engine off if doing any sort of speed isnt a good idea..

Idbatterim

Idbatterim wrote: »

I was educating myself on pulse and glide the other day and while its practical in a prius, doing it in an ICE is madness if actually turning the engine off, I'm all for saving fuel, but that turning the engine off if doing any sort of speed isnt a good idea..

No pulse and glide only works in the prius, don't turn the engine off in an ordinary ice or you'll loose brakes and power steering !!! :eek: they are very different things.

Basically pulse and glide works up to 71kph where you depress the accelerator and lightly press until no energy flows anywhere on the energy monitor and then you're essentially coasting. But most importantly you still got full breaking and steering.

So then you press the accelerator another bit and only energy flows from the battery, it's amazing the distance you can travel using no fuel.

Going down descents above 71 kph you can use the battery only where the motor will keep the momentum going, the battery alone doesn't have the power to actually drive the car but can keep the momentum going.

I might actually create a video to demonstrate.

Idbatterim

I take it pretty much the only type of road you wouldnt be doing this on is a motorway?

Idbatterim

Idbatterim wrote: »

I take it pretty much the only type of road you wouldnt be doing this on is a motorway?

Yes unfortunately, That's why my average is 60-64 mpg. Still good enough. The hybrid works at all speeds though, without the motor you would have poor acceleration. The engine in the Mk II only had 75 hp and 70 odd lbs torque. When you step on the throttle the motor gives you a kick of torque. The motor itself has 400 lbs torque, but what that is in real life is anyone's guess because obviously there is gearing in between.

There can be a delay in power delivery though in the beginning it can be a pain, if you press the accelerator hard to over take it can take a bit to kick in the power, once you're used to it it's not much of an issue. This is one reason full electrics are so addictive because as soon as you press the accelerator, you're gone, instantly. Much quicker than any ice.

The Prius climbs mountains very well.

I really liked the extra power of the Mk III.

Xpro

Deleted User wrote: »

Yes unfortunately, That's why my average is 60-64 mpg. Still good enough. The hybrid works at all speeds though, without the motor you would have poor acceleration. The engine in the Mk II only had 75 hp and 70 odd lbs torque. When you step on the throttle the motor gives you a kick of torque. The motor itself has 400 lbs torque, but what that is in real life is anyone's guess because obviously there is gearing in between.

There can be a delay in power delivery though in the beginning it can be a pain, if you press the accelerator hard to over take it can take a bit to kick in the power, once you're used to it it's not much of an issue. This is one reason full electrics are so addictive because as soon as you press the accelerator, you're gone, instantly. Much quicker than any ice.

The Prius climbs mountains very well.

I really liked the extra power of the Mk III.

MkIII does 0-60mph in 9.7 sec according to stats. Not bad at all.
Likes of golf GtTdi 170bhp does it in 7.9sec. less then 2 sec of a difference. Not a massive difference

Prius is no slow when you put the foot down. Obviously I'm not comparing it with hot hatches or anything like it, this is just an example for those who think Prius is like an electric tarmac roller.

HandsomeDan

Xpro wrote: »

MkIII does 0-60mph in 9.7 sec according to stats. Not bad at all.
Likes of golf GtTdi 170bhp does it in 7.9sec. less then 2 sec of a difference. Not a massive difference

It's a 25% difference in acceleration, which is considerable.

Xpro

Xpro wrote: »

MkIII does 0-60mph in 9.7 sec according to stats. Not bad at all.
Likes of golf GtTdi 170bhp does it in 7.9sec. less then 2 sec of a difference. Not a massive difference

Prius is no slow when you put the foot down. Obviously I'm not comparing it with hot hatches or anything like it, this is just an example for those who think Prius is like an electric tarmac roller.

Well, on a full battery, when you hit the throttle you got max power. But yeah it's not too slow at all, I liked it more than the MK II the extra power was noticeable.

The way it works is when you hit the throttle the engine and motor work together to provide power, power to the motor comes from the battery and also the generator. If the main battery is run down then there is a loss of power.

This is why I recommend never to use EV mode to drive at town speeds because you'll flatten the battery after a mile and if you need that power you won't have it, well you'll have power just reduced and this can be scary the first time. When I first got the Prius I thought it was cool to drive in EV mode in pure silence, in fact doing this will only worsen your economy.

How I use the battery yesterday to give me the 74.33 mpg was by using the battery power only and pulse and glide on the open road where it works best, of course at speeds up 71 kph pulse and glide works but the battery only works at any speed, it won't actually drive the car but it will keep momentum going and in some cases going down hills or descents you'll be surprised how far you can make the car go using no fuel.

I only use the EV mode if stopped at lights because sometimes the engine won't turn off, sometimes to get the cat up to temp or if in winter to keep the heater going.

There is a 90 mpg Prius coming I think next year, and of course the plug in is rated at 128 or so mpg. The plug in is still not available in Ireland.

The plug in has a EV only range of 12.5 ish miles, so you could find yourself saving a lot of money on the short trips, plug in in town and do 24 miles a day in ev only. Or combined mode for 128 mpg.

I saw on on UK Autotrader for 24K Euro's + add 1800 Euro for VRT.

HandsomeDan

HandsomeDan wrote: »

It's a 25% difference in acceleration, which is considerable.

Indeed, but it's also got the extra power to achieve this.

topdost

Ferrari Copying the idea of Toyota Prius lol

http://www2.macleans.ca/2013/09/16/ferrari-hybrid-marks-the-beginning-of-the-end-for-gas-powered-automobiles/


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRsV6YpLsKA

dgt

topdost wrote: »

Ferrari Copying the idea of Toyota Prius lol

http://www2.macleans.ca/2013/09/16/ferrari-hybrid-marks-the-beginning-of-the-end-for-gas-powered-automobiles/


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRsV6YpLsKA

For anything but economy :pac:

gooner99

Deleted User wrote: »

No pulse and glide only works in the prius, don't turn the engine off in an ordinary ice or you'll loose brakes and power steering !!! :eek: they are very different things.

Basically pulse and glide works up to 71kph where you depress the accelerator and lightly press until no energy flows anywhere on the energy monitor and then you're essentially coasting. But most importantly you still got full breaking and steering.

So then you press the accelerator another bit and only energy flows from the battery, it's amazing the distance you can travel using no fuel.

Going down descents above 71 kph you can use the battery only where the motor will keep the momentum going, the battery alone doesn't have the power to actually drive the car but can keep the momentum going.

I might actually create a video to demonstrate.

A video would be most appreciated.

gooner99

gooner99 wrote: »

A video would be most appreciated.

I'm not sure I can because I'd have to hold the phone.

But basically when driving along at speeds up to 71 kph depress the accelerator and press gently until no arrows flow on the energy monitor and you're coasting consuming 0 fuel.

The other way is going down a slight decent or down a hill depress the accelerator then press it until energy flows only from the battery this will keep momentum going.

Max Power1

So basically it is advanced coasting? But with an additional small electric push

Days 298

Deleted User wrote: »

I'm not sure I can because I'd have to hold the phone.

But basically when driving along at speeds up to 71 kph depress the accelerator and press gently until no arrows flow on the energy monitor and you're coasting consuming 0 fuel.

The other way is going down a slight decent or down a hill depress the accelerator then press it until energy flows only from the battery this will keep momentum going.

Could you hold a normal non-phone camera?

Max Power1

Max Power1 wrote: »

So basically it is advanced coasting? But with an additional small electric push

Yeah if ye like lol but it works.

Max Power1

Days 298 wrote: »

Could you hold a normal non-phone camera?

Or get a tripod, I've seen some youtube vids like this!

Days 298

Days 298 wrote: »

Could you hold a normal non-phone camera?

I don't have a non phone camera but the thing is using one hand to drive, the video would most likely be very shaky.

slimjimmc

Deleted User wrote: »

I don't have a non phone camera but the thing is using one hand to drive, the video would most likely be very shaky.

You're not getting off that easy
Get a passenger to work the phone camera!

slimjimmc

slimjimmc wrote: »

You're not getting off that easy
Get a passenger to work the phone camera!

lol I'll See what I can do.

BMJD

there are loads of videos on youtube about it, here's a man called Doc Willie showing you how

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAocwToZWVQ

Cleveland Hot Pocket

Is that what the "B" selection on the shifter is for?
There is P, N, R & D as per a normal auto, but also a superfluous (it would seem to the unwashed masses of non hybrid drivers) "b" position.

BMJD

The B is for using engine braking, if you are coasting down a long descent and don't want to or can't use the brakes (if they have overheated for example), instead of the engine shutting down (as would normally happen when not accelerating), the engine keeps running to slow you down. Same as keeping a manual in 2nd or 3rd.

galwaytt

....sorry, just watched that now, and driving at 37- 42mph is one thing, but letting it coast back down to 18mph before re-accelerating is fine if you're the only car on the (multi-lane) road.

The rest of the time it's just plain dangerous - it shows scant regard for the traffic stream you're part of - if you drove like that in an ICE car in your driving test ....I wonder would they fail you ?

September1

I drive it for a good while now, I have no idea if you find it enjoyable, I do not. I find it acceptable and not bothering but that is all. It is nothing like petrol Alfa or BMW, a bit better than diesel VW. If you can cope with range then EVs have much more enjoyment factor.

YbFocus

Yep they'd slaughter you on progress!

Cleveland Hot Pocket

galwaytt wrote: »

....sorry, just watched that now, and driving at 37- 42mph is one thing, but letting it coast back down to 18mph before re-accelerating is fine if you're the only car on the (multi-lane) road.

The rest of the time it's just plain dangerous - it shows scant regard for the traffic stream you're part of - if you drove like that in an ICE car in your driving test ....I wonder would they fail you ?

Probably with a "Fail Dangerous" like ya get at the NCT!

Lads, he's just demonstrating, for gods sake calm down.

That video is crap by the way.

The only thing to watch is the energy monitor at 4.55 it shows 0 energy flowing anywhere, that's in pulse and glide, however if you tap the accelerator gently you'll go faster as he was going down a hill he can actually get the motor to make him go faster, there is no reason he couldn't have done 50 mph on a slope like that using battery only.

There are plenty of opportunities to use the pulse and glide in normal driving, he going slow there was just for demonstration purposes, it was a crap video.