How well does the Gen III do in windy conditions?

I too owned a Gen II and it was really dismal in the wind, it turned out to have an alignment problem with the back axle. After that was fixed it was much better but never really as good as the Honda Accord I previously owned.

The Gen III I now have is one of the best cars for windy conditions I have owned. Very stable, a couple of times I have been driving in fairly strong cross winds and didn't even realize it until I noticed the trees or someones flag blowing around. I'm not sure what changes they made to the suspension but it seems to have worked, at least for me and I live in a windy area.

 

This past week, in TX, we saw a lot of rain and wind. No problem with the Prius...very stable...i am pleasantly surprise by its stability!

 

I agree with Tom and Thai that the Gen III does really well in the wind. Driving home on a windy day with strong cross winds about a week ago, I thought the wind had stopped until looking at the tops of trees and could still seeing them swaying. The car is very stable even in strong winds.

 

Actually I have driven a couple of times in strong crosswinds and heavy rain, and it was quite a white-knuckled experience. I recall my old Altima (the trim with the stiffer transmission) was much better handled. My specific experience with the Prius was on the Garden State Parkway in NJ, and both times I was really racing against time, and the rain and wind weren't helping one bit.

 

But I'd like to test again...

 

We have a lot of wind here. 15 - 25 mph is common. The Prius handles if as if it wasn't there. I also notice that passing or being passed by 18 wheelers is not as violent as in the other vehicles I've owned.

 

I drive through a notoriously windy (Washoe) valley on the way back and forth to work each day. High profile vehicles including pickup trucks with campers are frequently prohibited from driving on that section of the highway.

My Gen III does fine in most situations although sudden gusts of wind have caused a momentary swerve or two this past year. I think my Honda Accord did a little better in the wind but it's hard to say, especially since conditions can vary so much. I'm not sure I've really noticed a difference from my Gen II Prius. I certainly wouldn't hesitate to drive either Prius through the valley though, regardless of the wind.

 

I would describe my GenIII as feeling the wind gusts more than the very old Accord hatchback that it replaced -- that car was quite well streamlined -- but less than my Subaru Legacy wagon, which drags around a huge bubble of turbulence.

 

We had a real rain storm a few months ago here in San Diego, and I thought, no problem, my new Prius will handle it well with its excellent aerodynamics. I was sailing along effortlessly until suddenly, Wap! I got a rock chip in the windshield from pothole pounding rain. So I would not recommend taking your new car in heavy rain and wind. Fortunately the rock chip is sort of behind the rearview mirror and it is not real noticeable. And the repair guy sucked out some air and filled it with resin to make it smaller.

 

Those darn little fins at the bottom of the Prius must be doing its thing!

 

I never thought about it till I saw this post!
The GEN III is much better in high wind.

 

Our Prius is terrible in cross winds. You can feel the car move when encountering 15-20 mph winds. It is almost as bad as my old VW camper.

 

I drove from Phoenix to LA in 30+ mph winds for over 200 miles, which involved strong gusts and blowing sand, yet the Prius did pretty well and hardly ever jerked or shook. That said, my fuel consumption was noticeably more. I usually average 47 mpg on the 350-mile drive going between 75 and 85 on cruise, but that trip with the strong winds saw an average mpg of 39 at similar speeds. Of course, I should have slowed down a bit, so the reduced mpg is mostly my fault.

 

6 to 4...you have your answer!

 

@ thai: i can hardly agree. did the 4 moaners answer the actual question: prius gen3 compared to prius gen2...?

 

My experience: Compared to the Gen II, the Gen III is better, by quite a bit. Compared to a low-slung heavier car, not so. In all, it feels safe. Just my 2 cents.

 

Have you had the alignment checked? 4 wheel not just the front. Toyota will give you one free alignment during the first year if you have problems such as you mentioned.