Slow Acceleration?

Has any new Prius C owners noticed a big drop
in mpg's with extra passengers.

Last summer we did a round trip to San Francisco CA, and
there was 3 of us with all our luggage, cooler, etc.

Gross vehicle weight on Dept. of Oregon truck scale,
was 3,850 lbs.

We took Interstate 5 down there and came back along
the coast. MPG calculated for the entire trip
was 54 mpg.

So even with the extra weight mpg's was still
great....

 

At crusing speed weigh makes less difference but in the city it's a diffrent story were you accelerating constantly from stops and wieght then plays a huge roll which is one of the reasons the C does well in the city.

 

Gen 1, Gen 2 and Prius C use a 1.5 liter 1NZ-FXE engine
Toyota NZ engine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Gen 3, PiP and Prius v use a 1.8 liter 2ZR-FXE engine.
Toyota ZR engine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

here is some numbers to compare:
- one 150lbs adult in Gen3 - 24.25lbs/HP
- one 150lbs adult in "C" - 27.25lbs/HP
- one 200lbs adult in "C" - 27.8lbs/HP
- 5 people with luggage in Gen3 - 29.5lbs/HP
- 27.8lbs/HP in Gen3 - equivalent of 3 people with luggage.

Gen3 isn't bad at all empty, and slower but not horrible when fully loaded. From red light there is annoying .5sec start delay but when it gets going it is actually quicker; you don't have transmission shifts. "C" will be slower, add ~0.4sec on 0-60, ~.1/4sec on 30-60. Not something I'd worry about.

 

Not all hybrids are like that. The Volt is very peppy, and does 0-60 in under 9 seconds (and you can easily get all the acceleration without drama and revving like in a ICE). I found the prius unacceptably slow to accelerate. Its not just about "fun", its also about safety. Where I leave work is worse than a on-ramp, its dead stop into a 6 lane highway with the nearest light far enough away that cars are at the speed limit already.

The Volt, for average drivers, has better overall MPG and depending on where one lives better CO2 production.

Cost, efficiency, performance. You can generally only optimize 2 and trade the 3 to improve the two you choose.

To the OP, the answer is drive it yourself. Your fiend might want to try a Volt, if they can afford it or a leaf if they can live with the range.

 

i am having hard time understanding why would someone purchase Volt if they are looking for 16k-20k car. And how exactly would Volt actually save them money.

judging by sales, I am not the only one.

I am pretty sure Prius c provides a much nicer cost efficient performance compared to Volt.

 

Was not trying to hijack the tread. First, the OP did not say his friend was looking for a cheap car, he was looking at hybrids and people can do that for may reasons, not just cost. (The Prius C's better MPG than a Prius, plus its lower price made my friends consider it too).

Most Americans do not do long-term planning or analysis. Sales reflect perception, not the actual costs/values. Just as the first responders said a cheap ICE might be better, but probably is not. If the OP's friends can swing the loan and gas is at 4.00 a gallon, the results can be surprising.

I already did a Prius C vs Volt spreadsheet for a friend based on squiddo calculator. TCO for 8 years can be lower for a base Volt than a moderately configured Prius C. The motor trend tested prius C was 25K, which was configured about like my friends would want their car. Its still not really comparably equipped to a Volt, but far more comparable than the base unit.

Here were the (somewhat surprising) results:
Mostly short trips:
Average TCO/mile Volt: $0.31 Prius C $0.33 Used Civic $.35

Mostly Long trips (which is what my friend would be doing).
Average TCO/mile Volt: $0.35 Prius C $0.34 Used Civic $.32

I convinced my friend (who really liked my Volt) the Prius C was close in TCO, but that the total carbon impact with the Prius C was much better for them than the Volt.

I've uploaded the spreadsheet so people can insert their own numbers. View attachment 35908

 

Except the problem here, is that the Volt is also still a fairly 'new' technology setup, so it will not be adopted as easily as the Prius also suffered the same problem when it first came out as well. The other problem is that with the argument with the Volt, is that the plugin charging points are still weak. The recent NHTA incident, while only a year or so old, people are still concerned with the car overall.

Personally, I tried the Volt. I stated it was a bit zippier, but I still wouldn't trade my fair new Prius v for it because some things just didn't click with me. What is detracting a lot of people is the cost of the car from the get go, and as you said, people are not going to put down a lot of money right off the bat, while you state the TCO is lower than a Prius, the problem will still come down to the initial jump.

And while the Volt does have an ICE generator to help do the range extension, I feel that it depends on the genre of people and the components inside. Unfortunately, for some, the Prius c's compact size and fuel savings might be good, but the simple fact why the Prius and some of the other hybrids have not been adopted right away is 'familiarity'. People in general are going to lean still to the 'familiar'. Gas engines are still 'familiar' to people, even in the Hybrids.

I will cite to you one of my coworkers who ridden in my car. He found it 'disconcerting' about the way my car's engine 'stopped' when we were stopped. I had gotten used to strange things in cars since I did a little work at the university and getting used to an electric cart. I also prepared myself for the strange feeling knowing how the car functions. Just as you found the 10-11 sec acceleration 'unacceptable', I found it different, but I could work with it.

Again, the semantics is how the car achieves that. As I argued earlier, the Volt's CVT may be single source instead of parallel source which the Wiki points out should be considered 'different' from the definition of CVT. Given that Prius does not gear for once source, it gears for two different sources, can account for why acceleration is not as nice on the Prius as it is on the Volt. And again, why you would see more liking or preferring the gas cars because driving them is still more familiar or easier to enjoy than others.

Don't forget, on some threads, some people HATE the Prius' lack of steering feedback, where as others seem to enjoy the lack of it.

 

Isn't the C intended to be more a city and town car, as opposed to a highway gladiator? Drinnovation has a fairly extreme merging situation compared to the majority of drivers, at least from what I've experienced in 40 years of driving in five states. there was one in Virginia that was similar, but most well designed ramps give plenty of room for comfortable acceleration. If a buyer has concerns, extensive test drives or renting the model for a day or two is the smart thing to do!

 

Cited from [ame]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Prius_c:[/ame]

The problem is, the argument is the acceleration and what people want from it. The thing is, people are more familiar with the standard gas engine based, single source acceleration model, which is basically, the 5 gear rotation going up fairly quickly. What is being ignored here is that the fact that a dual input system trying to load balance will affect how quickly you get up, because you have two systems trying to push the car.

The problem here, though, is people are going to fixate on what they feel is 'natural'. For a lot of us, it will be the gas engine. For some people it will be the acceleration.

 

Its not that you have 2 systems trying to push the car, its much smaller total power, how the the systems were geared and the power available in each of them.

The Prius C has engine produces 54 kW (73 hp) and the HSD motor is rated at 45 kW (60 hp). Total output is rated at 74 kW (99 hp).

The lower priced ICE-based Totyota corolla has a 1.8-Liter engine rated at 132 hp, or 30% more power.

The Volt has a One 111 kW (149 hp) traction motor, one 55 kW (74 hp) motor/generator and a 80hp gas engine. The smaller electric motor and gas engine are not used for agressive acceleration. The main acceleration is from the 149hp traction motor, or almost 50% more hp for acceleration than a C.


The acceleration is defiantly someone a drive will feel, and in a standard hybrid, it is a tradeoff in power for efficiency.

 

Ok found this thread on after 7 pages to the top it goes! I have finally finish the break in period and now started to push it full power. I was more then surprised that it pulled harder then I though it would. I got up to 60+ very fast for what this car is built for. It has over 200+ lbs for torq when both motors are full power. You will not have problems passing on the free on full power or getting up to speed from an on ramp. Again the power was more then I would have thought and it really surprised me.

 

In my observations with the C, the gas pedal feels much heavier as if you're driving a bigger car. You do have to push the pedal down a little further in the C to get the results you want, but once you do it has plenty of pep especially at speeds below 40. Acceleration does feel a bit slower when passing on the freeway but never to the point I've been nervous or scared.

 

Actualy you can't have both on prius i both a 2015 persona edition prius and its sucks i wish i can return it i never ever driven a slower car in my life and when you push it just a little to be a little slower than other cars its awfull and the instant MPG goes down to 25 mpg so whats the point having this car not economical not even ok speed i hate the day i and my wife both it .it was our worst deal and idea in our lifes . i dont recomand it at all if any one want to buy it please dont test drive it for 10 or 30 min i recomand renting it for. A day and im prety sure you will change your mind i hate it a lot and im seling it .

 

You can't tow a trailer over a field in a Prius either, but neither can a Ferrari. The Prius is easier to park than a big pickip.

I think it's called horses for courses. You want to drive fast, then get a fast car. You want an economical car, then buy a Prius. It's up to you. Maybe get a Tesla S. That does 0-60 in 4 seconds and will save you a fortune on fuel. Being a successful fellow that you no doubt are, I'm sure you'll be more than able to afford one.

 

If you had an instant mpg on one of the other cars you have driven, what do you think the mpg would have been? Less than 10??

 

As a 50 year+ veteran tractor trailer driver I'm always amused when someone complains at the acceleration of a modern car, even one like the C. I find my C's acceleration downright blazing compared to the trucks I drove during my working days. In addition to my Prius C, I drive a 28 horse power Citroen 2cv. Citroen, a French car maker, used to advertise the 2cv's 0 to 60 acceleration capability as "the same day." I've merged onto Interstate highways with my 2cv without difficulty. A previous post said when merging onto a highway just plan ahead, pick an open spot, and merge. Good advice whether you're driving a Prius C, a Vette, or one of those darn trucks.

 

A trial-size Prius is a SLOW car.
There's just no getting around it.
It's not so bad from zero to thirty when you're getting "all" 99BHP yanking the car out of the hole, but once you get to about 40 it seems to take an amazing amount of time to get the rest of the way up to highway speed.
Rolling on the throttle at interstate speeds is reminiscent of my days driving a HMMWV on the interstate (without the flapping from the doors.)
You mash the accelerator and hear something change up front long before you start to feel it.
OK.....
So?
You're talking about what's arguably the most frugal wireless car to operate if you keep it long enough to pay back the higher buy-in cost.
If you stay out of the options store and keep the car for 8-10 years I'm thinking that it will be more frugal than the adult-sized Prius, although if you have a crumb-snatcher I'd try to get a good deal on a base G3, since there seems to be only a few thousand bucks difference in price.
If you're looking for a commuter car I'd be hard pressed to find a better one, since just getting to work and back isn't going to be all that much more exiting in a ZR-1 Corvette when you're slogging along at 60-mph in morning traffic.

My stick time tells me that the C-model isn't under powered.
It's not going to leave you walking into work with a big goofy grin on your face, but it's a good car to get to work in and there are a lot of virtues in this car.
It will be reliable, it's a relatively youthful looking car (if that matters to you) and it has an acceptable safety rating, and it will be marginally cheaper to operate than a G3. The brakes are actually decent in this car considering that the back two are d(r)umb units.

To paraphrase somebody smarter than me it has all of the acceleration that you need, if not all that you want.

 

you cannot use 0-60 mph as indicative of merging into interstate traffic. while the prissy is not the quickest accelerating from say 30 to 70 is's not unreasonable either.
you might compare the 30 to 60 mph times for several small cars using Consumer Reports data. The prssy won't be the fastest but it will have the highest mpg. I merege onto I40 daily and have had no poblems but you must pick your merge site.

 

If someone's sold on a hybrid, but needs quick acceleration, there's always the McLaren P1, Porsche 918, or Ferrari F70. Sub-three seconds from zero to sixty.