Question about top speed

As a note, not sure if anyone else brought it up since I just skimmed through the whole thread -- from US 2013 Prius C owner's manual p. 154, it says:

"Do not drive in excess of the speed limit. Even if the legal speed limit permits it, do not drive over 85 mph (140 km/h) unless your vehicle has high-speed capability tires. Driving over 85 mpg( 140 km/h) may result in failure, loss of control and possible injury. Be sure to consult a tire dealer to determine whether the tires on your vehicle are high-speed capability tires of not before driving at such speeds."

 

A typical Prius will be fine with T rated tires. (Toyota may well use H rated tires)

 

This paragraph also appears in the 2012 manual on the same page (152).

In the Australian 2012 manual the equivalent page is 136 and what's interesting is that the first seven cautions on that page appear exactly the same in ours, word for word. The ninth caution, this paragraph you've quoted, is simply left out of our manual completely... it's not mentioned anywhere. We just have a bigger blank space at the bottom of that page.

Our OEM tyres are H rated.

 

And your point is ?
Did you not know that warning already?
Did you not think corporate lawyers would publish such to protect Toyota from the inept ? (See Prius lawsuits)

They did leave out one very important item: if you're going to drive consistently at the limits of the OPrius C you need to upgrade brakes. Yaris Hawk HPS will do the job both on the sreet and at track speeds.
cheers.

 

I didn't see anyone bring up an "official" answer from the owner's manual? Originally people were just answering based on anecdotes and 3rd party articles. Just thought it would be interesting to share...

 

I thought the quotes from the ownwr manuals were 'official' . If you want to know, here is the 'official' statement from the 1956 Ford Thunderbird oener's manual, page 20:

Performance. the majority of you Thuderbird owners will no doubt at one time or another have the urge to take her out and "see what she will do".Please take these words of caution.to heart
Always observe all traffic regulations. You have provably heard of the superior "cornering" qualities of sports cars. Your Thunderbird is one of the best when it comes to taking a corner; however, be thoroughly familiar with your carbefore attempting any of this fancy driving. When a standard passenger starts to skid the rear tires break lopse first, and thorough experienceyou know how to react to recover. The weight distribution of your RThunderbird is equally divided between the fronr=t and rear wheels. Therefore, when your Thunderbird starts to skid , all four wheels break loose at the same time. This, in combination with the higher speeds required to force your Thunderbird into a skid, may find the unfamiliar driver in a situatiuon with which he cannot cope.
We realize some of you may use your Thunderbird in competetion. This is not the primary purpose for which this car was designed. The Ford Motor Company cannot guarantee any parts may fail as a result of the severe use to which the vehicle is subjected in competition. However, if the vehicle is used for racing, it may be advisable to use racing type tires which are specially designed to withstand the higher pressures necessary and punishment received at sustaned high speeds and severe cornering.
Thats it, verbaim, and before tire speed ratings and lawyers writing owners manuals in triplicate. Or front engined cars, though those of us racing 'stock' cars knew they lost traction at the front before the rear (understeer) simply because there was more weight on the front tires. Oversteer or lost of traction in the rear first was a result of power applied too much while turning. Still, those words of caution as as accurate now as then. If you don't what you're doing, don't do it. If you want to learn how there are plenty of high performance driving schools to learn safely and competently and at very low cost..

 

Got my C4 up to 105mph once

 

I just bought my C2 less than a week ago and saw this, which is why I'm responding to an old post. I believe these cars use Bridgestone Turanzas, which are speed rated H (up to 130mph), so don't think there would be an issue going over 85 solely due to tires (though don't know how capable other components of the car would be at these speeds - e.g. brake performance if there's a need to suddenly stop).

I was driving my car in Eco mode since I pulled out of the dealer's lot and very frustrated (but not as much as drivers behind me) at how slow the darn car is. I tried not to floor the pedal since it's still in break in mode, so the car was moving at a snail's pace at 75% throttle. I finally took it off Eco mode yesterday and appreciated how much more pickup the car has. Only brought it up to 75mph given snow/ice on the road, but the car felt solid at that speed and can see it being able to hit 100 with no issues (albeit will take some time to get up to that speed)...and was still able to get very high 40's mpg at 75mph on a short drive.

Before purchasing this car, I drove my brother's 2004 Prius and hated how heavy and unstable the car felt going through a curved road at 70mph. The C feels more planted with less body roll relatively speaking, though its probably an unfair comparison between a brand new car and one that's 10 years old.

 

ECO only changes gas pedal response, and only at intermediate travel. Floor it in any mode and response is the same, there's no more or less horsepower.

For my taste the pedal travel in ECO is way too much. Leaving it in "normal" (both ECO and PWR buttons off) is fine by me, still very easy to modulate.

 

Agreed - I felt as if the same throttle input in Eco mode yielded much lower acceleration than in "normal mode" in situations such as merging onto a highway and getting the car up to speed...which I'm not a fan of, especially coming from traditional gas-only cars where throttle input correlates to engine speed. In Eco mode, feels like the driving experience is artificially held back. I found it much more enjoyable driving in 'normal mode' and learning/adjusting my driving style using the Ecoscore module.

 

I/ve seen 100 mph numerous times on a racetrack; its not quick to get there but it will. verified by my gps. by comparison my elevtric leak will only top 86 mph (of courseI had to know) and my track vw will exceed 120 but then its not very OEM.

 

i've hit 106 mph in my prius c, i am certain that it will go faster than that.