City driving on ECO - Fellow driver's attitudes

if only we could convert all that generated anger into motive power...

 

There seems to be a mixing up of the concepts of ECO mode and ECO zone. FWIW, you could be in ECO mode and accelerate in PWR zone, as shown in the Hybrid Synergy Drive (HSD) display. ECO mode is not changing you into a different driver, just increasing gas pedal travel for a given result.

Personally, I use neither PWR or ECO buttons, prefer "normal" pedal response. But I do try to keep the HSD in the ECO zone, and maintain a generous gap in front, and adhere to the speed limits.

All of this does can rile the more irrational drivers, so I try to soft pedal these behaviours as needed.

 

Excellent points!
I don't have to drive in the Sloburbs very often (thank GOD!) but it's important to remember part of the title of this thread....
"Fellow Drivers."
I've got 70,000 miles in type and by following some of the techniques that SB outlined above, I've found that I can maintain a 50+ MPG average and not be a rolling roadblock contributing to "Prius Hate."
It's important to remember that the Prius is shaped like a door-stop, which means that the fellow behind you may not be as close as you might imagine that he/she is since you're not dragging a 4-foot trunk behind you. The rear glass in most Priuses is dang near the rear of the car.

I've literally been a Prius passenger observing a driver fussing and cussing at a presumed tail-gater behind them while tailgating the person in front of them!

If you maintain a healthy gap in front of you, the gap behind you will usually take care of itself.

 

Accelerate briskly (a brief engine spin-up to 3500 RPM) and watch what happens.

You still get outstanding MPG, even with the quick speed burst in ECO mode.

It's counter-intuitive. But since traditional vehicles don't possess the ability to split power, most people haven't ever taken the time to think about how an alternative approach could yield very different results. The PSD offers flexibility well beyond what just an engine alone can deliver. There's 2 electric motor and a battery-pack that it connects & controls. That gives it far more efficiency opportunities. It's why the hybrid system delivers both much better MPG and lower emissions.

Try it. You'll be surprised.

 

Exactly. And it's less likely to result in aggressive responses.

 

I'm not clear on "...going as slow as the law allows". Do you mean the speed limit?

 

It's a US thing.....
It goes something like this:

 

We keep ours in ECO all the time unless the dog steps on the button...lol

 

Yup. There's the a big one (primarily for propulsion) and a smaller (primarily for generating). They change roles at times too. The smaller is also what actually spins up the gas engine for starting, since there isn't a starter.

Here's a video showing the interplay of those 3 devices, note the 3 value depicted in red:

 

if everyone left 1 1/2 car lengths between cars stopped at a red light there would be no room for cars on the road in a BIG city. The streets are a big parking lot as it is. Your method reduces the number of cars that can use city streets by 1/3 to 1/2. It also creates road rage when people behind you can't get to left turn lanes because you stopped short.

 

I don't block right or left lane turns. It *is* possible to be a polite driver while driving for high fuel economy.

You comment about room would be true if the extra distance between car(s) left others behind a green light they could not traverse. That would be most unusual and certainly nothing I have ever come close to seeing. I should also point out that the strategy I employ works precisely because most drivers do not.

 

Usually what I do. Vermont drivers are notorious for speeding towards the red light, and going WAY TOO SLOW WHEN GREEN, usually missing the green light entirely. If there's no chance to make it, I crawl along in EV mode. I leave them in the dust at the green light, which isn't very difficult at 18-25 mph. I drive much the same way you do, always have.

One thing that is particularly irritable here, is drivers inability to see further ahead than my bumper. This usually results in PO'd drivers at STOP SIGNS. I felt I needed to stop, no matter how briefly. After I go, I wonder where the heck they are. When I approach the next stop sign, they're roaring up behind me to do it all over again.

You just can't fix stupid, I'm convinced of it after over 30 years here.

 

Perhaps a few of these should be driven around to change attitudes concerning Prius....

This is a Prius we would all like to drive… | MotoringTV

Personally I take exception to the article in that I enjoy driving mine.

Roland

 

I enjoy taking residential roads, rather than traffic corridors, to get around my small town. So, like if I want to go to the store, rather than taking the usual stop lighted main city streets, I use the side streets, and use EV mode as much as possible! I am not in a hurry, so why waist gas? I always watch my rear view mirror, and pull over, if someone comes up behind me. But it is a blast to keep it in Eco mode, and see how long you can stay in the EV mode. Sure your moving like a snail off the stop signs, but I get to the store, and love it when I see I just got 99.9 MPG with my Prius!! I just wish I had more battery capacity!

Having this Prius has really opened my eyes to how everyone really IS in such a hurry. It has taught me to Slow down, save gas, and enjoy the scenery. Sitting at a stop light, with the engine off, looking around at all those cars idling gasoline away just makes you WISH you could enlighten them some how, to what you now know by owning a Prius. I LOVE the fact we visit the gas station so much less, and even when we do, it is such a small tank to fill!

 

Depends on the car. Even though the Prius is still very economical on the highway, many regal ICE cars are extremely efficient. While I could easily obtain 38 mpg in my 2004 Corolla at 75 mph and cruise control, my v would require me to slow down, especially up hills, and never use cruise control. Pretty easy for me to achieve 40 out of the old Corolla by dropping the speed down a bit. What I'm saying is that the Prius requires you to drive a certain way, the regal ICE vehicles don't. Around town, that's obviously a different story, where the Prius has the decided edge, and speed is not a factor in getting where you're going.

 

I don't think I have ever gotten less than 45 mpg in my Prius vagon with highway driving. Yesterday I drove 90 highway miles in hilly terrain and averaged ~ 56 mpg. Can you match that in a Corolla ?

And remember, the vagon is a considerably larger and more versatile car than the Corolla.

 

Number one, this is Vermont. Hills, long hills, many constant upgrades. Your odds of getting 56 mpg here are pretty much zero in a v wagon, and 34-37 is very likely during some periods in the winter. I fully understand the versatile in my wagon than a Corolla, that's why I got it. On my commute in, it's 40 miles. It starts out with upgrades around town, upgrade to the 55 mph road to the highway, and some good long upgrades plus large hills on the interstate. My very best mileage ever was drafting behind a semi. 44 mpg. More typical is trying hard to get 40, which means 10 mph slower than my Corolla did it, and some babying up the big hills. I can achieve almost 50 mpg sometimes on the way home, barring any winds.

If that's the only driving I ever did, a new Corolla ECO would not be much different, except the huge difference in price. I owned that Corolla, a 5-speed stick for 5 plus years, and 140,000 miles. It cost me $15k, and my long term mileage was right at 36.8 mpg. I hope to have at least that long term experience in this car, but it's also almost double the price. If not for the price of diesel, plus out cold weather, I considered a Jetta Wagon diesel.

BTW, another consideration is cold weather. While my Corolla did almost as good winter or summer, the Prius drops a fair amount in the winter. Combined with winds and cold, my Corolla got better mileage than my wagon during a three month period. All things in perspective.

 

For comparison, my quite efficient Honda Fit gets low 40s mpg on the same drive I mentioned earlier. The Prius beats the Fit by at least 20% in highway driving, and about doubles in my town driving.