How do I highway merge when my 2015 Prius C takes 11-12 seconds to even get to 50 mph?

Maybe we need a law to be courteous?

 

ah, if only one could legislate behavior.

 

Car and Driver got these results:
C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 11.2 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 45.3 sec
Rolling start, 5-60 mph: 11.4 sec
Top gear, 30-50 mph: 5.4 sec
Top gear, 50-70 mph: 8.3 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 18.2 sec @ 75 mph

I think 5 of my previous cars had less HP than a Prius C, the Mazda 808 Mizer had 69 HP and a 4 speed. mind you I never lived in CA traffic.

 

If you aren’t flooring it in speedy traffic you are doing it wrong. The only way you’ll get the benefit of the ~99 hp is by flooring it. The ecm transmission is programmed for efficiency even in normal mode. Toyota builds them well and the engine and cvt can handle the occasional flooring needs.

 

Only if you live in a very aggressive combat driving culture. Many of us don't live and drive in such conditions.

I drove a heavier 88 horsepower car many years, and was able to merge onto highways just fine without actually flooring it. Once merged, it got along fine with even less. Of course, it was an early 1980s econocar kept well into the 1990s horsepower wars, but the same principle applies. Jimbo has even greater experience with even lower powered cars.

 

I totally agree, most of the time you can drive it like an automatic small car from the 80s, but on short urban on ramps the cvt won’t respond quickly without mashing it. I had an 80 Dodge Colt 4 speed manual, you had to shift to 3rd for those urban on ramps ;-). I think it was about 60 hp and 1700 lbs.

 

Hi I just returned from Oakland Calif from the airport....yes it can be scary getting on a busy freeway but push the ECO button by the emergency brake OFF and the car will get you on the freeway faster.....I have had no problem and find most drivers know I am a little slower and move over for me......

 

Flooring it in either mode is exactly the same. With ECO off, you get more response everywhere else in the pedal, but flooring it is the same.

 

I tried ECO mode in different situations and found it to be quite restrictive.

I now drive in the standard mode (ECO off) and find the car quite nippy.

More over my right foot has now gotten used to driving Prius C, I just floor it in odd situations.

 

I'd agree. With my 3rd gen 2010 Prius I found the pedal travel in ECO had me constantly making large movements of my foot, awkward and tiring. I don't believe it helps, if anything it makes it more difficult to modulate acceleration.

Again, this is with my 3rd gen 2010 Prius, and my understanding is that with 4th gen Prius (2016 model year commencement) the pedal response in all modes has been shifted, so that 4th gen ECO mode is roughly where 3rd gen "normal" was, and so on. If that is the case, I'd be more likely to use ECO on 4th gen, not sure.

 

I, too, found ECO mode in the Gen 3 to be actually harder to use than NORMAL.

I'm also running the new Gen 4 in NORMAL, and perhaps it's a bit more like POWER in Gen 3. My foot's been calibrated over 9 years in the Gen 3, and I didn't notice that I was accelerating any harder, so it's subtle if it exists. (Though I would say the Gen 4 gets better mileage while simultaneously feeling like it handles better, so perhaps it is POWER-mode-like and I've calibrated quickly when trying to get better mileage.)

 

Merging strategy is different in slower cars. I don't look to get in front of the cars I'm merging with. I often slow down to get in a gap behind faster cars.

I've driven in the most congested areas on the east coast: Atlanta, New York City, Northern New Jersey, Northern Virginia, Washington DC. I have no problems merging.

I'm looking for gaps in the traffic that I can keep up with. It's not a race. Also, I take off the eco mode if traffic is particularly aggressive.

 

I drive exclusively in eco mode and never have had a problem merging into hyw traffic if you are merging on the right hand side of a hyw then should be no problem. 0-30mph should be zippy with the help of the battery and electric motor, from there floor it until you get to the desired speed. Set your cruise control and you should be in like flint. I know the top speed of the C is 100mph after that it crawls up in speed, every 2 seconds adds another mile per hour. Except for those gear heads who have the moula to buy 50k and up German or Japanese performance car you should be able to pass other cars with ease.
Last year my job was 42 km from my home by 401 expressway a 40 minute drive .
Which I managed to do in 30 mins with the Prius C, traveling in excess of 140 km/h. I am not advocating speeding but merely explaining that you won't break it by pushing your foot on the accelerator.

 

I switched from Scion xA with a manual transmission to Prius C (two). Yes, for me it's a combination of changing gear by hand, and "ECO mode". When I know that I need to merge quickly, I just turn off ECO mode, merge, and then turn it on (yes, I have a car for less than a week). I think it's more "wait for changes to happen in my head" (i.e. "change driving style").

 

Just as an FYI, ECO mode full throttle is exactly the same as non-ECO full throttle. So if you're giving it full gas, there is no need to turn it on/off.

 

'Zactly. Here's a screen grab from Hobbit's writeup of the 2010 when it came out. The c might not be exactly the same, but I would think it is close.

 

I usually am at highway speed while I am on the ramp so when I get to the merging lane my speed will match the traffic I am about to blend into. It doesn't help when the traffic is moving 15 to 20 mph over the speed limit with short ramps and merge lanes.

 

Just curious, when did they get rid of the power mode button?

In our car there isn't one- but there is a portion of the hybridmeter marked "power" at the top end of the range. The meter only goes up that high when we are flooring it or very close to it.

It's only been a month, but so far our favorite way to use the car is to leave the display set to "simple" gas & time of day mode, and just drive it like any other car. No extra button pushing or modal planning... and so far it's working. The previous car was fuel efficient. This one is amazing.

 

I do not believe the c ever had one.