Re: 2018 Prius 1 or 2, on the highway, how is overall comfort and noise?

you also lose the rear wiper, and get really weird tires, iirc. not sure about a spare tire.

 

definitely an eco vehicle, not sports car or otherwise.

 

it is likely to be more of a personal decision than anything else. you can find experience and opinions on both sides of the equation here.

 

You said in an earlier post about "lack of power" - I've not had any time when I wished for more - but then it depends on what you're used to. Maybe go for a drive in one. Alternatively, hire one for a weekend - though, a rental car isn't necessarily representative of the breed.

That may have been really early models (they've been around ~20 yrs now, certainly no problem with the current, or as far as I know the previous model.

 

I guess it's what you're used to. I've mostly driven 4 cyl cars - haven't owned a 6 cyl since 1977, and PRIUS has more get-up-and-go than many. But the road testers who jump from a Corvette or a V8 truck into a PRIUS would notice it's got less oomph, but I think it's plenty.

I don't speak BHP, but the PRIUS petrol engine gets 72kW Maximum torque 142Nm, but with the Electric Motors (MG2 drives all the time) combined power output is 90kW. I'd have thought that's more than 95HP?

 

Which is the case with most cars, I think my FORD FIESTA would set at about 25MPH, not below.

BUT - if you're using RADAR Cruise, if there's a car in front, you can set it once you're barely moving, and, as long as there is a car in front, it will continue to track that car to a stop. When that car moves off, a touch of the accelerator (or the C/C wand) starts the RADAR tracking again.

 

The 2 batteries are similar in output - but Li-ION and NiMH have different characteristics, the former is lighter, so the vehicle is lighter. In a warmer clime, the Li-ION probably is the better, but it suffers more in the cold.

NiMH is the ONLY battery in almost every part of the world - US and Japan (Canada?) the only exceptions.

Ni-MH is more proven by time - the first PRIUS ~20yrs ago had NiMh. Li-ION is newer, and hence, less proven. But in the case of Smartphones, Laptops and most power tools, they've moved to Li-ION (or other Li based batteries). I don't know about other people, but I haven't had a good run with either Laptop or Phone batteries.

However, TOYOTA is convinced they're OK - they're putting an 8 (or 10 yr) battery warranty.

 

Ma Prius 3T is relatively very quiet when I compar to the car it replace - Toyota Echo TRD with magnaflow exaust sytem

the winter tires are more nosier than the OEM.

 

every prius owner should have owned an echo previously

 

Back to the "eCVT". Toyota calls it that to keep it simple but it is really a "power splitting device" as described in a previous post. It is indeed an elegantly simple and reliable way of controlling the power flow. There is, however, an additional device that conventional cars don't have: an inverter that controls the electrical flow, changing voltage and ac/dc. That is indeed an expensive part but failure is very uncommon.

The efficiency of Toyota Hybrids is based on the knowledge that gas and electric motors have different efficiencies under different conditions. In the Prius an electric motor always provides initial torque from a standing stop, then the gas motor joins in and does most, if not all, of the work at cruising speeds. That's because electric motors reach max torque right away while gas engines have to rev up before becoming efficient. The "eCVT" doesn't actually change the gear ratios (actually keeps the gas engine at the equivalent of top gear). It uses the electrical motors, alone or in combination with the gas engine, for acceleration. Brilliant!

That's why we say that the eCVT is not actually a transmission, it doesn't change gear ratios.

 

The car will not shut off the AC however if you put it in ECO mode, it will make the AC work at a slower rate (to increase gas mileage), the AC does not stop, but is not a cold or does it coo down as fast. The heater is also affected but the cruise is like a normal car. This only happens when you the driver chose ECO mode.

 

With Gen4 PRIUS, I've not noticed any difference with ECO Mode.

But the Climate Control has some adjustments where, if you're driving alone, it doesn't send air to the other positions in the car - unless you request it. On hot days, I'll sometimes do that, just getting more air-flow particularly when you've just got in after parking. You also Global Window open - unlock with the fob from 20' away, then press it again for 10 seconds, and your windows are all open.

 

to OP: I find my 2016 bit noisy but...
- it depends in what condition roads are in general where you drive. Ours are quite rough due to various reasons.
- I still have OEM tires for summer. Could reduce noise levels if changed to new tires
- Prius is probably average level what comes to noise levels.. Toyota made it light, to maximize economical drive.

 

IMO the handling and drivability have improved a lot since gen3 and it is totally comparable to other brands now.
The noise is definitely something you should go and test.
I think it is a little better in this one than in gen3.
But when exceeding 100 km/h or driving 120 km/h which is the summer speed limit on highways here it is worse than many other brands. Slower speeds I don't find the noise disturbing.
Probably a weight/consumption related with the Prius.

I do not drive long distances at highway speeds that often, but noise is definitely still an issue with the Prius.
But only when going fast IMO.
And the of course in a parking garage and at slow speeds the Prius is super quiet, other cars start feeling obsolete after driving a hybrid, when you're driving slow.

I thought about this a bit.
If in my next Prius I could either have 4wd or better sound insulation it would be a tough choice.
I think I would choose insulation over the 4WD even though the weather can be horrible here sometimes. Hope at some point Toyota finds a way to fix this in future models.

 

FWIW......We have both a Gen 4 & Gen 3.......the engine noise at low speeds (5-20 mph) inside the cabin on the Gen 4, is noticeably louder when compared with the Gen 3 ......otherwise, love the Gen 4!

 

i thought the same when i did a test drive, which was perplexing

 

this was discussed ad nauseam when people started purchasing and sharing experiences. i don't recall any definitive answer, more a combination of all the changes added together.

but iirc, the feeling was, if you put the special tires on any prius, and pump up the pressures to the higher recommended eco values, you would see the biggest improvement of any of the differences such as battery, wiper, windshield, and etc.