AGC or Camry rolls better than Prius

I've read a few times that the Camry Hybrid will "glide" much better than a Prius. This is usually stated with the idea that the Camry is better in this regard, like having less drag is superior.

The Camry has a couple modes. In Normal Mode AGC (Auto Glide Control) is off. I assume the level of drag with AGC off is similar to a Prius. If someone knows better please speak up. I'm going to call this Normal level of drag 20 just to put a number on it.

The Camry also has Eco Mode. AGC is active in Eco Mode. AGC is a lower drag mode that is roughly half of what the drag is in Normal Mode so we can call this much drag 10. I assume this level of drag is lower than what a Prius has.

My opinion is that no single level of drag is idea for all situations. Having AGC is nice but someone could easily replicate this level of drag on a Prius by giving the car a little throttle (not enought to give the car any boost, just enough to lower the drag).

I am alway modifing the level of drag. Sometime Normal drag is better, sometimes AGC is better and often if I want even less drag I'll pop the car in Neutral for no drag at all. Steep hills will require some extra drag which you get by gently applying the brakes. If I know a steep downhill is coming I'll put the car in Normal Mode for the extra drag but the car may need even more drag than what is supplied in Normal Mode. Actually if I know I'll need more drag than what Normal Mode provides I'll leave the car in Eco Mode with AGC and just call for more regen with the brakes.

The point is that yes it is nice to be able to pick from 3 different fixed drag levels, zero drag in Neutral, 10 level drag with AGC and 20 level drag in Normal Mode but all these levels should be achievable in a Prius with the application of either brake or throttle.

 

In researching this I accidentally discovered that a regular Camry has a tachometer but the current generation Hybrid replaces the tach with a "Hybrid System Indicator" or HSI.

The HSI along with the 2 displays provide quite a bit of information, as much as I can recall seeing in a Prius. I've seen complaints about the Camry not supplying enough information but I suspect this has been fixed for the current generation. I'm not that fimiliar with the Prius having only been in a few and only for a short time so I couldn't say for sure.

I use the HSI for several things, this drag businness being one. Perhaps the most important use of the HSI is that you can tell very precisely how much throttle you can apply before it is likely EV will end and the ICE will start. A fine line changes color just above the word ECO. Stay below that color change and the Camry will usually stay in EV, go above and the ICE will come on nearly every time. If the battery is either very full or very empty this could change the results.

 

Regarding hypermilers....

While I was achieving over 80 MPG in my Civic Hybrid (on one 1000 mile tank, extreme driving techniques) another guy (KORSAB or something like that) was getting 100 MPG in his Prius (not sure which generation but it was years ago). Since the Camry is similarly rated I was hoping to achieve similar tanks but my best so far has been just under 70MPG. I'm not pushing the envelope as hard as I did back in the day but I don't think the Camry could ever hit 100 MPG on actual roads at any reasonable speeds. The Prius evidently can in spite of the similar EPA rating.

 

I agree completely . My Civic was underrated so I could roughly double EPA. As you say the Camry is already accounting for some advantages in the EPA rating so there is less headroom to play with.

 

That Prius driver's screen name was krousdb, but I'm not finding the crazy high mileage figures I remember. Back in the day RJBarlow and I were getting 80MPG in our Civics (for sure, got pics). The best Prius drivers were beating us by a fair margin as I recall.

 

This is a picture of my Civic with 1k miles on the tank at 85.9 MPG. Calculated was lower but still over 80.

The Civic would not automatically turn the engine off until the car was going 20 mph or less. The biggest gas saver was the FAS or Forced Auto Stop (We did not wait for the 20mph but manually killed the engine).

Another technique was driving with the load (allowing the car to slow going uphill and allowing the car to speed up going down). Also driving without brakes, light timing, some pulse and glide, along with just driving slowly. Face out parking and route choice also helped.

Mileage is the better the hotter it is outside so long as one does not use AC. That record tank was done in the heat of the Summer with no AC.

We all have our limits. I did not draft because I felt it was not safe. I'm sure many would think the FAS was not safe. Driving with no AC might not be safe for me anymore. I'm not advocating any of these techniques, especially any that might not be safe.

 

Perfect use for that new Prius e4wd!

 

The hybrid LE Camry has eliminated the FAS since it automatically and safely turns off the engine.