Camry Hybrid vs Prius: Pluses and Minuses

What are the specs of the engine of the Camry compared to the Prius? What is the weight delta between the 2 models?
Plus, you have a break-in period of about 5000 km - my personal feeling, but not substantiated by any fact whatsoever, only my impression, the ECU is managing the Prius a bit differently in these first km.
I have absolutely no problem to merge in the Autobahn (where the average speed is, even in the right lane, often 130km/h....) and never really felt the lack of acceleration.
It also depends, as you say, on what was the performance of the Camry to which you were used to. You might have to push the Prius a bit more than the Camry, therefore I asked you at the beginning the specs of the Camry - Camry Hybrid is not sold in Europe.
The Prius does 0-100km/h/62mph in 10.4 secs. I don't know if this acceleration is dependent on the mode you select - I cannot test it. Most would say it is not the case, though my experience and gut feeling tells me that the modes affect way more than just the response to the accelerator. I think it changes completely the way the HSD is managed. E.g. I cannot get at all the same performance in ECO as in Normal or as in PWR - it's like driving 3 different cars (even when the HSI bar is completely in the red zone - I have to test the same effect when I floor the accelerator - but I need a free stretch of road and in Europe it is not easy to find one, especially a straight one... ).

 

If you actually push the accelerator to the floor the acceleration in eco and power mode is exactly the same.

I can't imagine this is answering your question but don't use B mode unless the battery will be full by the bottom of the hill, light foot braking will add charge to the battery, it won't use friction brakes.

 

Well, then obviously the Prius is not going to feel as snappy as the Camry Hybrid!

The Camry is 21% heavier, sure, but 37% more powerful and reaches 60mph/100km/h in about 20% less time. No wonder...

Thanks Tideland for the data.

 

Are you sure? did you try this on a Gen 3? (asking because I see you have a Gen2 Prius)
My feeling is different. BTY the modes affect also EV mode. If you have PWR Mode on, for the same length of the HSI bar the car accelerates more. So the mapping of the accelerator sure works on EV mode as well.

 

Yes it would be a huge danger aka lawsuit if the car was truly slower in one mode compared to another. If you floor it it will be no faster in power than it will be in eco mode.

 

Adamace1, sorry I don't understand what you say. In which way a car with slower reaction times in one mode instead of another would result in a lawsuit or being a "huge danger"? Please explain.

 

Yes, we are sure. It has been tested by many on PC and was also explained to us by the Prius chief engineer when talked to him in Detroit. Full power is available in all modes.

Tom

 

The huge plus of the Camry for many folks who take big road trips, esp. with family is the real, good size trunk.
I would rather have a real trunk, but you probably notice it didn't convince me to go Camry rather than Prius.

 

You can't really draw a comparison btw the two as they are designed with different objectives. The Camry Hybrid is to reduce the fuel consumption than its gasoline cousin while the Prius is to maximize fuel economy to its last drop. I believe people buying Camry Hybrid and Prius are for totally different reasons. For me, I bought the Prius for its thrifty in fuel, its style, its friendlyness to the environment and the image it projects on me. If you don't compare an apple to an orange, why compare the Camry to Prius?

 

Apple: fruit that grows on trees, has a skin and pulp, a color in the red end of the spectrum, and you make juice out of it.
Orange: fruit that grows on trees, has a skin and pulp, a color in the red end of the spectrum, and you make juice out of it.

Anyway, I had a 2004 Camry Hybrid, J-code. The mileage was in the 38 mpg range. The pick up was good, but it "motorboats" very readily. The ride was more plush, and the interior was quieter. The trunk is VERY small in the Camry Hybrid, however.

I got a 2010 Prius IV for the mileage since I have an 80 mile per day commute in and out of Washington, D.C. The ride in the Prius is louder, more starter car quality. It reminds me a lot of my 1984 Ford Escort. The steering is much faster in the Prius, and the Prius in Power mode is MUCH faster than the Camry getting on to 95.

I do miss the quiet ride of the Camry. It did coast a lot more readily than does the Prius, but with 56 mpg on a weekly basis, I'll take the Prius.

 

Just as you can't draw a comparison between the Camry Hybrid and the Prius you can't assume someone else's reason for buying a particular car. For instance two of the three reasons you listed to show why you chose a Prius are different than mine. Thrifty fuel - match. Friendly to environment - not a factor in my decision. As for the your liking the image it projects, I bought the Prius despite the image it projects.

 

we have an 08 hycam and prius. pri gets 55 avg, cam gets 40 avg., we love the pri but boston to florida is a luxurious ride in the ca. quiet, smooth, powerful, i drive the pri, bride drives the hycam. two different cars but the neat thing with the hycam is coming out of a camry you see the difference where the pri stands alone and nothing to compare it to.

 

I didn't mean to offend anyone who wish to compare the Camry Hybrid to the Prius. All I was trying to say is Camry Hybrid and the Prius are two very different cars even thought they both have the HSD. Their design objectives are different. Their target customers are also different. It would be fair to compare Camry to Accord or to Altima; or Camry Hybrid to Nissan Altima Hybrid or Fusion Hybrid. I feel that the only appropriate comparision to Prius is the Honda Insight. (Don't hang me for saying that. :mod

 

I have a 2008 Prius and was looking at a Gen III. I decided to by a Camry Hybrid instead. The Camry is very quiet and accelerates a lot better. The car is significantly more comfortable for long trips. In the first 2,000 miles I'm getting about 37mpg. In 30,000 of driving the Prius I averaged about 44mpg. The well equipped Camry was also less expensive than a fully equipped Prius.

 

We didn't want a sedan, so that let out Camry and Ford. I use ECO most of the time but found that Power gives a tremendous kick of acceleration. I use a tight 360 degree ramp onto a 55 mph divided highway with a pretty good hill at times. In ECO I'm only getting about 35 mph with pretty heavy pressure on the accelerator. Hit ECO, and with the same pressure shot to 60 very quickly. This car isn't sluggish if driven correctly!

 

Sounds good. From the Pluses and Minuses it doesn't seem that much. If the Camrys are better made I probably go with a Camery. 50+ mpg compared to 40 mpg I dont think it wiill bother me much especially I used to do less than 10 mpg with the Acura RL.