Should the Prius be Changed to Power Up in Power Mode if it is Turned Off in Power Mode?

So you had it only 1 day. It took me longer than that to reprogram my right foot to the new throttle response to get what I wanted, but now it is second nature. No need to push any button.

Now the only reason I push that button is to quiet the spouse when she is driving. She feels the same about the pedal as you, and hasn't driven it enough to reprogram the foot.

 

I think that is a very good idea satisfying all concerns
Danny

 

Puh-leeze, people! Unless you're robbing a bank or running from a horde of zombies, there is no need for the Prius to start up with the power mode! We already have people driving into walls, why add any potential new problems? Just push the darn button for gosh sakes!

 

Pwr FTW.
It sucks that Pwr does not stick.
Press Start, press Pwr, shift. It's 2nd nature now.

 

I don't use park. When I stop and want to turn my car off. I hit the start button. That automatically puts it in Park. I, too, like the response of power mode. It feels more like my other cars. I had a rental Matrix once and if you breathed on the pedal it took off. I have not noticed any difference in gas mileage in any of the modes so "pwr" would be my choice to drive in. We already have reputations of driving like whimps. I had a friend that says "get your prickus out the way". I told her "don't make have to hit power mode, you'll be sorry".

 

Some of you make it sound like the Prius suddenly becomes a 300 hp high-performance car when in the power mode, hence the warning. That's just plain silly.

 

This has got to be the height of trivial, yak-shaving laziness.
What, do you want it to shift into "D" when you happen to think
of it, too? I'm guessing you never turn your headlights off,
either.
.
_H*

 

I know where I'm headed for extra canned goods (or brains) when the zombie apocalypse happens. :grin:
And I DO push the f-ing button, EVERY F-ING TIME I START THE F-ING CAR!!!

The bottom line for me is that this is all computerized - why can't I customize the options to my own preferences? There are cars that will automatically adjust the seats and mirrors, what's so hard about programming a sticky bit? It remembers that I left the wipers on...

And I get the feeling some of you would use the same "danger" arguments regarding disabling the backup beep...

 

I voted in favor, and I really think this is a safety issue. I understand Toyota's viewpoint -- to block any setting that could lead a driver to spoil the car's high mpg rating. However, if used carefully, "Power" allows tighter control, a more pleasurable ride and can even improve mpg.
To become used to the quicker acceleration but then lose it after switching off is dangerous. Crossing a busy intersection or merging onto a highway without the acceleration you expect is simply unsafe. Far better to let the driver stay with the setting he/she has chosen.

 

Hi all,

The way I drive my Prius is usually in POWER MODE to begin the day, after all, the goal is to allow the ICE to warm up as quickly as possible. So, with that thought in mind, I usually drive quickly and step harder on the accelerator during the first 3-5 mins in the morning. I notice that while the engine is warming up, even if I'm stopped off at a light, the engine runs. So YES, I do wish the car remembered that I left it in POWER mode before I last turned it off.

fyi, POWER Mode doesn't necessarily mean you're going to get bad gas mileage. I have gotten close to 60mph in POWER mode, I kept the car in that mode simply to prove it could be done. It really depends on how you drive the car.

 

I voted for PWR mode to stay on. I like saving gas but I also like being able to merge on a freeway safely. If I forget to punch the PWR mode again after I get in it can be tough to handle certain situations like merging. I have already noticed this in a short period of having the 2010. I came from a 2004 Prius and I think the accelerator response in PWR mode in 2010 is slightly more aggressive than 2004 but not by much and the ECO mode in 2010 is much less than 2004 and frankly I feel unsafe in that mode on my commute to work.

To me it's a safety issue to not have the mode stay where I put it - in this case PWR mode

 

It's late, and I'm not feeling too well, but am I missing something in this debate? Seems to me the reason you can't have The Prius as it is currently presented power up in the mode you leave it in IE: Left in Power Mode, it Defaults to Power mode on power up is simply because actually The Prius has 4 "modes" but only 3 buttons. It has the current default "normal" and the 3 selectable ECO-EV-POWER...well if POWER became a selectable that then became the default....without a button how would you return it to "Normal" mode?

Sure I know Toyota could probably make an easy way to have this happen...but they probably also think it's safer just to have it always start in a baseline "normal" mode, thus leaving changes in performance as something the user must select...so nobody can claim they got in a wreck because they didn't realize they were in Power mode or had forgotten they left the car in power mode.

Flame me if I'm wrong...I have Nyquil I care not.....

 

There are 3 modes, plus an EV version of each mode (thus 6 in total) in terms of how the software works. And to get out of power mode, for example, you do not need to turn the car off you can just press the power button again, power mode is turned off and you go back to normal mode.

So, the modes are:
normal
ECO
Power
normal+ EV (or just EV mode)
ECO+ EV
Power+ EV

It is not obvious, but you can be in any of these 6. What happens in power+EV, for example, is that when in that state and you exceed 25 mph, you drop back to power mode. This is different than being in ECO+EV...when you exceed 25 mph you drop back into ECO.

3PriusMike

 

So if you are in Power Mode and you press power mode you exit power mode? Hmm...I did not know this.

I knew The Prius as a hybrid will go into EV mode at different times automatically in all modes but I would just define that as normal operation of the vehicle and not technically a separate "mode". So to me despite EV's ability to happen in normal, power or eco mode, I wouldn't call it's inclusion as an operation a totally different mode.

EV as a separate mode has always been presented as mostly just a user input asking The Prius to try to stay in EV as much as possible. It's success is debatable as there reportedly are so many factors that must be supported for it to remain in EV. But people seem to like it for showing off for friends, Traffic Jams and quiet exits in early mornings.

I'm not arguing whether it is correct or not, but I still say my guess is that Toyota felt it safer to have the vehicle default to it's "normal" level of operation and throttle response on start up as a potential safety issue.

Obviously if you make Power Mode the vehicle default...then that becomes the "Normal" mode...then what do you call the "Normal Mode"? The new ECO-EV-SLIGHTLY LESS POWER MODE?

This year we have seen how new first time Prius drivers are adapting to hybrid ownership. Can you imagine if Power Mode, which has more agressive throttle response was the vehicle chosen default? The first time Grandma crashed into the back of someone, they would be complaining that it was because they were in the default power mode and didnt realize the throttle would respond so agressively. I think Toyota is almost forced to make Power Mode a conciously chosen user option...to save themselves from potential liability problems. The way it is now? Nobody can claim they didn't realize they were in Power Mode or had forgotten and accidently left it in power mode.

I don't own a Prius so have no dog in this hunt as they say. But that's my guess as to the logic I think Toyota has employed in making Power Mode a user chosen optional mode and NOT the vehicle start up default.

 

I think you're missing the OP's point, He was asking if it should stay in PWR mode when starting up after it being selected on the previous journey, not whether it should be the default setting.
I voted yes, I think it should stay in whatever mode the driver selects as his/her daily requirement, be it PWR, ECO or EV or a combination of these.
As someone else pointed out, you adjust your seat/steering wheel/mirrors to your driving position and don't expect them to return to where they were before and have to adjust them each time you entre the vehicle, so why should you have to adjust the driving mode ?

 

My only gripe is a slight inconsistency: If you choose ECO mode, it stays put start after start. The other modes "drop out to normal" after a power-down. Oh yes, I guess EV mode goes away after a certain distance or speed increase too. At least there is a light in the dash for each mode.