Stay in Eco mode all the time?

Your posting just erased all doubts in my mind -- you DO live in a VERY aggressive driving culture. I am not shy about labeling these forms of aggression as Road Rage.

My Prius in ECO accellerates significantly better than the 2.3L 88 HP Ford I purchased in the mid-1980s, and kept for thirteen years. While that car was on the low end of the normal range of that era, it was clearly within 'Normal', and other drivers accepted it because tens of millions of cars across the continent were similar.

Despite modern pressures from the Horse Power / Displacement Wars of the 1990s and 2000s, that measly 88 HP accelleration style is still acceptable here, in fact many similar cars are still on our roads. How and when did they become unacceptable in your region? Did the old cars rust away from excessive salt and everyone forgot? Did the drivers of the new drag racers apply enough road rage intimidation to force the slower cars off the street?

I haven't heard of that happening here. At some uphill intersections I have seen hardcore tailgaters get surprised that some of us still drive manual transmissions and don't speed shift, and therefore do not maintain monotonic accelleration while shifting into second gear. But no actual bumper bashes have come to my attention. And Prius does not create this brief decelleration surpise.

How late are your typical red light runners if you must cross the intersection ahead of them?

We do suffer some pressure in the direction you experience, but it is well short of critical mass. Most of the offenders seen to be from out of region, are too young to remember, or never matured and somehow haven't yet been weeded out.

My Prius has not been out of ECO mode in nine months. No problems.

 

I drive my 2010 Prius in NORMAL mode all the time, but I believe ECO mode only controls the sensitivity of the gas pedal which should help overall gas efficiency (for those who are new to the Prius).

I originally started out with a 2008 Prius, therefore I generally became accustomed to control the overall gas efficiency with how I much pressure I applied to the gas pedal.

But I guess if you are a person (like my father) who pays little and/or no attention to MPG's, then I guess you should leave it ECO mode. I've never had a reason to use POWER mode, but I'm glad it's there if I need it...

 

I also keep mine in ECO mode. Like others I have gotten used to the ECO mode pedal adjustments that when I switch over to normal or power my gas mileage goes down significantly because of being so used to how far to push the pedal down for the P+G of driving.

 

Lexus GX470 V8 SUV

I've been driving a Lexus GX470 V8 SUV in 2005 and as the prices of gas have been rising. I've been keeping my foot lighter and lighter on the gas pedal. Gently stepping on the gas to a smooth start and not redlining the engine to "JUMP" out the starting gate when the light turns green. Riding the gas pedal in a smooth slow arc to keep the V8 relatively smooth and coasting at 60mph and gently pressing the gas pedal just enough to mainting crusing speed.

So when I test drove the Prius in ECO mode, I felt RIGHT AT HOME. This is how I normally drive even with my Lexus V8 SUV. No problem what so ever with the stigma of the Prius being slow. The LEXUS is now parked in my garage, used only for family vacation/getaways.

The GX trained me how to drive economically to conserve gas so the transition to the Prius was a non issue!

 

I've learned to drive in 'ECO' 100 percent of the time now. The biggest adjustment was learning to almost floor the pedal when accelerating on short on-ramps [I had the feeling that it would break the car, but as others have mentioned, it doesn't].

 

I drive in Manhattan at least three times a week. To get where your going w/o getting stuck behind a cab letting folks on or off or pedi cab doing 7 mph or a bus that cant pull into the bus stop because something is in its way requires 100% focus.
You need to drive ahead of your car as usual BUT if you dont watch right in front of the car as well, your asking for trouble. Cars are constantly changing lanes or multiple lanes and the pedestrians are literally everywhere (crosswalks LOL).

The times I need my brakes to stop me quick and nimble and the times I need my accelerator to make me move quick and nimble are probably equal.

For me, merging is simply a matter of watching what your doing so you dont have to floor the Prius to get on.. of course sometimes merge problems do happen. Again, for me, at least 9 out of 10 times I see the merge problem coming. So 9 times I'll call the driver a sphincter but its no longer a saftey issue. The 10th time.... well thats why I don't own a gun

If I need to pass another car on the highway, which is rare because I typically do 60/65mph, I just make sure I have room to do it smoothly and w/o blowing by the guy.

My point is I drive ECO all the time. It is very doable. But again, thats just me

 

I like ECO mode, with its desensitized throttle response, but I've always switched to "normal" when, say, overtaking an 18 wheeler on a two lane road, because I didn't know if I would get full power in ECO, even with the right pedal on the floor. It sounds like I don't need switch out of ECO, if it does the same thing in all modes when floored.