So when the prius "brakes" when the drcc is engaged (sorry tech packages only) do the brake lights come on? It can pretty aggressively hit the brakes and am just curious at what point (if any) the brake lights actually come on.
Yes they come on. During DRCC braking the car will decelerate (brake) all the way down to 23 MPH and then it will beep at you and disengage the DRCC if the conditions permit this to happen then you need to apply the brakes yourself. Posted from my iPhone via the Tapatalk app.
Yes. It operates just as it would if you were controlling the pedals. If DRCC coasts, lights won't come on. If it brakes, lights will come on.
Logical and obvious. I realize that if the drcc is actually using the brakes then yes I would expect the lights to come on, however to anyone that has experienced drcc it's hard to tell when it's "braking" and when it just slowing down. So what I'm really wondering is when is the slowing down actually "braking" and when is it coasting? I realize now there's really no good answer to this question unless I can actually see the brake lights.
When you simply lift your foot off the gas and it slows down, you don't expect the brake light to come on, right? Likewise, if DRCC is slowing down in this manner and not actively applying the brake, the light won't come on.
what i'm wondering is when is it "in this manner" just saying it's hard if not impossible to tell when it is. even with our own driving there are times you may have your foot on the brake and slowly applying it. lights would be on, but any passengers you have would probably not be able to tell you that you are braking...
You can't tell, since the only difference is the amount of applied braking. The Prius lacks the engine and transmission drag found in ordinary cars, so it simulates it by applying a small amount of regenerative braking when the driver lifts his foot from the accelerator pedal. This is technically considered coasting, so no brake light is shown, but with the Prius it is actually light braking. Any braking harder than that is considered braking and the brake lights are illuminated. Because of this, the difference between coasting and braking is just an arbitrary threshold. Without instrumentation there is no way for the driver to tell when the threshold is crossed. Tom
