Apples and oranges. Nowhere in the manual does it say, "Don't drive at high speeds for extended periods of time."
One of the biggest reasons that I'm a Prius driver but not a Prius owner is the fact that Priuses are rated to tow exactly ZERO pounds. That doesn't mean that they're not 'capable' of pulling a trailer, nor does it mean that the folks in Aichi Japan are a bunch of buzz-kills that don't want you to have fun with their (your) car. It means that somebody somewhere did the noodle dance and put a check in the "don't do that" block under "towing." If memory serves, Priuses are only rated for 850# of cargo....pax included!! Many people don't realize that Towing means just a little bit more than having the grunt to yank on a trailer. You also have to do things like turn, slow down or even stop on occasion, and tow packages usually include more than just a hitch receiver. I'm thinking that CVTs and Regenerative brakes are poor candidates for towing duty....but hey. Your car.... Your rules. Threads like this are why people like me prefer to buy new cars rather than (ab)used ones.... Absolutely! 200-300 thousand miles of this type of use will probably just about wear the car out.
The Prius eCVT doesn't have a torque converter. The primary source of all that extra heat that requires cooling is the torque converter. I agree that monitoring transmission temperature is important, but the Prius just isn't going to heat up the transmission fluid like an ordinary automatic transmission does.
Extra torque from MGs mean extra current through the windings mean extra heat. The fluid is not circulating and just traps the heat. Besides, that little clutch between the engine and the HSD (shock absorber), how much torque is it rated for before slipping?
Part of the power transmission goes through the gears and that is no problem as there is only 1-2% loss. But another part of power transmission goes through the MG1+MG2 combo and they are the ones that will heat up. Specifically, the windings, like JonnyZero said. Overheated windings = short.
I agree that you can burn out a Prius transmission. I just don't think that the parameters of overuse are the same as a conventional automatic transmission. If you can drive a Prius 85 mph all day, then you could probably pull a small trailer at 55 mph with occasional stops. The real issue is where the boundary is between safe and damaging usage. My guess is that monitoring MG1/MG2 temperatures should be an adequate guide. Next question is what the max temperature should be...
If the trailer is aerodynamic, sure. Bob did something similar with his "aircraft carrier." I objected to the video of Prius boat retrieving and towing.
I just checked. My manual doesn't say anything about bringing a mattress home from Costco on the roof of the car while holding it with my hand. I guess that's OK too. I've noticed that nobody is saying anything about using the brakes and suspension system in a small, 3200 pound car to control an additional couple of thousand pounds of load at highway speeds. This is the bad thing about Natural Selection. It's slow and sloppy. Lots of times, innocent people get edited out of the gene pool by the acts of somebody who has already matured to the point of procreation. A Prius could probably pull a 4,000 pound trailer. Just remember. Pulling is less than half the battle.
I have electric brakes on my RV, and rear air springs on my Prius; and I drive slow. Safety comes first, ALWAYS!! Love my Prius!! Happy towing!!
Fair Enough! I might not approve of your choice of tow beasts, but it's pretty clear that you've mitigated all of the safety deficiencies that you can with those steps. Keep us posted. I might not want to buy a used G3 with a 3" receiver and a tow brake already installed, but I cannot fault you for being careless about your fellow drivers. Be safe and enjoy the camping season!
I have heard all the negative things before!! I know what I'm doing!! Right now, without towing, my Prius is showing 53.8 MPG. You can follow me at: Prius pulling a RV? What do you pull !! | PriusChat
Here is a camper that I'm considering getting to tow with my Prius. Curb weight is 1015 lbs and 74" tall. TaG Max - Teardrop Camper/Trailer - Little Guy They also have smaller campers, but I like the Queen size bed, fridge/freezer, sink, stove, 19"TV, 3 speed roof vent and A/C standard options of this one.... I know 1015 lbs plus gear is a lot of weight to expect a Prius to tow.... but
I would not have ever guessed you could pull something that big with a Prius. Wow! Nice setup! I leave the towing up to my Durango
MyPod Max - Teardrop Camper/Trailer - Little Guy OK this is the smallest camper that I found Curb Weight 575#
