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Which Driving Mode Do you use?

Discussion in 'Gen 4 Prius Fuel Economy' started by Robos1020, Oct 16, 2016.

  1. Robos1020

    Robos1020 Junior Member

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    My wife keeps it in Eco, but she complains that she wants more power. I have a Landcruiser, which has similar driving modes and most Landcruiser owners get BETTER mileage in power mode. Any ideas on which mode to use? Seems like EV most is mostly useless.
     
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  2. lar.smith42

    lar.smith42 Active Member

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    A lot of owners use power mode and claim good mileage. I just put it in normal mode. To me it's the best of both worlds. But then again I drive it like I would any other car. I don't get hung up on MPG. It's comfortable for road trips and gets great mileage. Life is to short to worry about a couple of MPG ether way. Enjoy your ride.
     
    #2 lar.smith42, Oct 16, 2016
    Last edited: Oct 17, 2016
  3. RCO

    RCO Senior Member

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    Wait awhile and Cost Cruiser will be all over this like mustard on a hot dog! :whistle:
     
  4. krmcg

    krmcg Lowered Blizzard Pearl Beauty

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    I always use ECO. one tank on PWR and did not like it. I think that you "get used" to the different feel and it really only makes a difference when the car speeds up on its own in DCC mode.
     
  5. xpcman

    xpcman Senior Member

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    I use power mode most of the time 58+ MPG
     
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  6. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    eco, but i'm disqualified with a gen 3. i think people who use normal or power and claim they're getting better mpg's are
     
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  7. krmcg

    krmcg Lowered Blizzard Pearl Beauty

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    I don't think the mode has a great deal of influence on MPGs. My 67 MPG is reflective of how I drive, not what button is depressed.
     
  8. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    impossible.
     
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  10. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    Yeah funny: it's ECO, PWR, ECO, PWR, the debate rages.
     
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  11. GaryD1

    GaryD1 Active Member

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    Eco mode since first day. My wife and daughters just went on 520 mile trip over the last 5 days. The readout was 61.5 mpg, car can be driven another 160 miles on gas left in tank. My daughter drove, she knows none of the tricks. It was a lot of starting and stopping for road detours, close to the flooded area here in NC. It took them 7 hours to get back today and its normally a 3 1/2 hour trip.
     
  12. alanclarkeau

    alanclarkeau Senior Member

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    ECO needs greater accelerator (throttle) movement, and is easier to modulate IF you're hypermiling, but more effort if you want to use a heavy throttle.

    But DRCC seems to respond better (and brakes better on downhills without a lead vehicle) in PWR Mode.

    I haven't been able to detect a difference in litres/100km between modes, here it defaults to NORMAL with each start, but if I'm going more than a couple of kms, I flick it to PWR.
     
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  13. pasoto1

    pasoto1 Junior Member

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    Went to Albuquerque , New Mexico for the Ballon Festival ... I am from San Jose ,CA Also went to Santa Fe and Taos total miles up and back 2,418 miles i spent only $ 117 in Gas average gallon of gas cost $2.10 ..No problems at all had it in ECO mode most of trip and had it up to 101 miles an hour in Mojave Dessert just purred along . I'am 73 yrs. old I think i'll have to leave car in my will as i believe it will outlast me LOL !
     
  14. Sooner Al

    Sooner Al Active Member

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    Normal mode all the time for us. We just drive and let the car computer figure out the best mode. We are getting 46+ MPG around town which I am very happy with.
     
  15. RCO

    RCO Senior Member

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    I think that would seriously clash with my personality! :(
     
  16. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    Normal is not a kind of "auto" mode. It is a distinct mode, with pedal travel somewhere between ECO and PWR.

    On a third gen, ECO is incredibly lethargic, long pedal travel. It get's tiresome, actually harder to control. Normal has a nice, linear, cause-and-effect feel. I'm happy with that response, so see no need to use PWR, which just makes it touchier, a la Honda Civic.
     
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  17. Michelle_r

    Michelle_r Junior Member

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    I've been driving on PWR and getting ~58+ Good enough for me. The ECO just feels too sluggish, and I've adjusted to how touchy the PWR first felt.
     
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  18. 'LectroFuel

    'LectroFuel Senior Member

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    Ask Coast Cruiser! He will go on for days about how he loves PWR mode, which is also what RCO thinks.;) I agree with him. PWR mode makes the whole car feel more refined and responsive. If you start to get worse gas mileage in PWR mode, lighten your foot.(y)
    That would drive me crazy if the mode defaulted to Normal!
     
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  19. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

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  20. grape808

    grape808 Active Member

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    I've mostly used Normal. I switched to PWR this past weekend for a brief stretch of freeway that goes steep and where there are a lot of cars struggling at <50 vs cars speeding up to get around them. In my old Kia I would have been one of the cars struggling to be at the speed limit but in the Prius I was one of the cars going 70.

    But coming home I did the return route in Normal and still had no issues passing.
     
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