unresolved traction control question...

I had an 04 and now drive an 09. I see an improvement in the traction control with the 09. The real key to driving the Prius in snow is to have the proper tires. In Vermont you will definitely need good snows. The OEM Goodyear Integrity tires are not suitable for snow. Some will argue that the Integrity is not good for anything.

 

Traction control was improved somewhere between the 2004 and 2006 model years. It's improved, but the Prius is not a Jeep. If you have those sort of conditions, consider a Subaru. Some Prius drivers in your situation drive a winter truck, and save the Prius for the rest of the year.

Tom

 

I live in Calgary and we have a lot of snow and ice on the roads and the winter lasts 6 months. I was very concerned about traction control system for the same reasons you are but after this winter I have 110% confidence in this system on my 2008 Prius. With a set of very good winter tires (non-studded!) I had no problems through the entire winter whatsoever. Not even once. One particular episode was when I went to the country side after a large wet snowfall and had to drive through very heavy and mushy snow mess appx one foot thick. At some point I thought I would had to stop and start moving car back and forth to get through but I never had to do this. This is when I experienced traction control fully working, slowing the rotation and picking up again but never completely stopping. I would not be able to do it better on a car without this system. And I never had problems on the icy roads either, even going uphill. I am changing to good summer tires now and I am sure I will never experience those "stopping when trying to pull out on a slippery surface" episodes again (I did have couple last summer on the stock tires so I know how dangerous it might be).

So, the bottom line, as many others pointed in previous posts, the problem is not in the traction system, it is in the tires. With the stock tires (I think it's Integrity), you may still experience this problem even on 2009 Prius. Change the tires, and you will be looking for the icy spots in winter as a piglet for the mud.

 

Does the Civic get you through the snow? If you do okay with the Civic, you will be fine with a Prius. Our 2006 Prius, with good tires, does as well as any front wheel drive. As I said before, it's not a Jeep. You can't wade trough deep snow like you can with a big truck, but it does very well. Our model has VSC, and with that it is the most stable winter car I have ever driven. It tracks straight down the road regardless of conditions. You have to remind yourself that the roads are slippery.

If the Civic works for you, the Prius will too.

Tom

 

We are in central Vermont and have a 2008. Two winters and no trouble for us. The first winter we used the OEM tires and used the Subaru on the bad days.

This year we put non-studded snow tires on the Prius and had no trouble. There are some scary hills around that I have avoided on the worst days. The Subaru is the choice for those conditions.

This year we added a pug in heated seat cushion to the Prius. That was a nice $15 upgrade

 

Same here

One winter with X-ice 2 winter tires (non-Studded) and no problem.
Still no 4x4, but about as good as average FWD cars with winter tires.
On my 2008 Prius, keeping the gas pressed will pulse-spin the tires, eventually getting the car out.

We haven't done formal stats, but those that refuse to fit winter tires on are usually the ones bringing the controversy on.
I've personally never kept all-season tires on in a winter. Actually it's now a law in our province (Quebec)... winter tires are mandatory during the winter. There are similar laws in Scandinavia (Norway, Sweden and Finland).

Don't want to hijack the thread, but I'm surprised you're going for a 2009... I don't think I'd be able to resist waiting a few weeks to get a 2010. Is there a big rebate incentive?

 

I have a new 09 and had my first snow experience some time ago.

We had a heavy wet snow of at least a foot deep and more in places. I had to go pick up the grand kids that live on dirt roads in a hilly area. No one had been on these roads yet, since the snow, as it was early Saturday morning. No tracks to follow, just fresh white blinding snow!

I could not tell where the road was in most spots, just trying to gauge where the ditches should be from the telephone poles etc.

So here I am brand new car, not used to how it handles and figuring I am in for more than the car or I can handle. I was scared and I am a pro driver making my living driving tractor trailers.

The Prius as you know,sits quite low. At one time I hit a dip in the road and the snow came flying up over the hood!! I was going slow, about 10 to 15 at the most. I am thinking I need to find a farmer close by to get help as I doubt this little car is going to stay on the road, or will get stuck, like a stick in the mud.

Well to my surprise this little car never slipped a wheel in the deep snow. Going up hils and down on rutty narrow roads. Fantastic!! I was impressed with my new toy!

When I got back out to the main highway, I had to enter where I could not see over a hill and needed to accelerate rapidly to gain speed to avoid getting rear ended.
The road here was snow and ice covered, but had been plowed.
I tromped the pedal and the VSC light came on with the slippery road icon, I felt the tires trying to spin and the vsc controlling that spin.
The car stayed in a straight line, I still accelerated quickly, and I was on my way back to metro roads.

Overall, just very impressed with the handling of the Prius, especially in conditions where I was bumper deep in snow!

This I did with the stock Integrity tires, the car had less than 1000 miles and I was upset that I had decided to make this trip after getting out that day.

You sound like you have a lot of good common sense and respect for slick roads, and I don't think you will have any trouble with the Prius traction control.

 

Hey skoula, why don't you go rent a 2009 and give it a try? Cheap dollars to provide an answer to a potentially expensive question.