4th generation coming 2015!

I have sufficient confidence in Toyota to believe that they are closely examining and evaluating every possible consideration. I feel and have so stated, that I think the G3 was a near perfect balance of all options. Think of the top of a "bell curve," when you get to the top, the "curve" becomes flat. Additional improvements are/will be hard to achieve.

Just my opinion.

 

I was just thinking that the weight reduction of the Li-On battery would be sufficient to provide real MPG savings if they kept the same general kWh capacity. Since the plug-in has this technology, they may be testing the waters, so to speak.

 

I see. You're thinking they mainly want to eclipse the mpg rating. Here I was thinking "gosh this darn car needs a completely new look"....like what they accomplished in gen 2 after it morphed into a hatchback. Silly me!
I just naturally presumed it was the plugin version that needed a large improvement on range.

 

In high 30s , low 40s F dry temps near sea level, notice MPGs at 65 mph freeway after 10 miles driving ...

... can't get much over low 40s MPGs.

Would active grill blockers help MPGs at how temps / freeway speeds? Seems too much cold air pours into engine area.

I think Toyota would sell quite a bit more Prius liftbacks (Gen 4) than they currently do if they made the interior much nicer and gave it only 1 or 2 more MPGs.


I sat in BMW 535, Cadillac CTS, XTS, Audi, Accord, new Corolla and more ... then Prius liftback Two at SF Auto Show. Sitting in Prius kinda sucked compared to others and it didn't seem to be getting much attention.

Turns out a nice, high door armrest is what I want in a car to get a solid grip on steering wheel at 9 o'clock. Easy to get in that BMW 5, Cadillac, Accord, etc...

with Prius, made a 4" block of neoprene on door to be able to grip wheel.
It's a small car and I'm 6'2", but seems a bit much doctoring (board for leg, center pad) to get to this point.

 

One of the rumors was that the MPG would be increased. My thought was since the Lithium Ion batteries are lighter, they could improve MPG on the non plug-in Prius.

I'd love to see a new design/look. Nothing wrong with wishful thinking on a range increase for the PHEV either.

 

I'm really hoping the next gen has active grill shutters

 

I've been thinking about grille shutters, and have concluded they would really help cold weather fuel efficiency. When my ICE continues to run at a stop light, it's not because of the SOC in the main battery, it runs to keep the radiator water hot for the cabin heater. The "hit" on conventional engines is not noticed because they run anyway.

Question for those with more knowledge that me: Is a Atkinson cycle engine less efficient at idle than an Otto? Might the Prius engine fuel-air mixture need to be unusually rich because of the engine design. I'm just trying to understand why cold weather inflict such a tremendous "hit" on fuel efficiency???

 

The engine in Prius has been optimized for rapid heat production and its retention. So, what happens after the grille is well accounted for already.

 

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Hi Dianne,

Great to hear from you. Can you say whether the Plugin version will be a completely different looking car to the regular Gen 4? Also can you give a hint as to where the NS4 comes in ?

I am really looking forward to Prius G4 but what I don't want to do is to buy a G4 as soon as it arrives in dealerships only to find an NS4 lookalike being announced a few months later.

 

Atkinson cycle engine is more efficient at idle load than Otto. Therefore, it produces less heat.

However, Prius recycles the exhaust heat (otherwise would've been lost) in order to make up the difference.

Prius would take a "hit" when ICE cannot shutdown to provide cabin heat. Set the temp lower and you should be good.

How low? It depends on the type of driving condition. At high speed continuous cruising, you'll have excess heat. If you drive at lower speed with many stops, you'll need to set the cabin temp lower.

If you have Torque app or SGII, you can monitor the coolant temp and manually "manage" when to pull in cabin heat.

 

And even at that, Prii is still above most others taking a hit from the colder weather.

 

Thank you for the comments above.

Just one explanation: I have no issue with the cabin heat .... more than comfortable. I was only referring to cabin heat with regards to fuel efficiency. For example, pull up to a stop light. The NV battery is more than fully charged, but the ICE is running. Turn the heater fan off, and the ICE stops. Therefore, my conclusion was the ICE ran, not to charge the HV battery, but to provide cabin heat.

If you read back just a bit further, this all came up because of a comment about grille blocking.

 

Yup, that's for heat. If you monitor coolant temp, you can actually tell if your ICE will run to get cabin heat. I can avoid by turning cabin heat until the time I need ICE to accelerate.

The temp set also matters. 70 deg F seems optimal for me.

Also good to point out, PiP keeps the ICE off more aggressively in EV mode. It allows lower coolant temp dip than in HV mode.

 

Nothing is less important to me than the way a car looks.

 

This is exactly why I suggested there should be some sort of a super efficient condensing heat generator (perhaps as an extra option) to suppliment cabin heating. There seem to be several 3rd party devices out there but if the Prius came with its own heating device, I am sure the car will sell even better in cold weather countries.

Have a read through this thread:
Heat Generator | PriusChat

 

PiP prototype had heat pump. It made strange/new noise. It was not included in the production model. Perhaps to reduce cost, weight, benenif did not outweight(?), simplicity, etc.

It makes sense to use the onboard fuel (gas) for heat. Why save it and bring in another heating energy?

 

I'm wondering if we are ready to have our "socks knocked off." (No disrespect to Dianne)

I was reading (as I recall in Motor Trend ) an article about the new Acura hybrid, AWD. The article described how independent electric motors on the rear wheels operated, and the phasing in of the ICE under various conditions. True, the fuel efficiency was no where near that of the Prius, but acceleration, handling, comfort and appearance are all pretty spectacular.

Perhaps, Toyota would be wise to introduce the new "sock removing" model, with the current hybrid system (if it is not ready) in model year 2015, and upgrade the hybrid system when it becomes ready.

I have not heretofore been critical of the distinctive Prius shape and appearance. But it is becoming dated. The competors are all offering tremendously attractive vehicles. 51 EPA MPG packaged in new "sock less" sheet metal might be a smart corporate move.

 

According to Fuelly.com, the best the 2014 Honda Hybrid could achieve is 35 MPG Combined Avg. Thats a lot less than the 47 MPG combined. Sounds like Ford all over again fudging the numbers?

2014 Honda Accord MPG Reports | Fuelly

 

I really hope that the accord hybrid gets great mpg. I think that on fuelly that is someone who picked the wrong engine for their car. I think some of this is because there are so few out on the street. and were not seeing them on fuelly. IMO If honda fails on this car then it will bring doubt of the mainstreem car buying people and their acceptance of hybrid cars. This accord should be a slam dunk. toyota camry and avalon are doing great as hybrid cars. Honda builds great cars, motorcycles, generators ect... I expect that they will not repeat the civic hybrid failure.

 

Too early to judge based on a couple fuelly user reports. codyroo's boss has a 2014 Accord Hybrid and has been getting 50 mpg on long trips and 46 on shorter ones. The one guy on fuelly getting 32 mpg has been in - 17C weather. He's happy with that.