Comfort and ACC (DRCC) questions

By ACC you mean automatic cruise control??

When I look at the context pretty sure yeah, but anyways.

Typically you can edit initial post AND the title for a few hours; might prevent head-scratching. Or it might just be me lol.

 

All Gen 4s with DRCC - go to a complete stop when following another vehicle. But need a tap on the lever or accelerator to resume DRCCing.

 

I have a 2017 Four. Regarding the cruise control, it can be a little annoying, especially in city driving or heavy traffic. There are 3 distance settings and figuring out when to use each one requires trial and error based on speed and congestion. Either there can be too much space in front of you and other cars are constantly cutting into that empty space, or if you use the setting that gets you closer to the car in front of you, it is constantly hitting the brakes, and way harder than necessary. When I sense that is about to or is happening, I'll turn off the cc for a few seconds and then re-engage it. Even on the empty highway it can be annoying, as it can be sensitive to picking up trucks that are way in the distance and start slowing you down, or hitting the breaks unnecessarily hard when a car is exiting or slowing down slightly or switching lanes in front of you.

Bottom line, the act of slowing down and speeding up is harsher than necessary, but I use it and I enjoy it and I appreciate it. It takes some getting used to, and I've been in other rental cars that do it better.

As a side note, I'm at 4+ years and about 150k miles, and the car still seems new-ish! No issues to speak of, and the maintenance costs have been lower than any other car I've owned.

 

With DRCC - yes, it's not "self-driving" - but it sure helps. You just need to be aware of what it's up to - like anything on a car. I find that 99% of the time, I can set the distance and speed, get on the motorway - and never have to intervene. The slower and tighter the traffic, the more of an "annoyance saver" it is. Wouldn't be without it.

In comparison, getting into a car with "NORMAL" Cruise Control - feels so antiquated.

 

I also have a 2017 (w/ around 31,000 miles). I use the DRCC anytime I'm on a road where the average speed is 40 mph or better and, in general, think it does a very good job. In regards to the 3 space distances offered I find that the first setting (3 bars) is generally too far away and, as another poster said, allows folks to scoot into that larger open space. I keep it at 2 bars most of the time on the highway. Sometimes it's annoying when it chooses to slow down harder and sooner than I would if I was driving without its assistance.

 

P.S. I find the cloth seats quite comfortable. I'm 6'4'+ and with the seat all the way down and back I have adequate leg room, and plenty of head room. I believe mine is a Two in terms of trim - i.e. not many, but just enough for me, bells and whistles.

 

I’ve had adaptive cruise on four or five cars now. It’s invaluable on road trips, particularly on I-5 where there’s always traffic. That said, for everyday driving, I’ve never found it that useful.

Love blind spot monitoring tho. I always verify for false negatives, but if it says there’s a car next to me, I take it at its wors.

 

ACC has become the acronym since every builder calls it something different.

There are many more hybrids that are more comfortable than the prius. My 2018 II is fairly comfortable but very noisy (older, original tires don't help either) compared to other hybrids I've owned or driven.

If commuting or long drives are common, then adding openpilot is a HUGE benefit. Most newer toyotas qualify.

 

Camry hybrid, Clarity, Pacifica, and C-Max/energi.

It’s easier to say that the Volt is the only one that’s less comfortable (mainly ingress/egress).

 

No, I have the Level II gen 4. Same platform but bare bones to the touring. I have not driven the Prime either, not stocked here. I’d suggest you try carmax or other similar low pressure used car lot and try to drive some back to back. Don’t go on a weekend or otherwise busy time.

GOOD LUCK!

 

I took a Three Touring for a test drive. The Prime is more comfortable to me.