Horsepower...Does the Prius have any get-up and go???

Compared to my other cars, the Prius is faster (more throttle response) than our 96 Outback 2.5 Automatic, but not as fast as our 2000 Impreza 2.5 5 speed. Just for fun one night, I "raced" another Impreza from a stop light, and got the jump on him. He was really rowing the gears, but and by the time we reached the speed limit, it was pretty close. The best answer I can give, is that last year I put 25,000 miles on the Prius, and less than 1000 on the Impreza. The Outback is my wife's car and has over 108,000 miles, so the Prius is our trip car. No problem with hills, passing or anything else. Power? not to worry. Just go drive one.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kalicojunction @ Feb 21 2007, 11:44 AM) [snapback]393969[/snapback]</div>

BTW, another benefit i n CA is you will not need to do smog checks on the Prius.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(CapeCodPrius @ Feb 21 2007, 12:00 PM) [snapback]394094[/snapback]</div>

V-4? I've never heard of a V4 engine on a passenger car. They're all inline 4s aka I4 or L4 or flat 4s in a few cars. Popular Science ages ago did an article on the inherent advantages and disadvantages of various engine layouts. I recall that if a V4 existed, it would have horrible vibration characteristics.

Naturally aspirated 4 cylinder engines in current cars range a LOT in horsepower, from say 76 in the Prius to an a respectable 175 hp out of 2.5L 4 in the Nissan Altima to an incredible 237 hp out of a the 2.2L 4 in a Honda S2000. Add forced induction and you get figures like 293 hp out of the turbocharged 2.5L flat 4 in the Subaru WRX STI.

A 4 cylinder Altima would dust a Prius in 0-60 or 1/4 mile race. An S2000 would decimate it.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kalicojunction @ Feb 20 2007, 10:01 PM) [snapback]393734[/snapback]</div>

Would you buy it without test driving it?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cwerdna @ Feb 22 2007, 03:42 AM) [snapback]394416[/snapback]</div>

Saab used to use them back in the 60s/70s, and I'm pretty sure Opel did as well.

http://www.saabnet.com/tsn/models/1967/pr1.html

The V4 was actually a Ford truck engine, that Saab decided to use in their cars. But hey... nobody's ever said Saab does things like everyone else.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Jonnycat26 @ Feb 22 2007, 08:37 AM) [snapback]394550[/snapback]</div>

Lancia (Italy) had a V4 in the 60s. The Saab V4 was from Ford (Germany) as I recall. If you look at the original Mustang mid-engine prototype about '62, it had the Ford/Saab V4 too. I think Yamaha also makes a V5 for motorcycles for something completly different.

 

Ok. I stand corrected on V4 engines. I'd never known of any on passenger cars. Let's just say that they haven't been used on any passenger cars in the last 20 years. Is that accurate? I've only seen almost ALL inline 4s and the few companies that have flat 4s such as Subaru and Porsche.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(cwerdna @ Feb 23 2007, 04:34 AM) [snapback]395072[/snapback]</div>

Probably... unless there's some oddball Fiat or Lancia out there that's flown under the radar.

 

I was driving down the freeway in my 2005 Prius when I saw a Ferrari Enzo rapidly approaching. He pulled up next to me and motioned me to race. I pushed the gas pedal down lightly and was surprised that I quickly was doing 200 MPH and had just beat an Enzo! Seriously, the Prius is a fine car with fine "get up and go" for everyday driving. If you need anything else, buy a Ferrari, Porsche, Aston Martin, etc.

 

Think of the ST1300 as the best of both worlds: a touring machine born of Honda's standard-setting Gold Wing with performance bred from our championship-winning sportbikes. From its smooth, longitudinally mounted V-4, plush suspension and wind-cheating bodywork to its motorized, adjustable windshield and removable luggage, sport-touring just doesn't get any better

http://powersports.honda.com/Motorcycles/T...w=829&h=634


Lots of motorcycles have used V-4 motors.

Harry

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kalicojunction @ Feb 21 2007, 12:01 AM) [snapback]393734[/snapback]</div>

Get one, I picked up mine last night and as a prior posters already stated, I was surpised at the speedo read out when I looked down. I was going 50+ through snowy conditions and it felt great -tracked straight and was speedy. When I test drove it a few days ago, it seemed as though it was a bit weak, but I now realize (after much reading here), that I was babying it and feathering the accelerator - which is not what you want to do if your in search of good milage. I almost bought a new VW Rabbit, which chirped the tires in gears 1 and 2, but again, the Prius really surpised last night, I'm stoked!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kalicojunction @ Feb 20 2007, 09:01 PM) [snapback]393734[/snapback]</div>

You cannot have your cake and eat it too.

That said, the Prius is suprisingly lively. It goes 0-45 extremely quick. The huge torque it has really gets it moving quickly from a standing start.

Freeway performance is decent. Certainly heads and sholders above my Honda CRV that I had. But it is not the best car for freeway passing, or going up hills. You need to buy a car with at least a LARGE V6 if you want great performance in those areas.

I routinely leave other drivers in the dust when I take off at intersections. Merging onto freeways is OK, but nothing spectacular.

Again, though, you cannot have your cake and eat it too. If you want high real performance, you will need to eat your fuel economy.

Lance in Orygun

 

What are the differences between tourning model and base model in terms of "get-up and go", suspension, other performance issues?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(miami @ Feb 26 2007, 03:50 PM) [snapback]396827[/snapback]</div>

I just got my Prius on Jan 20, 2007, and I did a lot of studying before I decided which one to buy. But there are no differences in the Touring Model that will affect the Get Up and Go. Major difference is the HID headlights that are available in non touring, 16 inch wheels and tuned suspension.

I think that tuned suspension just means that they check the springs, and put the ones that are closer to specification in the touring model. The 16 inch wheels look a little better with the beauty rims, but both 15 and 16 inch rims look a lot better if you pull off the beauty rims.

Just my humble opinion though.

I agree that most modern cars have adequate get up and go. Nothing like the Chevy Vega and Ford Pinto of the eary 80s.

I think Kalico needs to let us know when the new purchase is complete.

 

My wife has a black 2006 and I have a white 2005. She says that her black car looks better and is faster.
I told her that it wasn't the car but the driver. I passed a caravan on IH10 west that was doing about 90mph+ up a steep grade and I hit 107 UPHILL. Wow! I'm glad my wife was not with me or I would have sore ribs.
Only in Texas!

 

Curious, what is the curb weight of the Prius?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(josemedina @ Feb 26 2007, 05:23 PM) [snapback]396880[/snapback]</div>

My wife likes to watch my spedometer too. So, before she knew about the KM/Hour mode, I swiched over to it when she wasn't expecting. "Larry, Your going 100?" She didn't know it was about 62 MPH.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(gbae007 @ Feb 26 2007, 03:03 PM) [snapback]396907[/snapback]</div>

Per http://www.toyota.com/prius/specs.html, it's 2932 lbs for the 07. It was 2890 lbs for my 06.

As you can guess, 110 hp for a 2932 lb. car doesn't make for a very good power to weight ratio. My former 02 Maxima was 255 hp 3218 lbs. and my Z is 287 hp 3210 lbs.

 

Depends on your standards. A Maxima and a Z are both performance-oriented. Doesn't mean that you need that much power to get the job done comfortably.

Funny thing is I just realized that the Prius power/weight ratio is almost identical to my first car, which was a 3,067lb Volvo wagon with 114hp at the crank. That car was not fast, and didn't have the high-torque electric motors to help get it going. But it did its job well. In college I made a habit of packing it to the gills and driving through the Berkshires, which posed no problem. Standards were a little different when that car was built...some might argue more reasonable. But, whatever...to each his own. Maybe Toyota will build a new Supra out of the FT-HS for those who want a hybrid that can get from 0-60 in a hurry.