1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Improve braking Score?

Discussion in 'Gen 4 Prius Fuel Economy' started by Michelle_r, Jul 28, 2016.

  1. Michelle_r

    Michelle_r Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 3, 2016
    17
    29
    0
    Location:
    Ca
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    i know that the score doesn't really mean anything, but how do you earn 5 positive bars for breaking??! I can't for the life of me make improvements! I score well in acceleration and coasting but fail miserably at the breaks.

    I generally let off the gas well ahead of a stop and gradually push down to a slow stop. Is this wrong?

    Any tips from the seasoned pros?
     
    #1 Michelle_r, Jul 28, 2016
    chinarut and Coast Cruiser like this.
  2. thunderstruck

    thunderstruck Active Member

    Joined:
    Feb 22, 2016
    154
    151
    1
    Location:
    Port Charlotte, FL
    Vehicle:
    2022 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    I'd pay more attention to MPG than the score. I got 85.7 driving to work the other day, yet it only gave me 76 points. I don't even look at it any more.
     
    #2 thunderstruck, Jul 28, 2016
    chinarut, Ente, Coast Cruiser and 2 others like this.
  3. pakitt

    pakitt Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 10, 2009
    2,173
    1,312
    0
    Location:
    Colorado
    Vehicle:
    2021 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Limited
    I had the same issue (and I drive a Prius since 2009....); another user gave a tip and I experimented and it works: you need to really brake slowly and long. Essentially you push the brake pedal a bit more than regen will already do when releasing the gas pedal, and come to a stop. This is often not possible for a few reasons:
    - sudden braking necessary
    - not enough distance to come to a stop with so little braking
    - you simply forget to do it and break as usual

    Essentially the best braking is very slow, generating low constant currents. Braking with a full CHG area would lead to believe that is something the HSD likes, but clearly from the score one gets when doing that, not really.... :)
     
    #3 pakitt, Jul 28, 2016
    chinarut, CZsp01, Coast Cruiser and 1 other person like this.
  4. thunderstruck

    thunderstruck Active Member

    Joined:
    Feb 22, 2016
    154
    151
    1
    Location:
    Port Charlotte, FL
    Vehicle:
    2022 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    If you go to the topic in this forum "Dashboard setup for economical driving" (sorry, can't post a link for some reason) if you setup your car to use the gauge on the right you can monitor regenerative braking. If it goes below the dotted line you are on friction brakes. It's a fantastic training tool.
     
    #4 thunderstruck, Jul 28, 2016
    chinarut, jbkendrick and Michelle_r like this.
  5. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 12, 2016
    2,267
    2,571
    0
    Location:
    Pacific Coast Highway
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    5 months of driving, and only one time did I get the best braking "score." Like others have said, I don't think it's that important. I get more enjoyment by just driving my Prius like a regular car.
     
    #5 Coast Cruiser, Jul 28, 2016
    pakitt and RoadNoise like this.
  6. RoadNoise

    RoadNoise Active Member

    Joined:
    Jun 8, 2016
    136
    187
    0
    Location:
    Huntsville, AL
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Two Eco
    Generally, the longer you coast before applying gentle brakes, the better the odds of getting a 5 star score.

    Conversely, I live on a hill and never even touch the "go" pedal to get up to speed when leaving the house. Yet, it will never award me with more than a 4 star acceleration score in this circumstance. Go figure.
     
    #6 RoadNoise, Jul 28, 2016
    chinarut, Michelle_r and Coast Cruiser like this.
  7. Michelle_r

    Michelle_r Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 3, 2016
    17
    29
    0
    Location:
    Ca
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    Thanks for the responses. I'll just keep playing with it. I know it totally doesn't matter, but I'm a little competitive and maybe OCD and like to get it "right", darnit!!

    BTW, I also get annoyed when it reprimands me to "maintain speed for better score" - yes, I would love to maintain speed, but when you are driving to work and there are stop lights on your drive, that's not really an option, but thanks for the tip, Prius! lol
     
    #7 Michelle_r, Jul 28, 2016
    RoadNoise and Coast Cruiser like this.
  8. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 12, 2016
    2,267
    2,571
    0
    Location:
    Pacific Coast Highway
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Exactly. I think that "score" thing is somewhat of a gimmick. I think Toyota could have left that out.
     
    #8 Coast Cruiser, Jul 28, 2016
    galownia and Michelle_r like this.
  9. Michelle_r

    Michelle_r Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 3, 2016
    17
    29
    0
    Location:
    Ca
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    Thanks! I was wondering what the dotted line meant..! I haven't read up on it yet, but the blue bar also confuses me..I assume it is some acceleration rating. I suppose I should read more about these things.
     
    #9 Michelle_r, Jul 28, 2016
    chinarut likes this.
  10. Autoist

    Autoist Member

    Joined:
    May 18, 2016
    119
    81
    0
    Location:
    Seattle Metro
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    If you are increasing speed while off the accelerator I believe the car considers this coasting. So you score good/bad is when you are directing acceleration via the pedal... and I think that most of that score is the initial acceleration since the last stop.
     
    #10 Autoist, Jul 28, 2016
  11. RoadNoise

    RoadNoise Active Member

    Joined:
    Jun 8, 2016
    136
    187
    0
    Location:
    Huntsville, AL
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Two Eco
    I'll go with that. Funny how we game this car and try to figure out what makes her tick.
     
    #11 RoadNoise, Jul 29, 2016
    chinarut and Coast Cruiser like this.
  12. galownia

    galownia Previous master neon mechanic

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2009
    117
    73
    0
    Location:
    Minnesota
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Amen - I see no utiliy in the score. My mileage does not correlate at all with score. I bought the car for mileage, not as a gaming system.

    Now - if the score was sophisticated enough to pick out where you could improve mileage, consistently, and overall for your trip, then it could be a useful tool. But as it stands, it appears to be only a gimmick.
     
    #12 galownia, Aug 1, 2016
    chinarut, Coast Cruiser, krmcg and 1 other person like this.
  13. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

    Joined:
    Oct 17, 2010
    56,675
    39,222
    80
    Location:
    Greater Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Touring
    Interesting discussion.
     
    #13 Mendel Leisk, Aug 1, 2016
  14. Michelle_r

    Michelle_r Junior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 3, 2016
    17
    29
    0
    Location:
    Ca
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three Touring
    Had a chance to play more this weekend...and happy to report I finally got 5/5 but not consistently (yet!). The key seemed to be keeping the break measure above that dotted line, gently breaking and then a hard stop at the last second. ?? Seemed to work a few times, anyway.

    However, I did manage this insane trip to the store (lots of red lights!)...and I used up all the battery so the trip home was more average.
     

    Attached Files:

    #14 Michelle_r, Aug 1, 2016
    chinarut and Coast Cruiser like this.
  15. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 12, 2016
    2,267
    2,571
    0
    Location:
    Pacific Coast Highway
    Vehicle:
    2016 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    I know nothing.

    I drive 100% of the time in the PWR mode. ;)

    (61 MPG)
     
    #15 Coast Cruiser, Aug 29, 2016
    chinarut and Dino33ca like this.
  16. pakitt

    pakitt Senior Member

    Joined:
    Aug 10, 2009
    2,173
    1,312
    0
    Location:
    Colorado
    Vehicle:
    2021 Prius Prime
    Model:
    Limited
    About the dotted line, I didn't know that and it is not mentioned in the user's manual. In Gen3 if you were braking more after filling the CHG area, that would mean "friction" braking.
    I have been driving the car now for 6000km // 3700mi and for braking I still don't get it what it wants us to do to give us a 5. Honestly I am not watching it much anymore I am more concerned about overall consumption which is easily around 58MPG, if not more, and on the highways at EU speeds, including traffic jams, and going faster when possible (around 150km/h // 90mph), I get easily 45-48mpg.
     
    #16 pakitt, Aug 29, 2016
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)