Liftback to C?

I have a C and i love it. its my first prius, it is small and a little underpowered compared to the big brothers, but it does the job, cheaply too. Ive been on 5 hour highway trips and the C performed perfectly fine. You will adjust yourself to the time and power needed to merge on the highway.

 

I actually did the opposite, had a c and "upgraded" to a liftback. I sold my c to my brother, so I still technically have access to it. Here's my experiences with them if you don't mind my "essay". I went to liftback because 2/3rds of my commute to work is on the freeway, and sometimes it was a struggle for my c to keep up with traffic (well, when everyone's going 75-80 mph, it's okay at 55-65).

The c can do freeway just fine, though passing other cars can take a while, especially during an uphill portion. It also likes to whine if you go up a steep incline. If there are wind gusts, you will feel them in the c compared to the liftback, since it's a much lighter vehicle, so more prone to that, but it's also not an everyday occurrence either. Road and wind noise is much more pronounced too, so expect to blast music if you don't want to listen to those noises.

In city driving, the c is fine too, but you'll probably have to step on the pedal a little harder than with the liftback if there are cars behind you and you don't want to tick them off with slow acceleration (if no cars immediately behind you, then go nuts driving slower for better mpg). If you can hit a bunch of green lights, that's really where the c excels, and you can generally get 65-75 mpg easily (in warm weather, drop it by about 10-15 mpg in colder weather) in those speeds if you don't have to do a lot of stop and go.

The c is much more maneuverable as well (well other than the ones that have the 16 inch wheels), so if you have tight roadways, it might be easier to get around with the c. I'm able to do a U-turn in the street in front of my house, whereas with the liftback I have to do a Y-turn.

If you practice "pulse & glide", the c can't do it very well due to it's lighter weight, so the speed drops off rather quickly when coasting compared to the liftback. It's not impossible; just don't expect it to coast as far before you have to hit the gas again.

Trunk space is extremely limited in the c with the back seats up, so keep that in mind if you have a lot of shopping to do that day.

With snow tires my c handled Wisconsin weather and snow just fine. I almost got stuck when I drove through a section of road that had about 5 inches of unplowed snow, but luckily the snow tires managed to grip and got me out of there. While I'm sure you don't see snow regularly in NC, just thought you'd like to know in case you take it up north in the winter for a trip.

Regarding passengers, while it can hold them, the c struggles more due to the extra weight. Kids will probably affect it minimally, but 4-5 adults in the c will cause it to bog down a little, especially when getting on the freeway.

Bottom line, you'll probably be fine with the c if you do a lot of city driving, which is really what it was designed for. Again, it can do freeway, but it will struggle a little bit until you reach cruising speed.

EDIT: Oh yeah, I forgot to add that the c has the eco score "mini-game", where it scores your driving efficiency based on how hard you accelerate/brake. It definitely helped train me in driving the c for better fuel economy, which made getting high mpgs in the liftback a lot easier. Best overall I remember getting was 96 out of 100. Obviously if there's traffic or you're in a rush, you don't have time to "play", but on a quieter section of road it's nice to practice using hybrid driving techniques to help you save gas.

 

i dont think the next gen C will have any power benefits. its still going to be a 1.5 not a 1.8 like the classic. i own 6 and 8 cylinder cars and ive gotten used to the slow acceleration.

 

Stupid question: Was the C you test drove in ECO mode? While you can get the same acceleration in ECO mode as not, it still feels slower.

 

When you say you floored it, did you actually push the pedal as far as it can go, all at once? When I do that, my c accelerates just fine for all but passing quickly at high speeds.

 

I had a 2010 Prius lift back and now have a 2012 Prius C 4 and will soon have a Prius C 4 2014. If you do not need the extra space of the the lift back you will not not regret moving to the Prius C.

 

congrats on the purchase!

 

The first time I test drove the C it was in ECO mode and I was not happy but then my brother noticed the ECO mode on and when I took it out of ECO mode I was happy with the response and after that I was sold

 

Congrats on your purchase!

I have both a C and LB, love em both, but I am glad I get to drive the C as my everyday.

The C actually to me has better acceleration while in EV or Hybrid mode(while warming up)
The C also feels a bit more "in tune" and a bit better handling.

THe LB is a really nice upgrade, but to me always feels sluggish unless in the PWR bar.

Either way, both are great, but glad you like the C as it has its benefits.
And yes, in the summer, 80+ mpg is always available if you try hard.
I can get mid to upper 60's in the C when doing 25 mile trips about 80% of that highway!

I always keep both in eco mode

 

all the best!

 

I went from a 2010 liftback to the 2014 C, and I'm also really happy with my decision. But I've always liked small cars.