Just picked up a 2013 v and put a couple hundred highway miles on it. It is a little smoother than my Gen II, but I think that is due to larger wheels and more weight. Why did they bother making this technology when they put in the most basic suspension? A small improvement to the suspension would have done much better Edit: This is the feature I'm referring to: http://pressroom.toyota.com/releases/prius v expands toyota hybrid family.htm, and scroll down to "Pitch and Bounce Control; Better Ride, Better Handling" (thanks cwerdna for link)
Replace the OE tire with something geared more towards comfort when the time comes. A lot of the current OE Prii tires are pretty rough.
See Toyota | Prius v Expands Iconic Hybrid 'Family' of Vehicles under Pitch and Bounce Control; Better Ride, Better Handling. 2012 Toyota Prius V Road Test says "the wagon's ride quality is consistently smooth, with none of the occasional busyness that you can experience when piloting the sedan."
Yes, this exactly. And exactly *not* this. To clarify, I am driving in South Florida on a few different interstates in different stages of construction. In comparison to my 2006 Prius, the road "pitch and bounce" is only slightly improved. But I would expect that from a larger, heavier vehicle anyway. Does anyone know whether putting in aftermarket shocks or braces will screw up the "pitch and bounce control" system? Or would it improve it even more?
There are no aftermarket struts that are different than OEM. Braces will likely only make the problem worse. I suggest playing with tire pressure or get new tires.
Better tires would definitely help over rough or scraped pavement, but I'm not sure tires would make much of a difference when it comes to sudden dips or unevenness in the road. Isn't that what the dip/pitch correction is designed for?
In the first sentence above, you used the word, "system". If indeed it is a system, changing part of it is probably a shot in the dark. It's your car, so the choice is yours. Of course, if you're an engineer, you may have a better chance than some to improve on what toyota has designed. Many people choose to "mod" their cars with varying results. Let us know how it works.
Toyota doesn't really go into details on how exactly this works, but their summary is: To me that's pretty vague... no idea if this "system" is a computer that's pre-programmed with the factory variables, like wheel size and components. Or, maybe it uses accelerometers or gyros and adjusts based on those readings?
Gotcha. I thought you were focusing mostly on ride comfort. Sudden uneven surfaces won't be helped by tires but it could make the transition more comfortable.
