PriusChat's 2012 Prius v In-Depth Review and First Drive

2012 Toyota Prius V Full Test and Video

 

Wonderful review. However if Toyota wants to compete with other SUVs, they will have to add AWD or 4-wheel drive. We love our 3rd generation Prius, but for winter we bought a (2010) Subaru Outback with AWD and greater ground clearance. The mileage isn't as good as on our Prius, but it is consistently over 30 mpg.

 

wonderful and amazing post...so great the new Prius 2012...i look for it some other time!

 

I also had a 2005 and now a 2010.
The question about the plugin.

Assuming a fully charged battery and starting on a cold morning, and going on a 4 mile trip.
When does the EV mode start?
Now the 2010 needs a certain amount of running time before EV.

Thanks

 

this is all great news!! thanks so much for the review

 

Delivered today.

First results were very impressive. Ran a 148 Km/92 mile tour with a nice mix of about 70% country, 30% city and both flat land and hills, some use of power mode but mostly on ECO, with no hypermiling. This clocked in at 4.1 l/100Km or about 68.9 mpg (CDN) or 57.4 (US). I am a former 2010 Prius owner, and this car seems to deliver great mileage and a lot more for an even lower list price! Amazing. I'll do a more thorough review on YouTube in a few days.

 

Agreed, the 2012 PriusV fits a variety of lifestyles and objectives. The interior is vastly improved over any Prius I seen...much larger, more comfortable seating and yes..a whole lot more cargo space.

 

2012 Prius V compared to 2010 Prius Hatchback - Owner Review

I have posted an extended review and comparison on YouTube. It's over 20 minutes long, so settle in with the beverage of your choice.

 

Re: 2012 Prius V compared to 2010 Prius Hatchback - Owner Review

Thanks!!!! Excellent comparison and overview. Appreciate your efforts. I think you know more than my salesman!!

I test drove a v yesterday and am now negotiating. Hope to be an owner soon. Thanks again!! :rockon: :cheer2: :rockon:

 

Thanks for taking the time to go in depth for us curious newbies to the Prius. You saved me gas and time (dealer is a half hour away). Initially, I was thinking the V without the AT, but maybe the II will be good enough...I'm going to check it out in person soon :thumb:

 

Thanks, Tideland. If they have been standard in the US since 2004, then they should be standard up here as well, but I can't say that I ever saw them work on my 2010 hatchback. Maybe I just didn't notice the effect. Still a great idea.

I do find that there are some differences in the CDN and US models. Driving as slow as I can, I still can't hear anything like the system you have down there for warning pedestrians about the approaching vehicle, and it is not listed in the specs up here either.

The trim levels also seem to be country specific. Up here, the navigation system is standard for all but the base model.

- Bob

Bob

 

Thanks for posting the ground clearance. Looks like the Prius v has more than my Gen II? I'm still looking for a way to raise mine.

Re: fuel prices, biodiesel has actually been cheaper than diesel off and on, and is cleaner in many ways than diesel. I ran a VW TDI on 100% biodiesel for 5 years on Oregon, where it doesn't get too cold.

Re: mpg, who buys a Jetta TDI with automatic if they want high mpg's? There are Jetta drivers getting 45 mpg with a manual trans, and a simpler system. HOWEVER, they don't have the reliability that Toyota does... speaking from experience.

 

Yup, Prius v wagon has higher ground clearance than GenII Prius.

Modern (cleaner) Diesels cannot use bio-diesel. I believe VW allows only 5% without voiding warranty. Keep in mind that modern Diesel exhaust system also require maintenance.

 

Reply to Venzoid

Hi Jeff,

Thanks for your email.

You have raised two good questions, so I hope you won't mind if I answer you both here and on the forums.

"Are you noticing fuel consumption differences between the two Prius's (2010 Prius hatchback and 2012 Prius V)"

Yes, there is definitely a difference in the gas consumption, but that is really to be expected given the fact that you are driving a car that is bigger and heavier than the hatchback. If you are looking for the ultimate in gas mileage, it would be really hard to beat the third generation Prius hatchback.

The question then becomes "how much of a difference" and I think the mileage ratings of about an additional .4 l per 100 Km (about 50 cents per 100 Km) seems to be about right. I have done some hypermiling, noted below, but that is not the way we actually use cars on a regular basis. For me, regular use of the 2010 Prius with about 80% highway mileage and about 20% city resulted in mileage of about 4.5 l per 100 Km, and, after about 1200 Km on the Prius V, I am averaging 4.8 Km. The additional gas seems like a good trade off to me considering the additional utility of the Prius V.

"How did you achieve the 2.8 Km/ 100 Km?

I mentioned this in the video, in which I compared my first impressions of the Prius V, as the best mileage I had ever achieved in the 2010 Prius hatchback while hypermiling. It's a little over 100 mpg per Imperial gallon or about 84 miles per US gallon. This is far from the the best hypermileage results for the 2010 Prius, and you can find better examples and information on hypermiling by searching "hypermiling" online. It's not regular driving, it's just a way to see how well the car can do under optimal conditions.

Before answering your email, I went out today to see what I could do with the Prius V in terms of hypermiling, but late November is not the best time of year in Canada to do that. The EV mode simply does not kick in for several Km's in cold weather (even though this has been optimized in the "V") and the EV mode is key to hypermiling. There is also some loss in running the heater. Even so, I was able to get 3.5 l/100 Km on a test run from starting point back to starting point over some very hilly terrain. That's about 80.7 mpg Imperial or 67.2 mpg US.

As I said, there are lots of good guides out there is you want to try hypermiling, but I think the more important part of that knowledge is really about how to use the techniques to increase gas economy in regular driving. Here's a list of best practices:

- within existing speed limits, try accelerating as you go downhill to gain enough momentum to carry you up the next hill, and ease off on the gas as you go up the hill. One great analogy is to drive your car like you would if you were riding a bike
- use EV as long as you can when pulling away from a start, given the traffic
- look ahead and glide into a braking situation. You will never get as much energy back from braking as you use in getting going again
- Pulse and Glide. Pulse to gain speed (but not into the "Power" zone), then feather back on the gas to glide, and repeat ...
- when you are gliding, if it is more advantageous to glide than charge the battery, you will need to touch the gas just lightly so that the charging does not activate

Just a few ideas. I may do a video on this if I get a chance before putting on the snow tires (which will also have an effect on mileage).

- Bob

 

Great post, Bob! I also liked your video a lot.
Question: what is better for gasmilage when you approach a red stopping light? Just release the gaspedal? Or touch the brakes a little to charge your battery? In non hybrid cars the first option is the best, but now i am trying to become a real Priusman....