Won't coast on battery

When you said "still on flat surface" (0:44), you are going slightly uphill. See the noise panels uneven alignment.
When you said "it won't coast" I don't think anyone assumed you were going hwy speeds in hilly environment.

 

when you take the test drives, make sure both cars are completely warmed up. set the trip meter, take the same route and compare mpg's. is this the dealer you bought the car from?

 

well, they should make it right, whatever it takes. did you get your '09 from them as well? dealers shouldn't be selling cars and washing their hands of them.

 

that's interesting stuff, considering the thread, 'just had my inverter recall done and lost 8 mpg'. all the best!

 

Your Gen2 experience works against you. The concepts are still the same but the application is different. Tires need to be at max sidewall pressure for best fuel economy.

It sounds like you have soft tires that are not LRR. LRR make a world of difference. On OEM tires my 2010 would accelerate down mountains. On the replacements it decelerates on some.

46.4mpg indicated is low. I'd expect high 40's actual, say 52-53mpg indicated.

 

I am having a very similar problem car feels like im dragging an anchor
tires are at 51 psi

have you checked the alignment? the wheel not being straight is catching

 

Your symptoms sound like you have a transmission that has been damaged by running low on fluid.
ThiDs myay sound

 

The lemon law applies to a used car? I think they were just tired of you going there LOL. I'll bet tomorrow that car is on their lot again, all shiny and ready for the next sucker.....I mean owner.

 

I think your problem was the brake pressure accumulator recall. It was probably not done right. Anyways, that car is long gone.

 

Coasting was once called, (in less politically-correct days) "Mexican cruise-control." I agree, it gives the illusion of getting something-for-nothing, and in the case of a conventional car, it can save a bit of fuel due to the elimination of engine-braking, which is really just converting your forward speed to engine-drag.

The Prius is designed to reclaim much of that energy through regeneration. This is observable as apparent light-braking (In the Gen III at least) when you let off the accelerator pedal. I find that this drag is desirable when descending moderate hills, as it keeps the car from speeding up to too much in most cases, and it also provides some stored energy for the traction battery.

Coasting in neutral with a Prius makes no sense for several reasons. Firstly, there's nothing gained; the fuel economy won't go up, because the regeneration opportunity is lost, and because coasting doesn't eliminate any potential engine-drag, because there is none. Secondly, there is no actual "neutral" in the Prius drive-train. The engine is permanently connected to the wheels, with no means to disengage it; there is no clutch, no torque-converter or any other way to disconnect them. For the car to appear to be coasting in neutral, the electric traction motor must run in reverse, in direct proportion to the difference in speed between the wheels and the gasoline engine. So, if the gas engine is stopped, and the vehicle is "coasting" at 30 mph, the electric motor must run in reverse at the exact speed required to keep the gas engine stopped. If the gas engine is running, the speed of the electric motor changes to compensate. It's just simple computer-programming; to give the illusion of the "N" position on the shift-lever of a conventional car.

 

Except that coasting is more efficient than regen. If you need to slow down, regen is much better than friction brakes. Regen is not more efficient than coasting with the kinetic energy of the car, even considering the energy required for the transmission to coast.

 

You're saying it, but I'm just not believing it.

 

Look up the articles about getting insane mileage in a Prius (or really any car, just most don't have regen as an option). The most efficient way to drive is pulse and glide with 100% coasting. Not steady speed, not pulse and regen. Regen adds more energy conversions, with each building on the inefficiencies of the last. Regen is only useful for when you would otherwise be using the brakes.

 

The laws of thermodynamics don't need you to believe in them, they'll be true either way.