BT Tech Plate on Touring Edition: Ride Quality?

[Videolarry]

I think I've read most of the posts regarding the BT Tech Plate, but couldn't find specifically what people think of the ride quality if they have the 2007 Touring Edition. I have the tire pressure at 37 front, 35 rear on my TE, and find the ride quality a bit hard / harsh as it is. I don't have any issues with the handling as it is now. But I'm wondering if the plate on a TE somehow makes the ride not as harsh (due to additional stiffening of the chassis or any number of other things I don't know about). Also: road noise - is road noise increased / decreased / the same as a result of using the plate? Again, these questions are specifically for the Touring Edition. Many thanks in advance for insights and experience...

[Presto]

Bracing should not affect ride quality in regards to the harshness, unless the chassis is so flimsy that it plays a large part in absorbing shock. Ride quality is significantly affected by tires (inflation pressure, sidewall height, etc...), and suspension (springs, shocks).

[BT Tech]

Hello and welcom to PC!! We have sold a large number of BT Tech plates to 2007 Touring owners so I am sure that some will reply to this thread and give you their un-biased feedback.




<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(marshallmedia @ Sep 2 2007, 01:04 PM) [snapback]505891[/snapback]</div>

I think I've read most of the posts regarding the BT Tech Plate, but couldn't find specifically what people think of the ride quality if they have the 2007 Touring Edition. I have the tire pressure at 37 front, 35 rear on my TE, and find the ride quality a bit hard / harsh as it is. I don't have any issues with the handling as it is now. But I'm wondering if the plate on a TE somehow makes the ride not as harsh (due to additional stiffening of the chassis or any number of other things I don't know about). Also: road noise - is road noise increased / decreased / the same as a result of using the plate? Again, these questions are specifically for the Touring Edition. Many thanks in advance for insights and experience...
[/b]

[FloridaWen]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(BT Tech @ Sep 4 2007, 12:29 AM) [snapback]506621[/snapback]</div>

Hello and welcom to PC!! We have sold a large number of BT Tech plates to 2007 Touring owners so I am sure that some will reply to this thread and give you their un-biased feedback.
[/b]

My Wife and I own a new 2007 Prius Touring that was "swaying" from it's lane on the interstate (I-4) during HEAVY winds. This was when she was driving it at 65 MPH (Speed limit is 70) so she just slowed down every time it was windy and "creeped" at 55 in the third (right) lane. That was until we purchased and I installed the BT PLATE. It didn't make the Prius Touring ride any "harsher" or stiffer, but it stops the twisting of the body, especially in the "squirrely" rear and makes for a more positive and straight tracking ride, and once again we can drive on the windy Interstate at 65-70 MPH. It's NOT like spending hundreds of dollars adding unnecessary anti-sway suspension bars, which some go to extremes and do, but it is an easy ten minute installation and, in my opinion, worth the money spent on the BT PLATE in the added safety and overall more positive feeling you get with your Prius, either Touring or regular model, after proper installation.

[Videolarry]

Thanks, FloridaWen. I often find myself "correcting" the Prius when driving at highway speeds (70-75), even if there are no high winds. It seems to track OK for the most part, but I'm often doing little "corrections" to keep it in a straight line. My previous vehicle seemed to just do its job and travel straight with little input. Interesting outcome of adding the BT Plate.

So, you didn't notice any additional stiffness or harshness to the ride. What about cabin noise? Do bumps, road seams, pavement strips, etc., "ker-thump" and "ker-chunk" any louder? What about general interior noise in the cabin?

Thanks again!

p.s. - I thought I had entered this topic in the original BT Tech forum in Prius Mods... I know y'all are trying to crack 1,000 posts, but I guess I started a new one inadvertently...

[FloridaWen]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(marshallmedia @ Sep 5 2007, 11:28 AM) [snapback]507319[/snapback]</div>

Thanks, FloridaWen. I often find myself "correcting" the Prius when driving at highway speeds (70-75), even if there are no high winds. It seems to track OK for the most part, but I'm often doing little "corrections" to keep it in a straight line. My previous vehicle seemed to just do its job and travel straight with little input. Interesting outcome of adding the BT Plate.

So, you didn't notice any additional stiffness or harshness to the ride. What about cabin noise? Do bumps, road seams, pavement strips, etc., "ker-thump" and "ker-chunk" any louder? What about general interior noise in the cabin?

Thanks again!

p.s. - I thought I had entered this topic in the original BT Tech forum in Prius Mods... I know y'all are trying to crack 1,000 posts, but I guess I started a new one inadvertently...
[/b]

My WIFE drives the new Prius Touring 99.9% of the time. She used to drive a powerful, AWD, Acura MDX with fantastic tires on it (which we traded-in for the Prius). The first couple of weeks of her driving the Prius on the Interstate highway (I-4) even on non-windy days, took a lot of getting used to the "very sensitive Prius steering".... then the heavy crosswinds came and blew her around a bit and she tried to "overcompensate" which in turn made the situation worse. Once I installed the BT PLATE about a month after we purchased the Prius, she also "learned" how to "control" the steering better, but the BT Plate indeed helped "calm down the twitchiness" of the rear of the Prius, even around sharp on-off ramps that without the plate used to make her feel uneasy.
The "Touring" model is not for all.... many complain of it's "suspension harshness" due to stiffer springs and lower profile, stiffer sidewall tires. I think the stats. are one in ten Prius sold is Touring or something like that. We have always had vehicles with "sport suspensions" which take the bumps a little bit harsher than a soft, mushy "regular" suspension and have NO regrets we purchased the Touring instead of base model Prius.