Mountain Passes

[Silverback]

haven't done the C with the 2k4 but the 2k3 no problem just drive it normally and it's ok. Mine hill on 3 no problem it'll do 135-140 up there like nothing. Both of them, it's no big deal. Been to Alberta and Sask with them no problem on any pass, Rogers, or Kootani pass nothing but clear sailing, if fact I was passing the ones that thougt 115 was to slow on the Coq and passed me at the bottom. 115 at the top and they were looking at me kinda strange as I was going past them. It's very capable on any road in BC.

Thanks Frank. That's very encouraging. I test drove a 2K4 up a steep stretch of Hwy 33 outside of Kelowna and was amazed at how easily it climbed. My other vehicle is an 03 Tundra and this is a hill that causes this V8 truck to gear down to keep up to 90 kmph. The Prius just flew up that hill. However I was concerned with how it would do on the Connecter and the Coquihalla. The grades there are fairly steep, but it's the length that made me wonder. For those that don't know BC, the Okanagan Connector is the highest pass in BC The altitude gain is over 4000 feet from the bottom of the valley to the top of the pass. The return trip of of course is great for fuel economy!

I've got an 05 Prius on order...I initially had my heart set on a Subaru Forester XT but the more I looked at the gas mileage data on that one, the more my enthusiasm dampened. One gas hog is enough...we'll park the Tundra and drive the Prius unless we really need a truck.

Cheers,
Bill

[Silverback]

I occasionally drive from Reno to Sacramento. I drive I80 over Donner Pass. I set the cruise control and then enjoy the ride...

Wow. At first I thought you were saying you drove 180 km/hr over the Donner Pass. That had me really impressed. Then I put on my glasses... Still, I'm glad to hear that you've found the Prius to be a capable performer in the mountains.

Cheers,
Bill

[ggrimaud]

Wow. At first I thought you were saying you drove 180 km/hr over the Donner Pass.

I should have been more clear. I generally set the CC to 70 MPH (114 KPH). There is plenty of power left so that I could go faster if I wanted to end up at the bottom of a deep gorge! It hadles like a Prius after all.

[Silverback]

No, you were clear enough. I just read the I-80 as 180.
Cheers,
Bill

[bruceha_2000]

I think it depends on the pitch of the hill.

Certainly true. And as Canuck stated, you can jump between B & D as needed. It isn't nearly as gripping a feeling as dropping a gear for the same purpose in a regular automatic or manual tranny. :-) You will love your car!

[metamatic]

I drove through the Blue Ridge Mountains in a Prius fully loaded down with worldly possessions (both rear seats folded down and I could barely see out the back window). Also took the Prius 6000' up the Smoky Mountain range. Still got 45mpg average.

[aforkosh]

I drove a round trip this week over the Sierras between Oakland, CA(100' above sea level) and Reno, NV (4500'). The trip was about 200 miles each way with the peak elevation of 7200' reached about 45 miles west of Reno. I was able to keep the car above 60 mph the whole way. Milelage going to Reno was about 44 mph. The return trip (including 25 miles around Reno at 40 mph--it was rainy and snowy there) came in at 53 mph. Near the summit in each direction, the battery level dropped to 2 bars.

The weather was clear with a headwind going to Reno, while on the return, the mountain section was on recently plowed freeway and through some falling snow (warm enough to liquify immediately on pavement) on the downgrade below 5000' and above 3000'.

Around home, the battery level seems to stay around 6 bars. Around Reno, where the air temperature was 20 to 30 degrees cooler (in the 30s and 40s), the battery level seemed to home at 4 bars.

[Tideland Prius]

Just a thought,

I was going down a moderately long stretch of road downhill and thought I'd engage B to see what it would do. Now I know it simulates engine braking but has anyone noticed that the Prius "jerks" a little? (I guess rock is more appropriate than jerk) It sorta feels like someone is pumping the brake pedal - gently, of course.

[Steve Goldenberg]

I picked up my 2004 #9 in Houston on 12/27/03 and drove 1,000 miles to Denver without any problems. From Denver to Aspen was a different story as there are 2 or 3 long, steep straight mountain passes. It was cold, snowing with at 35 mph headwind. The Prius was fine for the first five minutes of each pass and then on we were on ICE only with lots of traffic. It wasn't fun as we couldn't keep up with traffic. Going down each pass quickly filled the battery but there just wasn't enough capacity to make it up the other side. Other twisty passes are fine because the ICE can generally do 60mph, which is more than necessary on curvy roads. Subsequent similar trips were not quite as bad especially in warm weather, without the snow and snow tires. All in all it's OK for occasional passes but I would use my Subaru if I had to do it regularly in bad weather. This is the only performance issue with this car. Otherwise it's great.