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Help: I love tight handling, wife hates it: compromise?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Accessories and Modifications' started by Daniel M. Ingram, Aug 26, 2014.

  1. Daniel M. Ingram

    Daniel M. Ingram New Member

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    So happy to see that I am not the only one that considers the Prius to have a vague and floaty back end and pretty squishy handling.

    Here's my dilemma: I love really tight handling, and my wife, who often rides along in my car, hates it. My previous car was a Mazda Speed 3, which is one extremely tight and edgy ride, with very low profile sticky tires, 17" wheels, totally flat on corners. I felt totally connected to the road, like I could feel every pebble. The feeling of control was perfect. The sense of engagement with the drive was truly thrilling. I loved everything about that car except that I couldn't coax more than 24 miles per gallon out of it, and my Eco Conscience finally throttled my brain until I sold it and bought my 2011 Prius with the sunroof. My wife, who likes a cushy ride, said the Mazda made her back and neck hurt and she could barely stand to ride in it.

    So, as you might expect, I can't stand the handling of my Prius but very much like the fact that my wife will ride in it without complaining.

    How do I split the difference? In my perfect would, I would put 17" rims and low-profile tires on it and all the stabilizing toys I could, but she would probably hate it like she hated the Mazda. I should also add that to get home I have to cross this very strange bridge with a sharp, angled drop in it that makes it so that I can't lower the car at all, as with 4 people in it it scrapes already.

    Rear stabilizer bar is going to be the first thing I do, as she probably won't notice that, and shock tower stabilizer bar will probably happen also. What next? Money is no object. Any thoughts appreciated. Thanks in advance for any advice.

    PS: If I change out the rims and tires, how would I figure out how to keep the total diameter of different tires the same as the stock ones, such that the odometer and speedometer read accurately?
     
  2. MSA14

    MSA14 Junior Member

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    I would start with larger diameter sway bars first before any chassis braces.

    The need for chassis braces will depend on your choice of tires. R888's would call for braces - that would be a fun autocross prius.

    As long as you keep the factory dampers, you won't affect ride quality much. Going to 17s and changing springs/dampers will have the biggest impact on ride quality (that your wife will notice immediately).
     
  3. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    If money is no object, why not get a beater to play with and just let your CFO drive the G3 without the little-boy-racer mods?
     
  4. Easy Rider 2

    Easy Rider 2 Senior Member

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    Stop right there.
    You automatically lose.
    Haven't been married very long I take it ??? :whistle:

    If you want to drive a "sports car", save your pennies and get one.
    Problem solved.
     
    Mendel Leisk likes this.
  5. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk Senior Member

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    If you've got a level "5", doesn't it come with 215/45R17 tires, stock 17" rims?
     
  6. -1-

    -1- Don

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    :eek:At what speed? No problem with mine as I drive it for max EV and hybrid mileage, using minimal braking.
    :)I've been there with other fast cars. Currently, I drive a Prius Plug In and accept it as a non performance, very fuel efficient mode of transportation. No need to spruce it up performance wise for something it will never be. My short daily commute allows me to maximize the benefits of driving a Prius. Going fast is exciting, going slower is interesting, Just another opinion.
     
  7. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    Yeah.
    That's what I was thinking.

    Spend money on a car that handles like a pig on rollerskates, and you get a car that rides rougher, gets lower gas mileage, handles slightly better than a pig on roller skates....AND a torqued off spouse! ;)

    Find an MX-5 or an S2000 or a Boxter that hasn't been pimped out by a 20-something kid.....

    ....much more fun and a lot cheaper than marriage counseling. :D
     
  8. 2k1Toaster

    2k1Toaster Brand New Prius Batteries

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    +1

    Happy Wife = Happy Life

    I am lucky in that my soon to be loves the ride in the Ferrari 458 Italia and the Lambo LP570 and prefers the Lambo's crazier ride! She's a keeper lol.

    The Prius is very reflective of Toyota's overall line. It feels like you are very distant from the wheels and it is even more pronounced on the Lexus range. I haven't tried the newer Scion, but the old ones were the same old same old.

    I too love a connected car, but really the Prius feels great once you realize that is what it is supposed to do. I have sporty cars to drive sporty and the Prius to drive around talking with people. It is less about the driving and more about the drive. Whereas in the DeLorean we go for a drive with no destination for fun. Different cars required for the different things.

    If you can only do 1 car, then your wife wins, hands down. Only remedy if that is unacceptable is to find a new wife.
     
  9. Accordlayingkit

    Accordlayingkit Senior Member

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    dang man sounds like u got quite a collection... post a few of them at least next to the prius haha
     
  10. The Electric Me

    The Electric Me Go Speed Go!

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    Sorry, I have nothing to add here.

    I only clicked on the thread because in the box on the home page the title was cut off to read....

    "Help: I Love Tight Handling Wife".

    I thought maybe we were going in a unique direction with this thread.
     
    Grren4ever and ftl like this.
  11. JC91006

    JC91006 Senior Member

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    The compromise is easy, follow the US Family courts system. Find a solution that won't make either one of you happy, that would be the compromise. In other words.....leave the car as is.
     
  12. DtEW

    DtEW Active Member

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    Install both front and rear sway bars.

    The combo I am using is the TRD/PLUS rear sway bar + 3rd-gen RAV4 front sway bar.

    The latter is ~1mm thicker than the stock 3rd-gen Prius front sway bar, and is a direct-bolt-on fit. Be sure to pick up the RAV4-bar-specific sway bar bushings as well.

    The reason is that the rear sway bar, although effective in reducing body roll, makes the car artificially tail-loose for its fore-aft weight balance and drive configuration.* It also biases roll control on one end, which you can feel if you hit sway-inducing bumps mid-corner. I've been running the front-rear sway bar setup and there's nothing bad I can say about it whatsoever.

    * - IMO, a FWD car should NOT be tail-happy as a general-purpose setup. For it to be that way means you have to compromise rear grip significantly. Unless your primary goal is to allow the car to change direction quickly, ultimate-grip/trail-braking-stability/cornering-bump-response/general-usability-be-damned... I think it's a bad tune. Worse, considering that the Prius isn't very receptive to steering by throttle input. That said, the most valid usage of that tune I can think of is AutoX, where getting the car pointed in the right direction outweighs most other considerations by a little bit. The worst (but unfortunately, the most common) application of that tune is by kids who inherited their import family sedan/coupe and think they can Band-Aid its inherent, relative performance deficiencies against more-performance-oriented cars.
     
    #12 DtEW, Aug 26, 2014
    Last edited: Aug 26, 2014
  13. s3nfo

    s3nfo Member

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    incremnental. Change one thing at a time until she complains, then back down to the last place she was "uncomplaning". Good compromise, you get "some" (pun intenede), she's still happy with the ride.
     
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  14. Daniel M. Ingram

    Daniel M. Ingram New Member

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    Alright, the Tanabe tower bar and TRD rear sway bar are installed and they definitely make a differnce.

    It took me about two hours per bar and clean up, this going at a steady but not rapid pace. Many thanks to HAWAIIANBUILT for great pictures and instructions, as they made it easier.

    I don't cringe on turns in the same way I did before. The ride is still way too vague for me, so I guess it will be 17in rims and tires next. I do want to try to figure out how to keep as much fuel economy as possible and to keep the same tire diameter. I suspect there are already many threads on this here and will look around for those.

    BTW: I must have a Prius IV, not V, as the tires are 15in.
     
  15. vskid3

    vskid3 Active Member

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    How much air do you have in the tires? Pumping them to 40+PSI would help reduce how much they squish in turns.
     
  16. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    Your wife probably won't like the ride going from 15 to 17 inch rims though. Much shorter sidewall = harsher ride.

    SCH-I535
     
  17. Agent J

    Agent J Hypoliterian

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    as what s3nfo suggested, do it one at a time till the wife notices and complains. Did mine like that and my wife didn't even notice it's already as stiff and as low as i can go. once you have the new wheels and tires, brace, front and rear sway bars, go for an adjustable coilover. But don't lower it and just keep to the softest setting and slowly increase it bit by bit till she starts wondering.
     
  18. Daniel M. Ingram

    Daniel M. Ingram New Member

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    I run about 36psi in the tires. Any safety issues with going to 40?

    Any suggestions for a specific adjustable coilover?

    As to 17in rims and the ride, does anyone split the difference and go to 16's? I don't see them mentioned much. Would it be worth it?
    @Agent J: you appear to have 16in Volk wheels: like em? Was looking at some Volks: who knew that rims could be $1000 a piece? Not me, anyway.

    Thanks for all the advice so far.

    Oh, yes , a BTW. While the MazdaSpeed 3 would go 155mph, I am actually not a super fast driver, and, in fact, generally stick to within 5-7mph of the posted limit. Even at those speeds, my current handling grates upon my nerves. Even at 55mph, the Mazda felt safer to me due to the sense of control, which, while possibly all in my head, was preferable. I can see that based on current mods it is possible to move in that general direction, so will keep going.

    As to married long: 13 years so far...

    It was funny watching myself take the newly modded Prius around well-known corners that I typically tense up on and watched myself tense and then relax when the worst of the back-end crazy and sway didn't happen.

    As to buying an additional sports car car, I could do that, but I have a long commute (about 35-60 minutes each way) and work a lot, so most of my time is going to be in the Prius, as my pesky Eco Conscience just doesn't seem to allow me to consider driving some 25,000 miles each year in some gas-guzzling sports car, much as I might otherwise like to.

    This is actually not rational, as I have concluded that we are basically toast from an eco point of view, and my little contribution to that one way or the other is so tiny as to be of no real consequence, but I appear to be stuck with this irrational desire to try to reduce emissions anyway, and so modding the Prius it is.
     
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  19. KennyGS

    KennyGS Senior Member

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    I have to say that I am really impressed with the handling of my Prius. It's completely stock, and I maintain oem tire pressure. By no means is it considered a performance car, but if you drive your Prius properly it will put a smile on your face.
     
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  20. -1-

    -1- Don

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    :)I agree, and I drive with higher tire pressure. I use minimal braking and cornering is fine. Based on that, I don't see the need for any additional body braces or suspension modifications.
     
    KennyGS likes this.