Car has no pickup speed from a stop!

I just picked up my brand new Barcelona Red IV with Nav yesterday. I absolutely LOVE the car and am excited to learn about all the little functions, but there's one thing that is driving me a little crazy...

From a stop, the car has no pickup whatsoever in Eco Mode! At a stop light, everyone else is so far down, while I'm still trying to pick up some speed! Is there any way to make this any better (without having to put it in power mode?)

I love it in power mode, but I'm afraid if I drive with it in that mode all the time, I will get crappy gas mileage!

ADVICE PLEASE!!

Try taking it out of Eco Mode. That doesn't put you in Power Mode. It gives you just the regular driving mode, with which you might prefer the amount of pickup.

I have no problem whatsoever to keep up with traffic in ECO mode, never ever even come close to flooring it. I don't think traffic here is significantly slower than in the US.

When you accelerate, where is the bar on the HSI? In the pwr area? left of the middle, right of the middle? Does it hesitate or does it start moving right away when you press the accelerator?

The power is there when you need it. You don't realize how deeply engrained the habit of holding back is from your previous vehicle. Don't be afraid to push harder on the pedal.
.

Exactly. Want to go faster? That's the pedal on the right. Slower... that's the one on the left. Does not matter what mode you are in - the car goes plenty quick when you step on the right pedal. Not quick enough, just push harder on that happy pedal.

I'm definitely not the world's expert on this, as I drove the car once on a test drive. I read a lot of reviews that said it was slow off the line. But you know what? It was reasonable. Not a rocket, I'll grant you, but reasonable. Like a more expensive car, it was undramatic and quiet, so I got to 50 before I realized!

Yes, you just need to be a bit more aggressive with your gas pedal. I thought the same thing till I got into a situation where I needed to change lanes. I didn't floor it, but I did realize there was a lot more there than I thought!

I haven't found that occasional use of the power mode does a whole lot to your overall mpg. I tend to use it when I am merging onto highways and need more responsiveness. Once I'm in traffic and up to speed, I go back to normal. I think we're averaging 52 mpg right now.

Floor it.

Note that fuel economy is fundamentally inconsistent with high power/performance, so at each moment you must decide whether to be a fuel sipper or a maniac.

All very interesting replies! I didn't realize you could switch out of Eco Mode. When I start the car it's automatically in Eco Mode. I'm guessing to switch out of it you just have to hit Eco Mode again?

That is a great idea. Everyone should know how much power their car has under the hood. You just might need it to merge into traffic or get out of someone's way in a hurry. You can keep it in Eco Mode but floor it going on an entrance ramp to see just how much power you have. There is plenty of power if you know how hard to press on the pedal.

That's correct, just hit ECO mode again (to turn it off once its on). It will be in normal driving mode and won't change modes unless you push a button (EV/ECO/PWR). Congrats on your new Prius!

Thank You!!!

All of the buttons on the dash are so foreign to me right now! I'm really looking forward to learning all about them!

Yup.

It is good to realize that when you floor it, the Prius gives you maximum thrust in all modes (ECO, normal, Power).

yes. if in eco and you want to get to normal mode press eco again

there are four modes

1. eco
2. power
3. EV
4. no mode or normal

ev allows you to stay battery only until you go too fast or accelerate too much - i find it kicks me out too much

pwr combines battery and gas motor to maximize thrust and acceleration

eco dampens the normal response of the "gas pedal" so you have a gentler touch and presumably higher mpgs

normal is normal


many of us here at priuchat, i surmise, spend most of our time in eco mode

i myself find that getting off the line in eco mode up to 15 mphs or so on battery, then switching to power for a controlled yet quick acceleration up to cruising speed, where i switch back to eco mode, is actually good for mileage, as it minimizes the amount of time you are inefficiently accelerating. So long as you don't floor it, which then i presume wastes a lot of gas

I'm confused. Have you tried pushing harder on the gas? Or do you have it all the way to the floor and it still won't go? If so then there might be a problem with your car. It should give you maximum power in any mode, you just have to give it more pedal in eco mode. Much easier than trying to find a button on the dash in my opinion.

G

I understand your concern - but don't despair. I was in your shoes 5 weeks ago - my first Prius here. It took me a while to learn the car and learn how I want it (an me) to perform.

Now I tend to keep it in ECO 95% of the time. And virtually all the time in ECO when up to speed and cruising. I like the fact that the ICE may not be needed and shut down more rapidly - and the AC use is lessened.

I played around with EV - live in a gated community about 1/2 mile from the gates with 25 mph speed limit. It's fun and not too hard to maintain the EV mode. But most times I leave it in ECO and it stays in EV anyway (if battery is charged and ICE is warmed), even past 25mph.

Use Power if needed for entrance ramps or a quicker getaway at intersections / passing. Was very pleasantly surprised that the power is there when needed. As noted, in any mode, when floored all modes operate the same - full throttle and power from the car.

Tend not to use the Normal mode (no buttons pressed). But tried it and find that mode a very happy medium.

So experiment and have fun. Personally I have no problem sacrificing an mpg or two while not being too conservative. Me - a V with 48.6mpg over its 1800 miles so far. Much of that with me "learning".

Congrats on your new ride - you'll continue to love it as you learn.

I tried pushing a little harder, nothing crazy tho. Like someone said before, in my previous car, a little tap went a long way. I guess I'll have to change my way of thinking in this new car!

Not sure from your post if you are actually in ECO mode or just seeing the eco on the HSI display screen. Read this thread for a great understanding of how to use the HSI screen for good mileage, acceleration, etc.

http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii-2010-prius-technical-discussion/66411-hsi-details.html

Bingo. And perhaps along the way we (Prius owners) can help change the way other car drivers who rack-rabbit start off the line think. Or get shot at.

Correct. If there is no green (EV, ECO, PWR) lit up, you are in normal mode. Otherwise, which-ever green mode light is on, is the current mode you are in. There is another ECO light, which appears on the display side when you have the horizontal power-bar displayed. But that ECO light only refers to when you are driving efficiently, not the mode you are in.