For owners, how is the power of the V vs

Well then If gas mileage is extremely important then I would not get the V. We are getting 37-43 with it and we have a relatively light foot. If I really concentrate on my driving I can get 43 with the V. Basically I will get 7 mpg better with the standard Prius. I'll get 44 with mindless mpg driving, and 50-53 when I'm trying to get good mileage. Hopefully one day all my driving will be at the high end of the mpg scale without ever thinking about it.

 

We've discussed why we believe the v has worse gas mileage than the regular Prius in another thread. IIRC, we hypothesized that it came down to higher weight, worse aerodynamics and different final drive ratio (so that acceleration isn't too poor w/the extra weight).

 

Mileage effects, take a look at Car and Driver: Mileage? No, it's Your Gallonage that Really Counts | PriusChat

To quote from my sample calculation at Why mileage gets worse in winter | PriusChat

 

The conundrum that is PriusChat.

You'll probably find that the v is sprightly in the city and will keep up with the flow of traffic on the freeway at normal speeds. I personally have my doubts about the available power when it's more fully loaded, especially at higher altitudes, but I don't have that personal experience to share with you.

At higher speeds, horsepower is what makes cars go, especially climbing longer hills and accelerating. This one has 134hp, and it's a fairly large automobile.

It's a tradeoff. It's not a bad vehicle, just know that you're buying something with less performance than most other new cars.

I chose a cheaper, non-hybrid Honda Fit that still gets okay mileage and is more fun to drive, and has a ton of room inside. If you don't need the extra space, I'd definitely go with the GIII Prius, but would consider waiting until that issue with the engine rattling on start-up is solved conclusively.

 

I wouldn't bother waiting. The issue's been a known possible problem since the Gen 3 started shipping in ~May 09. Don't know of anyone who's had any engine problems as a result of the issue other the intermittent, hard to repro but scary sounding rough start after cold soak.

We finally got http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...n-engine-knocking-startup-t-sb-0012-10-a.html after http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...n-engine-knocking-startup-t-sb-0204-11-a.html.

 

That new TSB helps a lot, it's been a while coming but I'm glad they've stepped up.

At this point, I'd wait another six months to a year until (hopefully) all the cars which haven't received this new intake manifold are off the lots, then I'd go ahead with the purchase.

I'm pretty conservative about this stuff; for my driving needs a Prius just doesn't seem to be essential.

 

I don't see is as a big deal. It looks like it's a running production change that's already been applied. I'd presume that any '11s still being produced (?) already have it and that '12 should all have it.

Even then, I still don't see it as a big deal. As I said, anyone who has had their '10 Prius since the 1st day it became available could hit this. Have you seen major problems from it? Have you looked at CR's current reliablity ratings on the Prius?

You want to see some problems? Go peek into cruzetalk.com to get an idea... it's no wonder that both engine configs of the Cruze ended up being dead last in CR's small car reliability ratings. The car's only been in production for the US market since September 2010 and you should see the types and amount of problems some have had.

edit: As a data point (besides what people say here on Priuschat) about the hard to repro intermittent rough engine start after cold soak, I emailed a friend of mine w/2010 Prius bought in ~June 2010 w/both TSBs. He's here on Priuschat but isn't very active here at the moment. He lives in Portland, OR and replied that he hasn't noticed it. I think he parks his car in a garage overnight but I believe he has to park outdoors at work.

As another data point, from http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-iii...ing-startup-t-sb-0012-10-a-3.html#post1450065

Pinto Girl, IMHO, you're making a WAY bigger deal out of the issue than it is. All cars eventually have TSBs issued. All cars have issues where there might not even be a TSB, even if the problem is common. May as well never buy any car then...

 

@cindyh1; Now look what you have done. You have created a fun, informative, and engaging thread, and for that we thank you.

I have now driven more than 1000 miles in my lovely Clear Sky Metallic Prius v 5 w everything, and I have collected some thoughts on the power of Prius v.

On my first hour long drive over hills driving in Eco mode, I remember feeling that it was indeed a little slow to get up to speed. So I was determined to make sure that I could drive up the hill at 75mph as I was used to in my RX 300. I had to keep pressing further on the gas but then everything was rev’ing higher and I was cruising up the hill at my target speed. That was the last time I felt that my Prius v was underpowered or slow to get up to speed. I still drive mostly in Eco mode, but either the car or I have learned how to make the car go the way I want it to. I see that I'm now occasionally going into the red power area on the hybrid system indicator (HSI) and I lose my little green Eco driving indicator light. I remember on my first long drive how easy it was to keep in down in the green area of the HIS. So I’m now thinking that I have learned how to use the gas pedal to my liking, but I’m going to watch my first drive after losing or disconnecting the 12v battery (or full car reset?) to see if it has to re-learn my driving style.

Then I re-discovered the Power mode. I love how you get a whole new car when you press power mode button. The gas pedal is much more sensitive, like the pedal on my Mom’s Audi (I said like, not identical too). Also, you surprisingly can get a “pressed up against the seat” feeling in power mode. I have used it getting on freeways, passing, and accelerating to get out of the way of faster traffic. This mode made me think of the new slogan “The Prius made it fun to drive economically, and the new Prius v makes it fun to drive aggressively.”

Then there is Normal mode where no Eco or Power indicators are lit up. It is good when you don’t want the car to save energy by managing the heat and AC, as it does in Eco mode. I drive Miss Grammy around, and she likes a warm car. So, I drive in Normal mode to heat up the cabin a little faster for Grammy on cold days. After studying Normal mode driving I am extra impressed at how good the Eco mode is at turning off the Engine.


So my final thought to you is; You will learn to get the all the power you want out of the Prius v. The faster you get yours, the quicker you can start having fun driving economically and aggressively in your Prius v. (not at the same time)

 

The 1969 Subaru 360 cost $1346 and had a 2 cylinder, 2 stroke 25 HP engine and weighed 980 pounds. It had a top speed of 56 MPH and did the 1/4 mile in 27.4 seconds at 46 MPH, 28 MPG
March 2012 R&T page 103