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4 days in a gen 4 Taxi

Discussion in 'Gen 4 Prius Main Forum' started by ringomoon, Jul 10, 2016.

  1. ringomoon

    ringomoon New Member

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    I put my new Prius to work on Thursday and here's what think of it.

    My first hybrid. I have drove London taxis and my last cab was a Peugeot 1.6 hdi.

    Very comfortable seat
    Really nice drive
    Sort of relaxing stuck in traffic i work in a very congested city in the UK..bristol
    The fuel economy wow...

    I work early morning till afternoon and I don't stop.i am always moving..I filled up Wednesday Eve.. finished a shift today Sunday and my fuel light came on... so impressed..

    The car drives like a saloon. Quick of the mark in eco mode... I am constantly stuck in traffic..with a mixture of motorway.. A roads thrown in...

    uploadfromtaptalk1468169684596.jpeg

    Avg mpg 70 .. and I am not being too careful.. that's a pic of my first 4 days

    One thing happened today though.. I was on a run and my battery was full.. and I was letting of the gas and it wasn't dipping in EV mode.. I changed into normal mode.. and Ev started working again.. changed back into eco.. and all was good.. any thoughts on this..

    I have had into EV at 72mph.. by dipping the gas..
     
    #1 ringomoon, Jul 10, 2016
    Last edited: Jul 10, 2016
  2. css28

    css28 Senior Member

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    Very nice.

    That converts to 58.8 US mpg.

    Hybrid ownership certainly removes a lot of stress from traffic jams.
     
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  3. pakitt

    pakitt Senior Member

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    That's 70mpg imperial Right?
    That's an astounding 4L/100km then!
     
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  4. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    wow, congrats and thanks for the write up. looking forward to ongoing reports!(y)
     
  5. css28

    css28 Senior Member

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    I just noticed that Toyota mirror images the "gear selector" pattern for RHD!

    I would have had an easier time shifting our rental Citröen if they had done that for their five speed.
     
  6. ringomoon

    ringomoon New Member

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    Not sure on the conversion.
    Here in the UK fuel is £1.09 a litre
    Full tank £40
    Over 4 days 550miles.. and thats me flying about a lot.. as I am all over my city and out skirts..
     
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  7. ringomoon

    ringomoon New Member

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    And just to it add.. it is comfortable to drive/work in as I managed to do a 10 hour shift in it.. I didn't want to stop.. my last car was way to much hard work even though it was a semi auto.. safety sense has popped up twice. I don't no why.. just the issue when it wouldn't dipp back in to EV.. like the hybrid system stop.. I have noticed it has done this twice?
     
  8. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    We have another Prius taxi driver, @GrumpyCabbie up in Harrogate. He drives a Gen 3.

    I wouldn't worry too much about the engine idle. HSD will take care of itself. It's possible it's trying to bleed off excess battery charge (for life longevity). I know on the Gen 2 and Gen 3, after a long (or sharp) hill descent, the car will idle at a higher rpm at the bottom of the hill if I were stopped at a traffic light.
     
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  9. ringomoon

    ringomoon New Member

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    Arr OK excessive battery charge.. the 2 occasions it did happen when I was 60 mph/hills for quite a period of time..
     
  10. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    60mph... A long stretch of descent? It shouldn't top up that easily if it's a gentle slope.
     
  11. ringomoon

    ringomoon New Member

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    More 60mph stretch for a long period.. in and around city never done it..
     
  12. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Ohh ok. Usually on the motorway, the battery charge doesn't change and it's fairly steady at 6 (out of 8) bars.
     
  13. Coast Cruiser

    Coast Cruiser Senior Member

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    How do passengers fit in the back seat of a Prius Taxi?? Do you slide both front seats forward? It is very small back there.

    Impossible in my car.
     
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  14. krmcg

    krmcg Lowered Blizzard Pearl Beauty

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    Smallish passengers.
     
  15. alanclarkeau

    alanclarkeau Senior Member

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    Congratulations, lots of Prius TAXIs here.

    I've wondered a few times too - when I thought it would go to EV with a near full battery - but the manual suggests that the hybrid system knows what it's doing and won't always use EV when we think it should.

    Could it be the ClimateControl intervening? Yesterday morning, was 15 deg, I had climate on 21 from the day before, I suspect it was using the ICE to heat the car - when I turned the fan off, then it soon jumped into EV mode.

    It also doesn't seem as inclined to go into EV using Dynamic RADAR Cruise Control than driving it myself with a bit of pulse&glide action (which I'm still working on).
     
  16. pakitt

    pakitt Senior Member

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    When the battery is full, the system knows what to do - stop fretting about it.
    It will use ICE engine braking or whatever else it is up the sleeves of the HSD. Just drive it.
     
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  17. GrumpyCabbie

    GrumpyCabbie Senior Member

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    I did :)

    I quit the taxi game about 4 years ago now, though I understand my old Prius is a taxi elsewhere. The Prius is an ideal taxi, though not sure about the new one as it's a bit low in the back. The Auris Wagon HSD is popular as a cab round these parts now, and there are a lot of gen3's as taxi's about.

    I also had a 1.6hdi Peugeot as a taxi before and going from that to a smooth hybrid was a pleasure. I wish the OP well. They've chosen well and the car will last them and the dealer and Toyota should look after them like they looked after me. Just ensure the correct oils are used (is that still an issue in the gen4?) and lrr A or B rated tyres too, otherwise you will kill the economy.

    Other than an inverter, steering rack and egr issue (known issues with early gen3's), the Prius was a hardy vehicle and lasted well. Small things like door hinges and check straps last, as did the rear suspension and bushes. All important stuff in the UK taxi world with pot holes and innumerable speed bumps. Oh, I found using Shell V-Power helped - not with any performance, but purely in keeping the egr and injectors clean. The on off on off of a hybrid in slow UK traffic clogged mine up using Asda petrol, but no issues with the V-Power. The extra cost barely made a dent due the economy. (note to OP - the US have different ocane grades).

    The UK will be trying to kill off diesel cars so the OP has chosen well. Good luck and many many happy miles ahead. (y)
     
  18. raspy

    raspy Senior Member

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    That's very interesting to read about the Shell V-Power recommendation.
     
  19. GrumpyCabbie

    GrumpyCabbie Senior Member

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    I'm sure any good quality branded petrol will be fine, but I chose the V-Power because, well because there's a Shell station about a mile away and the car ran smoother on it. I ended up with a £500 repair (plus time off the road) because of gummed up egr valve n pipes using cheap petrol. As you know, taxi work hammers a car emissions system (diesel and petrol) and the on off on off nature of the hybrid didn't help. There were never any issues after the use of V-Power. Coincidence? Who knows, but the slight price increase was good insurance and peace of mind to me.

    I'm sure those who use their hybrids on longer runs won't have any issues on any old petrol, but heavy town taxi use is a different kettle of fish.
     
  20. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Here in North America, we have something called "Top Tier" fuels. Most major brands are on that list.

    Retailers

    Basically it's just the supermarket brands that aren't on that list. It's to separate the better fuels from those that just barely meet the minimum requirements set by the EPA.
     
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