How does Prius compare to conventional cars in driving dynamics?

It 'feels' a bit different.
Acceleration is unusual...it starts moving quite responsively upon depressing the accelerator...but since it's under electric power only for that first second there's no ICE sound so it's a little unnerving initially. But when you look to the side you'll see that you got off the line faster than the conventional cars. Once the ICE spins up it feels quite normal....except that there's no shifting. I remember that being a little weird at first...now I HATE when cars shift gears...that smooth seamless acceleration is just sweet and nice.

Under hard acceleration and hill climbing you'll hear a bit higher rpm and ICE noise than one typically does with a conv. vehicle, but once you get used to it you realize it's normal and that that's just how the car is designed.

Braking is generally pretty normal, IMO. I think the Prius rates a little below average for the class for stopping distance (ie longer stopping distances than average), but it's still decent. Also the sensitive foot can feel the change over from regenerative braking to friction braking that occurs at 7mph and that can feel a bit odd and it can even feel like they give away completely if you've got a really light foot.

Most people feel the handling is not great, I find it to be pretty average...a bit more body roll than I'd like. The BT stiffening plate helped that some and there are other aftermarket products that are available. But I rarely drive aggressively any more so it's not worth the money for that stuff to me.

Does that answer most of your concerns? BTW, Toyota and several nationwide car rental places now rent the Prius...you could rent one for a weekend and take it through its paces to see if it will suit you.

 

Oh no, you'll never feel for a lack of power under those conditions...it'll pull steep tough mountain grades like a champ.

 

If you're really pushing it going over the I70 to the Eisenhower tunnel you could run out of battery and be fairly weak with just the ICE...but I'll tell you I saw plenty of Prii last month while we were skiing in colorado most with ski racks that were doing just fine over the pass.

In most real world conditions you'll have more than adequate power for anything you need..short of racing.

 

At 55mph, no wind, flat road, warm weather, no AC you should see close to 60mpg.
At 65 it'll drop to around 55mpg.

 

Oh once you catch the Prius bug, you'll stay under the limit .

Well I don't know how the 407 or the 401 is but on the west coast, it's easy to stay at the limit.

I'd say a difference between the low 4s L/100km to high 4s. At 70mph, I get 5.1L/100km (on the US highways). Stick to the Canadian limits of 90km/h and I can get the low-mid 4s with cruise control and a flat highway trip with little wind.

I've only driven an 03 Corolla (and a 97 Civic DX ugh). I'd say it's like the Corolla in pickup but in passing, it'll be faster mostly because it doesn't have to downshift. You just press and it goes.

The thing is, don't worry about the engine revving up and making noise. Yes it does sorta attract attention and people think you're some punk kid but if you need the power, then ask the car for it!

The engine hp does look low but it's 110hp net and about 115lb-ft net with a full battery (on a dyno). Note that may not seem like much but when you realise that the Prius is 1,330kg (vs. the Corolla at 1,150kg for the LE model), you'll see that the elec. motors play a big role in torque production.

On a mountain, if you're going < 100km/h, the battery is never used. You'll just see the engine powering the wheel and the engine powering the elec. motors which power the wheel. Any faster and the battery has to assist and that's when you start seeing the battery deplete.

Handling is decent but note that for 2008, all Canadian Prius versions are based on the Touring Edition with the larger 16" alloys (195/55R16), "euro-tuned" suspension and larger rear spoiler. The rental might have a 2007 instead which will have the stock suspension ,15" alloys (185/65R15) and standard spoiler. People have said they prefer the Touring when they've driven both versions so keep that in mind when you rent one and see if it's an 07 or an 08.

I have an 05. It's decent. Like efusco said, there is a fair bit of body roll if you push it. The tyres are built for economy (Goodyear Integrity) so if you wish, you may upgrade the tyres at start to something better. I'm currently running on Nokian WRs.

Note that with this car, you'll learn that mileage is quite sensitive to a variety of conditions - temperature, driving style, length of trip, number of people on board (at least in my case cause we have lotsa hills), tyre pressure and so forth. You'll learn to maximise each of those eventually.