Toyota Prius3 fuel consumption in mixed mode

I only use ECO or PWR modes. So I have no idea how the NORM or mixed mode works.

 

If you deactivate "ECO" mode, that will be "normal" mode.

 

I understand how to get into the NORM mode. what I do not understand is the benefit of the NORM mode.

 

I would "guess" it would run in a normal way.
ECO would use the battery more, cut back on the a/c and such and more Economicly efficient.
Power gives you the maximum power from the engine and hybrid battery. A more sporty feel.

 

That is my guess as well.

I have two Prius' because fuel economy is important to me. Therefore I mostly use ECO. I have no idea what fuel economy should be expected from the use of NORM.

 

Just a small difference from my experience.
I always used eco to capture any and every fraction of efficiency.
I’m not sure if the o/p is asking a question or making a statement

 

The limits on the HVAC system are the only genuinely substantive changes made in ECO mode. It caps how hard the A/C will be allowed to run, and it disables the supplemental electric heat while the engine is warming up. Those limits are not imposed in the other two modes.

Aside from those limits, these three 'modes' don't do anything but change the shape of the graph from pedal position to requested power:



The concave-down version you get from PWR feels sportier because your early foot motion makes a bigger change in power request. The concave-up version from ECO is easier to modulate at typical power levels, because your small foot motions make less difference. The linear version you get in 'normal' mode pretty much splits the difference.

Funny, just noticed the OP is the so-far only post ever made by the new member, so the rest of us have just guessed at what the OP even meant by "mixed mode".

 

toyota must believe that the delayed throttle would save gas by changing driver behavior.

 

My behavior changes within minutes every time I change the setting.

I drive in ECO most of the time, but turn that off on occasion when I want more A/C or heat.

My next couple take-offs after turning ECO off are more on the exuberant side, because I push the pedal down the way I was used to in ECO. Then my brain adjusts and I'm back to driving the car the way I normally do.

Then when I don't want the extra A/C or heat, I put ECO mode back on. My next couple take-offs are more on the lethargic side, because I push the pedal down the way I was used to. Then my brain adjusts and I'm back to driving the car the way I normally do.

 

I find that when I use ECO I actually get a lower MPG than when I just have it off. I've used it twice starting with a full tank and it turned out the same each time. Without it on I can get 54 with some attention and effort. With it on I was getting 50 or 51.

 

Yeah I found similar: ECO mode was ultimately tiring, requiring more than normal pedal travel to achieve a reaction. I used it off-and-on the first few months of ownership, then never since. Forgotten the buttons are even there.

 

In mine, I've used primarily ECO mode.

Barely perceptible difference in the response to the gas pedal.

One other difference is how much the AC works. In ECO mode, it doesn't cool as much. Most of the time, I was driving either to work, or home. Since that trip only takes about 15 minutes in this small city, I didn't need it on the way to work, and my trip wasn't long enough for the car to cool down on the way home, so I just rolled the windows down - in the summer. I never noticed any difference in the winter.

 

The main climate-control difference in the winter is that ECO locks out the electric supplemental heat that otherwise can kick in before the engine coolant is hot enough to heat with.

The supplemental heat is puny: about 700 watts (compare the 5300 watts of heat you get from the coolant once the engine is warm). I've never been able to feel any difference when it's there or not.

But if starting a cold car with a fogged windshield, it does clear the windshield noticeably faster. I turn ECO off for those moments.