acceleration and air conditioning

I've found the acceleration to be quite good when needed. Though I generally don't use it to its fullest extent in the interests of fuel economy.

As to the AC, it deals with the 100+ temps in the Sacramento area with no problems. I don't ever use the Auto function, I'll manually turn on the AC, and set it to 76 degrees or so with a medium fan speed. That keeps cool air blowing on me without burning up too much extra gas.

 

A/C works fine in Dallas. Buy a custom Sunshade for the windshield to speed the initial cooldown. (And then remember to park facing the Sun.)

More often than not on dry pavement I can beat BMWs and their ilk 0 to 50 (where I chicken out against the possibility of a speeding ticket) by pressing the pedal to the floor and holding it there. The Prius has no shift lag, and most drivers of old-style transmissions don't know how to shift very well. Freeway passing is a piece of cake.

The thing to watch for is slippery (wet, gravelly, etc.) pavement: the anti-slip feature will engage and all acceleration stops. Don't pull out in front of oncoming traffic.

 

I cannot speak for the air conditioning as I live in maine and have not tried it in a Prius. In terms of acceleration, it truly depends on your experience. If you have been driving a 4,000 pound 15 year old Lincoln the acceleration will be fine. It is responsive enough to be safe, in my opinion, as long as you drive cautiously and within your abilities.

As a performance car enthusiast and owner, acceleration and Prius, or any other 4 cylinder economy car do not belong in the same sentence. I have driven hundreds if not thousands of different vehicles in my life and the Prius, and the Suzuke Aero (non hybrid) accelerate about as fast as a person on a bicycle, but as I said, if you drive responsibly it will be perfectly safe and acceptable for normal every day duties. After all, everybody I know who bought a Prius wants to save gas money, have a comfortable ride, plenty of room, and reduce their pollution.

 

1. Acceleration: This is my first 4-cylinder, and I'm not missing any power from my previous V-6 vehicles. Plenty of torque, 0-60 in 10.5 seconds. You'd be surprised how many people pay for extra acceleration power they think they need but will never use.

2. A/C: Very nice. Arguably better than any other car I've owned. Auto A/C holds the temperature fine and knows how to get the cabin to the desired temperature fast (like using recirc. to cool really hot air). I feel comfortable knowing I'm driving a Prius even with our expected temps next week.

All in all, I suppose it depends on personal experience and expectations, but I think you'll be pleased.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(roni @ Jul 15 2006, 12:20 PM) [snapback]286842[/snapback]</div>

Depends on what you feel is fine or not. It's more than adequate around town <=45 mph. At highway speeds, it's adequate (can you can get to 80+ mph) but not surprisingly, it's TERRIBLE compared to my (287 hp) Z or my former (255 hp) Nissan Maxima.

You definitely won't win many drag races in a Prius (used to take my Maxima and Z to the track to drag race). In some situations where passing in my Z or my Max would be non-issue, I wouldn't even bother in my Prius. I can distinctly tell you of a situation near work where I had to get on an on-ramp and 2 lanes merged into one. Some guy in a mid-late 90s Mercedes seemed to be in a hurry too... I floored my Prius to try to get in front of him. I finally had to hit the brakes to avoid a collision. I'd have dusted him in my Z or Max.

If you've find the acceleration of 4 cylinder econoboxes to be "good enough", the Prius is pretty close to equivalent.

 

Acceleration is good, certainly sufficient 95 % of the time. The air conditioner is excellent; I set it in automatic mode at 75 degrees and forget it.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(roni @ Jul 15 2006, 03:20 PM) [snapback]286842[/snapback]</div>

I completely agree with archermoo and schumacher about acceleration. It's fine. It's as good as any car I've driven recently, which includes a Volvo (V70) and a Subaru Legacy. Middle-of-the-road vehicles. I note that the naysayers here appear to favor high-horsepower cars. By contrast, I tend to be a conservative driver. Perhaps that largely explains the difference of opinion. If you enjoy the challenge of competitive highway driving, and routinely put yourself in situations where you need to drive the car near the limit of its acceleration, then you might be better served by buying something else. But if you just drive to get from A to B safely and quickly, or occastionally like to blast off from a stoplight, the Prius is fine. So, I think the issue is more about you than it is about the car.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tnthub @ Jul 15 2006, 04:02 PM) [snapback]286863[/snapback]</div>

Wow! You must be some cycleist. I'd love to see you accelerate from 50 to 60 MPH up a 3% grade on your bicycle. Let's make a video of you staying neck and neck with the Prius - it would really be a hit on the internet.
:lol:

 

The A/C has been great here in the Houston area. It is definitely hot and humid here, and I have had no issues with that aspect of the car. I am fortunate to have covered parking both at home and at work, so I have not had to fight the major cool down situation too often. When I do (mall), opening all of the windows first makes a major difference in the cool down. I am also a big fan of sunshades. Concerning acceleration, this is the first 4 cylinder car that I have not thought of my 'turbo' mode as turning off the A/C.

Enjoy.

David

 

1. Acceleration is great; my previous car was RAV4 and the one before that was an old diesel Mercedes, so the Prius is the fastest car I've ever owned. I drove a friend's Mustang the other day, and the thing would lurch forward at the slightest touch of the pedal. I've never been in a situation where would I need to use all of that excess power. (Frankly, I felt pretty silly driving it.)

2. AC - more than adequate. I live in Palm Springs, CA, with highs of 115 F lately. Just use a sunshade, crank the AC up to 50-75% for the first five minutes (because your MPG will be pretty low anyway), adjust AC to low thereafter. Can't wait till we get a 125 F day. B) However, the backseat doesn't have it's own AC vents, so I'd image backseat passengers would roast with the AC on low? Anyone have any experience with this?

Mine is a 2006 #8 - after dealer "upgrades" it cost $31,800. If I could do it over again I would have purchased a #3, and used the extra money to convert to plugin. 100 MPG >> leather seats anyday.

Still, I feel my Prius was more than worth it.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(haceaton @ Jul 16 2006, 10:09 AM) [snapback]287124[/snapback]</div>

How about down instead of up? Would that count?

 

Acceleration: It beats my 93 Toyota Camry. I can also beat a Ford Expedition - turkey was tailgating me and tried to pass in a no passing zone. I believe (not sure) that Road & Track put the 0-60 @ 9.6 seconds.

AC: We have experienced 102-108 Heat Indexes the past week. AC beats any American engineered car I have owned or have been a passenger. Just my opinion. Like the others said, buy a full coverage sunshade. I have vent visors on my Prius and I leave all the windows cracked about 1" when parked with the sunshade installed.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(haceaton @ Jul 16 2006, 10:09 AM) [snapback]287124[/snapback]</div>

Actually, I don't think anyone would want to see my out of shape form on a bicycle. I exagerated a bit to make my point and did not intend to offend anyone. Most conventional cars have two ways to avoid potentially dangerous situations, one way is braking and the other way is through acceleration. in a Prius you do not have the option of accerating to avoid an accident so extra care must be taken in driving to avoid situations where the brakes alone will not provide a comfortable margin of safety.

I have driven a great many cars and consider the relatively heavy vehicles with a six cylinder the median in terms of performance. These are usually high 15 second to low 17 second cars in the quarter mile. The Prius does not come close to that leel of performance and actual performance vehicles are so much faster that the median car feels like a slushbox.

Gearing, torque coverters, tire size changes, can all provide changes in torque but not changes in actual power. The prius, in stock form is not a fast vehicle nor does it accelerate quickly enough to cause my parakeet to fall off his perch ( I actually take my bird on test drives).

The Prius is a great car and provides solid value, a good ride, fantastic economy, and performance that is safe as long as the driver is aware of the vehcles capabilities.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tnthub @ Jul 16 2006, 01:10 PM) [snapback]287171[/snapback]</div>

I'd like to see you on a bicycle, whether or not it's to admire your form. With a bit of practice, you'll breathe much easier, and so will the rest of us.

PS Whaddya mean I'm out of shape? Round is a shape!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tnthub @ Jul 16 2006, 07:10 PM) [snapback]287171[/snapback]</div>

I would say that only few accidents can be avoided by acceleration, and quite some accidents are actually *caused* by people who think that they can accelerate out of a situation, rather than braking. If all cars on the road would have less performant engines, I'm quite sure it would be a safer place.

There are a lot of excuses to buy a more performant car (and I fall guilty to them as well!), but I don't think that safety is one of them.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tnthub @ Jul 16 2006, 10:10 AM) [snapback]287171[/snapback]</div>

Did any of those thousands of cars you have driven actually include a Prius?

It's interesting how many non-hybrid owners are experts on hybrid performance!

 

Hi Roni, In NorthCarolina the weather is hot and humid too, but the A/C seems to do the job just fine. For a 4 cylinder vehicle, the Prius also again does just fune, now take into coinsideration that it's not going to scrarch off from the stop bar, but has plenty of power and acceleration to get you around.

You might also want to get the windows tinted, looks good and helps keep some of the heat down. Leather is a very nice option, but then again unless you live in a cooler climate year round, you might want to go with the cloth seating...Toyota uses the top of the line material for their seats.

Price can vary from state to state. A 2006 with package 8 here in North Caroina runs $30,000 plus a package 7, about 29,500.

Good Luck, and Happy Motoring :blink:

 

I too live in South Florida ( west coast). The acceleration is adequate, especially on our flat terrain. I came out of a Subaru Legacy Turbo, 250 hp. This car was obviously faster, but the Prius gets off the line quickly.

The AC works just fine, I have all, except the windshield tinted and do not use a sunscreen. The car cools down efficiently, no problem. I use auto setting almost all the time.