My thoughts on GenIII vs. GenII

I recall the 08/09 Prius was 48 city/45 hwy for 46 mpg combined, so 4 less than 2010-2012.

 

There appear to be some fairly big differences between Gen3 cars. Several people here report tramlining and following groves in the pavement, others have mentioned poor resistance to cross winds, some of us have no drivability problems at all. These things usually indicate suspension design problems but since we are all talking about Gen3 Prius, the only suspension difference being the V or five versions, I tend to believe it may be alignment and/or tires.

My car is and has always been very good as far as dirvability is concerned. I have been in 30 MPH crosswinds and didn't even know it until I noticed a flag blowing in the wind. I can go down the highway, even when there are deep groves left by trucks or rain groves, with very few steering corrections. I have had 3 sets of tires, the original Toyos and two sets of Michelins, and it has driven the same with all three sets. (One set of Michelins was replaced due to a defect.) My tire wear is average for the way I drive. I got about 42K out of my OEM tires and they still had about 3/32 tread left.

I love the way my Prius drives but it has had it's share of other problems. It is full of rattles, I have the rough start problem, and my oil change door fell off, etc. etc. My mileage is probably average for a Gen3, my Gen 2 was quite a bit better for mileage but didn't drive nearly as well.

 

likely two things are happening
1) tyres are feathering to your 'aggressive' fangio like )) driving style
2) you are getting more used to the control responses

 

I agree the Gen2 may well have some aero problems. My Gen2 was delivered with alignment and suspension problems and even after the problems were set right it was never very good in crosswinds.

I do not think the Gen3 has those problems because mine does not, if one Gen3 was aerodynamically unsound it seems that they would all be. However the suspension differences in the V (or five) versions and the wider tires may help.

Are you going to put 17s and wide tires on your Gen3?

 

Yeah, I've never had problems with crosswinds so it might be the Five suspensions and/or tires.

 

Your previous stereo probably cost you 2mpg.

How do you like the interior? I haven't spent much time in the 'new' generation, but I noticed the lack of door bins - which are very handy - and felt more closed in with the centre console.

 

I have and drive both a 2005 and a 2010 Prius. Both are great cars. I prefer the 2010 because:
1. Power mode - very important to me. I can't take it without
2. More horsepower
3. Better steering
4. Much better equipped (but then that is not a fair comparison) I have nav, leather, moonroof, sat radio, heated seats - all lacking on the 2005 and all very nice and worth every extra penny.

 

Part of it is the OEM tires, but try reducing pressure in rear tires. Mine feels rock solid with 42/38 F/R (but then the suspension pieces help too).

With respect to hypermiling GenIII is easy to hypermil, in ECO mode you can switch to all electric by blipping the throttle at highway and below speeds.

It is still green it will take ~15-20K to get better

 

the reducing rear tire pressure is advice from my mechanic of many years ago.

Softer front tire deflects more and causes front to wonder. If rear is harder, it will not go as much and the difference cause the twitchiness. At static load I try to ensure the front and rear tire sidewalls flexed equal amount, which on empty car worked out to 42/38 - 40/36 good luck.

 

Forgive me if this was asked before in this thread but how bad are the rattles inside the cabin with tires inflated that much? When I got my 2012 the first few weeks I felt that the rattles were more when compared to my 2010, but then I found the dealer had my tires inflated over 40 when I took delivery. Now around 35 psi I feel the rattles are much less bothering.

 

With my 2010 I have tried different pressures and I don't think the difference is dramatic. But dropping the pressure from 44 to 38 seems to have helped, but it's hard to tell.

 

F8L, the Gen3 is a different car. It'll take some time to adjust to it. My rattles & creaks are temperature dependent. In subfreezing temps it sounds like I'm in a popcorn popper. Zero noises when in the 50's & above.

The ECO button is sticky, the PWR button is not. I don't always remember to hit the button. It's amazing how different the car feels on those two settings. Try all three, maybe one works best for you. I stay in ECO.

I don't have your handling problems but we have different setups & tires. I don't think there are any concrete roads left around here.

I keep the MID on the HSI screen. Keeping the bar to the left of & below the ECO lozenge yields the best FE. The left half is electric. After going too far to the right or into the PWR section just dropping back won't cycle the ICE down (or off). Take your foot off the accelerator just for a split second so the bar drops all the way then come back up so it is halfway & the instantaneous mpg go off the chart or to the 50's depending on the pressure on the pedal.

My FE is more consistent tank to tank compared to the Gen2 and the increment is disappointing as I expected ~10% based on the EPA numbers but it is what it is.

Early on I missed the door pockets. I keep the Nav & one of the other books in the driver's door. The dimensions of the mats are different. The grill openings are smaller. The lower glovebox is a PITA to remove & replace unlike the Gen2.

Best wishes for many happy years with the new toy.

 

Interesting, I never notice any rattles in my 2005 even if I'm running 51/48. Of course I've only run that high on my AVID ENVigor's. On the Integrety's I ran 45/42, still never heard a rattle.