hey guys, new to a camry hybrid (picking it up in a few days) and was wondering how different the experience was going to be compared to our 01 prius. we love its electric mode, and i often find myself accelerating to 43 mph, costing to 41, and ev'ing it as long as i can with a very slow deceleration. yes, im a hypermiler when i can.

i was hoping to get some insight on the camry hybrid experience from someone who has owned a prius (gen 1 or 2) and could tell me a few of the things i can expect. is it the same 42mph limit on ev mode? i assume the acceleration is much better but how about ev only acceleration and deceleration before the friction brakes come on. ive done a ton of searching but im looking for a comparision and current opinions on people who may not have been asked this before. thanks,
jason

08 camry hybrid
01 prius (for sale very soon)
02 prius, totaled
03 civic hybrid 5 spd (insane mileage)

 

I had an '06 Prius. The TCH hybrid system works pretty much the same as the Prius. You will feel a noticeable difference is in regenerative braking - the TCH appears to coast more like a regular vehicle rather than slow down like the Prius. The TCH will not operate in EV mode beyond 42mph. Enjoy your new car!

 

Jason - I can't speak to the Prius or Camry, let alone the differences since I've never owned either, but I was wondering how your '03 Civic has held up.

I've got close to 230,000 miles on mine and it's still going. The CEL/IMA lights are on and I get frequent recals but I get by because it's the 5 speed and all in all it's the best car I've ever owned. And I'm still getting 50+ MPG.

I've also got a 2010 Insight, but the Civic is the work horse.

Best of luck with the Camry, here's looking forward to your next green automobile purchase, a 2018 ?????

 

we didnt own the civic hybrid very long. got a deal from a wholesaler and flipped it. i owned it for 4 gas tanks. it had 150k i think, and had a check engine light for the catalytic convertor. its worst tank of gas was with 4 people in downtown dc and that was 42. its 4 tanks averaged 45. cool fun car, even though it was floored almost all the time . it doesnt have the torque of the prius, even the old 1st gen.

with the same 42 ev mode limitation, sounds like there is not much to get used to. anyone know how much more powerful the tch's electric motor is vs the 01 prius? im wondering if electric only mode will actually be able to accelerate, instead of just holding its speed.

 

In my '07 I just can't accelerate in EV beyond about 5% pedal input, or on anything other than flat ground. The 42 mph (indicated) limit applies to EV mode, but the speedo is off by 3mph on every TCH example I've seen, so the actual limit is more like 39mph.

The electric motors are sufficient to have save my axx one time when I was nearly broadsided by a gravel truck that ran a red light. They can dig in quick when called upon. I drove a late GEN2 Prius once as a rental. It seemed quite quick too, perhaps because it is lighter and smaller.

 

yea i drove a 2010 prius a few weeks ago and it had some gettie up. each gen gets faster and more efficent. im blinded by science!

how much energy can be captured by tcm compared to the prius line. i know each gen is different, but if anyone had some insight into how strong the electric brakes or electric acceleration on tcm vs gen i prius i would appreciate it.

 

You should enjoy the ride, weight and coasting ability of your TCH. Especially if you run your cold tire pressure up around 38 to 40 psi for coasting, if your TCH came with the michelin energy S8 tires. The Energy tires seem to ride rather smooth at 40 psi cold. I later replaced the oem's with the newer michelin saver a/s tires. I have mine at 43 psi due to driving in the cold winter nights to town and back. These tires don't heat up much at all when it's cold in the 30's.

I have a scan gauge II and calibrated it's mpg reading using the highway timing mile markers. It shows my true speed to be 2 mph slow vs the speedometer. Although I use the speedometer as it's easier to read. Any speeds I give in the forms are from the car's speedometer. I get my mpg readings from the display mpg readout.

I don't trust the gallons-miles calculated reading. I found it's very hard to find a level pump driveway. Sometimes even the same pump will not always be set to pump the same gas flow when set on Low at the nozzle.

You will read in the FAQ's that the mpg readout will show approximately 1 1/2 mpg higher readings on your mpg vs a good calculated reading. Still by using the mpg readout I find it's easier to compare your various ways of hypermiling the TCH.

I'm looking forward to your first few tanks to see how your known hypermiling does with the Camry. I'm sure you already know all the places to coast or when to carefully add extra power when climbing any grades.

I have found the TCH seems to like 40 mph best, as it will go to EV on it's on much easier. If you see your in a slight coast area at 41/42 mph, and the engine wants to keep running, pull the cruise down once and that should put it in the EV mode.

Let us know how it goes. No doubt the winter cold pulls down our mpg. I get my best mpg during the spring and fall.

Be sure to read Hiraldo's New Owner FAQ, at the top of the Forms or click this link to it below.

https://www.greenhybrid.com/discuss/...q-2-2-a-16852/

 

one thing ive noticed about the car is that the throttle response itsn't there like on my first gen prius. despite the 1.5 liter engine, it was designed to give you some power when you hit the gas even a little bit. our throttle response is flat compared to it, or an altima hybrid. i loved renting that car in california. what have you guys noticed about that?

 

The only thing I can think of for poor throttle response is by not using a top tier gasoline. In this list you will not see the Fina's, diamond shamrock or walmart gas's listed.

Here is the list, be sure to click the other links to read how the list came about.

http://www.toptiergas.com/retailers.html

If you car is new with low miles it won't reach peak performance till it's fully broke in around 7000 to 8000 miles.

 

The ECOnomy setting 'relaxes' the throttle response - see if it's 'on' (small button by your left knee). It also seems to make 2-3 MPG difference in 'normal' city/suburban driving by