Prius C

I'm doing a story on eco-friendly small cars for a local magazine and I tested the Prius C. Has anybody else driven one of these? I'd also like to hear from the owners of other Priuses.

In my experience, the car had the weirdest, worst brakes I've ever felt, the steering weighted up and got light almost at random and the powertrain was unpredictable. Is this normal for a Prius?

On the plus side, it was comfortable, the interior was very nice, and I've never laughed so hard driving a car. The lady friend I brought along thought it was terrifying to drive but also a lot of fun. Sort of like figuring out a puzzle, partly because she never knew what it would do next.

I am conflicted on this one. Please share your experiences.

I've driven a regular one and though I didn't experience anything particularly funky, I also didn't find any enjoyment in driving it whatsoever..

A magazine (whose name has the 3rd and 4th letters of the alphabet in it's name) tested the Prius C for the current issue. Among other things, they "discovered" that the C is NOT any more economical with a gallon of gas than the bigger "regular" Prius.

As far as the steering and the braking: most folks (and nearly all car magazines) will tell you that Toyota products, at least the cars, are nearly devoid of steering feel. Apparently, Toyota customers DON'T want any driving involvement and therefore could care less if the steering wheel has any connection to the front wheels. The brakes...have you driven any other dedicated hybrid cars? Many hybrids have "wooden" brake pedal feel.

BTW, the magazine that tested a C said that the steering feel was improved because of the taller/optional 16 inch wheels/tires...was your test car so equipped?

I've only ever ridden in my sister's Prius, even tho she offered to let me drive it a couple of times. What struck me about the Prius was that it had several interior panels that LOOKED beautiful, but were not as soft looking as they appeared but were in fact quite hard...like steel designed to look like plastic.

irish44j wrote: I've driven a regular one and though I didn't experience anything particularly funky, I also didn't find any enjoyment in driving it whatsoever..

The one I drove understeered like a bitch and I got no enjoyment from driving it at all.

I drove one and it was much better to drive than the '05 Prius a co-worker has. The braking was equally weird on both Priuses I've driven. It's that point where the regenerative braking cuts out and the actual pad on rotor brakes kick in. Takes some getting used to in order to make smooth stops. The interior of the C is MUCH better than the '05. The C's handling is far superior to the '05. I wouldn't call it a hoot to drive, but not bad for a little hybrid. The driving position, ergonomics, and forward view out of the car was like a clone of my '97 Civic which is a good thing IMO.

integraguy wrote: As far as the steering and the braking: most folks (and nearly all car magazines) will tell you that Toyota products, at least the cars, are nearly devoid of steering feel. Apparently, Toyota customers DON'T want any driving involvement and therefore could care less if the steering wheel has any connection to the front wheels. The brakes...have you driven any other dedicated hybrid cars? Many hybrids have "wooden" brake pedal feel.

Why I'm happy that my '08 4Runner was essentially a 10-year-old design when I got it. It still has some feel to its controls, whereas more recent Toyotas seem to be dead to the world.... And it has the best brakes of any vehicle I've ever owned, and that includes ones with Wilwoods and Brembos. The factory 4-pots on the 4Runner are money!

integraguy wrote: A magazine (whose name has the 3rd and 4th letters of the alphabet in it's name) tested the Prius C for the current issue. Among other things, they "discovered" that the C is NOT any more economical with a gallon of gas than the bigger "regular" Prius. As far as the steering and the braking: most folks (and nearly all car magazines) will tell you that Toyota products, at least the cars, are nearly devoid of steering feel. Apparently, Toyota customers DON'T want any driving involvement and therefore could care less if the steering wheel has any connection to the front wheels. The brakes...have you driven any other dedicated hybrid cars? Many hybrids have "wooden" brake pedal feel. BTW, the magazine that tested a C said that the steering feel was improved because of the taller/optional 16 inch wheels/tires...was your test car so equipped? I've only ever ridden in my sister's Prius, even tho she offered to let me drive it a couple of times. What struck me about the Prius was that it had several interior panels that LOOKED beautiful, but were not as soft looking as they appeared but were in fact quite hard...like steel designed to look like plastic.

According to the trip computer, the Prius C my friend and I tested got 39 mpg, which didn't really impress me that much.

The brakes weren't wooden, they were just really unpredictable. I don't think there was any mechanical connection between the brake pedal and the brakes. I could shove the pedal all the way to the floor without much force. If I pushed on the pedal with constant, moderate force, it would do nothing at first, then it would slow down really aggressively and then, at about 10 mph, it would start gliding again.

It wasn't dull like most Toyotas, it was so incompetent it was fun, and kind of scary. There's an offramp I took in a bone stock FC RX7 at 60 mph in complete comfort. I tried to take it in the Prius C at 50 mph and feared for my life. A Yaris would have just bored me to death in the same situation.

And yes, I had the 16 inch wheels. It felt kind of sporty but in a "I have no idea what any of the controls will do when I use them" sort of way.

The plastic panels in the back were kind of crappy, but everything I touched while driving was nice. The interior was almost VW/Audi nice.

Priuses have always had incredibly horrible brake feel. My folks own an '04, and I used to drive it once in a while when I lived with them, and I've never driven anything like it. Tap the brakes at low speed and it's like you've hit a wall. Do it at high speed and nothing happens.

Interestingly, a review of the C I just read (in a magazine whose name is a long word for "car") made a big deal out of how the brakes are finally "fixed". I guess their standards are pretty low, or I just haven't been driving many Toyotas lately.

could it just be that they come with terrible pads?

In reply to irish44j: I think it's probably the way it is constantly switching from electronic to mechanical braking. The computer programmer responsible for the brakes was obviously abusing methamphetamines.

integraguy wrote: A magazine (whose name has the 3rd and 4th letters of the alphabet in it's name) tested the Prius C for the current issue. Among other things, they "discovered" that the C is NOT any more economical with a gallon of gas than the bigger "regular" Prius.

To be fair, it was never supposed to be. It's more economical up front.

My take on the whole Hybrid thing is that they are a Catholic form of transportation; any form of enjoyment is entered in the Sinful side of the ledger and the resulting hairshirt is bestowed with praise. Oh and the honor of being Tithed is also embraced by the faithful!

Worked for a Toyota dealer up until a couple weeks ago. As dull as it may be, get ready to see a LOT of those little cars. EPA 50MPG combined and MSRP ~$19k? It'll sell... no matter how bad it is.

thestig99 wrote: Worked for a Toyota dealer up until a couple weeks ago. As dull as it may be, get ready to see a LOT of those little cars. EPA 50MPG combined and MSRP ~$19k? It'll sell... no matter how bad it is.

50 GPM? 19K?!

The dealer where I ordered the FRS has a huge banner saying 81 MPG and MSRP of 25k.

What gives with that?

NOHOME wrote: My take on the whole Hybrid thing is that they are a Catholic form of transportation; any form of enjoyment is entered in the Sinful side of the ledger and the resulting hairshirt is bestowed with praise. Oh and the honor of being Tithed is also embraced by the faithful!

So they are meant to be driven in the missionary position?

I did recce at the Rally of the Tall Pines in a Prius once. Was pretty fun, lots o' torque for coming out of the low speed corners. Caught air a couple of times, hit some rocks, good times. She made it through the abuse in -20*C weather! Left foot braking worked like a charm, try that on any newer vehicle!

What is the Prius C? I could google it but I doubt I really care. Just looking for a couple sentence explanation here. Sounds like it is a smaller cheaper Prius? Not a plug in version or anything exciting, is that right?

thestig99 wrote: Worked for a Toyota dealer up until a couple weeks ago. As dull as it may be, get ready to see a LOT of those little cars. EPA 50MPG combined and MSRP ~$19k? It'll sell... no matter how bad it is.

It was many bad things, dull was not one of them.

That's about it, Smaller and less expensive.

NOHOME wrote:

thestig99 wrote: Worked for a Toyota dealer up until a couple weeks ago. As dull as it may be, get ready to see a LOT of those little cars. EPA 50MPG combined and MSRP ~$19k? It'll sell... no matter how bad it is.

50 GPM? 19K?! The dealer where I ordered the FRS has a huge banner saying 81 MPG and MSRP of 25k. What gives with that?

The gas mileage thing was just a lie. The 25K referred to a loaded model, probably. The top spec one I drove ran 25,700. Base they are 19, but the dealer I spoke to said he doesn't even bother with any spec costing less than 22.

T.J. wrote: What is the Prius C? I could google it but I doubt I really care. Just looking for a couple sentence explanation here. Sounds like it is a smaller cheaper Prius? Not a plug in version or anything exciting, is that right?

Yaris hybrid, basically.

I'm really interested to test drive one, but haven't yet. From what I can tell, it's got the most modern hybrid powertrain of the Prius family (new motor/inverter combo with higher power) and comes in significantly cheaper. More electric power to weight ratio means it should be a little more fun to squeeze increased "EV" mode out of it compared to the standard Prius and by default of being a smaller car should be a little more fun to toss around. Still a bland car, for sure, but an improvement on the standard Prius and a step in the right direction IMO (smaller, cheaper). The sticker price is VERY impressive, and as mentioned above will bring a lot of buyers by default. 50 mpg EPA rating at $20k is fantastic value...and the more people buy a hybrid, the more likely we are to continue getting hybrids at lower prices and with better features in the future.

Of course the Prius family is pretty boring, but there's no way we'll get sportier version of hybrids at normal human prices until the bland ones pump up the volumes. I'm glad to see hybrids continue dipping lower and lower in price. Hopefully I can test drive the Prius C and the CR-Z both soon, both are on my "to do" list just to see what they're like even if I'm not in the market.

Bryce

Nashco...not sure what magazine(s?) you are reading, but the one I read pretty much says that the only "improvement" the C offers over the regular Prius is the sticker price.

"Total system output is just 99 horsepower, DOWN 35 to the Prius, and yet fuel economy, at 53 mpg city and 46 highway, is BARELY CHANGED FROM BIG BROTHER'S 51/48. Blame a combination of the smaller and older engine (from the Yaris) being more heavily loaded, a less slippery 0.28 drag coefficent (compared with a regular Prius's 0.25), and the fact that the regular Prius is extra efficient."

"(Badging aside, it's more Yaris hybrid than scaled down Prius.)"

It would appear that Honda's 2nd gen. Insight was a different kind of success, and not for Honda but for the consumer.

HiTempguy wrote: I did recce at the Rally of the Tall Pines in a Prius once. Was pretty fun, lots o' torque for coming out of the low speed corners. Caught air a couple of times, hit some rocks, good times. She made it through the abuse in -20*C weather! Left foot braking worked like a charm, try that on any newer vehicle!

I'm surprised it let you get out of those corners. I drove the family Prius up the canyon to go hang out with people a few times when my real cars were all broken, and the incredibly agressive stability control made it a real challenge. It's really easy to trigger, unlike most cars that just cut power, it actually steps on its own brakes, without brake lights no less. (Almost got rear-ended by a friend because of that.)

Nashco wrote: I'm really interested to test drive one, but haven't yet. From what I can tell, it's got the most modern hybrid powertrain of the Prius family (new motor/inverter combo with higher power) and comes in significantly cheaper. More electric power to weight ratio means it should be a little more fun to squeeze increased "EV" mode out of it compared to the standard Prius and by default of being a smaller car should be a little more fun to toss around. Still a bland car, for sure, but an improvement on the standard Prius and a step in the right direction IMO (smaller, cheaper). The sticker price is VERY impressive, and as mentioned above will bring a lot of buyers by default. 50 mpg EPA rating at $20k is fantastic value...and the more people buy a hybrid, the more likely we are to continue getting hybrids at lower prices and with better features in the future. Of course the Prius family is pretty boring, but there's no way we'll get sportier version of hybrids at normal human prices until the bland ones pump up the volumes. I'm glad to see hybrids continue dipping lower and lower in price. Hopefully I can test drive the Prius C and the CR-Z both soon, both are on my "to do" list just to see what they're like even if I'm not in the market. Bryce

Car and Driver says the Prius C has the original Prius' drivetrain. It only makes 99 hp. EV mode was good for EXTREMELY gentle acceleration only and speeds below 20 mph only.

I would really like to give the CRZ a shot, though.