Posted by Was Istoben on May 2, 2009, 2:51 pm
> Toyota WANTS you to have cruise control on your Prius. Do you think they
> would sell one without it?
Yes. It's part of an evil plot. You almost have it figured out.
Posted by Steve Giannoni on May 2, 2009, 4:34 pm
My 2001 bought way back when came WITHOUT cruise control. I added it
myself from Toyota upgrade parts and never regreted it.
On Sat, 02 May 2009 07:16:21 -0800, "David T. Johnson"
>Was Istoben wrote:
>>
>> But in the instant case, this is all moot. According to the OP he
>> bought the base model and it comes without cruise control. Toyota's
>> on-line literature confirms his claim. Obviously the model IS
>> available. He is, as his handle clearly states, right.
>>
>Well...except that all Priuses have cruise control. Moreover, THINK
>about it for a minute. Why would Toyota sell a hybrid WITHOUT cruise
>control? Unlike a conventional vehicle, the Prius is ELECTRIC drive and
>comes with ALL of the elements of cruise control already 'built in' as a
>part of the hybrid system. The cruise control function is valuable for
>fuel economy which is the objective of the hybrid in the first place.
>Toyota WANTS you to have cruise control on your Prius. Do you think
>they would sell one without it?
Posted by Chas Gill on May 2, 2009, 6:21 pm
> Was Istoben wrote:
>>
>> But in the instant case, this is all moot. According to the OP he bought
>> the base model and it comes without cruise control. Toyota's on-line
>> literature confirms his claim. Obviously the model IS available. He is,
>> as his handle clearly states, right.
>>
> Well...except that all Priuses have cruise control. Moreover, THINK about
> it for a minute. Why would Toyota sell a hybrid WITHOUT cruise control?
> Unlike a conventional vehicle, the Prius is ELECTRIC drive and comes with
> ALL of the elements of cruise control already 'built in' as a part of the
> hybrid system. The cruise control function is valuable for fuel economy
> which is the objective of the hybrid in the first place. Toyota WANTS you
> to have cruise control on your Prius. Do you think they would sell one
> without it?
> --
> Posted with OS/2 Warp 4.52
> and Sea Monkey 1.5a
>
Think about it a little bit more. As has been said here many times before
the Prius is a gas-engined car with electric assist. This has (as we say in
the UK) sod all to do with cruise control (as far as I can see). Cruise
control is about selecting a road speed and then controlling the "throttle"
to maintain that speed. In which case it could just as easily be applied to
a steam driven vehicle. How the control is achieved is the key. As the
Prius has a "fly-by-wire" throttle, control is probably more easily
achieved than the steam engine, but I don't think hybrid technology has the
monopoly.
I am open to educating, however.......
Chas
Posted by David T. Johnson on May 4, 2009, 5:52 pm
Chas Gill wrote:
>>
> Think about it a little bit more. As has been said here many times
> before the Prius is a gas-engined car with electric assist. This has
> (as we say in the UK) sod all to do with cruise control (as far as I can
> see). Cruise control is about selecting a road speed and then
> controlling the "throttle" to maintain that speed. In which case it
> could just as easily be applied to a steam driven vehicle. How the
> control is achieved is the key. As the Prius has a "fly-by-wire"
> throttle, control is probably more easily achieved than the steam
> engine, but I don't think hybrid technology has the monopoly.
>
I would think of the Prius as more an electric-drive vehicle with a
gas-engine assist since the front wheels are driven by the MG2 electric
motor and therefore are not powered unless MG2 is operating. The
throttle for the Prius gasoline engine is always controlled by the
computer which also monitors the road speed so the cruise control
elements are already included on every Prius. However, I investigated
the cruise control 'option' for the Prius and it was not even available
for the 2001 first generation model for which the only options (in the
U.S.) were a CD player and floor mats. The 2002 and 2003 models (also
first generation) had cruise control available only as an option. The
second generation Prius beginning with the 2004 model had cruise control
as standard equipment for 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007. For 2008 and
2009, cruise control was included as standard equipment in the 'touring'
model but not the base model, although it is included in all of the
options packages and, as a practical matter, almost every Prius comes
with an option package. However it is theoretically possible to buy a
2009 Prius without cruise control. So...I was wrong to state that every
Prius has cruise control, but only like 99 percent of them.
--
Posted with OS/2 Warp 4.52
and Sea Monkey 1.5a
Posted by Tom Cole on May 4, 2009, 9:50 pm
On Mon, 04 May 2009 10:52:50 -0700, "David T. Johnson"
>I would think of the Prius as more an electric-drive vehicle with a
>gas-engine assist since the front wheels are driven by the MG2 electric
>motor and therefore are not powered unless MG2 is operating. The
>throttle for the Prius gasoline engine is always controlled by the
>computer which also monitors the road speed so the cruise control
>elements are already included on every Prius.
>snip<
This is not correct. You seem to be thinking that the Prius is powered
something like a diesel-electric locomotive. Power to the wheels can
come from any or all of the gas-engine, MG1, and MG2, under the control
of the computer. For the Prius, cruise control is simply another input
to the computer, which decides how to provide power or braking to the
wheels depending on the car speed, and settings of the accelerator or
brake pedal, gear selector, etc.
> would sell one without it?