OK, so I've now owned my HS for 6 weeks and driven it 2000 miles - should be broken in now. Here are some random observations of the HS (and my first) hybrid powertrain, coming from turbo euro sedans with manual trannies:

- Overall power is perfectly adequate for US roads / speed limits. While it's not a thrill ride, I've only wished for more power a few times in passing situations on 2 lane roads. But I can see why those coming from a GS / LS and getting one as a loaner would feel it's wimpy.

- IMO, it's a great compromise between power and mpg, and with the new CAFE standards moving to 34 mpg in a few years, this level of performance will soon be the norm. At least until electric cars become more practical.

- The powertrain is well-mannered in most situations, gets me through traffic fine, no noticeable issues merging onto highways, and doesn't feel stressed at all at 80 mph (haven't taken it much past that, so I don't know what speed it does feel stressed, but I'm assuming a 2.4l engine should cruise fine at least up to 100 mph). Haven't loaded it down with 4-5 adults yet though, or taken it on steep mountain roads or at high altitude.

- All the little transient hybrid happenings have become invisible to me over time, and I no longer notice them.

- My biggest powertrain complaint actually is related to the CVT. I'm not happy with the throttle response - it seems to take 2 seconds from the time I hit the throttle, say when I'm trying to pass someone, to when the car starts to accelerate. During that time, it's like the cpu has to wake up, then the CVT does it's thing spinning up the engine, then only when the engine is revved up does the wheel speed begin to change. Maybe I'm just used to the direct connection of a clutch car, coupled with the instant rush of torque from a turbo. Maybe if I was coming from a 4 cylinder Camry/Accord with automatic it wouldn't seem so different.

- My second-biggest complaint is how it sounds at full throttle. As several reviews state, very un-Lexus like. Might have something to do with Lexus not having much experience with 4 cylinder engines, or maybe I'm just used to V6's and turbo 4's (the turbo mutes a lot of exhaust sounds). But it's fine up to 80%, which is plenty for most driving conditions I've experienced.

- I do miss a manual tranny - I find driving to be more boring now, and I still haven't gotten used to speed not being directly related to engine pitch. But people who have only owned automatics likely can't relate :-)

- Had a chance to try out 0-60 last week. Was lined up with a Saab 93 at a red light, who had a long string of cars behind him, and my lane ended about an eighth of a mile ahead leading to a sharp curve and onramp. I don't think he realized I was actually going to attempt to beat him to the onramp in a hybrid, because I got a jump on him and hit the onramp a couple car lengths ahead (those 18's helped on that curve too). I didn't time it, but seat-of-the-pants was maybe 8 seconds. We hit the highway doing 80 with about 20 car lengths between us and the other cars that were behind him at the red light. But the experience was very different from other cars of similar performance - a bit of initial thrust from the electric motor, then not much while the engine spooled up, then speed building with a constant engine pitch.

- Not a gripe, just an observation - even in EV mode, the car has some built-in forward thrust when stopped, so the car begins to move forward when you let off the brakes. Did Lexus add this in to mimic a traditional car with automatic? I can't think of any reason why the car shouldn't just sit there until I tell it to move by pressing the gas pedal, unless Lexus was afraid that the car wouldn't feel right to someone used to conventional cars.

- Another CVT thing - it's minor, but there's a little shake as the CVT transitions from stopped to forward motion. My guess is it's some kind of clutch engaging. It's not present in EV mode, so likely it is not related to the electric motor. Wondering if all CVT cars exhibit this; I also noticed something similar when I test drove an Audi with the new dual-clutch automatic.

OK, I've blah-blah'd long enough :-)

 

Hi Magellan55,

Your HS most probably isn't broke in yet. It will continue to break in for another 3-8k or more miles. It was about 5k before I saw a noticeable change. I have almost 9k on mine and I'm still noticing it continues to improve in fuel efficiency (read breaking in). Hybrids take longer to break in due to their very nature. My observation is mostly based on that I recently had my best tank mpg ever (49.67mpg over 457 miles).

I think your observation about the powertrain has mostly to do with the way CVT's work. Other brands/vehicles with CVT's tend to work the same way. They are "different" ... and I discovered this when I purchased my first hybrid with a CVT. I had previously been used to automatic/manual transmissions in non-hybrid vehicles.

Yup ... you're dead on about the powertrain noise under "extreme" conditions. It seems to kick in as the engine rev's above 2500 and happens too frequently on the highway for my tastes. To put it in perspective on a flat road at 60 mph without much wind ... mine rev's between 1200 and 1300 rpm.

Best of luck and continue enjoying your HS!

 

How do you know what your engine RPM is? Is there a readout on the Nav system? I don't have nav, and there's no tach on the dash, so I'm blind to what the engine is doing, other than through sound. I'm still getting used to the lack of engine data too - no engine temp / oil pressure gauges either. It's like Lexus is saying "let go Luke, trust the force to take care of your engine" :-)

 

I "use the force" ... no seriously ...

I have a ScanGuage 2 (http://www.scangauge.com) installed that has it's "guages" set to mpg/rpm/coolant temp/ign (ignition timing). It plugs in to the ODBII port and sits on a sticky pad on the dash next to the left window. I installed it in about 2 minutes.

I bought it to help me get better fuel economy with a previous hybrid. It allows being able to see what's really going on with the "engine". It has really helped me learn and understand what the hybrid synergy drive (HSD) system is doing. I highly recommend it.

 

Cool! Thanks for the info. I thought maybe you Nav-equipped guys were getting all the good data, and I was getting jealous :-)