Hesitation on starting off/ride.

[1dave]

Hi folks, another thread from me, hope that's OK, as a new potential buyer I have a few questions.

This is is about "hybrid hesitation" and ride quality.

I've just driven a 1.8 litre '23 plate corolla and found it quite nice but was a bit surprised at the lag of a second or so between pressing the accelerator pedal and starting to move. My first drive of a hybrid, can I ask if this is normal, is it better in a 2.0 than a 1.8 and do different drive modes (eg eco/sport) make any difference to this hesitation.

My other observation is that I drove a GR sport and found the ride pretty firm. Presumably it would be better with 16 or 17" wheels?

Thoughts please 

Dave 

 

[AndrueC]

There's normally no delay with my '19 Corolla but if I was parked on an incline there will be a fraction of a second while the brakes release. I assume that's because the car doesn't want to move off until I've applied enough power to prevent it rolling in the opposite direction.

[ThomasL]

1 second is an awfully long time to wait for the car to move! Maybe the automatic brake hold feature was turned on? Did the car "creep" when you let go of the brake pedal?

"Power mode" makes the gas pedal more sensitive/responsive and "Eco mode" makes it less sensitive (as in you have to push the pedal very slightly further down before it responds).

I don't imagine 2L being much different to 1.8L - power vs weight. Maybe you can find some website that's timed 0-30mph of both engines?

I think everyone tends to agree smaller wheels give a softer ride. But you don't get the choice if you want GR Sport or Excel variant. And some are fine with the 18" ride quality.

[sportse]

If you had the electric handbrake on there would be a delay while it released - I have mine set so it releases when I shift out of park and applies when I shift back at the end of a drive.

I may use auto hold while driving, but there is only a very small delay when that releases.

Apart from that, there should be instant response from the electric motor when pulling away.

There is more acceleration available after the petrol engine starts up so if pulling away quickly there will be initial acceleration at a certain level followed by an increase when the engine has started.

To 50mph there is only 0.7 seconds difference between the facelift 2 litre and 1.8:

https://zeperfs.com/en/duel10922-11140.htm]Duel: Toyota Corolla 1.8 Hybrid vs Toyota Corolla 2.0 Hybrid

 

[1dave]

Thanks for your replies everyone.

On reflection I overstated the case when I said a second's hesitation but I did perceive a momentary lag. I mentioned it to the salesman who said something along the lines of "that's what you get with a hybrid". 

I'll think I'll test drive a 2.0 and also a lower spec with 17" wheels as I'm not fussy about loads of tech.

 

[TonyHSD]

Hi, 

I think you might’ve have been driving the car in eco mode. This is how all Toyota hybrids react to accelerator input, kind of delay, but when in normal or sport mode you will be surprised  by how quickly the accelerator responds to your input. The engine size here does not make any difference. 
For the ride quality, yes Corolla with 18” wheels is on the harder side and also very noisy from the low profile tyres. The best wheels tyre sizes are 205/55 16 . You can retro fit wheels from icon spec models., this will transform totally your driving experience and road noise, or minimum install a better tyres, all season premium brands or touring summer tyres . 

[Don Mac]

2 hours ago, 1dave said:

Thanks for your replies everyone.

On reflection I overstated the case when I said a second's hesitation but I did perceive a momentary lag. I mentioned it to the salesman who said something along the lines of "that's what you get with a hybrid". 

I'll think I'll test drive a 2.0 and also a lower spec with 17" wheels as I'm not fussy about loads of tech.

 

I'd say that this is not right at all. I switched to a Toyota hybrid because of the instant pull away that the electric motor gives, free of the hesitation you can get with some more conventional automatics.

I would second Tony's suggestion about eco mode being a possible source of your perceived 'delay'. Even in normal you have to be fairly positive with the pedal if you want the car to move off abruptly, rather than just pulling away gently.

What are you driving at the moment? Maybe the issue is that your current car gives you more of a 'kick' than the Corolla for the same pedal input? Did you try giving it a bit more 'right foot' than you're used to?

I'm afraid that I wouldn't put much stock in the salesman apparently agreeing with you. They're a) interested in making a sale, & b) not usually a reliable source of information on anything... (in my experience anyway 😁)

 

[Chuffmonkey]

I have the 2.0L and keep it in normal mode. If anything its eager to pull away with what I can only think is a bit of Battery back up. I have spun the front wheels on a few occasions only to release the pedal and start again. I would have thought the 1.8 also has the same Battery input to make pulling away instant.

The only time I can say I experience slight lag is when I have auto hold selected and forget to turn it off when I am no longer in heavy stop start traffic. 

[simond64]

I’ve had 3 new corollas in the last 4 years, my23 onwards don’t snatch like the previous year models, smoother pull off but you can still spin the wheels, pull off is instant and rapid due to the electric motors, can’t say I’ve ever noticed any lag. They are hybrids and meant to be efficient and smooth. 

[Cyker]

Doesn't sound right to me; I drive my Mk4 in Eco mode 99% of the time and nobody has beaten me off the line at traffic lights apart from EVs and a Ford Focus RS so far   (And I reckon I got away first but that thing just accelerates so quickly...!   )

It's not literally instant, but compared to any other 'automatic' gearbox it pretty much is - I reckon this has a faster off-the-line response than any other gearbox except for a pre-loaded manual or an automatic with launch control.

The only thing I can think of is if the electronic parking brake was engaged, as that is really slow to disengage - I use the hydraulic brake hold instead on mine, which releases much much faster.

[bigblock]

Those 1.8's are always a bit slow off the mark. Best get a 2.0 ltr. Only joking folks. That's not normal and that's NOT what you get with a hybrid. Don't by that one and I am not impressed with that salesman's remark either. Could have been in ECO mode but who knows for sure. On the next test drive make sure car is in NORMAL mode. If the salesman doesn't understand you, walk away.

[fred88]

I drive a lot in ECO mode and with Auto Hold on and don't get a delay.

[Cyker]

It is a bit tricky to know for sure though without being able to quantify the delay - For all we know the OP's other car is a Nissan R35 GTR, which would explain why they think it's a bit slow to move off  

[Chippy01]

If you were on a test drive from a dealer, I would say that the auto hold function was switched on, and you weren't made aware of it.
Sales dealers seem to be of the mind to switch all extras on to try to show the car at it's best.
But what's best for one person may not be for another - hence the off switch.

There is a small infinitesimal kind of lag/delay between pressing the accelerator pedal and the auto hold releasing. 
If you're used to it, you don't notice it.

[fred88]

The difference for me is so much lag with it on but that with it off, on a level surface the car will start to move forward in that fraction of second between taking your foot off the brake and hitting the throttle.

[1dave]

Thank you folks, I suspect it's just a familiarity thing. I have been driving a toyota alphard 3.0 V6 for the last 7 years. I've now test driven a '23 plate 2.0 corolla and liked it, in fact done a deal, hopefully picking it up on Friday. Massively different to my alphard (which I loved) of course, the big difference being the seating position.

I may be back with newbie questions!

 

[TonyHSD]

15 hours ago, 1dave said:

Thank you folks, I suspect it's just a familiarity thing. I have been driving a toyota alphard 3.0 V6 for the last 7 years. I've now test driven a '23 plate 2.0 corolla and liked it, in fact done a deal, hopefully picking it up on Friday. Massively different to my alphard (which I loved) of course, the big difference being the seating position.

I may be back with newbie questions!

 

Oh, 

that’s explains the difference then. Your old Toyota if it’s old school cable operated throttle vs hybrid drive by wire electronic control of accelerator, these two are miles apart and the old school is so much responsive. The hybrids also first start on electric always  and then switch to petrol. Once you get used to the hybrids you will not want to drive anything else.