After 1 month of owning my TCH, I decided to put it to the test. I’ve just returned from my first road trip. I found out a number of things about this car that I liked and disliked during this intensive drive that I viewed differently than my normal drive time. I am curious if other owners have had similar experiences.

Our family (me, my wife, 18 yr old, and 9 year old twins) vacation was a drive from our home near LA to Las Vegas, then to Williams, AZ (south rim of the Grand Canyon) then to Sedona, AZ, then back home. We traveled 1,350 miles in 6 days with the last day being the longest drive, at just over 500 miles.

Before getting the TCH I would have taken the Gas Guzzler (the Expedition that is now mostly retired) and have suffered with about 14mpg, but enjoyed much more room for the 5 of us.

First the good stuff:
Loading up the TCH with 4 roll-on sized suitcases, 2 laptops, 1 camera case, and 2 rear seat mounted DVD players, drinks and snacks was not as hard as it sounds. While the trunk is a bit small everything fit well. The back seat was a bit tight but workable.
I absolutely felt the weight load but overall the car seemed to handle it well.
Even with the added weight I still averaged 34 mpg overall. With the mountains and vertical climbs of almost 7,000 ft and the loaded car I felt this was reasonable. I did not do anything to improve the mileage. I just drove it like a regular car.
The acceleration and power was adequate even on the steepest climbs. Highway speeds averaged 80 mph and the TCH seemed to perform just fine over long distances at high speeds.
I didn’t feel fatigued and I never got a back-ache, and that says a lot about the quality of the seats.
I connected one of the portable DVD players to the AUX jack and put the rear speakers on. This made the hours go by much easier for the kids.

Now the bad stuff:
Driving the packed TCH handling felt soft but we were pretty loaded down.
I had a moment of serious concern with the brakes. The road into Sedona is directly off of a steep and long mountain road (AZ 17). The exit ramp was a bit shorter then I expected and coming off of the downhill with the car this heavy I felt a significant amount of fading in the brakes. In fact I overshot the exit stop sign by about 15 feet. Luckily there was no traffic and it was not a problem. The fading did make me nervous and more cautious for the balance of the trip.
The AC was hard to control. The ECO switch did not seem to have a noticeable effect on mileage but caused the humidity and temperature to be inconsistent and annoying. With temperatures up to 106 in the desert I gave up on the ECO setting. One big problem was the center AC vents. They do not turn off and the vertical range is limited so they are always blowing on you. Even with the dual controls when my wife was cold or just did not want air blowing on her she had to move it to the left and now I had two vents on me. With the extreme outside temperatures this became a constant battle to keep the internal temperature cool enough and not feel like you had wind in your face constantly.
I tried the “Break” position on the transmission several times on the steep mountain roads. While it did slow the car somewhat it did not feel like there was a real slowing safety factor like in a traditional engine and transmission. The TCH manual states that the “B” position will slow the car but not as much as a traditional car. The increase in drive-train noise made me a bit nervous so I tended to not use it as frequently as I would have on another vehicle.

On balance I am pleased with the car, its long term comfort and the ability to handle this trip. I was not sorry I left the traveling living-room at home and saved 65% ($160 vs. $400+) on my gas bill. After getting used to the SUV mentality you really can go back to some sensibility and remember that we all drove cars at one time. They worked then and they can work now too. Now if I can just remember that I can easily fit into that parking space with my TCH.

 

You had a good sized load for the trip. How much tire pressure where you running.

Once my '07 TCH was broke in, I practiced pulling the lever back to the brake position. Best I can remember it seems to slow the car better at 40 and 45 than at 50 miles per hour. I think above 40 it switches from the generator to the engine to slow the car, thus the elevated engine noise. I could also apply the foot brake during that time if needed. Your right about the brake position not slowing as fast as low gear in a gas powered car.

You might need to set the AC to a lower temperature and less fan. I have drove in 103/104 temperatures north of El Paso last summer. I had the fan set to the 3rd notch. It's just me and my wife.

I can move those front vents toward the ceiling if needed. We usually keep the vents almost straight out though the upper center of the front seats. Although that could be too much fan for the rear passengers.

I get 47 miles per hour highway at 65 miles per hour with the ac set to rather low fan. No load other than the two of us. We don't do much traveling though.

No doubt you speed and mountains with all that load pulled you down. Still thats great gas mileage, especially driving it like it was a gas powered car.

 

For me, on long down grades, the trick to the brake mode is to put it on before its needed. I use the main brakes if I need to slow down for safety & the engine brake instead of the mains to keep downhill speed regulated.

 

The road into Sedona is directly off of a steep and long mountain road (AZ 17).


I drive that road (exit 179 to Sedona) almost everyday, at least once a week someone over shoots that off ramp. They end up in the weeds. Whith our speed limits being 75 and most doing 85+ they come off that ramp to fast.

How did you like Sedona?

Don't take this wrong, but there are to many tourest's for me.

I hope to be a new HyCam owner real soon.

 

Well I'm glad to know that I'm not alone and I missed the weeds.
Sedona is an AMAZING place. I have a friend that works in LA and lives there. Nice commute! Too many tourists maybe but sorry it's too beautiful to keep to your self.....
Now as for the TCH what are you waiting for?

 

You can move the vents up but they don't go high enough to completely get off of the front seat passengers. I think that this is not a show stopper but a small annoyance that over time may grow to be a big one.

 

Annuity, I have a few months to wait, I want to pay cash, no payments.

 

I pick my TCH for road trips nowadays too.

Even packed with people and holding luggage......it is comfy enough.

If only bike racks could be mounted on back with Toyota's blessings, I would be perfectly happy.....I wish it could be so......sigh.