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Hybrid Vehicles Toyota Prius New Prius Owners - Give Us Your Report
541 messages, Last post on Oct 14, 2009 at 6:10 AM
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Replying to: hihostevo (Apr 28, 2008 2:34 pm) |
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Not really.... But I need the expertise of those, here, who post. Please help me to understand this. Friday I picked up my new Prius 2008. It was well appointed with Navigation, Blue-tooth, etc. I love the car at this point. The dealership "filled" the tank. I have been learning to read and interpret the "Consumption" screen, though not fully. I seem to average 37 MPG, but the other bar graph shows more than that as I go. My dilemma. I have put only 36 Miles on this car at this point. The fuel lines on the dash, now have 2 less than when I took the car home. I am not good at figuring these things out, though I want to learn. Am I getting poor mileage at this point? Do I have cause to be concerned? Should my MPG improve as my driving becomes consistant? I traded in my beloved Pathfinder which gave me the worst mpg, (14) and I am willing to forget the "past" BUT, does it seem that 1) Am I doing something wrong" or is typical of what a "break-in" period truly is? Any advice you can offer wil be so appreciated. I truly hipe that I did not make a mistake in purchasing this car. I don't believe I did, though I am just a bit concerned seeing 2 gas gauge bars gone after only less than 40 miles. Help please... 
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Replying to: rolin (Apr 28, 2008 4:52 pm) First the vehicle needs to breakin which happens at about 5000 mi and 10000 mi. For the next 200,000 miles after that you should have good solid readings. Seriously though, don't worry. The computer in the vehicle is brilliant. If you drive more than 20 min at a time and don't try to set land speed records your results after 10000 miles and 50000 miles and 100000 miles and 200000 miles will be right around 48 mpg lifetime. Trust me on this. Just drive normally and let the brilliant HSD do the rest. BUT... if you only take short trips then you have to do some adjusting. Short trips are death on fuel economy on every vehicle on the road. A 30 mpg Camry might only get 20 mpg over a series of 4 min trips. A 18 mpg Tundra might only get 13 mpg over the same series. A 50 mpg Prius might only get 40 mpg over these same 4 min trips. To compensate try to combine short trips. After 15-20 min the vehicle is at optimum operating conditions. Other 'tricks' ...stay off the Highways ...follow the speed limits ...avoid stop signs and stop lights if possible ...if you can't avoid them try to 'time' the lights so that you don't have to stop and try taking trips using as many right hand turns as possible. ... keep your tires inflated fully ... keep a light touch on the pedal ... don't worry, ... Use the constantly fluctuating bar graph as a biofeedback device to show you how to drive more optimally. Everytime that you let off the pedal and that bar graph goes to 100 mpg you've stopped burning fuel and your overall economy goes up. Try to keep that bar graph above 50. ... Let off the gas pedal as often as you can without creating a hazard and annoying the rest of the population.
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My wife and I got a new Prius in November 2007. We love it very much. We have owned SUVs, sedans and even a couple of Lexuss and are used to room and convenience. The Prius totally surprised us with its room, creature comforts and quiet ride. I am thinking of selling my Azera (another good car) and getting another Prius, probably a next gen model. I have a couple of questions though that will help me make the best of the Prius. 1. Is the Hybrid tax credit still available. I hear conflicting descriptions of what is available now. 2. We are only averaging about 41 miles per gallon as indicated by the car's computer. This is great and much more than I am used to, but I continually hear of folks getting 50+ mpg. What am I doing wrong? I drive calmly and coast as much as possible. Driving is 60/40 city/Hwy.
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Replying to: timo6 (Apr 29, 2008 10:38 am)
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Replying to: kdhspyder (Apr 28, 2008 8:24 pm) The consumption gauge shows approx. 44.0 miles per gallon, and of course, somewhat less. My concern is simply being on slightly above 1/2 of a tank at 100 miles. As always, I appreciate your help. Thank again!
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Replying to: trofrnk (Apr 29, 2008 1:28 pm) How? Never, ever drive on the Highway. From the original EPA values the Highway value was 51 mpg - at best. As soon as you get on the highway your best expected value is about 51 mpg. I get this value all the time in warm weather. Don't speed. The Prius is not excluded from being affected by the laws of physics. The faster you go the worse will be your fuel economy. OK so now you never drive on the Highway. To get 50+ mpg you have to have a fully warmed up vehicle. In fact the Prius is basically an ICE vehicle like the Matrix but it has an electro-mechanical assist. Just like any ICE vehicle the fluids and catalytic converter have to be brought up to operating temperatures. In addition in cold weather the cabin has to be warmed up. But it's Spring now. To get any vehicle up to optimal operating temperatures it has to run for at least 10-15 min. Thus any trip under 20 min will be done in less than optimal conditions. SHORT TRIPS ARE DEATH ON FUEL ECONOMY for every vehicle on the road. OK so now you're not on the highway and you're making trips of 20 min or longer in warm weather. No vehicle can obviate Newton's law of inertia. An object at rest wants to remain at rest. Try to avoid dead stops as much as possible in 'city' driving. So the way to get50 and 55 and 60 and 65 mpg is to drive at a moderate speed, say 35 mph, in good, warm, dry weather with few if any stops for 30-60 min. This btw is a near replication of the former EPA driving cycles that gave a 60 mpg rating. But as soon as you get on the highway you'll drop under 50 mpg....which is still 10-20 mpg better than just about any other vehicle on the road. |
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Replying to: timo6 (Apr 29, 2008 10:38 am) |
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What about the Prius makes you dead tired? The vibration from a Prius is much more than from my Lexus RX330. I drive my '04 all day every day and it fits like a glove. I have 194.000 miles on it and have had no problems. Are you young and immune to comfort?  Still have the original brakes. If you babying it for mileage, don't. Drive it like a car. You will still get great mileage and have less stress. Some people on these forums try and try to stretch their mileage by using all sorts or strategies to increase mileage. That just adds to stress. I have lived and driven in many countries of the world. I have driven several hundred types of motorized vehicles from extreem luxury to extreem cheap. A Prius is not, by far, a comfortable vehicle. My car is my office. If it isn't moving, I am not making money. No time for babying. I still average around 48+ MPG. I agree with you about using corn for fuel. All it does is drive food prices up. The solution is to grow more corn. I was a farmer once. The liberals have put the small farmer out of business and have paid them to not farm. I disagree with you about drilling in pristine areas. I have lived in one of those so-called "pristine widerness areas". What a joke. The death rate among children was much higher then. Only the very strong survived. God told us to subdue the land and not let the land rule us. Oil is a natural renewable resource. I still remember the liberal argument 50 years ago that the world would run out of oil in 20 years. What a bunch of hogwash. There is enormous untapped oil just discovered in the Dakotas. Even Ohio has enough "discovered" oil in Ohio to take care of its population that is not allowed to be used. Solar is the answer and all we have to do is find an efficient way to harness it. If we had no oil or gas the solution would suddenly be discovered. If what you say is true, (I use your logic) then all liberals would quit using motorized vehicles, reject professional sports (jocks produce most of those "greenhouse gases"), and shut down welfare offices (that forces peoples not to used their own sweat) thus reducing the need for oil by about 90%. If taxing the public is the liberal's only objective, then, by definition, those solutions are totally bogus. Forward thinking people originally rejected tea taxes that started a great nation of people free to discover and prosper. You have convinced me that I need to sell my Prius and buy a large SUV, just for my comfort. |
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The Soviet Union used your same arguments to promote and build the Yugo automobile--a horseless carriage for the masses. It was a big loser for many years and they had to pump millions of taxpayer monies into the plant to keep it afloat. Et tu?
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