Is The Prius Losing Its Purpose?

The Elantra (as much as I love them) is a 32MPG car combined, which is 20% less than maximum (highway MPG). 20% less than combined MPG on a Prius would be 40 MPG .... so you're actually doing better with the Prius percentage wise than with another 'economy car' from a combined MPG point of view.

I'll tell you right now ... with more judcious use of the AC .... set maybe at 74-76, slightly increased tire PSI (42/40), and less of a lead foot ... you'd be right there at around 48-49 MPG. In the highest heat of the summer, my MPG is a little lower as well. You just have to give the Prius a break in the extreme heat AND the extreme cold ... it's the same with any car ....

Why not try those things ?

REV

 

That's silly. I simply make sure I drive downhill on both legs of my commute.

 

The first generation Japanese Prius was designed in the mid '90's and went on sale in Japan in 1997. The "American" Gen. I went on sale in the US in 2001. This car is almost 15 years old and it's latest model which is merely tweaked is still the gold standard. The small, ICE "40 mpg" new cars have still not solved the city regen braking problem. The best they're contemplating is ICE off at stops. US driving is almost half city. The GM EV-1 was one thing that prodded Toyota into the Prius. GM killed the EV-1 and Toyota stuck it out with the Prius and we all know how that worked out for both of them. There will be a lot of new choices soon. Toyota will be competitive.

 

Once Toyota recovers from the earthquake in Japan and is fully operational again, they will likely increase their lead over GM as the world's number one automaker. The two giants seem to be moving in opposite directions.

With the recent recall fiasco behind them, Toyota will intensify their efforts, and not make those mistakes again.

The Prius hasn't lost its focus; nor has Toyota. Just wait a few months to see what all the new models are - a great many people have been very busy, and the results will soon be apparent.

 

And it would be funny if I didn't know people who purposefully burn more gasoline in order to show a better mpg number. One more reason why mpg is the wrong way to gauge efficiency! Yikes.

Oh... my kingdom for that crystal ball! I would love to hear a logical reason to keep things the way they are. To keep hiding externalized/socialized costs from the consumer. I mean except that sticking our heads in the sand is way easier than confronting the ugly, painful realities. What cracks me up the most is those who want renewables to be completely transparent, upfront and with no subsidies!

 

Once again you are ignoring the risk of wind turbines blowing the Earth off of its orbit. Who is going to pay for that hidden cost?

Tom

 

That parking lot called MOPAC is what gets my MPG up into the 50s

 

OP should be comparing the accord (mid-sized) with the prius(mid-sized) not the civic (compact).

that $6,000 difference can be brought down to a $2,000 difference.

 

Way back to the start of the thread, I've found the car can easily get the EPA as it's set in 2008, even allowing the average driver's foot is a bit heavier.

When the mpg is not what I think, generally it's something overlooked like the wind, traffic conditions, etc.

 

My 2010 Prius has not gotten less than 60 mpg since April. Now with 22,000 miles and about 50 tanks of gas it has a LMPG of 58, and that in snowy cold New England. My tanks run an average of 40 mph. I do hypermile when traffic allows, and usually stay at the speed limit which is 55 on most of the roads I drive on. Great car and easily beats the EPA predictions, even in the dead of winter. On long coasts I shift to neutral. Use P&G and SHM where traffic and terrain allow. My driving is mostly highway miles.

 

The Civic is a fair comparison for size. The Prius is only very slightly larger.

 

The innocent bystanders on Mars who find themselves in the path of the wayfaring Earth.

 

Maybe outside but not inside unless the Civic has changed a lot in the past 2 years.

I like the Civic but legroom was poor all around and the rear legroom was very poor with tall people in the front seats.

The Civic's cargo carrying capability is also not in the same league.

 

+1

We have one of each and there is no match. Prius is a giant beast that gets better mpg and is more utilitarian.

 

Nope. The Civic is NOT a fair comparison.

 

For me it was a no brainer. I don't have it yet and even with the worst mileage I calculated (40mpg) and the best my SUV (BMW X5) would get 15mpg. I'll still save ~$300 month.

I should get way more than 40mpg as I live in Fl. The land of heat and flatness. But I wanted a worst case. I also drive roughly 20k a year.

Ryan

 

Same deal here. Going from a V8 4Runner that gets me around 14 city if I am lucky to a Prius that will get 40MPG on a bad day.

I too have no taken delivery of mine (it just arrived in port on Sunday ... so, should be any day now) --- but, even a calculated worst case scenario has me gallons ahead of where I was. I will be saving more per month than I will be making in payments.

 

Remember, OP is not questioning the merit of a Prius and its gas savings, but rather its merit against other fuel-efficient, now-available, cars. Nobody can doubt that going from an SUV to a Prius is a huge savings in fuel costs (we went from a minivan to it), and to the last two posters who are about to experience sub $40 fill-ups after driving 450+ miles it's a wondrous thing.

 

Absolutely ! I went from an 08 4 cyl RAV4 that got 22 MPG overall to the Prius which I've been averaging 48+ with. With the RAV4 I could go 330 miles on roughly 16 gallons for a cost of about $64, vs 480 miles on $40 with the Prius. That's a savings of about $56 for every 480 miles. Drive 2000 miles a month like I do, and you're saving $224+ each month. That'll take quite a bite out of a monthly payment.

REV

 

A light foot? I see a lot of braking. Try not to "over-accelerate". Focus on the speed/momentum you are building up. You'll get better at judging it and reduce those regen little cars.