I believe this seeming gain in iMPG is based on the likelihood that most drivers accelerate to a desired speed then reduce pedal pressure to try and maintain that speed but they still apply too much throttle and they are actually still accelerating albeit very very slowly. This why it is always recommended to lift off the throttle completely upon reaching your desired speed then applying pressure to maintain speed. Simply backing off the throttle a little wastes time while you try to find the right amount of pressure. This time spent hunting adds up and mpg drops.
F8L - you may want to respond to this: jsfabb said: ↑ Here is a quote from F8L from the 600 Mile thread which is where I first wrote the info above and was asked to start a thread on it: I believe this seeming gain in iMPG is based on the likelihood that most drivers accelerate to a desired speed then reduce pedal pressure to try and maintain that speed but they still apply too much throttle and they are actually still accelerating albeit very very slowly. This why it is always recommended to lift off the throttle completely upon reaching your desired speed then applying pressure to maintain speed. Simply backing off the throttle a little wastes time while you try to find the right amount of pressure. This time spent hunting adds up and mpg drops. I think he is accurate in his assessment. Read more: http://priuschat.com/threads/600-mile-club.112285/page-5#ixzz22VOGGZdX I disagree. The same effect happens when using the cruise control resume to accelerate up to a set speed and the cruise control resume should reach the set speed and maintain it. Canceling and resuming cruise control gets it back to EV only. Furthermore, you can observe that you accelerate up to then maintain speed, the engine is running even though the HSI indicator is below the midline which normally indicates that the car should be in EV. It is pretty clear to me that once the engine is on, their is a slight affinity for the engine to stay on which must be overcome by letting off the accelerator. Read more: http://priuschat.com/threads/re-step-on-gas-pedal-for-more-instantaneous-mpgs.113168/#ixzz22W59eFKP
Hit 603 miles today. Normal commute to work ~80 mile round trip mostly highway speeds for 65-70 mph A/C set to auto at 77 degrees always in this Texas heat Pulse and glide whenever I can Blinking light hit at 506 mile mark Got gas and right under 11 gallons on my fuelly HSI const. MPG was 57 calculated at 55.6 Defiantly not my best MPG but the A/C is killer on it. I did drive through some heavy rain for one day as well. Wife was not happy when she saw the blinking light and my refusal to get gas nor was the mother in law. Especially when I told them it had been blinking from the previous day Tires and rim are all stock 15" Goodyear Assurance. Not sure of the PSI will check tomorrow morning. iPad ? HD
"Wife was not happy when she saw the blinking light and my refusal to get gas nor was the mother in law. Especially when I told them it had been blinking from the previous day " lol, you're brave. My dad was freaking out on my last tank when I was trying to hit 600 (which I ended up doing the next day). We drove to a store that was close to 30 miles round trip and the whole time the light was blinking. He asked if I was going to get gas...I said maybe tomorrow . I did get a lecture though..about how I shouldn't let the tank get down that low.
Do I recall correctly that the Prius G3 tank is 11.9 gallons ? If so then 55 mpg on the display is good for 600 miles with about 30 miles to spare. That is a pretty good effort for my CTh, but a pedestrian 10% over EPA in a Prius. Are you guys lowering the bar ?
My only accidental out-of-fuel incident (as opposed to a Bob Wilson style intentional test) had roots in the opposite reaction from parents. When they switched cars on me seconds before leaving for an important high school social function, I asked if it had enough gas (I had already made sure the originally intended car was fueled and adequately clean). Dad very confidently assured that it had plenty. But as I left the house, the needle was on E. This forced a very inconvenient detour for a bit of extra fuel. (This wasn't the night for an intentional 'accidental' out-of-gas incident.) So the next day I complained about their promise that it had plenty of gas. So mom continued driving it several more days, driving the needle far below empty, and both of them repeatedly teased me about having been concerned when it really had plenty of margin. The next year they sent me to college with a newly acquired used car. The first time home, it ran dry near town and they had to come rescue me. Its fuel needle was slightly above E, higher than the point in the other car where they had teased me about being worried. Since then, I've tested my cars to either either find the real bottom (on carbureted models), or figure out where refills take ~90% of the claimed capacity (on fuel injected models). Cars vary, and it is amazing how much of the fuel tank can be below nominal 'empty'.
I think there is a Seinfeld episode where Kramer and a car salesman keep driving way past E. My day usually isn't complete unless a Seinfeld reference is in it.
Didn't get a lecture but sure did get a couple evil eyes from the both of them whenever I passed up a gas station with the burning question of Am I going to get gas now?
I went backpacking in the Trinity Alps! The last few tanks were nothing special. I just did my usual commute and no pulse & glide sessions so I'm seeing the usual 64-65mpg (indicated). I'm sitting at 200miles and 66mpg indicated right now but have no plans for a big tank just yet.
Got my first 600 mile tank. Not bad for only my 5th tank -- expecting to be able to get a 700 mile tank as the car/tires wear in a bit more (and the weather cools down so I don't run the a/c as much). Last pip started blinking at 513 miles and went 117 miles more before fill-up. Fill-up was 11.164 gallons after the second click (10.968 on the first).
Thanks, F8L. I was thinking about doing one more commute on this tank but figured I would see what was really going on with this tank. I'll shoot for 700 when I have 62 or more on the MFD. I just have to keep reminding myself that 800 ain't gonna happen with this configuration and be satisfied with doing a bit better than EPA estimate. The cool thing is that my avg mpg with 17's is approaching the avg I had with my '04 running 15's, even after that dismal first tank on the '12.
