Transport Canada's ecoTECHNOLOGY for Vehicles (eTV) Programme Evaluation of 2010 Prius

check out my post in the question about 'DTE'. My prius in moderate weather does average between 48 and 50 mpg if I drive very very mildly with people constantly passing me or moving around me. If I drive more mainstream, I probably average about 45 mpg.

However, in the winter months (about 4-6 months of the year), I get horrid gas mileage lower than most small compacts. My prius will get about 22 - 28 mpg in the winter. To increase it a bit, I have to drive with the passenger compartment heat turned off as it constantly runs the engine to warm the water to heat the passenger compartment (a total waste similar to why they went to an electric AC compressor a few years back). Oddly enough, the new 2016 Prius does EXACTLY the same thing. I took it for a test drive and showed the salesman that if I turned off the passenger heat, the engine (ICE) suddenly stopped and turning back on the heat would instantly restart the engine (ICE). Seems pretty stupid to me seeing as there is a computer on-board and it would be rather easy to calculate the difference and preference for heat sources with running the ICE as a last resort. Maybe it does that but I've tried the above routine with the battery fully charged and it STILL starts the engine (ICE). Many other posts point to a direct ECU Directive coming from the environmental control ECU that tells the Hybrid ECU to start the engine if the heat is activated.

 

your prius has an issue. i get 45-55 mpg in winter. maybe you should trade it in for a smart for two or something else more efficient.
obviously, mild canadian winters are skewing the numbers.

 

You'll get that for longer trips but I was driving 2-3 miles one-way for 3-4 months in snow and ice and near zero.

 

yeah, short trips are a bummer. imagine what a regular car gets?

 

as I noted earlier, my SMART car easily achieved 32 mpg in the winter on short trips. I'm looking to buy a new one soon but waiting for the new model to get a year or so under its belt before I spring for it. I'm also thinking of buying a Tesla Model S too. Probably the Tesla makes more sense but the SMART was so much fun to drive
Marc

 

a smart car is not a 'regular car'. of course, the smaller and lighter it is, the easier it is to achieve higher mpg's.
prius is not for everyone, obviously.

'despite being a mid size car, the 2010 prius is the most fuel efficient vehicle in canada, across ALL classes'. perhaps they've never heard of the smaat.