Swapping to 5K OCI Increases MPG?

There's was a tread a while back that discussed the speed and MPG difference, but I can't recall what it was. They did say that driving the speed limit instead of way over the speed limit can help save gas. There was an article that talked about how a Prius Prime owner in California was able to achieve an average of 75 MPG just because of how he drove...

 

You mean the laws of physics ACTUALLY apply here!!!????

 

Hey we need to give conspiracy warnings here, I have to, first, get my tinfoil hat on, dontcha know!!

Science? But my Hybrid identifies as a plug-in, isn't this how this insanity works now???

 

Let me guess "how he drove." The answer is SLOW.
75 MPG is easily achievable, anyone can do it! Just drive slower and slower each day until you are there!

Yes, guys, I understand slower is better for MPG. M-Kay?
Some of you drive 60 MPH on the interstate to pinch a few pennies? Wow.... (You know if you switched to an EV you'd save a lot more.)
Guys, 60 is worse than 50. 50 is worse than 40......Drag increases with the square of velocity. I work in aviation....
I'm guessing few of you drive the lonesome prairies of the Midwest.

When trying to get somewhere on a vacation and on interstate highways with 70 and 80 as the posted speed limit,,
I drive 75 and 85, (totally legal, passed many HiPo parked in the median),,, that's how I want to spend my travel hours and hours and hours......
I'm not pinching pennies. I'm looking for adventures and fun at the destination!!

And I'm only complaining a little bit with my displayed: 1650 miles - 36.3 MPG - AVG 60 MPH .
I mean,, what other car could do that?!!

And if it had the normal 15" wheels and LRR tires it would have been even better.
(Who wants to trade for these awesome Level 5 wheels and very new tires? DM if in the Midwest!)
The car is missing the oil change flap... but how much can that matter?
I should have pumped up the tires to 45 psi for the return trip, just for testing purposes, but then wind speed, direction and elevation change comes in to play. That's why RT testing is best.
If I had reset the display for avoiding the times while having fun in the Black Hills that average speed would be much higher.

I have a buddy with a Diesel Cruise 6-spd that is doing a RT to Rapid City coming up and I'm hoping he sets the CC to 75 and 85 MPH.
But I'm afraid he is a penny pincher and won't do that.

 

If your hybrid doesn't have the parts for a plug-in,, then sorry, It is not a Plug-in.
ALL your propulsion comes from that smelly liquid. And you waste >70% of the energy as waste heat.

 

Bill Norton It may be (based on your comments here) that you are making some erroneous assumptions:
1. I did not purchase my Prius to pinch pennies (don’t need to);
2. My driving style is not based on pinching pennies;
3. My tires are P215/4517 87V, and pressure is maintained at recommended pressure plus 10% (again, not for pinching pennies);
4. While I live in the Midwest, there are not any “lonesome prairies” near here (and haven’t been for more than a century).
Prov. 17:28

 

Sorry, I was just generalizing all the responses that were suggesting I was driving too fast.
(But at a legal speed on lonesome prairie Interstate highways....)

Bro, you have the same size tires as my Level 5!
If you don't drive slow to pinch pennies,,, do you drive slow and for what reason?
What are your average MPG readings?
I'm just curios what a hit these big wheels and tires have compared stock wheels and tires.

Or should I STFU about this subject lest I:
Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent,
and discerning if they hold their tongues.

So sayeth the ancient mythologies.

 

I really have no facts on how that tire size TRULY effects mpg. What I can say is that in order for the Prius to meet its design objectives and the culture of the people who designed it (as I understand them to be) it would be negligible in the real world.

Regarding my travel style it depends on the purpose of the trip, the traffic behavior around me at the time (I drive VERY defensively).

These facts about my wife and I may be informative about us and our lifestyle choices. 3 years ago we bought the smallest house the city would approve, an older house instead of building new ( which we could have afforded to do), installed a new high efficiency furnace and a/c, low flow water fixtures throughout, and led light bulbs all while knowing the utility cost for this area were quite low (at the time). Our lawn mower has neither a combustion engine nor electric mower, most of our food comes from our backyard. While all of this can save money, it was and is not our motivation. So far our MPG exceed EPA estimates by a significant amount (and all of our vehicles have since about 1982).

 

The phrase that comes to mind is “different strokes for different folks” )

I forgot a president of the USA (notice Mendel that I didn’t say “American”) who said to have said “better to be thought a fool than to open the mouth and remove all doubt” (please, please take this in the spirit of fun that it is intended in), a lesson I have endeavored, (and failed) to remember! .

 

No. My contention is that Toyota saying you must use 0W16 (or 0W20 for 3rd gen) is so they can maximize EPA numbers.

What grade of oil is best for your engine depends on your climate, the way you drive, and what your particular values are. 0w16 may be the best oil for most original owners, but if you are in a hot climate, do a lot of high speed/high load driving, and value engine longevity over maximum mpg then you're probably better off with a 5w20 or 0w30 or 5w30.

BMW now specifies 0W20 for most of their gas cars because it is more efficient than heavier weights, but yet they still spec 0w30-0w40 for the M3 because 0W20 just can't hold up to prolonged "abuse."

 

Fact: You and I have no facts about 215/45-17" tires vs 195/65-15" tires mounted on a Prius.
You speculating that it is 'negligible' is not a fact.
And I sure don't believe that. Who else does?

Look, I'm just vaguely complaining about what my MPG display showed while getting on down the road, on a 1600 mile road trip, while cruising +5 the speed limit on interstate highways.

That display was a fact, although not corrected for odometer error.
My speedometer consistently showed 2 MPH slower than the GPS navigator I was using. So I was driving at 87 MPH on the speedometer. The tires are very new.
What say you about: "the culture of the people who designed it"? Why this big error in the speedo? And it probably effects the ODO also....
Again: Can any other car (other than a Prius with better wheels and tires) get the MPG my Prius got?
Doubt it.
But my bud with the diesel Cruise is about to find out,,, I hope.
He may be a penny pincher, "If it takes 2 hrs longer to get there, but I save $7?"

Now, let's stop talking tires and back to OIL Change intervals !!!
I may coddle this third Gen 3 I now own. It seems to be off to a good start.
Fresh Mobil 1 0-20. Didn't seem to use any in 1600 miles of flogging it down the highways.
Still looks like brand new oil!!
Maybe I'll split the difference and go for 7500 mile oil changes. I want to keep the oil control rings and lands clean!

 

VVT has nothing to do with it.
He's saying using the thinnest possible oil to gain that possible ~1 - 2% improvement in the EPA numbers may not be worth the possible engine life issues.
I agree.

Some don't flog it up the Arizona mountains, in the summer, at 80 MPH. Some do!!

 

The speedometer reads slightly high on purpose, it's mandated for various reasons, mainly to err on the side of caution. You know how people like to speed... And no, it doesn't effect the odometer.

 

Fixed it for you...

 

Do you have any references to back up these BOLD statements?

Why do my other cars have accurate speedometers? (I haven't tested their Odometers, yet...)

I could use the GPS navigator and highway markers to test the ODO on the next long road trip.
THEN, I can comment on odometer accuracy, accurately !

 

Actually the car's ecus have the correct mph and use the correct odo. The displayed mph is high by at least 4%. Tire size does effect it enough that the brake booster is different based on tire size.

When I started running a P10 obd2 scanner, I selected actual mph and coolant temp as the default display.

 

I have a reference. Mine isn't accurate and I have the 15in. wheels. Mine reads about 2 mph higher than what I'm actually going. Like @Mendel Leisk said, to err on the side of caution.

@rjparker are you saying if I swapped my 15s for the 17s the brake booster to wheel ratio would be incorrect?

 

OD’s of 215/45R17 and 195/65R15 are virtually the same; the 17’s are actually smaller, say 1/8”.

our stocks are 17”, and I swap to 15” snows every fall.