Better highway mileage than city?

Hello and my first post.
Second owner of 2012 Prius w/ 103K miles and I'm at the two-year ownership mark. New Michelins with appropriate pressure. Recent 12V battery replacement. Veepeak ODB, Car Scanner and Dr. Prius apps installed. Driving profile is 95% city usually of short duration (3-10 miles a day). I drive in 'normal' mode as the 'Econ' mode seemed to perform worse. After two years, and being exceedingly careful with my driving habits, I consistently show ~ 43mpg long-term but a recent highway jaunt net me 46mpg (75mph with hilly terrain). As soon as I hit the city, the mpg just starts dropping.

My perception is that the EV mode is not as active as it should be while driving in the city. Disregarding when the car or the weather is cold, the ICE seems to run randomly and more often than it should despite battery charge indicator showing adequate.

My questions: is there an electronic component under the hood or some other mechanical issue that might be preventing the EV mode from operating more efficiently and would the apps I'm using allow me to help troubleshoot this?

I've spoken with service at two Toyota dealerships and both seem hesitant to engage with this subject. Also, talking with several Prius owners over the years, they share they get better mileage (at least high 40s if not 50+).

Any input would be appreciated, even if it is a link on this site that addresses my query. Sincere thanks in advance.

PS: If this is as good as it gets, I'm still happy with the car and it still gets twice the MPG of my other car but not being able to optimize is driving me nuts!. I just have to know

 

Hi Mendel and thanks for the prompt response. Michelin Defenders. Curious, would tire compound/grippiness have a dramatic effect at 30-40mph city driving?

 

Yeah, I have the same tires on both vehicles. Very pleased. I'm going to play around with Eco mode again. I didn't know how to drive the car when I first acquired it so maybe i'll have better luck this round. Thanks again for the response.

 

Thanks for the response. I've considered that might be a culprit.

 

It has been a few days since I looked at this topic but I believe it resets when you disconnect the 12V battery (which I did when I replaced it recently). All of the accumulated mpg data rebooted to zero but I don't have any answers beyond that. Maybe Dirk has a better answer. For me, I'm still experiencing the same performance with the new 12V. FYI: As I stated above, I'm experimenting with Eco mode again and I have seen some extremely promising individual segment drives but I will need to accumulate some longterm data to see if this is helping - and winter and cold weather will negate some of that even.

 

Thx!

 

Interesting video. This addresses steering but I need to research how this affects mileage. Thx for the link and the concept.