After quite a few weeks of research regarding MPG and fuel costs, we ended up buying a new Prius. I adore my new car! We traded in an '07 Nissan Titan gas HOG (14mpg at best), and now I am consistently getting over 50mpg. This morning, even with the huge hill I have to climb I got 56mpg...I am so stoked. In our truck, we would have to totally fill up every 4-6 days. At 21.31 gallons and almost $4/gal that ain't cheap. The breaking point for us really came when one day we had to make a long trip to pick up some parts for our business and quite literally had to fill up twice in two days! After a lot of calculating, we found that if we went with a car that could achieve over 50mpg that we could pay for the car note AND the gas, plus, pocket over $100 a month...all for the price we were paying to fuel up the Titan every month. Insane, huh? I finally filled up for the first time after ten days, though I could have gone a couple of more easily. Sure was nice paying 1/3 of what it took to fill up the Titan. We also figured out how many barrels of fuel we'd save every year. So impressive. I love that the Prius 'teaches' you how to drive. I am always checking the mpg gauge and that's how I taught myself to do the pulse and glide technique. Ever since I learned to do that, I have been getting over 50mpg. I also love that there is plenty of room to haul around the family and the hidden storage space in the cargo area. :0) Anyway, I'm a Prius lover now, lol.
It does make driving a fun game and keeps you involved in the power/fuel usage, watching the eco-meter, playing with the EV/Eco/Power buttons. Be sure to treat yourself to the Power button. Lots of folks find they actually get better mileage with it. Big thing for me is the styling on the 2012. Prius actually looks sharp, lots of angles and edge to it. Totally holds it's own in my parking lot of Lexus, Mercs and Audis. I blinged it a bit with mudguards, chrome rocker cover and side moldings. More edge for my car, garcon! There is definitely a psychological boost on monthly $40 fill ups vs. weekly $50's.
I haven't used the Power button but for a couple of time. Going from a very powerful V8 to a much smaller engine was a big change for me so when I had to cross a busy highway I used it then, but I honestly kinda forget about it! I agree, it IS a fun game. I can't wait until I turn off the car to see what mpg I got and how much each trip costs. I like the styling for the '12 better than earlier models. Anyway, it's a win/win for us.
Welcome to PC!~ Best Of Luck with Your New Ride. You have joined the many who put their families first. Pay for all this gas to Look Macho at the expense of my family or Get a Prius and spend the money on vacation or entertainment for the kids. You chose wisely my friend!!
The car is lying to you. Most people who check report 2-6% less. I suggest you get your MPG up to 53, pronto.
Yes, our family definitely comes first, that's for sure. We were so tired of spending $ just for gas! We estimated that in the 4 years we owned the truck (at $3.75/gal) we have spent over $25,000 on gas! I could have paid off my Prius with that! Shameful, isn't it? Oh, don't tell me my car is lying! We have a good relationship going....lol. No, I haven't done my scientific figuring; i.e. calculating mpg at the pump. I know that's the REAL way to figure it. I'll probably get around to it next fill up. For now, I'm just enjoying getting about 3x the mpg over what I had. I'm sold!
Wow--from a V8 to a 4-cylinder that's even smallish for 4-cylinders. That's a big change! Regarding the mpg for the car, many of the drivers here have fuelly track their fuel economy for them. Once you get the basics down (only takes a few minutes), then it's easy to let fuelly do it for you. Since you'll be filling up so infrequently, it'll only take a couple minutes a month to update. And then you can proudly display your Prius' mpg at the bottom of your post like this! (I entered some data on my husband's daily driver, since we're retiring the Chrysler).
Ms Doolittle, I'm a newbie in love too! I've had my Prius for four days now & I am really enjoying my commute. Still learning to drive the car, and loving every minute of it!
Fuelly is a great way to track real world mpg, and to keep up with our new friends here on Priuschat. The notes feature helps in all of of learning. Here is a way to keep us posted by just posting to our latest fill up.... The Grey Ghost (Toyota Prius) | Fuelly
:welcome: to the Prii Love! I have found myself enjoying life a little bit more, not joining in the race to the next light. Taking just a few extra minutes in my travels. With gas at about $4 a gallon out our way, I am saving $60 on every 500 miles I drive. The downside is that my fiancé and me are driving more. Road trips are more enjoyable now; saving more than half the cost of driving my old Baja.
Just remember that even though it's fun to hypermile and keep a close eye on your mileage, the point of driving is to get from A to B safely. So don't put yourself in dangerous situations by slowing down traffic, but also don't drive like a maniac. I'm now getting 52 mpg in the Gen II just driving with the flow of traffic (and sometimes faster), but it took me about 2 years to find this sweet spot.
Thanks, all. I will look into Fuelly. Sounds fun :0) Yes, I have also been driving a bit more, too. Just a tad! I don't feel so darn...guilty. Yes, going from a V8 to a little 4 cyl. was a BIG change, but I don't miss it at all. Nope. In fact, I probably drive much more safely now since I have to be so ultra-cautious around all this huge darn trucks! (I AM in Tx, after all. Sadly, we're swamped with monster trucks/SUVs) I swear, I nearly get ran off the road every day, and I do go the speed limit. I am used to looking down on cars, not up! The first time through a drive thru was pretty funny. I had to actually reach up to get my order, lol.
Oh, yeah. City driving in Texas can be a bit nuts. I drove to Dallas before in my V6 Chrysler. My driving style is pretty aggressive (learned to drive outside Boston) and I was doing at least 10 over on the interstate and was still getting passed on the left AND the right by even more aggressive drivers. With those kind of drivers around it can, paradoxically, be safer to be a not be overly cautious. Cautious, safe drivers often anger the more aggressive types, and then they might do something even more hazardous.
Welcome MsDoolittle, you should be marketing for Toyota. I just listened to a radio spot, saying almost the same thing . . . that the dollar cost of driving a land barge for a certain distance will basically pay the payment on a Prius, plus its gas cost. Kind of makes you pause in wonder. .
Lol, I told my saleswoman that I would be happy to sell some Prii for her! And trust me, it most certainly DID make us stop and say, "What are we doing?" I have 2 pages of calculations in my daybook which all tell me that I'd have to be crazy not to seriously scale down on my choice of vehicle. We 'do' the whole Dave Ramsey thing (paying off debts from least to greatest) and we're still working through that, so I jokingly kept asking my husband, "But what would Dave say?", ha. Well, I know he would have said to buy a used smaller car, and I could have done that but....oh well. Lol. Re: Aggressive drivers: Yes, I just stay out of the way. I stay in the 'slow lane' and allow them to pass even if that means pulling over somewhere. It would be senseless to let some idiot kill me over trying to maintain speed! I don't know what all the hurry is about, frankly. Oh well!
Good to know we're not the only ones! I still don't think that I'm paying "Stupid Tax" w/ my Prius purchase though.
